- Email: [email protected]
Lanxess sets new earnings record with 34% rise in annual income
FINANCIALS
new technologies, processes and catalysis. In addition, BASF Future Business, which opens up new business areas for the company, is being expanded, and its subsidiary BASF Venture Capital is investing in start-up companies specializing in innovative chemistry and system solutions in BASF’s growth and technology fields. ‘The aim of the new structure is to significantly expand our portfolio of functionalized materials and system solutions and continue improving our position in the emerging markets’, Kreimeyer comments. ‘We want to strengthen our technological and operational excellence, create value from interdisciplinary innovations and position our activities on a global scale to meet the needs of the markets.’ In order to achieve the company’s growth targets, R&D is to have even greater priority in future than before. In 2011, the number of employees working in R&D increased by about 5% to around 10 100. However, in the North and South American and Asian markets that are important for the chemicals business, BASF research is still underrepresented, Kreimeyer reports. ‘We will have to expand our presence and speed up our activities in these regions’, he says. A first step in this direction is the new Innovation Campus in Shanghai scheduled to open at the end of 2012. ‘By creating innovations in Asia for Asia, we want to grow with our customers. By 2020, we want to double our research activities in Asia and the Americas and conduct 50% of our R&D outside Europe’, explains Kreimeyer. An important asset for globalized research is an international network of outstanding external researchers. BASF already has around 1950 collaborations worldwide with universities, research institutes, start-ups and partners from industry. One example is the new JONAS initiative for researching functional materials in partnership with the universities of Strasbourg and Freiburg as well as ETH Zurich. More information about the new research strategy is available from BASF’s website.
production capacities at its European facility in Trnava, Slovakia. According to the company, the investment involves replacing and expanding a furnace, which is expected to be operational by the end of September 2012. The expanded furnace will enable added production flexibility within JM’s product families and expand the production of selected products by as much as 40%, JM reveals. Products from this manufacturing process are used to reinforce both engineered thermoset and thermoplastic polymers in addition to supplying internal demand, the company says Enno Henze, VP and general manager for Engineered Products Europe/Asia, reports that the company has focused its research and development activities over the past couple of years on enhancing its product portfolio of chopped strands for the reinforcement of thermoplastic polymers. These efforts are ‘truly paying off ’ as JM’s products are recognized for their ‘leading performance, resetting industry standards in specific applications and driving strong demand for our products’, he claims. The new melting capacity follows JM’s 2004 investment in direct roving and chopped strands capacity at the Trnava site. The company explains that industrial glass fibre melters have been mostly discontinued in the last three years in Europe and this investment in new technology will enable JM to continue to meet European market needs. ‘We are committed to supporting our customers’ innovative growth in preparation for an improved economy in the second half of this year. This substantial investment highlights our drive to enhance customer relationships, product innovation and service excellence’, Henze concludes.
Contact: BASF SE, Ludwigshafen, Germany. Tel: +49 621 60 0, Web: www.basf.com
FINANCIALS
Johns Manville invests in Slovakian glass fibre plant
Lanxess sets new earnings record with 34% rise in annual income
B
S
erkshire Hathaway company Johns Manville (JM) is investing in expanded glass fibre
8
Contact: Johns Manville, Denver, CO, USA. Tel: +1 303 978 2000. Web: www.jm.com or www.jmfibers.com
Additives for Polymers
peciality chemicals company Lanxess continued to grow in 2011, reporting record
May 2012
FINANCIALS
sales and earnings figures. Sales climbed by 23% to E8.775 billion, which the company attributes to its price-before-volume strategy, successful acquisitions and focus on the emerging markets. In addition, EBITDA preexceptionals improved by 25% to E1.146 billion, exceeding E1 billion for the first time, while net income rose disproportionately, improving by 34% from the previous year to E506 million. In the fourth quarter of 2011, Lanxess improved sales by 16% compared with the very strong 2010 fourth quarter, to E2.123 billion. EBITDA preexceptionals came in at E174 million, just above the 4Q 2010 level of E172 million. The Performance Polymers segment registered the strongest increase in EBITDA pre-exceptionals. Impacted by exceptional charges of about E20 million for a realignment within its Saltigo business unit, net income in the traditionally weakest quarter of the year amounted to E5 million, compared with E26 million in 2010. Lanxess posted double-digit sales gains in all regions in 2011. The strongest growth was achieved in Latin America, where sales advanced by 26% to E1.2 billion. The region’s share of group sales rose to nearly 14%. Sales in the Asia-Pacific region grew by 23%, passing E2 billion for the first time. This region accounted for nearly 23% of total sales. Lanxess achieved its highest regional sales of E2.5 billion in the EMEA region (Europe excluding Germany, Middle East, Africa). This represents a 25% increase, it says. EMEA’s share of group sales remained at 29%. In North America, business expanded by 24% to E1.5 billion, accounting for 16% of total sales. And in its domestic German market, Lanxess increased sales by 19% to E1.6 billion, or 18% of group sales. In the five BRICS countries (Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa), sales climbed by 28% year on year to E2.1 billion, accounting for 24% of group sales (23% in 2010). The company reports that growth in all segments was driven by the so-called ‘megatrends’. Performance Polymers posted the highest sales of all the segments, with revenues up by 37% to approximately E5.1 billion. EBITDA pre-exceptionals for the segment climbed by 40% to E768 million. The Performance Chemicals segment improved sales by 7.7% in 2011 to E2.1 billion. The Rubber Chemicals and Rhein Chemie business units, which generate a significant proportion of
May 2012
their sales with customers from automotive-related industries, saw considerably higher volumes. Rhein Chemie posted global sales of E332 million in 2011, up 17%, with about half of that total generated in Europe. Sales in the Inorganic Pigments business unit receded due to a drop in orders from the construction industry towards the end of the year, Lanxess reports. EBITDA pre-exceptionals for this segment rose by nearly 3% year on year to E289 million. Contact: Lanxess, Leverkusen, Germany. Tel: +49 214 30 33333, Web: www.lanxess.com Or contact: Rhein Chemie Rheinau GmbH, Mannheim, Germany. Tel: +49 621 8907 455, Web: www.rheinchemie.com
Chemtura delivers year-on-year improvement in profitability
F
or the year ended 31 December 2011, Chemtura Corp reported net sales of US$3.03 billion, up 9.6% on the annual total of $2.76 billion for 2010. Net earnings from continuing operations attributable to Chemtura on a GAAP basis were $119 million in 2011 compared to a net loss of $586 million the previous year. The company ended 2011 with adjusted EBITDA for the year of $385 million, up 20% compared to 2010. According to Craig A. Rogerson, chairman, president and CEO of Chemtura, 2011 has been a year of substantial progress and many achievements. ‘With our reorganization behind us, we returned to sustained profitability’, he says. ‘Our success in fully recovering raw material cost increases, our investment in innovation and diversifying applications and our focus on performance and results delivery permitted us to weather the macroeconomic uncertainty in the second half of 2011 and still deliver year-on-year improvement’, he claims. For the fourth quarter of 2011, net sales were approximately level with 4Q 2010 at $677 million. Net earnings for continuing operations in 4Q 2011 were $34 million compared to a net loss of $367 million in 4Q 2010. Rogerson reports that the Industrial segments led the improvement in the quarterly results. Performance improved despite sluggish global business conditions and the continued weakness in the demand for flame
Additives for Polymers
9
new technologies, processes and catalysis. In addition, BASF Future Business, which opens up new business areas for the company, is being expanded, and its subsidiary BASF Venture Capital is investing in start-up companies specializing in innovative chemistry and system solutions in BASF’s growth and technology fields. ‘The aim of the new structure is to significantly expand our portfolio of functionalized materials and system solutions and continue improving our position in the emerging markets’, Kreimeyer comments. ‘We want to strengthen our technological and operational excellence, create value from interdisciplinary innovations and position our activities on a global scale to meet the needs of the markets.’ In order to achieve the company’s growth targets, R&D is to have even greater priority in future than before. In 2011, the number of employees working in R&D increased by about 5% to around 10 100. However, in the North and South American and Asian markets that are important for the chemicals business, BASF research is still underrepresented, Kreimeyer reports. ‘We will have to expand our presence and speed up our activities in these regions’, he says. A first step in this direction is the new Innovation Campus in Shanghai scheduled to open at the end of 2012. ‘By creating innovations in Asia for Asia, we want to grow with our customers. By 2020, we want to double our research activities in Asia and the Americas and conduct 50% of our R&D outside Europe’, explains Kreimeyer. An important asset for globalized research is an international network of outstanding external researchers. BASF already has around 1950 collaborations worldwide with universities, research institutes, start-ups and partners from industry. One example is the new JONAS initiative for researching functional materials in partnership with the universities of Strasbourg and Freiburg as well as ETH Zurich. More information about the new research strategy is available from BASF’s website.
production capacities at its European facility in Trnava, Slovakia. According to the company, the investment involves replacing and expanding a furnace, which is expected to be operational by the end of September 2012. The expanded furnace will enable added production flexibility within JM’s product families and expand the production of selected products by as much as 40%, JM reveals. Products from this manufacturing process are used to reinforce both engineered thermoset and thermoplastic polymers in addition to supplying internal demand, the company says Enno Henze, VP and general manager for Engineered Products Europe/Asia, reports that the company has focused its research and development activities over the past couple of years on enhancing its product portfolio of chopped strands for the reinforcement of thermoplastic polymers. These efforts are ‘truly paying off ’ as JM’s products are recognized for their ‘leading performance, resetting industry standards in specific applications and driving strong demand for our products’, he claims. The new melting capacity follows JM’s 2004 investment in direct roving and chopped strands capacity at the Trnava site. The company explains that industrial glass fibre melters have been mostly discontinued in the last three years in Europe and this investment in new technology will enable JM to continue to meet European market needs. ‘We are committed to supporting our customers’ innovative growth in preparation for an improved economy in the second half of this year. This substantial investment highlights our drive to enhance customer relationships, product innovation and service excellence’, Henze concludes.
Contact: BASF SE, Ludwigshafen, Germany. Tel: +49 621 60 0, Web: www.basf.com
FINANCIALS
Johns Manville invests in Slovakian glass fibre plant
Lanxess sets new earnings record with 34% rise in annual income
B
S
erkshire Hathaway company Johns Manville (JM) is investing in expanded glass fibre
8
Contact: Johns Manville, Denver, CO, USA. Tel: +1 303 978 2000. Web: www.jm.com or www.jmfibers.com
Additives for Polymers
peciality chemicals company Lanxess continued to grow in 2011, reporting record
May 2012
FINANCIALS
sales and earnings figures. Sales climbed by 23% to E8.775 billion, which the company attributes to its price-before-volume strategy, successful acquisitions and focus on the emerging markets. In addition, EBITDA preexceptionals improved by 25% to E1.146 billion, exceeding E1 billion for the first time, while net income rose disproportionately, improving by 34% from the previous year to E506 million. In the fourth quarter of 2011, Lanxess improved sales by 16% compared with the very strong 2010 fourth quarter, to E2.123 billion. EBITDA preexceptionals came in at E174 million, just above the 4Q 2010 level of E172 million. The Performance Polymers segment registered the strongest increase in EBITDA pre-exceptionals. Impacted by exceptional charges of about E20 million for a realignment within its Saltigo business unit, net income in the traditionally weakest quarter of the year amounted to E5 million, compared with E26 million in 2010. Lanxess posted double-digit sales gains in all regions in 2011. The strongest growth was achieved in Latin America, where sales advanced by 26% to E1.2 billion. The region’s share of group sales rose to nearly 14%. Sales in the Asia-Pacific region grew by 23%, passing E2 billion for the first time. This region accounted for nearly 23% of total sales. Lanxess achieved its highest regional sales of E2.5 billion in the EMEA region (Europe excluding Germany, Middle East, Africa). This represents a 25% increase, it says. EMEA’s share of group sales remained at 29%. In North America, business expanded by 24% to E1.5 billion, accounting for 16% of total sales. And in its domestic German market, Lanxess increased sales by 19% to E1.6 billion, or 18% of group sales. In the five BRICS countries (Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa), sales climbed by 28% year on year to E2.1 billion, accounting for 24% of group sales (23% in 2010). The company reports that growth in all segments was driven by the so-called ‘megatrends’. Performance Polymers posted the highest sales of all the segments, with revenues up by 37% to approximately E5.1 billion. EBITDA pre-exceptionals for the segment climbed by 40% to E768 million. The Performance Chemicals segment improved sales by 7.7% in 2011 to E2.1 billion. The Rubber Chemicals and Rhein Chemie business units, which generate a significant proportion of
May 2012
their sales with customers from automotive-related industries, saw considerably higher volumes. Rhein Chemie posted global sales of E332 million in 2011, up 17%, with about half of that total generated in Europe. Sales in the Inorganic Pigments business unit receded due to a drop in orders from the construction industry towards the end of the year, Lanxess reports. EBITDA pre-exceptionals for this segment rose by nearly 3% year on year to E289 million. Contact: Lanxess, Leverkusen, Germany. Tel: +49 214 30 33333, Web: www.lanxess.com Or contact: Rhein Chemie Rheinau GmbH, Mannheim, Germany. Tel: +49 621 8907 455, Web: www.rheinchemie.com
Chemtura delivers year-on-year improvement in profitability
F
or the year ended 31 December 2011, Chemtura Corp reported net sales of US$3.03 billion, up 9.6% on the annual total of $2.76 billion for 2010. Net earnings from continuing operations attributable to Chemtura on a GAAP basis were $119 million in 2011 compared to a net loss of $586 million the previous year. The company ended 2011 with adjusted EBITDA for the year of $385 million, up 20% compared to 2010. According to Craig A. Rogerson, chairman, president and CEO of Chemtura, 2011 has been a year of substantial progress and many achievements. ‘With our reorganization behind us, we returned to sustained profitability’, he says. ‘Our success in fully recovering raw material cost increases, our investment in innovation and diversifying applications and our focus on performance and results delivery permitted us to weather the macroeconomic uncertainty in the second half of 2011 and still deliver year-on-year improvement’, he claims. For the fourth quarter of 2011, net sales were approximately level with 4Q 2010 at $677 million. Net earnings for continuing operations in 4Q 2011 were $34 million compared to a net loss of $367 million in 4Q 2010. Rogerson reports that the Industrial segments led the improvement in the quarterly results. Performance improved despite sluggish global business conditions and the continued weakness in the demand for flame
Additives for Polymers
9