Thailand chemical firm IVL posts EBITDA of $1,743 million in 2021

This year has further highlighted the competitive advantage of IVL’s regionally integrated model, serving demand inelastic end markets that provide safety and well-being for the consumer. The resiliency of the platform has set a strong foundation for further growth in, around, and beyond current businesses.

“2021  was  once  again  consumed  by  the  COVID  pandemic,  with  multiple  new  waves  hitting  our economies  as  nations  raced to  vaccinate  their  populations.  Despite this, demand was robust with government stimulus boosting consumption, causing crude oil price to rise by over 50 per cent in 2021. At the same time, rising inflation became a growing concern, pushing fixed costs higher,” IVL said in a press release.

The year has been marked by some unexpected and unforeseen crises starting with the Polar Vortex in the  US  Gulf  Coast  leading  to  supply  disruptions  of  petrochemicals,  the  unprecedented  escalation  in container  tariffs  increasing  costs  and  causing  delays,  and  the  energy  surge  especially  in  Europe  and China further complicating supply chains and resulting in cost hikes that could impact profitability. IVL was able to leverage on its leadership position to levy surcharges in Q4 in order to recuperate some of the increased energy costs.

Despite the challenges, there were a number of tailwinds supporting IVL in 2021 and contributing to the record performance achieved. IVL’s presence in premium western markets led to margin improvement coming from higher import parity pricing as a result of high freight rates. The fourth quarter specifically benefited from the introduction of China’s dual control policy that caused production disruptions, resulting in higher polyester value chain margins.

“IVL’s  global  footprint  draws  integrated  premiums  over  Asian  benchmarks  and  protection  against geopolitical risks, while strong integration levels allow IVL to capture value from the entire chain. For the Integrated PET vertical, this unique model has resulted in IVL spreads consistently outperforming industry  reference  spreads,  with  premium  Western  markets  making up 71 per cent  of  EBITDA  share  of  the total business in 2021. Supply chain disruptions and related uncertainties are driving trade preferences for locally sourced goods. IVL’s balanced footprint across the Americas, Europe and Asia makes us a supplier of choice. Looking ahead, 2022 is expected to be another strong year for IVL’s businesses with continued robust demand across our product portfolio,” the release added.

Fibre2Fashion News Desk (RR)