By Norbert SparrowÂ
The chemicals giant will enact structural changes at its storied Ludwigshafen site and cut around 2,600 jobs in an effort to âright-sizeâ the company in a challenging economic environment.
Battered by the high cost of energy and raw materials, largely exacerbated by the war in Ukraine, chemicals giant BASF announced a series of âconcrete measuresâ to strengthen competitiveness in its recent 2022 business report. During the presentation last month, Chairman of the Board of Executive Directors Dr. Martin BrudermĂŒller announced structural changes to the Ludwigshafen site along with other cost-saving initiatives. It will cut approximately 2,600 jobs as part of its âright-sizingâ efforts.
Although BASF reported an 11.1% increase in sales in 2022, reaching âŹ87.3 billion, the growth was mainly driven by higher prices âacross almost all segments due to an increase in raw materials and energy prices.â BASFâs global operational earnings were burdened by additional energy costs totaling âŹ3.2 billion, with Europe accounting for around 84% of this increase. This mostly affected the Verbund site in Ludwigshafen, Germany, said BASF, where it has a 157-year history.
The war in Ukraine, high raw materials and energy costs in Europe, rising prices and interest rates, and inflation, all of which had a profound impact on the overall economy, will continue in 2023, according to BASFâs forecasting. It anticipates moderate 1.6% growth in the global economy for 2023 and 2% growth in global chemical production.
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