Semarang, C Java (ANTARA) - State-owned cement producer PT Semen Indonesia (SIG) recorded Rp1.54 trillion of profit in the year ending September 30, 2020, rising 19.1 percent from the corresponding period in 2019 despite the COVID-19 pandemic.

During the January-September 2020 period, the company registered an 8.9-percent drop in its income to reach Rp25.63 trillion, from Rp28.12 trillion during the corresponding period last year, SIG Corporate Secretary Vita Mahreyni noted in a written statement released on Wednesday.

The cost of revenues was recorded at Rp17.39 trillion, declining 11.5 percent, from Rp19.64 trillion. Hence, net profit attributed to owners of parent entities was recorded at Rp1.54 trillion, a 19.1-percent increase from Rp1.29 trillion, Mahreyni remarked.

Despite the COVID-19 pandemic leading to a decline in national cement consumption, coupled with the sluggish pace of infrastructure development, PT SIG was nonetheless able to raise its net profit by curbing several costs, she pointed out.

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Mahreyni attributed the improving financial performance to various strategic initiatives, including cost leadership, integration of various strategic functions, and reduction of interest cost owing to the refinancing program implemented in the first half of this year.

Despite an 8.9-percent drop in revenues, PT SIG managed to lower its cost of revenues by 11.5 percent in the first nine months of 2020 by maintaining cost efficiency, she stated.

Cost efficiency encompassed the management of raw materials; integration of marketing, distribution, and procurement functions; and the utilization of industrial waste as an alternative source of raw materials, she explained.

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Translator: Achmad Zaenal M/Suharto
Editor: Yuni Arisandy Sinaga
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