Onome Amuge
Lafarge Africa Plc, one of Nigeria’s leading cement and building solutions companies, has reported a robust financial performance for the second quarter of 2025, as the company’s net income more than tripled, driven by sales expanding faster than production costs and a notable reduction in finance expenses.
For the period between April and June 2025, Lafarge Africa generated N268.62 billion in revenue, a substantial increase from the N157.80 billion turnover reported in the second quarter of 2024. This represents a 70.22 per cent year-on-year growth in top-line performance. This revenue expansion outpaced the rise in the company’s cost of production, which increased by 26.41 per cent over the same period.
According to the company’s Q2 2025 consolidated and separate financial statements, this favourable cost-to-revenue dynamic translated into an uplift in gross profit. Lafarge Africa ended the review period with N172.79 billion in gross profit, a 110.74 per cent increase compared to the N81.99 billion posted in Q2 2024.
Operating profit also saw a substantial rise, climbing to N120.61 billion during the quarter, up from N47.70 billion in Q2 2024. This marks a 152.83 per cent increase, underscoring strong operational leverage. However, this was achieved despite rising administrative and selling costs. Selling and distribution expenses soared by 45.76 per cent to N38.47 billion in Q2 2025, from N26.39 billion last year, while administrative expenses saw an even steeper rise of 109.86 per cent, reaching N17.80 billion from N8.48 billion in Q2 2024.
A key contributor to the bottom line was the performance of finance-related items. Finance income rose by 212.41 per cent to N7.33 billion in Q2 2025, exceeding the N2.34 billion reported in the corresponding period in 2024. Concurrently, finance costs saw a dramatic 89.13 per cent year-on-year decrease, falling from N12.13 billion to N1.31 billion.
The combination of robust operating profit and favourable finance dynamics lifted the company’s profit before tax by 233.92 per cent to N126.62 billion in the second quarter, up from N37.91 billion in the corresponding period last year.
However, a substantial increase in income tax partially offset these gains. Lafarge Africa’s income tax expense for the quarter rose by 209.45 per cent to N42.58 billion, compared to N13.76 billion paid in Q2 2024. Nonetheless, the company still recorded a three-digit growth in its profit after tax (PAT), reaching N84.03 billion in Q2 2025 against N24.15 billion in Q2 2024, indicating a strong 247.86 per cent increase
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