Salonit Anhovo profits to rise

Cement manufacturer Salonit Anhovo, Slovenia, expects to generate SIT 12bn (EUR 50m) in sales revenue this year. While the figure is somewhat lower than SIT 12.3bn (EUR 51.3m) posted last year, net profits are expected to more than double, amounting to between SIT 2.5bn (EUR 10.4m) and SIT 3bn (EUR 12.5m). 

"It has been a successful year for Salonit Anhovo, as we have met all the targets, both in terms of performance and investment," management board chair Joze Funda told the press on Monday.  

The company (now owned by Wietersdorfer & Peggaur, Austria since 2003) expects 2003 revenue to be on a par with the 2003 figure, or 5% up compared to this year’s, while net profits are planned to be level    with this year’s. According to Funda, the company has also managed to get rid of losses from the past. By the end of the year, the company will have manufactured 694,000t of cement, while a similar output is also planned for 2005. The 2005 sales target is 700,000t, up seven per cent over 2004, out of which 90,000t is to be exported. Salonit also plans to raise the output of clinker by three per cent to 550,000t.  

According to Funda, the value added per employee is projected to increase by 17 per cent to SIT 15m (EUR 0.06m) next year, which is 100 per cent over  Slovenia’s average. Growth is also expected in the share of renewable energy sources, ie from 17.6 per cent in 2004 to 18.3 per cent in 2005.   

The Salonit Anhovo group entails seven subsidiaries and five associated companies. Salonit has recently acquired a 24.97 stake in Kema Puconci, a   company in the same line of business, as part of its efforts to integrate the industry of mineral construction materials.