L-R: Babatunde Afolabi, executive director, SAHCO, Oluropo Owolabi, non-executive director; Adenike Aboderin, managing director; and Taiwo Afolabi, chairman, board of directors, flanked by Jesuyemisi Odeyemi, company secretary, and Boma Ukwunna, executive director, SAHCO, at Skyway Aviation Handling Company Plc annual general meeting held at Marriott Hotel, Ikeja, Lagos

Sade Williams/Business a.m.

Skyway Aviation Handling Company (SAHCO) is eyeing more investment in new generation eco-friendly ground support equipment (GSE) after seeing revenue top N16.5 billion in 2023, a rise of 49 percent over the 11.1 billion it made in 2022.

Taiwo Afolabi, chairman of the company, at its 14th annual general meeting held in Lagos, also disclosed the approval of the company’s board of N406.74 million as dividends, representing 30k per ordinary share to shareholders. This also represents a significant increase from Ñ223 million paid in the 2022 financial year.

SAHCO’S total assets stood at N34 billion during the period under review compared to N29.22 billion in 2022.

Afolabi told shareholders at the AGM that SAHCO made massive investments in 2023, including investing in eco-friendly  ground support equipment (GSE), a new trend in the industry which he said has kept the company at par with other renowned international ground handling and aviation cargo companies.

“Regardless of the challenges we faced during the year in review, we were able to record some positive points in our performance. Our total assets base currently stands at N34 billion, a massive leap from the N29.2 billion we recorded in 2022,” he said.

According to him, the company’s massive investments in training for capacity enhancement also contributed to the growth and profitability of the company.

“We also improved our stakeholders’ engagement strategy as we forged partnerships and relationships with regulators, customers, agents and unions.

“We won’t relent in investing in state-of-the-art equipment  to help meet our customers ‘ needs. That has been one of our unique selling points over the years and 2024 will not be any different,” Afolabi said.

Basil Agboarumi, the immediate past managing director of SAHCO, noted in the annual report that the recorded growth was achieved as a result of the company’s staff and its resolve to always offer best aviation ground handling services to the client across all the commercially operated airports in Nigeria.

“We have also gone green by acquiring more eco-friendly electric powered baggage Tow Tractors, Forklifts, among others. I am happy to report that we have sustained that trajectory by investing N2.282 billion in equipment in 2023,” he wrote.

Some of the shareholders commended the company for giving out dividends despite operating in a turbulent environment.

Meanwhile, Afolabi disclosed that clients are indebted to SAHCO to the tune of N6 billion, adding that there is hope of recovering all debts in the next three months.

While also revealing that the proposed new handling rates would soon be approved, he said: “Our airlines and clients are owing us about N6 billion. We have to set up a committee for that because we know our clients like to owe and for that not to affect our profitability, we just have to set up a committee for that and they are doing wonderfully well and they are recovering them, we believe that within the next three months, we will recover all the debts fully.

“We have already gone far on the new rates, what we did was that all ground handling companies held a meeting successfully so we are waiting for the airlines to subscribe to the new plan and very soon you will hear from us that the rates have been approved,” Afolabi added.