The fourth-quarter recovery of demand at some of the plastics-related divisions of Germany’s Evonik (Essen; www.evonik.com) is said to have partly cushioned the first-half fallout from the pandemic lockdowns. Quarterly sales dropped only 2% to EUR 3.2 bn, while adjusted EBITDA contracted 17% to EUR 418m, the company reported. Net profit plummeted 54% to EUR 73m.

Evonik said it managed to meet its full-year 2020 earnings targets spot on, with adjusted EBITDA deteriorating 11% to EUR 1.91 bn. Cost savings helped arrest what could have been a steeper decline. Sales totaled 12.2 bn, down 7%, and net income slumped 78% to EUR 465m (see Plasteurope.com of 21.08.2020).

At Specialty Additives, the division that bundles TPU foam surfactants, cross-linkers and additives, fourth-quarter revenues rose 5% to EUR 848m, thanks to 9% volume growth diminished by currency swings and lower prices. Adjusted EBITDA decreased 1% to EUR 201m, and for full-year 2021 it is expected to match the prior-year level. During the quarter, the additives portfolio was either on par or even higher compared with Q4 2019 across the durable consumer goods, construction, coatings and environmental applications, Evonik’s investor charts showed. Lubricant additives also signalled a clear recovery trend.

Smart Materials revenue gained 4% to EUR 866m while adjusted EBITDA lost 26% to EUR 124m. For 2021, adjusted EBITDA is expected to be slightly higher year-on-year. The division created in May 2020 includes high-tech polymers such as polyamide 12, special polybutadienes and polyesters as well as compounds and composites based on them (see Plasteurope.com of 10.03.2020). Sales at the Inorganics business exceeded the prior-year Q4 level. Polymers also bounced back in auto-related businesses.

There was slow improvement at Performance Materials, the division for the integrated C4-technology platform, super absorbent polymers and alkoxides. A favourable environment continued in the last quarter for butene-1 and oxo products, driven by improving polyethylene and PVC demand. Sales fell 21% at EUR 517m largely due to a 20% reduction in average prices. Adjusted EBITDA, which plummeted 43% to EUR 30m, is expected to be higher year-on-year in 2021.

Evonik said it aims to generate new growth from 2021 with projects that include the expansion of specialty lipids production, which are essential for mRNA-based Covid-19 vaccines. It is adding further to its German production facilities in Hanau and Dossenheim, which are expected to make lipids in commercial quantities by the second half of 2021.

The company said it expects 2021 adjusted EBITDA to rise to EUR 2.0-2.3 bn and sales at EUR 12-14 bn. For the first quarter of this year, it forecasts adjusted EBITDA of at least EUR 550m versus EUR 513m in Q1 last year.