Business

Calor Gas NI report 44 per cent rise in pre-tax profit to £9.3m for 2022

Calor Gas NI put its prices up in the summer of 2022, stating the war in Ukraine had pushed up the cost of LPG.
Calor Gas NI put its prices up in the summer of 2022, stating the war in Ukraine had pushed up the cost of LPG.
By Ryan McAleer

BOTTLED gas specialist Calor saw its pre-tax profit rise 44 per cent to £9.3 million in the north last year, new accounts show.

The company blamed the war in Ukraine for driving up the cost of liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) in early 2022, which it said prompted a summer price increase for its customers “to mitigate the higher costs of gas”.

The latest financial report for Calor Gas Northern Ireland Ltd show its cost of sales increased by 25 per cent in 2022, rising by £4.3m to £21.3m.

But the higher prices helped drive turnover by an additional £6.3m to £40m for the year ending December 31 2022, 19 per cent up on 2021.

There was a 4 per cent increase in distribution costs to £4.5m, while administrative expenses actually fell 15 per cent to £4.8m.

It left Calor Gas NI with a £2.8m uplift in profit before tax, which came in at £9.34m for the year.

A £2m tax bill left the company with a bottom line profit of £7.2m for 2022, which was £1.5m more than 2021 and £2.9m more than 2019.

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The supplier, which set up in Northern Ireland during 1971, has been a wholly owned subsidiary of Dutch group SHV Energy since 1997.

Commentary from Calor’s directors accompanying the latest accounts, describe sales volumes for 2022 as “satisfactory as was the year and financial position”.

Calor Gas set up in Northern Ireland during 1971.
Calor Gas set up in Northern Ireland during 1971.

It added: “The directors are endeavouring to maintain sustainable and stable customer pricing by utilising a rolling 12 month hedge strategy.

“Performance in the LPG business is affected by global commodity trading conditions for all energy products and by general economic conditions. The company's active review of LPG market prices and trends provides an element of protection against loss.

“The company is able to draw on the analysis provided by its sister company SHV Supply and Risk Management based in Paris.”

Calor also increased its staff last year, with 100 people on the books in 2022, up from 88. Total staff costs rose 8 per cent to £5.2m.