International. Perstorp reported that in 2017 it reached an extraordinary milestone with the delivery of excellent growth in volume sales of 10 percent and sales worth 13,592 million Swedish kronor - SEK (about US$1,580 million).
EBITDA excluding non-recurring items increased by 20 percent to record a maximum of SEK (Swedish krona) 2,133 million. A successful balance sheet refinancing in the third quarter of last year, amounting to €230 million, also gave the company lower interest rates on floating-rate promissory notes.
Demand was strong and harmonious in the three main regions; America, Europe and Asia, despite some geopolitical uncertainty. Perstorp's continued focus on proactive pricing also allowed for improved margins.
In 2017, the company saw the launch of a number of exciting developments, further establishing its role as a market leader in specialty chemicals.
Perstorp has also made great strides in its sustainability ambitions. In November, in Shanghai, the company announced its ambition to become Finite Material Neutral, for example by switching to renewable resources and reusing finite resources in continuous loops. As a chemical company, Perstorp consumes significant amounts of electricity in production processes and, with this in mind, the company committed in 2017 to use only renewable electricity in all its domestic production plants.
