Aluminium Bahrain (Alba) reported total sales of BD766.7 million ($2.039 billion) in 2015 versus BD821.6 million ($2.185 billion) in 2014, down 7 per cent due to the collapse of all-in-prices, the company said.

The aluminium giant achieved fourth quarter sales of BD176.3 million ($468.9 million), down 21 per cent compared to BD222.2 million ($590.9 million) in Q4 2014, owing to the double dip of LME and premium prices.

Net income stood at BD59.9 million ($159.5 million) in 2015 compared to BD96.5 million ($256.5 million) in 2014, down 38 per cent. The company reported a net loss of BD15.8 million ($42 million) in the fourth quarter of 2015 versus a net profit of BD34.6 million ($92 million) for the same period in 2014, driven primarily by lower LME prices and the one-time charge related to an early retirement scheme (ERS).

The ERS programme was designed to optimise overall manpower levels and also provide upward mobility for the younger generation of employees, the company said. Net profit, excluding the one-off costs relating to early retirement pay-out, stood at BD78.2 million ($208 million) in 2015 and at BD1.9 million ($5 million) in Q4 2015.

As reported earlier, Alba’s production topped 960,643 metric tonnes last year, up by 3.1 per cent over the previous year and sales rose by 2.2 per cent to reach 951,944 metric tonnes.

Meanwhile, Alba completed the two-year Project Titan cost improvement programme by reporting a savings of $148 per tonne versus a target savings of $150 per tonne.

The total dividend proposed for fiscal year 2015 is BD15.5 million ($41.3 million) versus BD37.9 million ($101 million) in 2014. The board recommended a final 2015 dividend of BD7.8 million ($20.6 million) in addition to the interim dividend already paid in September 2015 of BD7.8 million ($20.6 million).

Alba managed to close 2015 with its value-added (VA) sales averaging 64 per cent of total shipments versus 66 per cent in 2014.

The statement said LME cash-average for full year 2015 was $1,663 per tonne down from $1,866 in 2014. Physical premiums collapsed in the second half of 2015 with Major Japanese Port (MJP) ingot premiums dropping from approximately $400 per tonne to around $100.

Alba board of directors chairman Daij Bin Salman Bin Daij Al Khalifa said: “2015 was another great year in terms of safety and production with Alba producing more than 960,000 metric tonnes. Alba’s underlying performance was very strong despite difficult market conditions. I would like to personally thank the early retired employees for their many years of dedicated service to the company and wish them the very best in their future endeavours.

"As we move ahead in 2016, we remain focused to accelerate ‘Line 6 Expansion Project’ early works so we remain on schedule to produce the first hot metal by early 2019,” he said.

Alba chief executive officer Tim Murray added: “Despite the collapse of all-in-prices, Alba continued to outpace the industry in terms of financial performance. 2016 will be a challenging year but we will build on the success of project Titan and the success of the ERS program which have helped us to optimize our cost structure for the difficult road ahead.” - TradeArabia News Service