Oman Cement to receive reimbursement to cover losses
Oman Cement Company (OCC) raised its profit outlook on Tuesday after receiving US$19m in government compensation.
OCC was paid by the government OMR7.34m (US$19.06m) on June 14 as a compensation for keeping cement prices low on the directive of the ministry of finance, the company said in a statement on the bourse website.
"This will have the effect of improving the profitability of the company by this amount during the current quarter and the year ending 31st December 2010," an Oman Cement statement said.
Raysut Cement, Oman’s other major cement producer, said in a statement it received OMR5.005m from the government.
"This will have (a) positive effect (on) the cash flow of the company," Mohammed Ahmed Al Dheeb, chief executive officer of Raysut Cement, said in a statement posted on the bourse website.
Oman Cement posted a 30.1 per cent profit drop in 2008 to OMR12.473m but made a OMR24.32m net profit in 2009. Raysut made a net profit of OMR28.68m in 2009, up from OMR27.1m a year earlier.
"We asked Oman Cement to keep prices low to sustain the economy and keep projects going," a finance ministry official told Reuters. Published under Cement News
