Subdued mining activity in West Africa has impacted construction group Wilson Bayly Holmes-Ovcon’s (WBHO’s) civil engineering and roads and earthworks divisions, with no new significant contracts having been awarded in the sector since June 30, 2013, the company said on Monday.

The effects of subdued activity were partially offset by 15% growth from the roads and earthworks division’s South African businesses, while revenue from Botswana and Mozambique was broadly in line with that of the prior period. However, the roads and earthworks business segment’s overall revenue still decreased by 6%, while operating profit declined by 23% at a margin of 8.8% during the six months ended December 31.

But, despite subdued activity, the roads and earthworks division was executing work at a number of current mining projects in South Africa, Botswana and Namibia as well as various small works contracts in Mozambique, Ghana and Sierra Leone, following the completion of the major works at mines in these countries, WBHO said.

The company on Monday also said the decrease in operating profit from the roads and earthworks division, in conjunction with a R36-million loss from its subsidiary Capital Africa Steel (CAS), had led to a decline in the group’s overall operating profit to R481-million, compared with R566-million in the prior corresponding period.

Consequently, the company’s overall operating margin decreased from 4.7% to 3.6%.

WBHO also reported a 19.9% decline in earnings per share to 548c, while headline earnings per share also decreased by 20.4% to 586c.

Although, the group’s revenue did increase by 11% from R12-bilion to R13.4-billion, with about 6% of this growth relating to the full consolidation of CAS in the period.

Meanwhile, WBHO’s building and civil engineering division achieved a 11% increase in revenue during the six months ended December 31, mostly owing to the sustained improvement in the local building sector, most notably in Gauteng, assisted by increased revenues from West Africa as the division’s projects in Ghana progressed.

The division’s operating profit for the period under review also increased from R139-million to R152-million, with an operating margin of 4.3%.

Meanwhile, the civil engineering division’s revenue remained static compared to the prior period.