HARARE – Zimbabwe was Portland Pretoria Cement’s (PPC) key growth engine in the second half of the financial year ended 31 March 2026, with volumes and margins rebounding significantly as demand strengthened.
Cement sales volumes in Zimbabwe rose 18% year-on-year, supported by the company’s national distribution footprint and operational turnaround initiatives. The market benefited from sustained government infrastructure spending and improved ZiG liquidity following the Treasury’s March 2026 directive mandating local payments in the currency.
While the full-year EBITDA margin slipped marginally by 0.3 percentage points to 26.9%, the trajectory improved significantly in the second half. Margins recovered to 30.9% in H2, the strongest level in recent years and evidence that operating leverage is materializing as volumes scale.
Revenue from Zimbabwe increased 14.3% and was the main contributor to group revenue growth of 3.9% to R10.255 billion, offsetting flat sales in South Africa and Botswana. EBITDA from the Zimbabwe operations grew 19% to USD56 million from USD47 million in FY2025.
PPC CEO Matias Cardarelli’s reference to an “anticipated new integrated plant in Zimbabwe” signals confidence that the operating environment will remain sound, and positions the business to convert incremental demand into earnings faster than in other markets.
At group level, PPC delivered its second consecutive year of structural improvement under the “Awaken the Giant” turnaround strategy. Group EBITDA rose 31% to R2.079 billion, taking the two-year increase to 67% from R1.242 billion in FY2024. EBITDA margins expanded 4.2 percentage points to 20.3%, an eight-point gain over two years. The margin expansion was achieved despite a stagnant demand environment and was driven by cost discipline. Cost of sales increased just 2% to R8.065 billion, allowing trading profit to jump 50% to R1.473 billion.
South Africa cement remained the largest contributor, with EBITDA up 43% to R1.196 billion and margins improving 5.5 percentage points to 19.1% even as volumes stayed flat. Cash generation strengthened markedly, with net cash inflow before financing activities up 23% to R1.295 billion. That is four times the R260 million generated in FY2024 and enabled a 72% increase in the dividend to 30.2 cents per share. Earnings per share rose 75% to 56 cents.
Looking ahead, PPC enters FY2027 with a structurally lower cost base and higher margins across both core markets. The company described the outlook as “cautiously optimistic” for a South African recovery while expecting Zimbabwe’s environment to remain sound and supportive of steady growth.
The next phase of value creation is anchored on the Western Cape RK3 plant and a potential new integrated facility in Zimbabwe, both targeted to drive the next step-change in FY2028. With margins now at 20.3% and cash flow compounding, PPC has moved from turnaround execution to value extraction, making Zimbabwe’s margin recovery and any SA volume recovery the key swing factors for earnings going forward.
