Swedish pulp and paper manufacturer BillerudKorsnäs has reported net sales growth of 75% in the second quarter of its financial year to SEK 11.4 billion (€1.1 billion).
Net sales excluding currency effects increased by 72%, mainly due to the acquisition of Verso, which closed on 31 March 2022, the company noted.
Verso, now known as Billerud North America, generated net sales of SEK 3.7 billion (€350 million) and sales volumes amounted to 307 kilotonnes during the quarter.
President and CEO of BillerudKorsnäs, Christoph Michalski, said, "Performance in the second quarter was outstanding across all geographies [...]. This was also the first quarter with a considerably broader product portfolio, manufacturing on two continents and as many as 5,900 employees. This creates a platform for future sustainable and profitable growth."
Adjusted EBITDA increased to SEK 2.3 billion (€220 million), primarily due to the acquisition, price increases and an improved mix.
EBITDA at Billerud North America amounted to SEK 704 million (€67.2 million).
It was negatively affected by a one-off effect of around SEK 170 million (€16.2 million) due to the sales of inventory valued at fair value at the time of the acquisition.
The company added that it witnessed strong organic growth in Europe (+17%) and North America (+19%) in this period.
Operating profit amounted to SEK 1.6 billion (€150 million), while net profit was SEK 1.4 billion (€130 million).
Outlook
Despite recessionary threat, the company hopes business to remain strong in Europe and North America due to high prices and "solid" demand for its products.
The company added that the positive price impact and mix improvement will offset higher costs.
Michalski added, "The war in Ukraine continues to have an impact on raw material prices and uncertainty in Europe. We are seeing a significant increase in wood cost, while prices for other raw materials are stabilising at a high level.
"Logistics within Europe and overseas continue to be a significant challenge, both for transport availability and reliability. The situation in North America is improving slowly with stable wood costs, stabilising costs for other raw materials and an improvement of the logistic situation."
Read More: BillerudKorsnäs To Explore Pulp Production With Viken Skog
© 2022 European Supermarket Magazine – your source for the latest packaging news. Article by Dayeeta Das. Click subscribe to sign up to ESM: European Supermarket Magazine.
