January–March 2024 compared with January–March 2023
- Net sales declined to SEK 4,558m (4,813). The sales decrease was mainly due to lower selling prices. Delivery volumes increased compared with the preceding year due to a gradual ramp up of production at mills where strategic capital expenditures have recently been made.
- EBITDA amounted to SEK 1,596m (2,055). Lower selling prices were partly offset by effective cost control due to the high degree of self-sufficiency in primarily wood raw material but also in energy and logistics.
- EBITDA margin was 35.0% (42.7).
- Operating profit declined to SEK 1,077m (1,596).
- Operating cash flow amounted to SEK 677m (1,203).
- Earnings per share was SEK 1.12 (1.74).
January–March 2024 compared with October–December 2023
- Net sales increased to SEK 4,558m (4,384), mainly attributable to higher selling prices.
- EBITDA amounted to SEK 1,596m (1,635) and EBITDA margin was 35.0% (37.3). Higher selling prices were offset by negative exchange rate effects.
SUMMARY OF THE FIRST QUARTER OF 2024
The market for fiber-based products gradually strengthened during the quarter, leading to successively higher selling prices, which combined with a strong result in forest operations had a positive earnings impact. The high rate of self-sufficiency in wood raw material, energy and logistics continued to contribute to effective cost control and the strategic capital expenditures recently made in pulp and packaging paper resulted in higher delivery volumes. SCA’s earnings for the first quarter of 2024 were in line with the preceding quarter, but were weaker year on year.
The supply of fiber to SCA’s industries was stable. The price of sawlogs and pulpwood continued to rise slightly compared with the preceding quarter.
Production at Swedish sawmills has been severely restricted since last autumn, resulting in low producer stocks. Together with low customer inventories, this has resulted in a more robust market balance and higher selling prices for solid-wood products compared with the preceding quarter.
In the Pulp segment, the market for both northern bleached softwood kraft pulp (NBSK) and chemical thermomechanical pulp (CTMP) strengthened, resulting in higher selling prices compared with the preceding quarter.
Selling prices for kraftliner fell compared with the preceding quarter. Demand for packaging material gradually increased during the quarter, leading to progressively higher demand for kraftliner and price increases were announced for the second quarter.
At the end of the first quarter, 797 wind turbines were operating on SCA’s land with a combined annual production capacity of 9.4 TWh. The jointly owned biorefinery in Gothenburg began operating at year-end and the ramp up is proceeding according to plan.
Source: SCA
