US polyamide 6 specialist AdvanSix (Parsippany, New Jersey; www.advansix.com) said it increased both revenues and earnings in 2022, with the numbers failing to reach pre-pandemic levels and growth slowing significantly in the final quarter of last year, when a sales decline failed to drag results lower.

According to CEO Erin Kane, several systems had to be shut down because of the onset of winter, especially in December, which she said pushed the utilisation rates below forecasts.

The current year is also unlikely to be a particularly good one for PA 6, with Kane anticipating continued headwinds, particularly in consumer durables, construction, and infrastructure. However, she said she expects an upward trend from the other intermediate products. And AdvanSix plans to again spend more money on investments, although these will probably flow primarily into maintenance work and energy-saving measures.

The whole of 2022 was not as strong as expected. High polymer prices in Europe for many months attracted cheaper imports, especially from China, making it difficult for US companies to export to Europe. This has caused industry-wide lower utilisation rates not only in the US, but also at small plants in Mexico and South America, Kane said during the question-and-answer session after the annual press conference. The resulting gap there was also closed with Asian imports. For AdvanSix, this means sales volume was about 10% lower than last year, something more than offset by higher prices.

Full-year 2022 EBITDA adjusted for special effects rose 15% to USD 308.5 mn, as did sales to USD 1.95 bn, which benefited from the purchase of the amino manufacturer US Amines. Net income, on the other hand, jumped 23% to just under USD 172 mn.