Revenue up at Breedon Aggregates
Interim results show improved trading performance in company’s English and Scottish businesses
BREEDON Aggregates, the UK’s largest independent aggregates business, have reported a 17.5% increase in Group revenue, to £84.7 million, for the six months ended 30 June 2011. Underlying EBITDA was up 31.3% to £8.4 million over the same period.
The company said the improved trading performance was driven by a strong first quarter, assisted by work carried over from the disruption caused by the winter weather at the end of 2010, with the company’s English and Scottish businesses both reporting higher revenues during the six-month period.
In England, revenue was up 16.8% to £38.3 million, while in Scotland it increased by 18.1% to £46.4 million.
For the Group as a whole, aggregates volumes were up 8%, asphalt volumes were up 12% and concrete volumes were up 28% in the first half of 2011.
Among the other highlights of the first half, planning consent was secured on an additional 12 million tonnes of reserves at Leaton Quarry, near Telford, and the company completed its first bolt-on acquisition with the purchase of Lincolnshire-based C&G Concrete Ltd, from the administrator, for £10.15 million.
Commenting on the latter, executive chairman Peter Tom (pictured) said: ‘C&G Concrete will dovetail neatly with our existing operations in the Midlands and East Anglia, and give us genuine scale and potential supply synergies in our English ready-mixed concrete business.’
Breedon Aggregates say they are continuing to review a number of other potential acquisitions which offer similar opportunities for growth.
Looking at the prospects for the next six months, Mr Tom described the outlook for the second half of the year as positive in England but more difficult in Scotland, where the company’s exposure to public sector markets is higher.
‘While the year-on-year improvements in the first six months will not be sustained at the same level in the second half of 2011, we are confident of delivering a strong performance for the year, comfortably in line with market expectations,’ he said.
