UPDATE: Dixy sees capital expenditures at 7–8 bln rbl in 2017

(Adds quote, details in paragraphs 4–6)

MOSCOW, Aug 16 (PRIME) -- Russian grocery retailer Dixy plans its capital expenditures at 7–8 billion rubles in 2017, CEO Sergei Belyakov said Wednesday during a conference call.

“In terms of capex, the forecast for this year – we expect that it will amount to 7–8 billion rubles,” he said.

In 2016, the company’s capital expenditures decreased 30.5% to 9.476 billion rubles.

Belyakov also said that Dixy had cut its new store plans to 50–60 from 180 with the majority of them to be opened in the second half of the year until the end of the year.

“We are currently revising our plans to open stores. It is very important for me to reach a higher margin of stores compared with the existing ones. Criteria for making a decision to open stores are very high. On the whole, we expect that the number of openings will amount to around 50–60 stores until the end of the year,” he said.

In January–June, Dixy opened 19 stores and closed 104 stores. In 2016, Dixy opened 141 stores and closed 47 stores.

(59.9266 rubles – U.S. $1)

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