Bamburi Cement¹s profit before tax has grown by 22.5 per cent to Ksh3.3bn from Ksh2.7b for the year ended December 31, 2005. A statement said the group¹s turnover shot up by 22.5 per cent to close at Ksh15.1b while the total dividend pay-out was Ksh1.9b.

Richard Kemoli, the group¹s chairman, said: "We had a steady performance despite difficult conditions and rising prices of fuel and power, raw materials and transport.Power quality and price remain key challenges in all our businesses in East Africa, Kemoli added.