Cyprus-registered holding company Centravis Ltd (Centravis) has announced that in 2009 its Ukrainian seamless stainless steel tube producing subsidiary Centravis Production Ukraine based in Nikopol city registered a 41.08 percent decrease year on year in its tube production to 9,771 mt. Meanwhile, in 2010 it is planned that the subsidiary will increase its output by 48.4 percent year on year to 14,500 mt.
"The past year of 2009 was challenging for us. The global financial crisis, the decline in orders from chemical and petrochemical industries, the economic crisis in the country, which practically paralyzed the VAT return for export companies - all these affected our business," Centravis CEO Yuri Atanasov said.
Accordingly, in 2009 Centravis Production Ukraine registered a loss of UAH 97 million (about $12.2 million), compared to a loss of UAH 15.7 million (about $1.97 million) seen in 2008.
In 2009, Centravis Ltd's total sales volume of tubes amounted to 11,410 mt, compared to 16,939 mt in 2008. The geography of its product distribution remained without significant change: CIS with 49 percent, Europe with 44 percent, America with six percent, Asia with 0.4 percent, and the rest of the world with 0.6 percent.
In 2010, Centravis expects an increase in its annual turnover to $167 million from $137 million registered in 2009, and expects a rise in its EBITDA to $11.9 million compared to $7.786 in 2009.