BAKU, Azerbaijan, Apr.20
By Leman Zeynalova – Trend:
Net sales of SOCAR’s Petkim Petrochemical Complex in Turkey are expected to stand at 18.907 billion Turkish liras in 2021 and then drop to 17.144 billion Turkish liras in 2022, Trend reports with reference to the forecasts of Turkish Yapi Kredi Bank.
Yapı Kredi is the third largest private bank in Turkey with total assets worth 486.5 billion Turkish liras as of 2020.
Yapi Kredi estimates that Petkim’s net sales amounted to 12.134 billion liras in 2020. Petkim’s gross profit is forecast at 3.259 billion liras and 2.404 billion liras in 2021 and 2022, respectively, as compared to 1.883 billion liras in 2020.
Its net profit will be equal to 1.647 billion liras in 2021 and 1.195 billion liras in 2022, as compared to 1.088 billion liras in 2020, according to the Bank’s estimates.
The naphtha-ethylene spread, the main indicator of Petkim's profitability, has been in an upward trend since the second half of 2020 and has shown a sharp improvement since the beginning of 2021. Average spread increased by 69 percent year-on-year to $622 per ton in the first quarter of 2021.
“Although the sales prices of Petkim are based on Turkish liras, they are linked to USD or Euro. Therefore, revenues are expressed entirely in foreign currency. Petkim is expected to pay $240 million to SOCAR Turkey for 18-percent share in STAR Refinery. Petkim undergoes maintenance every four years with the latest one taking place in Q4 2018. Therefore, no large investments in Petkim are expected in 2021.”
Petkim is the first and the sole integrated petrochemical facility in Turkey. It is the largest exporter in the Aegean region. Petkim’s production capacity is 3.6 million tons per year. The petrochemical complex produces around 60 different types of products and exports to 78 countries. The complex meets about 20 percent of Turkey’s demand for petrochemical products.
Petkim saw a 14 percent increase in net profit in 2020, as compared to 2019. Petkim’s financial success was achieved as a result of the integrated production with Star Refinery, as wells as the measures to increase productivity and digitalization.
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