Altri profits plummet 76% to €28.2 million

The Portuguese paper and paper paste company Altri suffered a tumble in profits of 76% to €28.2 million for the first nine months of the year to September.

The company also saw a contraction in EBITDA of 56.4% and a fall of 25.4% in revenues for the period.
“In 2023 the cellulosic fibres market has gone through an adjustment in its cycle with inevitable impacts compared to the trend seen in recent years. Less demand has invariably led to lower prices within a context of inflation that obviously has had an impact on the players in the sector”, said José Soares de Pina, CEO of Altri in a communiqué sent to the markets on Thursday.
So far in 2023, the company’s EBITDA stands at €97.5 million, while the margin on EBITDA fell 16.2% (a fall of 11.5 percentage points)”, stated the company.
In terms of turnover, Altri posted €601 million for the year so far; a fall of 25.4%. According to Altri this variation was down to “a rapid negative evolution in the prices for hardwood paste.”
Altri also stated that the group made €51.6 million in net investments, compared to €34.8 million in the like-for-like period, which included €28.1 million regarding a new biomass boiler (a new turbine) for its industrial unit at Caima.
The company also reported a net debt of €391.4 million, an amount 8.7% above the €360.1 million posted at the end of the final quarter of 2022.
According to the company, the net debt posted to the end of September was equivalent to 2.2 times its EBITDA generated over the past 12 months. A year ago this ratio was 1.6 times.