As parts of plans to further consolidate its growth plans, Beta Glass Plc announced during its Annual General Meeting in Lagos, at the end of June 2009, its decision to further expand its operations a…
As parts of plans to further consolidate its growth plans, Beta Glass Plc announced during its Annual General Meeting in Lagos, at the end of June 2009, its decision to further expand its operations and market in the West Africa sub-region, in order to maintain its position in the packaging industry in the continent. Speaking during the meeting, Chief Chris Ogunbanjo, chairman of the company, said that this move is necessary due to the impact of the global financial crisis and its effect on worldwide economies and businesses. “There are credible indications that the global recession is going to deepen in 2009 and a harsh economic climate awaits industries all over the world. Our products are classified as capital expenditure for our customers and therefore impacted by the global credit crunch. The Naira devaluation and other resultant cost increases would further pose challenges in managing our input costs. We will strive to maintain our leadership position in the industry through closer strategic ties with our customers, partnering in their new packaging initiatives, drive on cost management and expansion of our markets in the ECOWAS region, he added. For the financial year ended 31 December 2008, the company posted a profit after tax of N 1.2 billion, an increase of 38% compared to the N 866 million recorded in its 2007 financial year. Turnover also increased 29% to N 9.08 billion, from N 7.03 billion in 2007, while earnings per share rose by 25% to N 2.39 from N 1.91 in 2007. Ogunbanjo said that the growth in the company“s financial performance in this financial year was due to continuous strong demand from the breweries and soft drinks sector, as well as to innovation in glass packaging by its customers. “The major growth drivers were the strong continued demand in the breweries and soft drinks sector and new glass packaging launches from our major customers. Packaging has been recognized as an effective tool to drive sales and excitement among consumers by our customers,” he said. He went on to say that impressive performances could also be attributed to investments to meet energy needs and help boost capacities, regarding a new production lines and a new gas turbine. “Our company successfully commissioned a new modern furnace and production lines at its Delta plant last year at an investment cost of N 3.8 billion. Further, a new gas turbine was also commissioned to secure energy needs at an increased capacities. The project was completed in time and in budget, which significantly increased our capacity,” Ogunbanjo noted.