Despite an increase in operating Profit (EBITDA) by 11.22% to Ugx178.46 billion and Net Income (PAT) improvement of 33.44% to Ugx64.37 billion for the six months ended June 2022, Uganda’s largest electricity retailer has not recommended an interim dividend.
The progress of Umeme was down to shrinking of operating expenditure by 27.61% driven by strategic reorganisation towards insourcing repair and maintenance operations which cut down on expensive contractor expenses by 44.08% amid improved efficiency.
Also, finance costs were also lower by 22.03% following a scheduled payment of Ugx90 billion on long term borrowings which brought net debt down by 20.31% to Ugx268 billion which according to management will be cleared by December 2023.
The annualised earnings per share increased to Ugx79.27 from Ugx59.40 while return on equity stood at 6.84%, higher than 5.99% at the same point in 2021.
Total half year revenues contracted by 3.33% to Ugx896.99 billion falling below expected forecasts of Ugx994.87 billion due to downward revisions in commercial tariffs. Gross profits also declined by 6.74% to Ugx278.43 billion following a marginal drop in direct costs by 1.71%.
On the Balance sheet: Total assets grew by 5.49% to Ugx2.64 trillion while the total liabilities stood at Ugx1.70 trillion driven by higher current liabilities up 19.50% to Ugx1.06 trillion as the company’s directors did not recommend an interim dividend for the period.
