Swiss Clariant to establish subsidiary for Plastics and Coatings as of 2016
Clariant intends to establish a subsidiary for the Business Area Plastics & Coatings comprised of the Business Units Masterbatches, Additives and Pigments, in order to fully leverage their value creation potential for the company
This will enable Plastics & Coatings to be steered towards higher absolute profitability and cash generation. The new subsidiaries across the world will be fully owned by Clariant and will start operating as of January 1, 2016
“In the last few years our Business Units Masterbatches, Pigments and Additives have established themselves as leaders in their respective markets in terms of profitability and market share. The new Plastics & Coatings subsidiary will further enable differentiated business steering with a clear focus on absolute profitability and cash generation to further safeguard and improve competiveness in already mature markets. This set up will further increase value creation for the Group. That is why, the entity will remain a vital part of the Group,” said CEO Hariolf Kottmann. “This step will also enable us to make appropriate investments in our growth areas”, he added.
The existing business unit structure with Masterbatches, Additives and Pigments, will be maintained with all approximately 7’000 employees, all assets and liabilities. Sales of the Business Area Plastics & Coatings were CHF 2.6 billion in 2014; the reported EBITDA margin before exceptional items was 14.0 %.
Clariant delivered solid second quarter 2015 with improved profitability and cash flow. Second quarter 2015 sales from continuing operations remained stable in local currencies. In Swiss Francs, sales decreased 8 % to CHF 1406 million from CHF 1531 million compared to last year. EBITDA margin before exceptional items improved significantly to 15.0 % from 14.0 %. Cash flow clearly improved to CHF 51 million compared to CHF −62 million in second quarter 2014. Net result from continuing operations at CHF 56 million compared to CHF 83 million. The 2015 outlook was confirmed: Clariant expects the challenging environment characterized by an increased volatility in commodity prices and currencies, to continue.
In emerging markets, the economic environment is expected to remain favourable, but at a lower level and with increased volatility. Moderate growth should continue in the United States. However, growth in Europe is expected to remain weak.
The combined effect of the appreciation of the Swiss franc with the weakening of the euro will impact Clariant’s sales and profitability in absolute terms, but it will continue to be fairly neutral in terms of relative margins.