Q1, 2018 Trading Statement
INEOS Group Holdings S.A. (‘IGH’ or ‘INEOS’) announces its trading performance for the first quarter of 2018.
Based on unaudited management information INEOS reports that EBITDA for the first quarter of 2018 was €618 million, compared to a record €753 million for Q1, 2017 and €562 million for Q4, 2017.
North American markets were solid, taking full benefit from their current feedstock advantage. Market conditions in Europe have remained good, supported by the continued weakness of the Euro. In addition, markets in Asia have seen some strength in the quarter.
O&P North America reported EBITDA of €183 million compared to €284 million in Q1, 2017. The business has continued to benefit from its flexibility to be able to utilise cheaper NGL feedstocks to maintain healthy margins. The US cracker business environment was solid with healthy margins and good operating rates throughout the quarter. The increased supply from new industry capacity coming online in the quarter has led to some reductions in margins compared to the record margins achieved in the first quarter of 2017. Polymer demand was strong, with balanced markets and good margins.
O&P Europe reported EBITDA of €192 million compared to €221 million in Q1, 2017. Demand for olefins in the quarter was solid in a tight market with top of cycle margins, partly supported by tight butadiene market conditions. European polymer demand was firm in a balanced market, with solid volumes and high margins in the quarter.
Chemical Intermediates reported EBITDA of €243 million compared to €248 million in Q1, 2017. All of the businesses performed well in the quarter, with sustained good demand for products. The demand trend in the Oligomers business was solid, most notably in the PAO segment, although there was some length in hexene due to downstream customer outages. Demand for the Oxide business was strong, with healthy margins in the quarter despite some weakness in glycol. The tighter market conditions for the Nitriles business were due to strong demand from derivatives, particularly ABS and acrylamide, which led to further improvements in margins. Demand for the Phenol business was balanced with solid margins in the quarter.
The Group has continued to focus on cash management and liquidity. Net debt was approximately €4.7 billion at the end of March 2018. Cash balances at the end of the quarter were €1,484 million, and availability under undrawn working capital facilities was €425 million. Net debt leverage was approximately 1.9 times as at the end of March 2018.