Mytilineos sees 2019 revenue topping 2.2 bln euros

Greek industrial group Mytilineos expects sales to top 2.2 billion euros next year, from 1.5 billion euros this year, thanks to its growing alumina business and new projects in Libya and Ghana, its chairman said on Thursday.

The group, which has not released results for this year yet, is expected to report 2018 earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortization (EBITDA) in line with last year, or slightly better, Evangelos Mytilineos said in a presentation to institutional investors.

This would allow the group to pay a dividend of 0.36 euro per share on 2018 profits, up from 0.32 euro last year, the company said.

EBITDA came in at 306 million euros last year.

Local media have speculated Mytilineos, which is listed in Athens, could seek a foreign listing as well.

Asked about this, Mytilineos said: “It’s a little bit early to comment.” However, he expressed dissatisfaction with the performance of Greek shares.

The Athens Stock Exchange index has lost 25 percent so far this year.

Concerns over the impact of U.S. sanctions on Russian aluminium company Rusal have roiled aluminium market.

Mytilineos said its aluminium business was expected to have another good year in 2019 since most of its output had been hedged during the Russian crisis.

Despite a protracted Greek debt crisis, Mytilineos, whose businesses range from metals production to building power plants, has fared well thanks to overseas expansion and spending hundreds of millions of euros on new equipment to halve production costs.

The operator of the biggest alumina refinery in Greece had been expected to finalise a $400 million investment in its home country to build a new alumina plant last year but no decision has been made yet.

“We want very much to see it materializing,” Mytilineos said, telling investors to be patient and that the group would take its final investment decision after an ongoing engineering study was concluded.

[Reuters]