Promateris announces a share capital increase operation to finance the accelerated growth strategy, but also M&A activities
Bucharest, March 14, 2022 – Promateris (BVB: PPL), a Romanian industrial group and leader in Central and Eastern Europe in producing biodegradable and compostable packaging, announces intention to increase its share capital. The operation has been approved by the Board of Directors of Promateris and is subject to the vote of the shareholders in the General Meeting of Shareholders, which will take place on April 18/19th, 2022. The proposed capital increase is intended to consolidate the expansion trend of Promateris.
“Today, Promateris is in a unique stage of development – we are the leader in the Central and Eastern European region, and we want to continue to strengthen our leading position in the production of reduced-carbon packaging. We will do this by increasing the products‘ added value through proprietary R&D activities and by accessing new markets. We have identified a number of growth opportunities in the region and we aim to have an agile approach to future opportunities in terms of acquiring new production capacities in the region through M&A. We are in a position to generate value for shareholders by delivering consistent profits and bringing real change to the packaging industry,” stated Tudor Georgescu, CEO of Promateris.
The objective of the share capital increase is to facilitate organic growth and M&A opportunities, which will help Promateris accelerate its expansion and strengthen its position in the region. Promateris seeks to acquire new companies whose business can be integrated into the Group to diversify the product portfolio. That will generate high added value and support the creation of group synergies. The company targets to raise up to 25 million euros through the share capital increase operation.
Since the share capital increase operation is subject to identifying organic growth and M&A opportunities in the region, the details of the share capital increase operation are proposed to be delegated to the Board of Directors, who will be authorized to perform the operation for a period up to 3 years.
Due to investments in state-of-the-art equipment, Promateris increased its biodegradable and compostable production capacity by 36% in 2021 compared to 2020. Consequently, the company registered a consolidated turnover of 37.8 million euros, up 62% compared to the previous year. The Group, which includes the distribution company Biodeck, recorded a consolidated EBITDA of over 6 million euros, 129% more than 2020. At the same time, the company recorded a net profit of 3.7 million euros, an increase of 405 % compared to 2020. For 2022, Promateris estimates revenues of 47.7 million euros, an EBITDA of 7.3 million euros, and a net profit of 4.3 million euros.
In addition to potential M&A transactions in the European market, Promateris will continue to invest in developing new high-value-added products based on the company’s R&D activities. Promateris will also start the production of raw material based on corn starch, aimed at the production of biodegradable and compostable packaging. With this new line of business, Promateris will be the first company in Eastern Europe to produce corn starch raw materials by developing a series of its own recipes and procedures.
Promateris is a company founded in 1957, and as of 1997, the company is listed on the main market of the Bucharest Stock Exchange, with the PPL stock symbol.
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About Promateris
Promateris (BVB: PPL) is a company listed on the Main Market of the Bucharest Stock Exchange. Promateris specializes in state-of-the-art packaging made from renewable, biodegradable and compostable materials. In the Buftea factory, the company produces sustainable alternatives to single-use plastic, such as a wide range of bags for retail (T-shirt bags, fruit and vegetable bags, bio-waste bin liners). Promateris operates three business lines: Bio-based and compostable packaging, which produce packaging made from renewable resources, bioplastic recycling, through which it recycles residual waste to be reintroduced into the production process; Electrical cable compounds, through which granules for the production of electrical cables are developed and manufactured.