DCC profits up 21.4%

Business support services company DCC has announced before-tax profits of €37.9m, up 21.4% from last year.

DCC provides services to industrial and commercial customers in Ireland/ The company has ambitions to develop in the British market as environmental legislation is implemented and enforced.

Company chief executive and deputy chairman Jim Flavin said: "DCC’s business is significantly second-half weighted and the Group expects good profit growth for the year as a whole."

Acquisition and development expenditure in the period amounted to €81m of which €17.1m related to capital expenditure. Activity included DCC’s energy division's acquisition of the business of Shell Direct UK. The business supplies heating oils and transport fuels to domestic, agricultural and small commercial and industrial customers.

DCC’s food and beverage division completed the acquisition of Bottle Green Limited, a UK-based wine sales and marketing business with a 5% volume share of the UK off trade wine market, and increased its shareholding from 51.5% to 100% in Allied Foods Limited, which is involved in the chilled and frozen distribution market.

DCC’s ongoing acquisition programme has resulted in a number of acquisitions at a total committed cost of €63.9m. The cash impact of acquisitions in the period was €36.6m.