Letter to stakeholders 2024

In 2024, we achieved financial results in line with our expectations in a challenging market, and delivered solid improvements on key environmental and social targets. Our strategy is clear and backed by the development in several important megatrends.

Sustain operational excellence and accelerate growth in higher margin areas

Europe’s push toward net-zero emissions is likely to impose increasing regulations. BEWI welcomes such developments as we believe they are important to incentivise more resource efficient societies. Our offering of insulation and other energy-efficient solutions, combined with the investments in circular capabilities, places us in a good position to contrib¬ute to this transition.

Our strategy is built around two core priorities, both directly linked to key megatrends affecting our business. First, we will sustain operational excellence. This means we will leverage on our organisation, existing offerings and investments. We strive for greater efficiency, optimising the use of energy and raw materials knowing that sustainability and oper¬ational performance go hand in hand. Second, we will accelerate growth in energy-efficient solutions for buildings and circular packaging. We will do this through partnerships, transactions and investments.

3 200 dedicated employees building our success

With approximately 3 200 dedicated employees, our people remain the cornerstone of our success. Their expertise, teamwork, and drive for innovation help us push boundaries in operational excellence.

We have strengthened our focus on leadership development, talent attraction and retention. Equally, we are committed to foster a safe, diverse, and inclu¬sive workplace where well-being and professional growth thrive. Our strong culture—challenging the conventional, never giving up, and working together as a team—continues to set us apart. Every year we ask our employees for their feedback in the annual employee survey, so that we can continue to tailor our efforts to improve.

In 2024, we ran health and safety campaigns to raise awareness and strengthen the safety-culture. The campaigns resulted in improvement on both the frequency and severity rate, two important KPIs, reinforcing our commitment to a zero-accident work-place. We also continued to develop BEWI School, where we have programmes for younger talents, a senior leadership programme and now also a sales mastery programme.

Key strategic developments

Over the past year, we have made good progress on our strategic priorities, strengthening our position across our integrated and circular value chain.

Operational efficiency and cost optimisation have been key to our ability to sustain margins despite a decrease in volumes due to lower construction activity in Europe. Through cost reduction initiatives and targeted margin management, we have deliv¬ered solid results through the downturn. And more importantly, put us in a position to increase profitabil¬ity when markets are recovering.

We have also completed key investment projects that position us for future growth, such as the expansion of the paper packaging capacity in Denmark and construction boards in Belgium, adding to the poten¬tial for organic growth in the coming years.

In 2024, we succeeded in improving the energy and resource efficiency of our operations, resulting in reduced emissions and costs. We increased the use of renewable energy sources, reduced our raw material intensity and intensified our efforts to collect and recycle used EPS. We launched multiple solutions incorporating recycled and bio-based content, reinforcing our leadership in sustainable solutions for our customers.

To support our growth ambitions, we have also invested in expanding our circular capabilities throughout the year. The new circular hub in Norrköping increases our recycling capacity by 40 per cent, while the ramp-up of the new production line in Etten-Leur facilitates increased use of recycled feedstock into new raw materials.

We have also taken steps to streamline operations and strengthen our financial position through strate¬gic transactions. The divestments of real estate assets, the strategic merging of our traded food packaging and RAW division with partners, and the ongoing review of our ownership in the automotive business all contribute to sharpening our focus and unlocking resources for growth in higher-margin areas.

Opportunities and outlook

Looking ahead, we are confident to grow our reve¬nues with a stronger focus on insulation and other energy-efficient solutions for buildings. This is driven by the growing demand for improved energy effi¬ciency of the building sector, which remains Europe’s single largest energy consumer. As the markets recover, we see significant growth potential, leverag¬ing our existing asset base to scale efficiently. With a strong competitive advantage from our circular capabilities, we are well-positioned to capitalise on these opportunities and drive long-term sustainable growth.

We firmly believe in the transition to a circular economy for packaging, and support regulations aimed at reducing waste, such as the Packaging and Packaging Waste Regulation. With 45 years of exper¬tise and customer relationships, and an integrated value chain with strong circular capabilities, we are uniquely positioned to lead this transformation. We have a portfolio of efficient packaging solutions, where our range of fish boxes is a good example. In addition to the “regular” EPS fish boxes, of which we collect more volumes for recycling than the volumes we produce, we supply our customers with reusable boxes, fibre-based boxes, and EPS boxes based on recycled feedstock. We will continue to increase our collection of used EPS for recycling, enabling us to stay ahead of our competitors.

With effective cost and capacity adjustments, we have sustained margins despite lower volumes. This means that we can significantly increase volumes without further investments, improving margins. Additionally, recent strategic transactions are aimed to further enhance profitability.

We continue to see attractive M&A opportunities that align with our strategy to strengthen market positions, expand product offerings, and enhance our circular capabilities. With a stronger financial platform and a lean organisation, we will build on our momentum, delivering value for all stakeholders.

Finally, we would like to thank each of our employees for their hard work and commitment. We also thank our partners, customers, and shareholders for their trust and support. Together, we will continue to lead the change towards a better – and more energy-effi¬cient everyday.