SABIC announces second quarter results 2020

SABIC today reported its earnings for the second quarter of 2020. The company’s revenue for the second quarter reached SAR 24.62 billion ($ 6.57  billion), representing a decrease of 18% compared to the previous quarter and a 29% decrease year-on-year.

Loss from operations for the quarter totaled SAR 1.26  billion ($ 0.34 billion). This was higher than the loss from operations of SAR 0.06 billion [$ 0.02 billion] in the previous quarter and lower than the profit from operations of SAR 4.02 billion [$ 1.07 billion] in the second quarter of 2019

Net losses during the second quarter amounted to SAR 2.22 billion ($ 0.59 billion). This was higher than the net loss of SAR 1.05 billion [$ 0.28 billion] in the previous quarter and lower than the net profit of SAR 2.03 billion ($ 0.54 billion) in the second quarter of 2019.

Yousef Al-Benyan, SABIC Vice Chairman and CEO, said that SABIC’s performance came in the context of ongoing significant challenges facing both the chemicals sector and the financial markets globally.

He said: “The second quarter saw strong headwinds as global growth declined significantly. This was due to COVID-19 impacting the supply and demand balance for our critical products and the resultant effect on prices and margins.

“Despite the challenging environment, SABIC has shown resilience in its operations. We remain committed to protecting the health and safety of our employees, supplying our customers reliably, supporting humanitarian efforts and proactively collaborating with customers, logistic partners, governments and health authorities to maximize our collective positive impact on communities.”

He continued: “In the current tough macro environment, maintaining a strong balance sheet and a strong credit rating on a standalone basis, and delivering competitive dividends to our shareholders are high priorities.”

Announced in June 2020, Saudi Aramco successfully completed its share acquisition of a 70% stake in SABIC from the Public Investment Fund (PIF), for a total purchase price of SAR 259.125 billion (US$ 69.1 billion).

Mr Al-Benyan said: “Our collaboration with Saudi Aramco will accelerate the achievement of SABIC’s strategic objectives. There will be benefits for business and operations, with coordinated efforts for sales and marketing bringing one face to the market. We will work together with Saudi Aramco to realize the many potential synergies including capitalizing on expertise in executing and streamlining growth projects coupled with distribution, logistics and supply chain activities. Bringing the businesses together will also support the Kingdom’s strategy of maximizing the value generated by the petrochemicals industry and delivering Saudi Vision 2030.

In July, Moody’s Investors Service affirmed SABIC’s A1 long-term issuer rating and A1 senior unsecured bond ratings following the completion of Saudi Aramco’s acquisition of a 70% stake in SABIC.

Sustainability and innovation also continue to represent essential success factors for SABIC. In the reporting period, SABIC extended support to London-based bioplastics firm VOID to develop a new technology to reduce plastic use, mostly in packaging, by up to 50%, while remaining fully recyclable.

Meanwhile, three SABIC flagship TRUCIRCLE™ solutions completed an ISO critical review process which revealed a reduction of 80-84% in fossil-based hydrocarbon depletion in the certified circular polymers, and savings of two kilograms of CO2 emissions for every kilogram of feedstock-recycled polyolefins. 

The COVID-19 pandemic has also seen SABIC step up production to meet increasing demand for essential materials, in medical and packaging applications. SABIC’s LEXAN™ 8010 polycarbonate film is used in the production of safety facemasks, while  LEXAN™ 9030 polycarbonate sheet creates protective antimicrobial screens for pharmacies, grocery stores and other public spaces. LEXAN CLINIWALL AC6200 polycarbonate sheet is an anti-bacterial, easy to clean and disinfect material that provides an interior surface solution for environments requiring higher sanitation. SABIC PURECARES™ polypropylene (PP) products are also increasingly used also in high-grade disposable medical gowns and protective masks.