Namibia Breweries Limited’s (NBL), a subsidiary of the Ohlthaver & List (O&L) Group, has recorded an after-tax profit of N$373 million, up 42.8% from N$261 million recorded prior year, from net revenue of N$2.65 billion for the financial year ended 30 June 2021.
In the period under review, beer volumes in Namibia for 2021 increased by 13 % against 2020, almost matching those achieved in 2019, being only 2% lower in comparison.
Overall volumes during 2020 decreased by 16.6% compared to 2019. Volumes in 2020 were predominately affected by trade restrictions, as a result of COVID-19 across most of NBL’s markets.
Production volumes to South Africa continued to be severely constrained due to alcohol bans and trade restrictions in South Africa, falling by 36% against 2020 and 51% against 2019.
Heineken South Africa experienced further trade restrictions during the reporting period, which impacted volumes as well as royalties and resulted in a revenue decrease for NBL of 18.5% to N$1 386 million.
““Our performance in Namibia for the 2021 financial year was very encouraging despite COVID-19 restrictions. Beer volumes in Namibia delivered positive growth, overall margins were strong due to good price and overall business cost management. Despite Heineken South Africa experiencing severe trade restrictions during the reporting period, royalties for NBL increased by 5.8%, while the equity loss from associate decreased from a loss of N$76 million last year to a loss of N$73 million this year,” NBL Finance Director, Waldemar von Lieres said.
“This, together with continuous customer and consumer engagement, ensured resilient and improved earnings under challenging market conditions in most of our trading countries. Our Windhoek Draught brand has shown exceptional growth within our mainstream beer category taking the top position in NBL’s brand portfolio during 2021,” NBL Managing Director, Marco Wenk said.
The Group paid an interim dividend during May 2021 amounting to 56c per share, representing a 5.7% increase compared to the prior year interim dividend.
NBL’s brand portfolio includes Tafel Lager, Windhoek Lager, Windhoek Draught, Windhoek Light, Windhoek Non-Alcoholic, Tafel Radler, Tafel Lite, King Lager, Camelthorn, McKane, Horizon and AquaSplash, amongst others.
