Presco Plc expects production from its newly acquired Saro Oil Palm plantation to strengthen its growth outlook after the biggest palm oil producer in Nigeria reported an 8.5 percent increase in profit before tax to N151.5 billion in the nine months ended September 2026.
The company said production of fresh fruit bunches from the plantation is expected to commence in the fourth quarter, a development that could expand its productive capacity and support future earnings.
The anticipated output comes as Presco strengthens its balance sheet, with group borrowings falling 57 percent to N137.1 billion, a reduction of N180.2 billion, from the previous reporting period.
Finance costs declined 34.5 percent to N19.6 billion from N30 billion, while total liabilities fell 42.4 percent to N278.2 billion, according to the company’s results released on Thursday.
Presco’s performance comes amid pressures in the edible oil market and broader economic headwinds, which the company said it navigated through cost management and operational efficiencies.
Group gross profit stood at N202.8 billion, with margins above 73 percent, while revenue from Nigeria increased 12.7 percent to N222 billion, underscoring the importance of its domestic market.
At the standalone level, Presco’s profit before tax rose 12.7 percent to N96.9 billion, while profit after tax increased 11.9 percent to N68.7 billion. Its cost of sales declined 6.2 percent to N46.2 billion.
Reji George, managing director and chief executive officer of Presco, said the company had maintained disciplined cost management and improved productivity across its plantations, processing facilities and supply chain.
“The commencement of Fresh Fruit bunches production from our new Saro Oil Palm Limited plantation in Q4 is a key catalyst that will further enhance our production capacity and profitability,” George said.
He added that the company would continue to focus on operational efficiencies, expanding productive capacity and sustainability as it seeks to close the year strongly.
The expected contribution from Saro offers a potential additional growth driver for Presco. However, the scale and timing of the benefits will depend on production volumes, yields, selling prices and operating costs.
Wasiu Alli is a business, economics cum data journalist with strong expertise covering macro trends, capital markets, government policies, corporate earnings and comparative economics analysis. Alli turns raw data into trends that not only tells compelling stories but nudges investors to make valued and informed decisions. He’s an alumnus of Lagos State University and trained at Lagos Business School. He formerly heads the Companies and Markets desk at BusinessDay where he writes and supervises the production of well researched articles on earnings updates, corporate sectoral comparisons, market intelligence as well as interviews with C-suite executives.
