Odu’a Investment Company Limited stated that it aims to achieve up to N40 billion in Profit After Tax (PAT) by the year 2035 in order to reposition its business to become a world-class conglomerate.
The new board will build on the advancements made in the company’s current operations and explore new business prospects in other areas to reach the goal, the group’s incoming chairman, Bimbo Ashiru, said during the company’s 40th annual general meeting held yesterday in Lagos.
He claims that the corporation intends to put more of an emphasis on expanding its oil and gas industry and become one of Nigeria’s oil industries.
He also mentioned that by increasing investment in the hotel industry, the company hoped to improve its reputation in the hospitality industry.
“We are collaborating with stakeholders to guarantee that Nigeria has hotels of the highest caliber. We want to make sure that we develop further hotels in another 50 years because this one may be as old as 50. The paving and practically entire construction of the Premier Hotel are done. Hopefully, everything will be in working order by August.
The company’s PAT increased significantly by 149.8% from N3.75 billion achieved in 2020 to N9.37 billion, according to the Group Chairman, Dr. Segun Aina, who reviewed the company’s financials at the meeting. This growth was attributed to an increased focus on various business areas and gains in investment properties.
Based on the better performance, he claimed, the company increased its dividend distribution by 15% to N418.4 million for 2021, up from N364 million announced in the similar period in 2020. He added that this was the company’s eighth year in a row declaring and paying dividends to shareholders.
Aina gave investors additional reassurance by stating that the board has implemented several best practice governance measures in the year under review to guarantee that the company’s investments would have a long-lasting effect in the years to come.
The company’s profit before taxes (PBT) for 2021 comprised revaluation gains of N7.11 billion from its portfolio of investment properties, which was N2.63 billion in 2020, according to Group Managing Director/CEO Adewale Raji.
The Odu’a Investment Foundation was founded to have a good impact on the next generation of youths with an emphasis on health, education, and youth empowerment as part of the company’s 45th anniversary celebrations in November 2021, he added.
Additionally, he stated that the South West Agriculture Company’s (SWAGCO Ltd.) agricultural investment subsidiary has started to make a considerable effort to invest in agriculture, which will support the capacity development of a new generation of commercial farmers and business owners.
“We have dedicated a significant percentage of our land bank to these initiatives, with a particular focus on cassava, maize, paddy rice, and dairy. The company’s investment in oil and gas is progressing thanks to the purchase of a portion of the BITA Marginal Field and the establishment of BITA Exploration & Production Ltd with our JV partner.
“The company’s business outlook is to transition to a lean non-operating holding company that will focus on fostering the growth and expansion of its subsidiaries and associate businesses, ensuring investment excellence across its portfolio of assets, and seeking out new partnerships for growth in its 8 sectors as captured in the “SRC 2025 Strategic Plan” in agriculture, real estate, hospitality, financial services, energy, healthcare, ICT/digital, and logistics/e-commerce,” he said.
