Ardova Plc says it sees prospects in its ongoing expansion phase to put the company in global map. Ardova’s Chief Executive Officer, Olumide Adeosun, gave the optimism while giving the company’s performance in the last financial year.
He said last year his company concluded a landmark capital raise of N25.3 billion in an over-subscribed bond,which he added was the largest by any downstream company in Nigeria.
He expressed that the development was an indication of investor confidence in Ardova’s future.
“We also concluded the acquisition of Enyo Retail and Supply Limited (ERSL) in a deal that makes our retail network the largest in Nigeria. The company also made further investments in cleaner energy infrastructure, as it commenced onsite work on its 20,000 metric tonne Liquefied Petroleum Gas (LPG) storage facility in Ijora. Ardova won a license to operate an Oil Marginal Field following a successful bid in the 2020 round, thereby increasing the company’s potential for foreign currency revenue generation”.
The company posted a profit of N1.54 billion in the year ended 31 December, 2021. Losses from subsidiaries Axles and Cartage, and newly acquired Enyo Retail and Supply Limited created a group net loss position of N3.8 billion.
In Q1 2022, AP’s performance shows significant improvements as yields from investments made in 2021 contribute to growth in revenue, sales volume, and profits.
Adeosun, said:“2021 proved to be an eventful year for Ardova Plc, as it marked the completion of our stabilization strategy, with the consequent strengthened balance sheet providing the leverage for the inorganic expansion required to evolve Ardova into an integrated energy company”.
Adeosun stated that “the loss experienced in 2021 are an expected reflection of the strategic inorganic growth programme of the company, and do not affect the viability of the company, especially as some of the immediate benefits of this programme were illustrated by the better year on year performance recorded in our Q1 2022 results.”
He also stated once fully integrated, the acquisitions alongside the AP Renewables subsidiary will provide and safeguard Ardova’s capacity to thrive as global energy consumption tilts to cleaner sources.
Moshood Olajide, Ardova’s Chief Financial Officer noted that “The company continued to deliver on profits, as we ended Q1 with a profit-after-tax position of N1.6 billion, which is a growth of 37 per cent compared to same period in 2021.
“We also continued to increase our capital expenditure, principally in investments that facilitate our strategic expansion, and we expect to see returns within a three-year window.”
He noted that Ardova’s Q1 2022 results showcased resilience as “We sustained competitive growth by increasing revenue by 21 per cent YoY (Group: 50% YoY), with the resulting profit of N1.6 billion putting us in a 37 per cent growth YoY position.
He added:”As a group, we were negatively impacted by our subsidiaries, Axles & Cartage Limited, which faced operational environment issues and the newly acquired Enyo, which is presently undergoing a transformation process to drive operational efficiency and profitability. When subsidiaries are taken consideration the group loss amounts to N3.8 billion”.
