Profil:
Grupa Azoty SAAzoty notifies public prosecutor's office of suspected criminal offence in 2022-2023
Listed chemicals group Azoty has notified the prosecutor's office in Cracow on suspicion of a commitment of a serious criminal offence related to gas purchases in the period from September 14, 2022 until March 30, 2023, Azoty said in a press release. The amount of alleged damage caused is at least PLN 932 million (EUR 224.15 mln).
"As a result of the collective transaction mandates issued, the Corporate Committee for securing the price of natural gas and CO2 emission allowances in the capital group of Grupa Azoty natural gas for the company's own needs and those of its subsidiaries in the indicated period under forward contracts," Azoty wrote in the press release.
Meanwhile, according to the findings, the spot price, i.e. the unit price of gaseous fuel calculated on the basis of transactions carried out each day with delivery on the following day (Day-Ahead) on the Trading Hub Europe market, for exactly the same quantity of purchased natural gas would be nearly PLN 1 billion (EUR 240.5 mln) lower.
"Thus, according to the notice, a number of unfavourable contracts theoretically securing natural gas prices for the own needs of Grupa Azoty S.A. and its subsidiaries on grossly unfavourable terms were made during the cited period, including in violation of the company's internal acts," the group added.
Azoty stressed that these decisions were taken at a time when the group's financial situation began to deteriorate significantly, which occurred from the fourth quarter of 2022 onwards, and the purchase of gas on the terms described significantly contributed to its further deterioration.
Azoty group's net loss for 2023 amounted to nearly PLN 3 billion (EUR 721.5 mln).
Remedial actions are currently being taken across the group. During the nine months of 2024, Grupa Azoty recorded an increase in sales volumes in all segments and generated consolidated sales revenue of PLN 9.828 billion (EUR 2.364 bln) and an EBITDA of minus PLN 299 million (minus EUR 71.91 mln), with an EBITDA margin of minus 3.0 percent, which improved by PLN 1.058 billion (EUR 254.45 mln) compared to the prior year period.
The group therefore recorded an improvement in financial performance after the third quarter of 2024, after eliminating one-off events, of more than 80 percent and an improvement in sales performance of around 650,000 tonnes.
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