Mercer International Inc. Reports Second Quarter and First Half 2020 Results

Mercer International Inc. reported second quarter 2020 Operating EBITDA decreased to $40.5 million from $70.0 million in the second quarter of 2019 and from $57.0 million in the first quarter of 2020.

In the second quarter of 2020, net loss was $8.4 million (or $0.13 per share) compared to net income of $10.3 million (or $0.16 per share) in the second quarter of 2019 and a net loss of $3.4 million (or $0.05 per share) in the first quarter of 2020.

In the first half of 2020, Operating EBITDA decreased by 50% to $97.5 million from $193.8 million in the same period of 2019. In the first half of 2020, net loss was $11.8 million compared to net income of $61.9 million in the same period of 2019.

Mr. David Gandossi, the Chief Executive Officer, stated: “While the world continues to be impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic, I am proud to say that our people have remained resilient and we implemented measures and procedures to meet the challenges of operating our business safely and efficiently. We are constantly monitoring our operations and guidance from governmental and health organizations to ensure that we continue to take appropriate and necessary actions to protect our people.

All of our mills ran well this quarter. Pulp production was down slightly in the quarter primarily due to a previously announced short-term planned curtailment.

Our Q2 results reflect strong cost control and steady production. On average, pulp pricing was modestly up compared to Q1. However, late in the current quarter, overall pulp demand was modestly weaker as continued strong tissue demand was more than offset by weaker demand from printing and writing customers. Our wood products segment had another strong quarter. Our Friesau mill ran well with strong demand in our U.S. market creating upward pricing pressure late in the quarter. In the current quarter approximately 38% of our lumber sales volumes were to the U.S. which was our single largest market.

As we move into Q3 we will remain focused on controlling our costs, managing our working capital and conservatively managing our strong liquidity position.”

For the full second quarter results, click here.

About Mercer International

Mercer International Inc. is a global forest products company with operations in Germany and Canada with a consolidated annual production capacity of 2.2 million tonnes of pulp and 550 million board feet of lumber. To obtain further information on the company, please visit its website at https://www.mercerint.com.

Contact:

David M. Gandossi – CEO – (604) 684-1099

Source: Mercer International Inc.