In spite of having acquired Aalborg Portland Cement and Unicon last October, Cementir retains one of the strongest balance sheets in the sector and could easily afford further acquisitions.  Net debt at the end of June stood at EUR329.5m, or a modest 48.3 per cent of shareholders’ funds, compared with net cash of EUR108.6m a year earlier.  The first half turnover jumped by 166.7% to EUR402.9m, reflecting the two acquisitions from FLS Industries88.  The EBITDA registered an increase of 113.84% to EUR82.8m, with the trading profit doubling to EUR49.4m.  Although there was an EUR8.1m swing from net interest receivable to net interest payable, the running pre-tax profit still advanced by 54.7% to EUR46.9m.  In the period, Aalborg Portland Cement contributed a turnover of EUR123.6m and an EBITDA of EUR34.4m, while the Unicon group brought in an additional turnover of EUR120.4m, generating an EBITDA of EUR16.5m, with Aalborg Portland trading in line with expectations and Unicon exceeding overall targets set.  Of the group turnover, cement accounted for 62.4 per cent , with the remaining 37.6 per cent coming from the ready-mixed concrete based operations. 
 
The first half saw strong trading results in a recovering Turkish market and Cementas improved both profits and margins, while the Italian operations suffered from a slow start to the year and higher costs, mainly energy-related, that could not be compensated for in the period.