A strong 2010 for Evonik Degussa Antwerpen and a sustainable future

For the fifth year in a row, the Antwerp chemical company Evonik Degussa Antwerpen NV has published its Sustainability Report.

• Much attention to safety trainings and personal coaching
• Evonik comes out of the worldwide financial and economic crisis strengthened
• Evonik invests in a sustainable future thanks to new cogeneration plant and the isobutene production
• Expenses for safety, health and environment amounted to more than 30 million EUR 

Social 
In 2010 almost every employee participated in one or more trainings. 2.39 percent of the total payroll in 2010 was spent on education. This is significantly more than prescribed by the IPA (InterProfessional Agreement). Also this year much attention has been paid to several safety formations, much time was also made for personal coaching. In November 2010 the Group conducted an employee survey under the slogan ‘Contribute. Communicate. Create’. As much as 78.8 % of the Antwerp employees participated in this survey.

Environment 
Through innovation and investments, Evonik was able to achieve better environmental results for the past year than the standards prescribe. The activation of a second cogeneration plant for the production of steam and electricity and the start-up of a new isobutene plant, with its advanced energy recovery, contribute to this good result. In 2010 more than 30 million EUR was invested in environmental protection, safety and health. Through these investments and the high safety awareness of our employees we can present good results in accident prevention.

Financial 
The year 2010 was also for Evonik Antwerpen characterized by an economic recovery. In almost all activity fields of the company a revival of activities compared to the crisis year 2009 was observed. The total annual production rose by 11.4 percent compared to the previous year. From the third quarter 2010 this increase had a positive influence on the employment. Evonik Antwerpen ended the fiscal year 2010 with a turnover of 470.2 million EUR, an increase of 17.8 percent compared to 2009. The EBIT grew by 21.5 million EUR to 24.3 million EUR. This increase is mainly due to the above-mentioned increase of turnover.

Stefan Kroll, Managing Director of Evonik Antwerpen: “Investing in a sustainable future for our company remains a constant in our policy. With the successful start-up of the new cogeneration plant and the isobutene production we again made a step in the right direction. But we are also aware that there still are challenges before us. In 2011 and the coming years we will keep working on it in dialogue with our employees, social partners, stakeholders and environment.”

Do you want to receive a Sustainability Report of Evonik Antwerpen?
Koen Van den Steen, Communication Responsible, phone: 03/560 33 30,
mobile: 0476 71 66 60.