Eveready narrows loss to Sh78m on lower plant closure costs
Battery packaging at the Eveready East Africa Ltd factory in Nakuru which closed down in 2014. FILE PHOTO | SILEIMAN MBATIAH
What you need to know:
Despite a huge paper gain following re-evaluation of the property of the closed Nakuru plant, Eveready did not declare a dividend.
Battery distributor Eveready East Africa narrowed its net losses 56.2 per cent in the year ended September after booking lesser costs of shutting down its Nakuru factory in the period.
The company’s net loss stood at Sh77.7 million in the period, down from Sh177.5 million the year before.
This came as plant closure costs dropped to Sh6.7 million from Sh246.3 million.
The Nairobi Securities Exchange-listed firm in September 2014 closed its Nakuru plant that previously manufactured its dry cells, opting to source the batteries from an affiliate in Egypt.
This has seen it incur shutdown costs including compensation of about 100 workers who were retrenched.
Eveready’s total comprehensive income, however, jumped 4,857 times to Sh665.5 million from Sh137,000 on account of revaluation of the property on which the closed Nakuru plant sits.
Despite the huge paper gain, Eveready did not declare a dividend. The fresh revaluation helped offset a seven per cent decline in revenue to Sh1.1 billion and a jump in operating and finance costs.
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