Evonik remains successful,” said Klaus Engel, Chairman of the Executive Board of Evonik Industries AG, when the Group published its key financial figures for the third quarter of 2015 and the interim report for the period from January to September 2015. He explained the reasons for this: “Our business is continuing to develop at a high level in the second half of the year. It is also pleasing to report that all three chemical segments were able to increase their earnings year-on-year in the third quarter. Building on that and on our belief in our performance, we are looking ahead with confidence.”

At Group level, both sales and adjusted EBITDA continued the strong performance seen in the first two quarters of the year. Global demand for Evonik’s products was again good. However, volumes were slightly lower than in the third quarter of 2014 as a consequence of routine plant maintenance. There was a considerable increase in selling prices in the Nutrition & Care segment, whereas prices in the Performance Materials segment declined, mainly because of the drop in the oil price. Overall, selling prices were higher than in the previous quarter.

Key data for the Evonik Group Q3 and first nine months of 2015

Driven by higher prices and positive currency effects, sales increased by 4 percent to €3,365 million in the third quarter, and by 6 percent to €10,309 million in the first nine months, supported by higher volumes.

The Group’s adjusted EBITDA climbed 31 percent to €653 million in the third quarter and therefore remained at the high level reported for the previous quarters. In the first nine months, adjusted EBITDA rose 37 percent to €1,964 million. This was attributable to the ongoing good volume trend, partly as a result of new capacities, and to higher selling prices. Further positive factors were slightly lower raw material costs and currency effects. The adjusted EBITDA margin of 19.4 percent in the third quarter stood out in the chemicals sector. Between January and September the adjusted EBITDA margin rose to 19.1 percent, up from 14.8 percent in the prior-year period. Adjusted net income increased 36 percent to €296 million in the third quarter and 56 percent to €923 million in the first nine months. The strong business performance so far this year has had a favorable impact on the cash flow from operating activities.

At €1,329 million at the end of the first nine months it was already well above the cash flow of €1,066 million reported for 2014 as a whole.

Outlook for the year confirmed

In view of the continued strong business performance, Evonik is confirming its expectations for the full year. Given the strong development of the operating business, in mid-year the company raised its guidance to sales of around €13.5 billion (2014: €12.9 billion) and adjusted EBITDA of around €2.4 billion (2014: €1.9 billion).

Segment performance

For the first time in 2015, all three chemical segments reported a year-over-year improvement in earnings in the third quarter.

In the Nutrition & Care segment sales grew 22 percent to €1,240 million in the third quarter (Q3 2014: €1,016 million). While volumes rose slightly, the main drivers were far higher selling prices and positive currency effects. Thanks to higher prices and lower raw material costs, adjusted EBITDA increased 85 percent to €382 million. The adjusted EBITDA margin rose significantly from 20.3 percent in the prior-year period to 30.8 percent.

Sales in the Resource Efficiency segment increased 2 percent to €1,044 million in the third quarter (Q3 2014: €1,027 million) as a result of slightly higher selling prices and positive currency effects. The slight reduction in volumes was attributable to routine maintenance work at some production plants. Adjusted EBITDA increased slightly to €216 million. The adjusted EBITDA margin was around the prior-year level at 20.7 percent.

In the Performance Materials segment sales declined 11 percent to €858 million in the third quarter (Q3 2014: €966 million). Alongside plant maintenance in the two most important businesses, this was because selling prices were impacted by the persistently low oil price. On the earnings side, however, this price effect was more than offset by a temporary margin advantage as a result of the reduction in the cost of oil-based feedstocks. Adjusted EBITDA therefore improved by 4 percent to €94 million (Q3 2014: €90 million). The adjusted EBITDA margin was 11 percent, up from 9.3 percent in the third quarter of 2014.