News

Challenges from Rising Energy, Labor, and Logistics Costs Addressed with Sustainable Solutions

Rising production costs are challenging many companies, and Qemetica Salz Deutschland is no exception. As a leading manufacturer of vacuum salt in the European Union, Qemetica is committed to delivering top product quality, reliable deliveries, and sustainable production. To continue meeting these standards, a price adjustment for salt tablets will be implemented next year.

Qemetica Silicates achieved a major milestone in 2024 by raising its EcoVadis rating from Silver to Gold, underscoring its strong commitment to sustainable development. EcoVadis – a leading global platform evaluating companies’ corporate social responsibility practices – also honored Qemetica Soda Deutschland with a renewed Silver Medal and Qemetica Soda Polska, a producer of soda ash and evaporated salt, with a Bronze Medal.

In the first half of 2024, decarbonisation and environmental protection were of increasing importance in the activities of companies - this is the conclusion of the second reading of the Decarbonisation Index of the Polish Economy. The second reading of the Index shows a value of 61 points, where 50 points is neutral, above 50 is positive and below 50 is negative, and it is unchanged from the first reading for 2023. The second reading of the Index took into account responses from 111 Polish companies. 

Qemetica Soda Polska, a company belonging to the Qemetica Group, has secured funding from the National Fund for Environmental Protection and Water Management for a project involving the conversion of an existing coal-fired boiler to a 100 per cent biomass-fired boiler at its Inowrocław plant. The NFOŚiGW support of nearly PLN 100 million represents the highest subsidy in Qemetika's history. The conversion of the coal-fired boiler to a biomass-fired boiler is one of the main elements of the company's strategy in the area of energy transformation and will allow the reduction of coal consumption by approximately 100,000 tonnes per year at the Inowrocław plant.

Qemetica Soda Polska - a leading producer of soda ash in Central Europe - has successfully completed a project to recover heat in the production process. The undertaking is part of Qemetica Group's efforts to reduce energy intensity and is the result of close cooperation with experts from GEA Process Engineering. Hot air, previously escaping into the atmosphere, was returned to the soda ash production process, thus reducing the need for process steam produced at the CHP plant.

David A. Schmidt joined the Management Board of Qemetica S.A. on the 2nd of September and will be responsible for the group's operations. The Management Board of Qemetica S.A. will operate with a three-member composition: Kamil Majczak, CEO, Marcin Puziak, CFO, and David Schmidt, COO.

Qemetica has signed an agreement with American corporation Qemetica to purchase its silicas products business for near PLN 1.2 billion (USD 310 million). The Polish chemical group will acquire certain assets of Qemetica and an operating subsidiary of Qemetica, which results in the acquisition of two factories (in the US and the Netherlands) and in gaining the right to conduct manufacturing and R&D activities in two additional US locations. Qemetica’s silica products business manufactures and supplies precipitated silica products to major companies around the world as performance-enhancing additives. Precipitated silica is a raw material essential in the production of “green” tires, batteries, fillers, characterized by stable growth and positive outlook. The acquisition of the silica business will increase Qemetica group's revenue and EBITDA, as well as diversify the group's product range and geographical operations. This acquisition is one of the largest transactions of this type carried out by a Polish company in the US.

CIECH – and as of June Qemetica - has committed to reducing CO₂ emissions from Scope 1 and Scope 2 by 63% by 2033 relative to the base year 2019, and has been successfully validated in the Science Based Targets (SBTi), an initiative supporting companies in setting their climate goals based on established scientific knowledge. The Group confirmed its goal in the SBTi as one of the first large industrial companies in Poland.

In June, the name of the Qemetica Group companies will change. The abbreviation Qemetica will be replaced by the new name: Qemetica. The planned change is a further consistent step in the Group's chemical transformation after the investment holding Kulczyk Investments became a strategic investor 10 years ago, as well as a direct consequence of Kulczyk Investments taking full control of the Group and completing its listing on the Warsaw Stock Exchange in March this year. At the same time, Qemetica has set strategic goals for the next 6 years which, in addition to growth in financial performance, include the implementation of ambitious ESG-related plans, including a 45 percent reduction in CO₂ emissions by 2029. Each of the group's seven businesses - Soda, Salt, Agro, Foams, Silicates, Packaging and Cargo - has specific business goals for 6 years.

The Management Board of Qemetica S.A. informs that on November 24, 2023 the Company filed application to the Financial Supervision Authority for permission to withdraw Qemetica S.A. shares from trading on the regulated market operated by the Warsaw Stock Exchange ("WSE"), pursuant to Article 91 Section 1 of the Act of July 29, 2005 on Public Offering, Conditions Governing the Introduction of Financial Instruments to Organized Trading and Public Companies.