According to unaudited figures, the Demerara Distillers Limited (DDL) Group has registered an after-tax profit for the first half of this year of $1.67b compared to $1.37b for the same period last year.
This represents an increase in profit by 21%. According to its financial statements published in yesterday’s Sunday Stabroek, profit before taxation for the first half of this year was $2.37b compared to $1.93b for the corresponding period in 2020.
Turnover was up by 9.4% from $11.19b in the first half of 2020 to $12.24b in the first half of this year.
DDL Chairman Komal Samaroo in his statement said that the results were achieved notwithstanding the challenges experienced during the year of unprecedented flooding and the continuing effects of the COVID-19 pandemic. Samaroo said that the flooding affected the supply of certain fruits as well as local sales across several divisions of the group.
During the period, the juice processing and packaging line was commissioned and the one-litre packaged Topco juices were introduced on the market in February. The fruit processing line was commissioned in May and the dairy processing plant is expected to be commissioned this month. Samaroo said that delays were seen as several equipment suppliers experienced issues as a result of the pandemic.
Work also commenced on a project to relocate the Bulk Terminal operations from Water and Schumaker streets to Diamond in order to more efficiently manage logistics. The project is expected to be completed by the end of the year.
