Profit after taxation at Co Galway intuitive vehicle products and systems developer Connaught Electronics increased nearly ten-fold from €2.6m to €24m in 2021.

Turnover at the Tuam-based firm, which trades as Valeo Vision Systems, declined 4.5% year-on-year from €207.5m to €198.2m, while sales costs fell from €131.8m to €80.1m and administrative expenses rose from €71.4m to €78.9m.

As a result, operating profit decreased from €4.3m to €1.2m, but the company received €25.6m in dividend income from subsidiaries, offset partially by interest payments, causing the surge in profit for the financial year.

Connaught Electronics fully owns a number of subsidiaries registered in China that work on powertrain systems, comfort & driving assistance systems, and automotive lighting.

The company itself is a subsidiary of French automotive innovation group Valeo, which acquired it in 2007.

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At the end of the financial year, the firm held assets of €297.9m against liabilities of €236.4m for net assets of €61.5m. Connaught paid €62.8m in respect of product development in 2021, down from €73.6m in 2020.

2021 saw Connaught Electronics reduce its headcount from 928 to 795, with job losses concentrated in production/quality control (416 to 356) and research and development (472 to 401).

However, the company's staff costs rose year-on-year from just under €51m to €52.2m, including director remuneration fo €446,700, up from €368,200 a year prior.

The directors said that they were "satisfied" with the trading performance of the company in 2021 and did not recommend payment of a divided.

In Q3, Valeo reported a 33% uplift in sales to €5.3bn. In 2021, the CAC-40-listed group recorded sales of €17.3bn, with net attributable income of €175m and EBITDA of €2.3bn.

(Pic: Getty Images)