Metso Outotec, the new entity created after the merger of Metso’s mineral business with Outotec, expects higher sales and EBITDA in H1 2020.
The company, which published its H1 2020 and Q2 2020 earnings guidance on Monday indicated that initial figures for the periods under consideration pointed to better-than-expected earnings, as the mining industry seemed to have been less affected by COVID-19.
Metso Outotec attained healthy product margins, better delivery capabilities, and successful cost-savings during the first six months of the year, leading to better EBITDA. That said, the firm’s operating profit is expected to decline given the cost adjustments it took for the merger of Metso’s mineral business with Outotec.
In H1 2020 the total orders received by the firm fell slightly to €2bn ($2.45bn) compared to €2.2bn the same period last year. Total orders received in Q2 2020 fell to €976mn from €1.12bn the same quarter last year. Sales, however, increased to €2bn in the first six months of the year compared to €1.9bn in H1 2019. Sales stood at €1bn in Q2 2020, the same as Q2 2019.
The firm’s total adjusted EBITDA in H1 2020 increased to €235mn as opposed to €225mn in H1 2019 and rose to €141mn in Q2 2020 compared to €123mn in Q2 2019, the company said in its guidance. Metso Outotec’s operating profit, however, declined to €159mn in H1 2020 from €201mn in H1 2019 and dropped to €90mn in Q2 2020 from €110mn in the same quarter last year.
(€1 = $1.17)