AshakaCem Independent Power Plant to Gulp $100m

*Pays out N336m dividend to shareholders

Dele Ogbodo in Abuja

The Chairman, AshakaCem Plc, a subsidiary of LafargeHolcim, Mr. Suleiman Yahyah, on Tuesday said the company’s new independent power plant, presently under construction, will gulp $100 million on completion.

The ongoing project expected to meet the company’s energy needs, he said, will utilize the abundant coal resources located in Akko community of Gombe state, stressing that the project which is designed in two phases will be completed before the end of 2017.

Yahyah said: “The plant will be located within our Akko plant will give Ashaka 100 percent of its energy needs and the surplus will be sold to the grid and given some to the communities within.”

The chairman made the disclosure at the company’s 41st annual general meeting, held in Abuja, said the first phase of the project which has already commenced will cost $40 million, while the second phase will gulp $60 million.

On the N336 million dividend, he said the shareholders of the company have unanimously endorsed a dividend payment of 15 kobo on every ordinary share issue for the 2015 financial year, adding that the dividends will be paid to shareholders out of retained earnings from the pioneer profit in line with relax tax laws.

According the result of the dividend was achieved in a challenging global and national economic climate. “We made N2.7 billion as profit after tax in 2015. The climate is currently tough but we are counting n the resilience which saw us the last quarter to propel us to better results in 2016.” he said

FURTHER DETAILS LATER