Steppe Cement Ltd on Friday said it has swung to a loss in the first half of 2024, following a reduction in sales volume and an increase in maintenance costs.

The operator of two cement production facilities in Kazakhstan said its revenue at the end of the six-month period to June 30 was $34.4 million, down 6.8% on-year from $36.9 million.

It swung to a pretax loss of $4.4 million from a profit of $61,000 the previous year.

Meanwhile, cost of sales rose 6.6% to $29.2 million from $27.4 million, partly due to the ‘higher cost in electricity and maintenance in the period’.

The company also reported an average sales price for cement of $48 per tonne, a 4% decline from the $50 per tonne reported at the same time last year.

The company said: ‘This decline [in revenue] was mainly attributable to the 4% reduction in sales volume. Although the first quarter experienced a significant drop in volume of sales of 18%, this was offset by a 2% increase in the second quarter of the year, following price adjustments to align with market conditions. Volume of sales has continued to recover in the third quarter of 2024, and the price of cement has increased.’

Steppe Cement expects to maintain or increase its market share in the Kazakh cement market at around 14% for the full financial year due to end December 31, 2024.

Shares in Steppe Cement fell 17% to 12.91 pence each in London on Friday morning.

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