The Belgrade-based producer and trader of technical gases, Messer Tehnogas (TGAS), announced its annual business results, which showed the same trend as in the first six months – an increase in revenue was recorded with a decrease in profitability.
Last year, Tehnogas recorded a consolidated income of less than 17 billion dinars, which is an increase of 11.6 percent compared to the previous year, announced the brokerage house Momentum.
Looking only at the parent company, revenues actually stagnated primarily due to a slight decline in business with key customers, RTB Bor and Železara. These two clients brought the company an income of 2.9 billion dinars compared to the realization of three billion dinars in 2021, primarily due to the reconstruction of the smelter in Bor, according to Momentum’s analysis.
The company’s profitability was significantly affected by higher electricity costs. Operating profit decreased by 11.6 percent to 3.3 billion dinars, and energy costs jumped by almost one billion dinars to 3.9 billion dinars and accounted for 28 percent of total business expenses.
Net profit fell by 28.6 percent to 2.3 billion dinars, due to the costs of writing off unpaid claims of over half a billion dinars.
The company remained extremely liquid at the end of 2022 with a very modest level of debt. However, the cash position fell from 3.7 to 3.5 billion dinars at the end of the year, while the company’s deposits in banks were significantly reduced in the amount of about 1.6 billion dinars.
When it comes to new projects, the company stated that on March 1, the modernized smelter processing at the company Zijin Copper Serbia in Bor was put into operation, and that the company’s newly built plant for air decomposition should also start with some delay from April.
Shares of Tehnogas fell during yesterday’s trading on the Belgrade Stock Exchange to 13,800 dinars, which corresponds to the company’s market capitalization of 14.3 billion dinars (about 122 million euros).
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