BUA Cement Chairman, Abdul Samad Rabiu, has commended the Central Bank of Nigeria’s (CBN) foreign exchange reforms, stating that the unification of FX windows has eliminated the need for companies to lobby for dollar allocations.
Speaking at the company’s Annual General Meeting in Abuja, Rabiu said the previous FX regime was inefficient and opaque and that businesses had to rely on informal channels to access dollars due to limited availability at the official rate.
“Before now, I visited the Central Bank every two weeks to request for FX,” Rabiu said. “It was the only way to survive. You either went through the parallel market or got nothing at all.”
According to the billionaire industrialist, the reforms have introduced a level playing field where businesses now access foreign exchange at prevailing market rates through banks, removing discretionary allocation and ensuring transparency.
“The rate you get is what everybody else gets. That has brought sanity to the market,” he added.
Rabiu projected that the naira may appreciate to around ₦1,200 per dollar in the near term, citing improvements in FX liquidity and a gradual reduction in speculative pressure.
He noted that early signs of easing input costs are already evident in the cement and food sectors.
The BUA Chairman provided an update on the company’s financial performance, stating that revenue for the 2024 fiscal year rose to ₦877 billion from ₦460 billion in 2023 while profit before tax increased by 48.2% to ₦99.6 billion despite a foreign exchange loss of ₦93.9 billion during the period.
Return on average capital employed rose from 10% in 2023 to 15%, underscoring improved operating efficiency and cost control.
In Q1 2025 alone, BUA Cement recorded ₦81 billion in profit after tax, surpassing the total full-year profit posted in 2024.
Rabiu said the company expects to deliver ₦250 billion in profit for the 2025 financial year, supported by enhanced plant capacity, lower FX losses, and improved access to forex for critical inputs.
He also confirmed that BUA has no immediate plans for new capacity expansion, following recent investments in additional cement production lines in Sokoto and Edo States.
The Chairman concluded by reaffirming BUA’s long-term commitment to supporting Nigeria’s industrial growth and macroeconomic stability, stating that the company will continue to align with national reforms that promote transparency, efficiency, and competitiveness.
