LCC Group’s turnover rockets by £268m in year to September 2017

One of the North’s largest family-run businesses has reported a massive £268 million leap in turnover, latest end of year accounts show.

The Tyrone-headquartered LCC Group (Lissan Coal Company) grew its turnover from £584.7 million in 2016 to a record £852.7 million during the 12 months to September 2017.

The latest accounts show that the group’s pretax profits slipped back slightly, falling from £20.8 million in 2016 to £19.8 million last year.

They also detail that directors’ pay packets fell from a total £437,904 in 2016 to £277,617 last year but dividends totalling £400,000 were paid in the year.

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But in their annual strategic report, directors of the Cookstown-headquartered company said the LCC Group had “maintained its position as a leading importer and distributor within the coal and oil market in the UK, Ireland and Europe” during 2017.

They also highlight that LCC increased its share of the non-domestic electricity supply market on the island of Ireland and “attracted many new customers during the year”.

“The group also successfully increased its presence in the non-domestic gas supply market in Northern Ireland,” the directors added.

Domestic coal

LCC was originally established in 1986 by the Loughran family who started out selling domestic coal to homes in Northern Ireland back in 1980.

It has rapidly expanded across several energy sectors and today is estimated to be one of Europe’s largest coal importers and processors.

LCC, which also supplies oil, electricity, gas and logistical freight services to both domestic customers and major industries on a global scale, owns the Go chain of petrol stations.

The group, which employs 246 people, highlighted in the latest set of accounts that its assets last year “exceeded its liabilities by £119,802,183”.

Last year the LCC Group purchased Cloghan Point Oil Terminal in Belfast from the Fortune 200 company AES Corporation in an undisclosed but rumoured "multimillion pound" transaction.

At the time the group, which also has an oil terminal in Maydown in Co Derry, committed to investing a further £15 million in the facility to create the first commercial terminal in Ireland that can accommodate 120,000-tonne tankers. According to the latest set of accounts, the Cookstown group intends to continue its ambitious expansion strategy.

Directors state that LCC is “keen to seek out new opportunities at home and abroad as they arise”.