Promet Group significantly increased its sales and EBITDA last year and completed another important strategic acquisition

Aggregate sales of the companies owned by the group amounted to CZK 21.982 billion. Consolidated EBITDA increased by 41% to CZK 846 million. Last year, the company completed another major strategic acquisition and launched two foundry modernisation and greening projects worth more than CZK 1.1 billion. The process of handing over the management of the company to the second generation of the Matera family has also been completed.

"We have had a year full of significant events with a very good economic result. We managed to grow both organically in our core businesses and through its development by completing the acquisition of Đuro Đaković, a major Croatian manufacturer of railway freight wagons. Cost-wise, we had to cope with high growth in inputs, especially energy. We also managed this situation and increased our operating profit, with our consolidated sales surpassing the CZK 10 billion mark for the first time. In August we started the modernisation and greening of our foundries in Vsetín and Kopřivnice, which is significant both in terms of the use of the latest production technologies and the positive impact on the surroundings of these plants," comments Denisa Materová, member of the Board of Directors of Promet Group, on the results of last year.

Increasing production by Tawesco and Tatra Trucks

Tawesco and Tawesco Automotive of Promet Group are among the leading Central European suppliers in the field of pressed and welded automotive parts. Among their major customers are, for example, the automotive companies of the Volkswagen Group, led by Skoda Auto. "Last year we were successful with our regular customers and thanks to good references we also gained new ones. And not only in the automotive sector, but also in the fields of agricultural, forestry and handling equipment, whose share in production we are constantly increasing," says Margita Rejchrtová, director of Tawesco in Kopřivnice. Important customers in these segments include John Deere, Linde and Bobcat.

Tatra Trucks, which increased production to 1,326 vehicles and thus exceeded its planned sales by ten percent, also did well. It supplies its vehicles to the civil segments such as construction, mining, municipal services and agriculture, as well as to customers in the firefighting, rescue and defence sectors. Both in the Czech Republic and abroad. In addition, last year Tatra produced its anniversary truck with the serial number 10,000 since the takeover of the automaker by its current Czech owners in 2013. These are jointly Promet Group and Czechoslovak Group with shares of 35 and 65 percent respectively.

Completion of the acquisition of rail freight car manufacturer Đuro Đaković

Key group events last year included the completion of the acquisition of Croatian freight wagon manufacturer Đuro Đaković. In this, since November, the Promet Group together with CE Industries owns 82 percent in a 35 percent to 65 percent ratio. "We decided to make this important acquisition because of the long-term potential of rail transport. We expect that the need for new freight wagons will continue to grow, especially due to the high average age of the current fleets of carriers and the tightening standards and technical requirements that wagons must meet. At the same time, the industry is also helped by the EU cohesion policy, which has set the goal of significantly increasing the share of rail in the transport of goods, also for environmental reasons," says Martin Kamarád, CFO of the Group and member of the Board of Directors of Promet Group, describing the reasons for entering the new segment.

Large construction contracts and greening of foundries

Within the construction and engineering division, Vamoz and Kofing succeeded in implementing further large construction contracts. The metallurgy sector was the most affected of all the Group's divisions by the increase in energy prices. Despite the complications caused by these increases, the volume of orders was maintained. The main event in this area was the start of modernisation and greening of two foundry plants - Promet Foundry in Vsetín and Tatry Metallurgie in Kopřivnice. Both projects with a total value exceeding CZK 1.1 billion. This makes them among the largest ecological modernisations of production facilities in the Moravian-Silesian Region. Approximately half of the funds were provided by the European Union. The projects will be completed in the second half of 2023 and will help to reduce the emissions of these plants by more than ninety percent, thus improving the environment in the plants and their surroundings.

The second generation of the Matera family takes over the management

Promet Group has been associated with the name of its founder René Matera since its establishment in 1992. After thirty years of building the company, which Forbes magazine this year ranked fourth among the largest family-owned companies in the Czech Republic, he moved from the position of CEO and Chairman of the Board of Directors of Promet Group to the head of its Supervisory Board. The company's board of directors now includes his wife Hana Materová, daughter Denisa Materová and the group's CFO Martin Kamarád. Son Radim Matera is in charge of the management of the family assets. "The time has come to give space to our children to further develop Promet Group, which I am handing over to them as a major Central European company in the fields of metallurgy, engineering and engineering. I am glad that they have decided to continue its management and thus preserve the spirit of a family company," says René Matera.

Significant growth in financial indicators

"Even though 2022 was a difficult year, mainly due to the significant increase in input prices, we managed to manage it economically and achieved very good growth in consolidated sales and operating profit before depreciation and amortisation EBITDA, which increased by 41% to CZK 846 million. In addition to our development, we have also invested heavily in energy-saving technologies across the Group, which has enabled us to continue to improve the productivity and efficiency of our production," comments Martin Kamarád, Chief Financial Officer and member of the Board of Directors of Promet Group. "Last year's growth was driven by both the organic growth of our companies and the new strategic acquisition of Đuro Đaković. In the future, we also see further business and acquisition potential in the markets where we operate," Kamarád adds.

Acknowledgements

Our biggest thanks go to our employees and all the teams of our companies. Thank you for creating with us such a unique company that today is a major Central European supplier in many fields. We wish you good health and success in your personal and professional life.