6th Apr 2020 16:16
(Alliance News) - Vesuvius PLC said Monday it is withdrawing its 2019 final dividend payment of 14.3 pence.
The ceramics engineer said the trading environment has become "considerably more uncertain" so is looking for ways to preserve cash.
"Although manufacturing plants across the group currently remain open, with the exception of South Africa, Argentina and Malaysia, there remains insufficient visibility to forecast the potential impact of the pandemic," the company added.
Vesuvius said it has "significant" financial headroom, with available resources at the end of February of GBP375 million - with GBP185 million in available cash and GBP190 million in committed undrawn revolving credit facilities.
Vesuvius has a debt maturity in December 2020 of USD140 million, from US private placement notes, but said it is "well advanced" in assessing multiple available refinancing options. The company also noted it is looking into additional government funding facilities.
Vesuvius is hoping to save around GBP30 million over the remainder of 2020.
Chief Executive Patrick Andre said: "We are also implementing significant pre-emptive cost control and cash preservation measures across the entire business to preserve liquidity. With this set of measures, I am confident that the group will not only meet the temporary challenges of the current crisis but emerge stronger once the market returns to its long-term growth path."
Shares in Vesuvius were 2.7% higher in London on Monday afternoon at 331.40 pence each.
By Paul McGowan; [email protected]
Copyright 2020 Alliance News Limited. All Rights Reserved.
Related Shares:
Vesuvius