CropEnergies increases its financial year 2016/17 forecast

German bioethanol producer CropEnergies has increased its forecast for the current financial year 2016/17.

In a statement, the company said that the main reasons for the better earnings were “spot prices for bioethanol which continue to be significantly higher than the previously expected forward prices as well as the high capacity utilisations in all four production plants”.

With this, CropEnergies strengthens its position as leading bioethanol producer in the EU. For the full financial year 2016/17, CropEnergies now expects revenues of €800 to €810 million (previously expected: €760 to €790, previous year: €723). Operating profit is to reach €95 to €100 (previously expected: €70 to €85, previous year: €87) million. At the same time, CropEnergies expects a record EBITDA of approximately €130 to €135 (previous year: €122) million.

The business performance in the coming financial year 2017/18 will again be largely dependent on the volatile developments of the prices on bioethanol markets.

The forward prices for bioethanol in Europe currently show a significant reduction for the financial year 2017/18, though they have only limited significance. Against this background and on the basis of current grain prices, CropEnergies expects a normalisation of the operating profit for the financial year 2017/18 to a range of €40 to €80 million. This corresponds to an EBITDA between €80 and €120 million. Consequently, CropEnergies should be completely debt-free for the first time in company history.

The annual report for the financial year 2016/17 will be published on 17 May 2017, the company said.

This story was written by Liz Gyekye, editor of Biofuels International.