Raysut Cement, one of two major listed cement manufacturers in Oman, has announced that its first quarter pre-tax profits grew by a third during the first quarter of 2013 to $23.7m (OR: 9.13m).
The company s revenues grew by 2% to $65.5m (OR: 25.2m) as the volume of cement sales climbed by 3% to just over 1m tonnes during the three-month period.
Sales volumes from its plant in Salalah increased by 9% to 673,919 tonnes.
Meanwhile, production volumes of clinker and cement dropped by 9% and 2% respectively.
The company s chairman, Sheikh Ahmed bin Alawi bin Abdulla Al Ibrahim said that given the drop in volumes, the company "has done very well with higher revenue and profit by pursuing with markets beyond its traditional base, and by optimizing revenue and profitability amidst the onslaught of competition in order to stay well ahead of the curve".
"Backed by budgetary surplus in 2012, the investment expenditure in 2013 is expected to be around RO 3bn $7.8bn) or 24% of public expenditure in Oman.
"The market is likely to grow substantially through diversifications and rapid non-oil sector developments. Cement demand also is on the increase."
Despite this, he warned that Omani producers still faced strong demand from cement suppliers in the UAE - a scenario which he indicated was "lukely to continue until larger developments take shape" in the country.
Raysut Cement has itself sought to diversify by selling its products in other GCC markets, in Yemen and in East Africa.
Raysut Cement, one of two major listed cement manufacturers in Oman, has announced that its first quarter pre-tax profits grew by a third during the first quarter of 2013 to $23.7m
