OWN CORRESPONDENT, Johannesburg | Wednesday
SOUTH African sugar and aluminium giant Tongaat-Hulett Group Ltd said this week it aimed to generate more than R5bn in annual turnover by 2004 at its Hulett Aluminium plant.
Speaking at a ceremony to officially open a R2.4bn expansion of the KwaZulu-Natal province aluminium rolling plant, Peter Straude, the managing director of the aluminium unit, said the company saw steady growth in turnover from the unit.
Hulett Aluminium’s turnover stood at R2.058bn a year in 2000. It was expected to top R3bn next year and would target R5.246bn by 2004, Straude said.
”With all the equipment now in start-up mode, production output will be increased from 50 000 tonnes a year to more than 185 000 tonnes by the end of 2003,” he said.
Tongaat-Hulett is a 50% stakeholder in Hulett Aluminium, Anglo American holds 20% and the Industrial Development Corporation has the remaining 30%.
Tongaat shares ended the day up 4.79% at R37.20, outperforming the food sector where it is listed. The food index added 0.56%.
The expansion included the installation of a new hotline, plate and heat treatment plant and a remelt and recycling facility at a greenfield site. A third cold mill, a second coil coating line and finishing equipment were added to an existing adjacent site.
”This year, for the first time, exports have been greater than local sales,” Straude said, adding the company was supplying customers in 34 countries in Europe, the Far East, Africa, North and South America and the Middle East.
Exports were seen growing from 51% of production in 2000 to 70% in 2003.
”Currently about 10% of the material sold by Hulett Aluminium to our local customers is used in the manufacture of value-added exports. In the past three years exports by these customers have increased by over 50%,” he said.
”This increase is expected to continue and it is estimated that by 2003 exports by our customers will exceed R450m,” he added.
Hulett Aluminium supplies metal to general engineering, building, transport, cookware and electrical markets and provides rolled and extruded products. – Reuters