LyondellBasell Industries N.V. (NYSE:LYB) Q2 2023 Earnings Call Transcript

Peter Vanacker: Thank you, Steve. Very good question that you’re asking. I mean what we are doing here together with our partners is, first of all, developing the technology further into, let’s call it, a semi industrial scale. So this is not replacing, but it is feeding into a cracker. Next to that, of course, we are following different other avenues in order to prepare ourselves, I mean, for more renewable hydrocarbons. And here, that’s what we are looking at, at the refinery and how can we leverage upon the hydrotreaters and hydro crackers that we have. So there will not be one solution fits all is the key message, but we are playing, let’s say, very broadly, being technology agnostic, and investing in the different types of technologies that eventually where we then would decide to invest in those technologies on an industrial scale. We’re talking about 2013 plus in my view. Then, of course, there can be different solutions depending on where you are in the world.

Operator: Our next question comes from the line of Steve Richardson with Evercore ISI.

Steve Richardson : I was wondering if you could ask on APS, Torkel. I appreciate the update. I was wondering if you could maybe remind us of some of your longer-term goals in terms of restoring profitability. It sounds like you’re making some good inroads. And then also I was wondering if you could talk a little bit about more if acquisitions should be expected to be persistent part of the outlook there or if this is something unique.

Torkel Rhenman: Thank you. So as we communicated, our target is to get the business to what we believe is very feasible that the $0.5 billion earnings by 2027. And that’s the plan that we have embarked on. And I have to say we are at the current moment right as I expect us to be. I’ve led multiple business transformations, and this is where I expect us to be at this time. So if you look at our earnings performance, I think fourth quarter of last year was the bottom, and we have then 2 months behind us where we are gradually improving it, but it is a multi-year effort for us and we’re feeling the growth pipeline, as I mentioned, is our number 1 priority, and we’re making good progress, but that also takes time. But it is our focus. In terms of acquisitions, the Mepol, I think, was an acquisition that perfectly fit in, but there is nothing else that we have that we are in that sort of category for our space at the moment.

Peter Vanacker: And here — it’s Peter. I mean just to add to that, I mean, in terms of the acquisitions, I mean, one needs to look at the Mepol acquisition, being at the boundary, the interface between circular and low-carbon solutions and then the APS business with the compounding. So Mepol has a very strong mechanical recycling position in those different markets, and that’s what made it so attractive for us to do that acquisition.

Operator: Our next question comes from the line of Arun Viswanathan with RBC Capital Markets.

Arun Viswanathan : Just wanted to follow up on your outlook for O&P margins across both North America and EIA. So it calls — it looks like you’re calling for double-digit declines in your profitability in Q3 sequentially from Q2. Can you just walk us through some of those mechanics? I know that we had the $0.03 decline in June on polyethylene. Are you looking for further declines in Q3? And just wondering, given the feedstock volatility there as well and then the recent decline in ethane prices, or is it continued weakness in volume? Or is it a little bit of both? Or maybe just walk us through some of the tanks.

Peter Vanacker: Yes. Maybe first of all, let me repeat what has been said in the prepared remarks is that we have an outlook, I mean, for Q3, which we believe will be mid mid-double digits, so mid-teens to mid-20s, lower in terms of EBITDA compared to [indiscernible] Q2. And why that relatively broad range still because as you know, I mean, we have a very broad portfolio of different products. And we’ve seen a bit of improvements in the refinery markets. On the one hand side, we continue to believe, I mean, that we will have strong oxyfuel margins as Kim mentioned in the prepared remarks. But then, of course, I mean, with the volatility that you see in the olefins and polyolefins markets and then China still not being back as it should be at this point in time right now.

So we will then, of course, fine-tune that towards more at the end of the quarter. When you Michael will speak on a conference, and then we’ll give a further update on where we are standing, I mean, in that quarter. So with that, I mean, on the O&P maybe answer that question as well. I mean, Ken, if you can give some additional?

Ken Lane: Yes, like I had said previously, we’re looking at the feedstock kind of peaked in July. So that definitely is going to hurt us versus Q2, if you think about it sequentially. Also, like I said, with prices coming down in the U.S. at the end of Q2, that’s carried into Q3, so both of those are going to be headwinds. Then there is some volume component to that. Q2 is normally our peak fall in terms of seasonality and in Q3, especially in Europe, in the summer months, you start to see the volume slow down. So we will have some volume slowdown in Q3 as well. Overall, I expect that we are, like I said, bumping along here on margins in Q3 in terms of being at the bottom.