Our parent company Arkema delivered an excellent financial performance in the first quarter, despite high raw materials and energy cost inflation and some disparities in growth between regions and markets. These results were driven by the Group’s acceleration in high performance materials, its ability to incorporate cost increases into its selling prices and its agility in a complex global environment.
- Group sales of €2.9 billion, up by 30% year-on-year at constant scope and currency:
- Volumes down slightly from last year’s high level, impacted mainly by logistics disruptions and raw materials shortages
- Continued product mix improvement, reflecting the acceleration in demand for high performance solutions
- Adjustment to selling prices offsetting very significant raw materials, energy and transportation cost inflation
- Specialty Materials representing 90% of Group sales (82% in Q1’21)
- EBITDA of €619 million, up by 72.9% compared with Q1’21, and EBITDA margin up sharply to 21.4%:
- EBITDA of Specialty Materials up by 82% at €556 million (€306 million in Q1’21), benefiting from solid volumes, the selling price policy against a highly inflationary context, and the development of high value-added applications linked to sustainable megatrends (batteries, 3D, lightweighting, bio-based materials, more eco-friendly paints, etc.)
- Intermediates’ EBITDA up by 25%, supported by the improvement of Fluorogases and better conditions in upstream acrylics in Asia
- Adjusted net income multiplied by 2.4 to €376 million, representing €4.96 per share (€2.08 in Q1’21)
- Recurring cash flow of €26 million (€53 million in Q1’21), including the seasonal increase in working capital, as well as higher selling and raw materials prices
- Net debt tightly controlled at €2,703 million – of which €700 million in hybrid bonds – including the acquisition of Ashland’s performance adhesives finalized on 28 February 2022, and representing 1.4x last-twelve-months EBITDA
Given this excellent start to the year, while remaining attentive to the evolution of the macroeconomic environment, Arkema now aims to achieve in 2022 at constant scope, Specialty Materials EBITDA and Group EBITDA slightly above the record level of 2021
Following Arkema’s Board of Directors’ meeting, held on 4 May 2022 to review the Group’s consolidated financial information for the first quarter of 2022, Chairman and CEO Thierry Le Hénaff said:
“Our very good performance in the first quarter reflects the strength of our innovation for sustainable development and Arkema’s very solid positioning to address accelerating demand for cutting-edge solutions in high value-added markets. In an operating context that continues to be particularly demanding, our balanced geographic footprint, our technologies, our customer intimacy and the commitment of Arkema’s teams are all valuable assets. Despite the uncertainties currently weighing on global growth, this first quarter’s very good results make us confident in our ability to surpass in 2022 last year’s record results and particularly motivate the teams to continue implementing our strategy focused on Specialty Materials.
We are also pleased to have welcomed on 1 March Ashland’s adhesives’ teams, and this top-tier activity is already confirming all its potential. Lastly, we are delighted to start up very soon, on time and on budget, our two new plants in Singapore and the United States, which are fully in line with the decarbonization theme.”