Wrap Text
Vivo Energy plc
(Incorporated in England and Wales)
(Registration number: 11250655)
(Share code: VVO)
LEI: 213800TR7V9QN896AU56
ISIN: GB00BDGT2M75
27 April 2021
Vivo Energy plc
First Quarter 2021 Trading Update
Vivo Energy plc, the leading pan-African retailer and distributor of Shell-
and Engen-branded fuels and lubricants, provides the following trading update
for the quarter ended 31 March 2021 ("Q1").
Highlights
- Q1 gross cash profit of $195 million was 9% higher than Q1 20 ($179
million)
- Q1 volumes continued to recover from the significant impact of COVID-19
in 2020, and were 5% lower year-on-year, with unit margins remaining
strong at $79 per thousand litres
- Retail volumes improved by 4% against Q1 20, with Commercial volumes
impacted by Aviation and Marine and the end of a large supply contract
in Q3 20
- Excluding Aviation, Marine and the supply contract, group volumes were
2% higher than Q1 20
Key Performance indicators
($ in millions), if not
Q1 2021 Q1 2020 Change
otherwise indicated
Volumes (million litres) 2,483 2,602 -5%
Gross Cash Unit Margin
79 69 14%
($/'000 litres)
Gross Cash Profit 195 179 9%
Commenting on the trading update, Christian Chammas, CEO said: 'We delivered
a strong start to 2021, with Q1 gross cash profit increasing by 9% to $195
million. It was especially pleasing to see the Retail segment return to
volume growth despite ongoing restrictions, continuing the positive momentum
from H2 2020 and further demonstrating the resilience of our business and
our markets. We have already made good progress towards our target of opening
90-110 net new sites this year and continue to develop our customer offerings
while protecting the health and safety of our people and customers. As we
move through the year, we expect the recovery to continue, albeit subject to
potential impacts from the prevailing mobility restrictions, with the strong
Q1 reinforcing our confidence in the business moving forwards.'
Operational Review
Group volumes of 2,483 million litres were 5% lower than Q1 20, primarily
reflecting the continued volume drag from the Aviation and Marine businesses
and the end of a material supply contract in Q3 20. Excluding these factors,
volumes were 2% ahead of the previous year period.
- Retail made a positive start to the year, with volumes up 4% on Q1 20,
underpinned by the continuing improvement in mobility leading to a
number of markets returning to like-for-like growth, continued network
expansion and the positive impact of marketing initiatives.
- Commercial volumes were 15% lower, primarily impacted by weaker
Aviation and Marine volumes, which have remained subdued due to the
continuing restrictions on international travel, and the end of a
material supply contract in one market. Core Commercial volumes,
excluding the supply contract, were slightly behind the previous year.
- Lubricant volumes increased by 9%, driven by strong performance in
Retail & B2C channels.
Q1 gross cash profit of $195 million increased by 9% year-on-year, supported
by unit margins of $79 per thousand litres. Unit margins increased by 14%
compared to Q1 20, which was negatively affected by COVID-19 related
inventory impacts. Performance has been aided by the positive supply and
pricing environment from H2 2020 continuing through Q1, as well as the mix
effect from a smaller contribution from the lower margin Aviation and Marine
businesses and supply contract volumes.
COVID-19 Update
During Q1, COVID-19 related restrictions on movement within our operating
countries remained in place and continued to have an impact on mobility
levels. These restrictions regularly change as governments in our countries
primarily use measures including curfews, localised restrictions and border
closures to reduce the spread of the virus. Just one country, Mauritius, is
currently in a countrywide lock-down, which it entered in mid-March.
Vaccination programmes have started in the majority of our countries. These
are generally at an early stage, although Morocco has vaccinated
approximately 4.5 million people, around 13% of the population.
Moroccan Competition Review
As announced in March, the Royal Cabinet's review of the Conseil de la
Concurrence's ("CDC") investigation of the fuel marketing industry concluded
that the CDC investigation "was marked by numerous procedural irregularities"
and experienced "an obvious deterioration in the climate of deliberations".
A new President has now been appointed to lead the CDC. We continue to believe
that we have conducted our operations in accordance with applicable
competition laws, rules and regulations.
Outlook
The strong start to 2021 builds on the positive trends we saw during H2 2020
and reinforces our confidence in the business moving forwards. As we move
through the year, we expect the volume recovery to continue to be supported
by like-for-like growth and our network expansion, albeit subject to
potential impacts from COVID-19 related mobility restrictions, with unit
margins normalising. Our strong balance sheet and cash generation enable us
to continue to invest in the growth and enhancement of our network to capture
the structural growth opportunities in our markets across Africa and create
value for all of our stakeholders.
Conference call
Vivo Energy plc will host a webcast and conference call for analysts and
investors this morning at 09:00 UK time, with the following details:
Webcast link:
https://webcasting.brrmedia.co.uk/broadcast/606c3172560fbf10fcc51e76
Dial-in: +44 330 336 9125 / +27 11 844 6054
Passcode: 2793712
A replay will be available after the event at
https://investors.vivoenergy.com
Ends
Notes to editors:
Media contacts: Investor contact:
Vivo Energy plc Vivo Energy plc
Rob Foyle, Head of Communications Giles Blackham, Head of Investor
+44 7715 036 407 Relations
rob.foyle@vivoenergy.com +44 20 3034 3735 / +44 7714 134 681
giles.blackham@vivoenergy.com
Tulchan Communications LLP
Harry Cameron, Suniti Chauhan
+44 20 7353 4200
vivoenergy@tulchangroup.com
JSE Sponsor: J.P. Morgan Equities South Africa (Pty) Ltd
About Vivo Energy:
Vivo Energy operates and markets its products in countries across North,
West, East and Southern Africa. The Group has a network of over 2,300 service
stations in 23 countries operating under the Shell and Engen brands and
exports lubricants to a number of other African countries. Its retail
offering includes fuels, lubricants, card services, shops, restaurants and
other non-fuel services. It provides fuels, lubricants and liquefied
petroleum gas (LPG) to business customers across a range of sectors including
marine, mining, construction, power, transport, wholesalers and
manufacturing. The Company employs around 2,700 people and has access to
over 1,000,000 cubic metres of fuel storage capacity and has a joint venture,
Shell and Vivo Lubricants B.V., that sources, blends, packages and supplies
Shell-branded lubricants.
Vivo Energy plc has a primary listing on the London Stock Exchange, and is
a member of the FTSE 250 index, with a secondary inward listing on the
Johannesburg Stock Exchange.
For more information about Vivo Energy, please visit www.vivoenergy.com
Forward-looking statements
Such forward-looking statements contained in this report speak only as of
the date of this report. The Company and the Directors expressly disclaim
any obligation or undertaking to update these forward-looking statements
contained in the document to reflect any change in their expectations or any
change in events, conditions, or circumstances on which such statements are
based unless required to do so by applicable law.
This announcement includes forward-looking statements. These forward-looking
statements involve known and unknown risks and uncertainties, including risks
associated with the impact of COVID-19, many of which are beyond the Company's
control and all of which are based on the Directors' current beliefs and
expectations about future events. Forward-looking statements are sometimes
identified by the use of forward-looking terminology such as: "believe",
"expects", "may", "will", "could", "should", "shall", "risk", "intends",
"estimates", "aims", "plans", "predicts", "continues", "assumes",
"positioned", "anticipates" or "targets" or the negative thereof, other
variations thereon or comparable terminology. These forward-looking
statements include all matters that are not historical facts. They appear in
a number of places throughout this report and include statements regarding
the intentions, beliefs or current expectations of the Directors or the Group
concerning, among other things, the future results of operations, financial
condition, prospects, growth, strategies of the Group and the industry in
which it operates.
No assurance can be given that such future results will be achieved; actual
events or results may differ materially as a result of risks and uncertainties
facing the Group. Such risks and uncertainties could cause actual results to
vary materially from the future results indicated, expressed, or implied in
such forward-looking statements.
Date: 28-04-2021 07:05:00
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