Arctic Paper recently published its Q2 2020 results. Commenting on the report, Michal Jarczyński, CEO of Arctic Paper S.A, says:
“Although the second quarter of 2020 was strongly affected by the coronavirus pandemic and its impacts on the economy, the group succeeded relatively well in meeting the challenges. EBITDA for the period amounted to PLN 48.0mn (vs. PLN 90.5mn in Q2 2019), and revenue PLN 616.0mn (762.5mn). For H1, EBITDA was PLN 159.9mn (vs. PLN 171.6mn in H1 2019). The consolidated figures again illustrate the value of combining both pulp and paper, as the fluctuations in the segments compensate for each other.”
Thanks to extensive efforts that have entailed cost savings and measures to optimize working capital and promote higher efficiency, postponed investments, and the use of the relevant government support programs offered, the impact on earnings has been limited, even though we have not been able to fully offset the decline.
“Production amounted to 114,000 tonnes during Q2 2020 (vs. 147,000 tonnes in Q2 2019), with capacity utilization of 69 percent (92). At the same time as necessary adjustments to production are continuously made, it is important to plan for the future.”
“The pandemic has a strong impact both on the economy as a whole and on the development of our group. The effects will also be visible during the third quarter. But although there is still great uncertainty about the future, we now see clear signs of a recovery in demand. I am confident that Arctic Paper will emerge stronger from the crisis, even though we have not yet seen the end of the pandemic.”
