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Engen. Picture: SUNDAY TIMES
Engen. Picture: SUNDAY TIMES

Vivo Energy, which operates fuel stations in Africa under the Shell and Engen brands, saw profit plummet in its first half after volumes slumped in April due to Covid-19.

Headline earnings fell 89% to $7m (R115m) in the group’s six months to end-June, amid pressure in volumes as various countries restricted movement due to the pandemic.

Headline earnings is a widely-used profit measure in SA, stripping out certain one-off items to give a better indication of the underlying performance of a business.

Vivo operates 2,200 service stations in 23 countries across Africa, saying on Tuesday volumes fell nearly 40% in April, with some countries having falls of 70%.

Volumes in the group's first half fell 7%, and revenue 14% to $3.37bn.

“We entered the Covid-19 pandemic in a position of strength and ended the period cautiously optimistic, having seen a rebound in June in both volumes and margins from their April lows,” said CEO Christian Chammas.

“We are a resilient business, our business model remains unchanged and we continue to position ourselves for future growth,” Chammas said.

gernetzkyk@businesslive.co.za

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