Building material producer SigmaRoc plc has announced its audited results for the year ended 31 December 2021 with turnover more than doubling to GBP272m and underlying EBITDA rising to GBP49.3m.
The group’s trading and operational performance for 2021 was solid. Overall, on a LfL basis, the value of upstream quarried materials sold increased by two per cent. Value added product sales increased by 14 per cent, with value added services increasing by 16 per cent. These figures include the Nordkalk lime business and considering SigmaRoc pre-Nordkalk acquisition, the evolution is similar with total revenue increasing by 15 per cent on a LfL basis. Nordkalk was acquired in September 2021 at a cost of EUR470m.
For the Ronez platform, trading in both islands was solid and in line with expectations, with the impact of a lockdown in the first quarter recovered through strong demand as the year progressed. Several significant projects in both Jersey and Guernsey, including Admiral’s Park in Guernsey and large residential developments in Jersey (both the public and private), as well as further demand for road maintenance helped deliver GBP28.9m in turnover, which was slightly ahead of budget.
The group completed the acquisition of Johnston Quarry Group on 31 January 2022. This acquisition significantly enhances the group’s presence in the UK from a quarrying perspective, with Johnston Quarry Group and Harries forming part of the expanded southern platform covering southern England and Wales.
Demand for Belgian Bluestone was strong throughout the year across new build and infrastructure markets. The combination of existing markets in the Benelux, France and Italy as well as new markets helped grow sales and volumes to reach 1Mm2 in the year.
All construction aggregate production at Carrieres du Hainaut was split off into a new business, Granulats du Hainaut, which now forms the base of a Benelux aggregates platform also including Cuvelier and B-Mix for concrete. The creation of GduH coincided with the takeover of the Holcim production plant in April and the creation of a joint venture with Carrières du Boulonnais to best serve the Benelux and French aggregate and concrete markets, in anticipation of the installation of new production infrastructure in 2024.
In 2022 the group has committed to going cement free in its precast portfolio from January 2022. This follows the launch of the CCP Greenbloc in February 2021, the UKs first cement-free ultra-low carbon dense concrete block. Compared to a dense concrete block manufactured with 100 per cent ordinary Portland cement, Greenbloc has a 77 per cent lower embodied CO2, resulting in an average reduction of 1.1kg CO2e per concrete block.
Operations at Ronez on the Channel Islands have increased the usage of GGBS in the low-carbon product range, specifically for ready-mix concrete and concrete blocks. Approximately 683t were switched from cement to GGBS in 2021 compared to 2020, estimated to result in a CO2e reduction of 478t. The launch of Greenbloc and increased use of GGBS at Ronez will primarily impact scope 3 (upstream and downstream) emissions.
