The chief executive of the Maxol fuel and food service group has said the company will be profitable this year despite the Covid-19 pandemic.
But Brian Donaldson said those profits will be below target due to a drop in revenue as a result of restrictions and increased costs brought about by the impact of coronavirus.
As a result, the group's performance will be "well-off" what had been expected at the start of the year, he told a media briefing.
"It is going to be well back on what we achieved in 2019," he said, when the company recorded a profit of €17.8m, up 14% on the previous year.
Mr Donaldson said the introduction of national restrictions back in March resulted in volumes dropping overnight by between 50-70% depending on the location of the service station, as traffic levels plummeted.
This had a big impact on earnings, he added.
However, he added that the company's forecourts have benefited from being in local community areas and this has led to an increase in the level of average transactions as customers use the filling stations as convenience stores.
Mr Donaldson claimed that since the introduction of the latest round of national restrictions, the impact on the business has not been as severe.
He said this was because construction has continued, schools have remained open and because the locations of the Maxol forecourts make them convenient for people working from home.
Fuel volumes are down 30% in the Republic of Ireland, he said, but just 15% in the north, because more retail outlets are open north of the border.
In relation to Brexit, Mr Donaldson said last night's House of Lords vote was a positive development and the company is now more cautiously optimistic that a trade deal will be done.
He said January 1 is not that far away and businesses need time to plan.
The Maxol team has been working on Brexit since the UK voted to leave the EU and it is reasonably confident its supply lines will hold up.
Last year the group invested €32m across the island of Ireland in food services and refits and the benefit of this is coming through in the financial results, the CEO said.
But this year Mr Donaldson said he expects total investment to come in closer to €20m and there will be no new projects started until at least the second quarter of next year, because of Covid-19 uncertainty. The company plans to spend €14m on capital investment next year.
Mr Donaldson said Maxol continues to examine ways of diversifying its forecourt offering, including through the possible addition of pharmacies, dry-cleaning and click and collect services.
Speaking during a media briefing, Mr Donaldson also spoke about the company's sustainability agenda, which has included investing in carbon offsetting projects and a new joint venture energy provider, Bright Energy.
Maxol, which celebrates its centenary this year, has 237 forecourts across the island of Ireland and employs more than 1,000 people.
Mr Donaldson said Maxol has no major plans for further acquisitions and while it is seeking planning permission to develop housing on certain sites, it does not plan on carrying out the developments itself.
