Norilsk Nickel’s net profit jumps 92% in 2021
Russia-based Norilsk Nickel (Nornickel), the world’s largest palladium and high-grade nickel producer, has reported that its consolidated revenue increased 15% y-o-y to USD 17.9 billion in 2021.
It said that this result was achieved primarily due to higher metal prices and sale of palladium from the inventories accumulated in 2020, which have positively offset production losses caused by industrial incidents in 1H21.
The company added that its EBITDA increased 37% y-o-y to USD 10.5 billion due to higher revenue, of which Bystrinsky GOK (Chita project) contributed USD1.1 billion, and that EBITDA margin amounted to 59%.
Importantly, Nornickel said that its net profit jumps 92% y-o-y to 6,974 million in 2021 from 3,634 million in 2020.
Nornickel’s CAPEX increased 57% y-o-y to a record USD 2.8 billion driven by growth of investments into key strategic projects, including over USD 500 mln in Sulfur Programme 2.0, which was in active construction phase, and 3- and 4-fold, respectively, increase in investments in South Cluster and Talnakh Concentrator Phase-3 expansion.
Though, the company’s free cash flow decreased 34% y-o-y to USD 4.4 billion driven by the reimbursement of the environmental damages in the amount of USD 2 billion and increased capital expenditures.
Norilsk Nickel is a diversified mining and metallurgical company, the world’s largest producer of palladium and high-grade nickel and a major producer of platinum and copper. The company also produces cobalt, rhodium, silver, gold, iridium, ruthenium, selenium, tellurium, sulphur and other products.
