Sibur elastomers sales up despite lower volumes

Moscow – Sibur Holding’s sales of elastomers rose sharply over the first six months of the year, due mainly to a positive price dynamic.

Sales of elastomers for the first half of 2021 rose 33.1% to RUB25.4 billion, while volumes fell 4.7% year-on-year to 203 kilotonnes, Sibur announced 29 July.

Sibur linked the lower volumes to the sale of its Togliatti-based rubber assets to Tatneft in the final quarter of 2019.

The Russian group said the volume drop was partially compensated by an increase in the production capacity for thermoplastic elastomers at its Voronezh site in April 2020. 

The group’s plastics, elastomers & intermediates business unit, which includes the elastomers operation, reported a strong rebound in earnings (EBITDA) during the first half.

The business unit reported a 440% rise in earnings to Rub28.2 billion during the first six months of the year.

Sibur attributed the sharp rise to a low comparison base last year, when both demand and prices were strongly affected by the onset of the Covid-19 pandemic.

External sales of plastics, elastomers and intermediates decreased by 8% quarter-on-quarter primarily due to maintenance works at the company’s Voronezh site. Domestic sales decreased by 5.4% while export sales decreased by 15.3%.