Billerud has released it’s Annual Report and Sustainability Report for 2023.
The company says that 2023 was a challenging year compared to an excellent 2022. This was due to lower sales volumes caused by a weaker market and historically high costs. There were some positive milestones however, including the successful completion of the Frövi recovery boiler, implementation of a more agile organisation, and a positive result from our efficiency enhancement program.
In the beginning of 2023, Billerud launched a three-year efficiency enhancement program to improve profitability that includes cost-reduction measures in both regions. The announced target for the program was an EBITDA uplift of SEK 1.5 bn by the end of 2025. The program was initially estimated to deliver SEK 400m in 2023, but already in June, Billerud announced an accelerated delivery of the program, raising the ambition for 2023 to SEK 600m. This target was achieved by year-end.
“Early in 2023, our entire industry faced unusually high inventory levels throughout the value chain and it is only recently that we are seeing signs that destocking is phasing out. We adapted to the situation by carrying out production curtailments which resulted in dramatically lower sales volumes. Organic and currency-neutral net sales decreased by 7% in 2023. EBITDA declined on the back of low sales, high input costs and pricing pressures in several of our product categories,” said Ivar Vatne, CEO, Billerud.
Read the full report here.
