Mannai’s 2011 Profits Soar

Qatar’s Mannai Corporation announced that net profits for 2011 increased 21 per cent from QR231 million in 2010 to reach QR279 million ($76.6 million). The company made revenues of QR2.3 billion in 2011, a 16 per cent rise over the previous year, it said in a statement.

The increase in net profit was achieved by the broad diversity of the group’s activities, it said, including the recent investment in UAE-based Axiom Telecom.

“We made two important strategic investments in NEXThink and Axiom Telecom, and we are currently moving forward with two more significant opportunities,” Alekh Grewal, the group’s CEO said in the statement.

“We are focused on investing in sector-leading companies that have a dynamic business model, a proven track record and strong growth potential across different continents,” he added.

Earlier this year the Qatari conglomerate, which operates in oil and gas, retail, automotive and logistics, said that it was considering the possibility of making a cash offer for UAE-based Damas International in conjunction with one or more other investors. It said at the time that it had secured commitments for 58.79 per cent of the jewellery retailer’s shares.

All the shareholders of Damas including the Abdullah brothers, had agreed to accept the offer at a price of $0.45 per Damas share, “provided that an announcement of a firm intention to make the offer was made on or prior to April 30, 2012,” the company had said in a statement.

However, Mannai confirmed that while financial and legal due diligence had commenced, “there can be no guarantee that any offer will ultimately be made for Damas nor as to the terms on which any offer might be made.”

At the end of 2011, the group’s net assets amounted to QR1.4 billion.