Clariant to continue restructuring
30/03/2010
Specialty chemicals provider Clariant held its annual general meeting on March 29.
At the meeting, the company’s chairman, Jürg Witmer, made it clear that the company will undergo further restructuring this year. He said: “In the past year we have made substantial progress in establishing a solid foundation for the company, but we still have a long way to go. Therefore, we must press ahead with our restructuring programme. Our intention is to lay the basis for a sustainable return to profitable growth from 2011 onwards. This is not only in the interest of our employees and our customers, but also of our shareholders. Clariant’s future will be only secured when our earnings reflect the actual performance potential of the company and the expectations of the capital markets.”
Chief executive, Hariolf Kottmann, stated that Clariant's achievements in 2009 were good, but that fundamentally nothing has changed as the company's performance still “clearly lags behind” its peer group. He emphasised that there is no “value-creating alternative” but to continue the restructuring programme in 2010 with its focus on improving cash, and reducing cost and complexity. “It is our expectation to have built ourselves a stable platform for profitable growth by the end of the year. The prerequisite for this step is to maximise the performance of Clariant based on our current portfolio and business units.”
Hariolf Kottmann said: “In a continuously challenging economic climate Clariant expects 2010 sales growth in local currencies in the moderate single-digit range. We are confident the continued restructuring measures will improve the company’s cost position, resulting in a positive impact on the operating result.”
Dr Kottmann further stated that 2010 is the second and last year of the restructuring programme. The implementation of the programme will lead to further headcount reductions.
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