Fertiliser and explosives manufacturer Incitec Pivot Ltd
(ASX:IPL) has reported a loss for the year but says the company has come out of the year a fitter business.
Incitec posted a loss of $179.9 million for the 12 months to September 30, compared to a profit of $604.6 million recorded last year; the result included a $490.6 million non-cash write-down of Dyno Nobel goodwill.
Net profit excluding individually material items dropped 46 per cent to $347.8 million for the year, impacted by reduced earnings in its fertiliser business as a result of challenging Australian domestic conditions.
Revenue increased 17 per cent to $3.42 billion boosted by the first full year of contribution from its acquisition of Dyno Nobel.
The company says business conditions are expected to be soft in the first half of 2010 given the high Australian dollar and timing of both global fertiliser demand and seasonal conditions in North America.
Incitec says it will continue to benefit from its Velocity program, with US$60 million targeted for 2010.
Looking at the past five years Incitec Pivot’s best net profit was in 2008.
