NORDENIA increases sales and keeps result at a high level

During the 2011 financial year the multinational film manufacturer and converter NORDENIA INTERNATIONAL AG continued its strong growth. In 2011 group sales rose by 9.9% to € 880.8 million, and compared with the previous year the sales volume grew by 1.4% to 244,670 tons. In 2011 the NORDENIA group's earnings remained at a high level. At € 101.1 million the adjusted EBITDA (earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization) was 4.4% below the result for the previous year.

Ralph Landwehr, NORDENIA INTERNATIONAL AG's CEO & Chairman of the Executive Board, puts the result for the year 2011 into a wider context: "Because of the global economic crisis 2009 was a tough year for the plastics-processing industry. In 2010 the economy picked up again. The packaging industry, which showed strong growth, also benefited from this. Against this positive background, in 2010 we saw above-average growth rates and thus the best result in our company history. We were unable to repeat these excellent 2010 figures in 2011. The adjusted EBITDA of € 101.1 million means for the NORDENIA Group the second best result in its history," explains the CEO & Chairman of the Executive Board.

Rising costs, increased competitive pressure and fluctuations in the economy are the reasons given by the NORDENIA boss as to why the 2011 result remained slightly below the level of the previous year. The increase in sales, which was disproportionate in comparison with the sales volume, was the result firstly of increased prices for raw materials, which it was only possible to pass on to customers after a time, and secondly of a change in the product mix in the direction of higher-quality products.

NORDENIA wishes to further expand its business in the markets North America, Asia, Germany and Eastern Europe. The average annual investment volume for 2012 and 2013 is about € 35.6 million. In 2012 NORDENIA will be focusing its investment on the sites in Gronau (Germany), Jackson (USA) and Poznañ (Poland). To further strengthen its competitiveness, at the end of 2011 NORDENIA also initiated a double-digit millions range cost reduction and efficiency program for 2012. "Even though in 2011 we achieved our second-best company result, this measure was necessary in order to keep the company safely profitable," Landwehr emphasizes.

In 2011 NORDENIA expanded its business, in particular in the regions Eastern Europe and Asia/Pacific. In the area Eastern European, in comparison with the previous year sales grew by 20.6%, and in the region Asia/Pacific there was a 21.9% increase in sales. In Germany, with its sales share of 32.2% the biggest national market for NORDENIA, sales rose by 7.0% compared to 2010.

Source: NORDENIA