Clariant: plant closed in Romania, charge recorded
December 06, 2023 at 05:06 am EST
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On Wednesday, Clariant announced the closure of its Romanian bioethanol plant, a decision that will have an impact of between 110 and 140 million Swiss francs on its cash position in 2024.
Production at the Podari 'sunliquid' site had started in the spring of 2022, but the Swiss chemicals group had opted to initiate a strategic review of this asset during the summer in the face of operating performance deemed insufficient.
Clariant adds that it also plans to scale back its biofuels-related activities at its three German sites in Straubing, Planegg and Munich.
All these restructuring measures will entail provisions ranging from 60 to 90 million Swiss francs in the fourth quarter, with a direct impact on Ebitda.
An additional charge of 110 million Swiss francs, including a provision for impairment of the Podari facilities, will also be taken in the quarterly and annual accounts.
For fiscal year 2024, Clariant estimates the impact of these decisions on its cash position at between CHF 110 and 140 million.
Following these announcements, Clariant shares were down 0.9% on Wednesday morning on the Zurich Stock Exchange.
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Clariant AG is a Switzerland-based producer of specialty chemicals. It operates through three business areas: Care Chemicals, Catalysis, Natural Resources. The Business Area Care Chemicals serves customers in the personal care, home care, paints and coatings, and crop solutions markets. Business Area Catalysis offers catalytic and biofuel solutions. The Business Area Natural Resources offers products and customer-tailored solutions for mineral, foundry, oil, and gas extraction businesses, as well as for food, plastics, coatings, adhesives, and inks applications.