MOSCOW (MRC) -- First half 2014 operating profit (EBITDA) at polyester producer Indorama Ventures (IVL, Bangkok / Thailand) increased by 44% to THB 10.2 bn (EUR 237m) thanks to higher volumes and an increased proportion of high value added business, said Plasteurope.
Sales in the period increased by 12% to THB 126 bn. The company’s European business recorded a significantly higher operating profit at USD 79m in the first half of 2014, up by 71% year-on-year from H1 2013. The region accounted for 29% of the company’s revenues in the period, compared with 26% in H1 2013.
The increase in EBITDA was driven primarily by margin improvements, the company said, with earnings per tonne rising to USD 104 from USD 63 in H1 3013. These gains were boosted by earnings contributions from German affiliate, textile polyester supplier Trevira (Bobingen), PHP Fibers (Wuppertal / Germany), which was acquired in April 2014, and Artenius TurkPET, acquired from the insolvent La Seda de Barcelona in June 2014 – see Plasteurope.com of 06.06.2014. In Europe, 22% of first half 2014 EBITDA came from these three companies.
The company said that H1 2014 PET margins remained healthy because of post winter restocking and the effect of its decision to mothball its Workington / UK PET facility. Fibres and yarns margins improved with the turnaround of Trevira and the addition of PHP Fibres’ automotive and industrial yarns business. In Poland, a project to debottleneck capacity and lower cost – has been completed and will start contributing to earnings in the second half of 2014.
As MRC wrote before, Indorama Ventures Ltd., part of global PET giant Indorama Group, announced it has acquired Artenius TurkPET based in Adana, Turkey. Artenius TurkPET had been part of insolvent Spanish company La Seda de Barcelona and produces PET resin with 130,000 metric tons of capacity.
Over the full year 2014, Indorama expects to record volumes of 6.5m t in 2014, up from 5.8m t in 2013, with additional volumes resulting from the acquisitions of Artenius TurkPET and PHP Fibers.
MRC