Borouge exceeds Q2 market expectations despite massive plant turnaround

Arabian Business

5 days ago

Borouge exceeded market expectations after declaring a net profit of US$193 million for the second quarter of 2025.
Highlight of the quarter for the Abu Dhabi petrochemicals company that provides innovative and differentiated polyolefins solutions was the planned Borouge 3 turnaround, which was executed within the budget and delivered eight days ahead of schedule.
It was the largest and most complex turnaround to date, with the company optimising downtime by 15 per cent through efficient planning. These regular six-year maintenance turnarounds are essential to servicing Borouge's world-class assets and maintaining high utilisation rates and production volumes.
Borouge maintains growth despite challenges
The company reported revenue of US$1.31 billion in Q2 2025, compared to US$1.5 billion in Q2 2024, despite the planned Borouge 3 maintenance and average selling prices declining by 1 per cent quarter-on-quarter and 3 per cent year-on-year, in line with broader market conditions.
Adjusted EBITDA for the second quarter was US$440 million, reflecting performance above expectations during the Borouge 3 turnaround. The company maintained a healthy EBITDA margin of 34 per cent, supported by product mix optimisation throughout a scheduled major maintenance event.
For the first half of the year, revenue stood at US$2.72 billion compared to US$2.81 billion in H1 2024. Adjusted EBITDA reached US$1 billion versus US$1.18 billion in the prior-year period, with margins supported by strong pricing premia, cost discipline and inventory sales.
Adjusted EBITDA for the first half of 2025 was US$1 billion, supported by strong margins and pricing. Sales volumes was 1.1 million tonnes, with continued momentum in high-value infrastructure and advanced packaging segments.
Sales volumes totalled 1.1 million tonnes, broadly stable quarter-on-quarter, supported by approximately 140 kilotonnes of inventory sales. High-value products continued to account for 41 per cent of total volumes, with strong momentum in infrastructure and advanced packaging applications.
Strong pricing premia above product benchmark prices for polyethylene (PE) and polypropylene (PP) was a key highlight of the quarter, with US$249 per tonne achieved for PE and US$141 per tonne for PP, both exceeding management's through-the-cycle guidance.
Global benchmarks for PE and PP declined slightly, but Borouge sustained pricing discipline and continued to optimise its regional sales mix, with an increasing share allocated to Middle East and Borealis-linked markets offering higher netbacks.
Borouge closed the quarter with a net debt-to-EBITDA ratio of 1.0x, maintaining a strong balance sheet and significant financial flexibility. Capital expenditure in Q2 amounted to US$130 million.
Hazeem Sultan Al Suwaidi, Chief Executive Officer of Borouge, commented: 'Borouge's results are underpinned by healthy cash flows, disciplined execution and strong pricing premia, following the successful completion of the planned Borouge 3 turnaround, our largest to date.
'Reflecting our commitment to delivering shareholder value, we reaffirm our intention to increase Borouge's dividend to 16.2 fils per share for 2025 and our proposed H1 2025 dividend of 8.1 fils per share to be paid in September. The increased dividend is also expected to serve as the intended minimum share payout to at least 2030 under Borouge Group International.'
The company said it continues to execute a share buyback approved at its AGM in April, reflecting the company's strong confidence in its future prospects. It has purchased 125 million shares at the end of the second quarter.
As for its outlook for the remainder of the year, Borouge said it continues to focus on differentiated products in its core regions, supporting strong price premia and strong performance expected through H2 2025. With the planned turnaround now successfully concluded, it is well positioned to optimise production capacity and to take advantage of improved market dynamics as they emerge.