S&P Assigns SIBUR BBB- Investment Grade

Moscow, 22 August 2019. Standard & Poor’s has assigned SIBUR its long-term issuer credit ‘BBB-’ rating. The outlook is stable.

In the report published by S&P on 22 August, the agency notes that SIBUR’s credit metrics have materially strengthened over the past three years, not least due to high EBITDA margins (among the highest of EMEA chemical producers), with its financial risk having reduced from intermediate to modest. The assigned rating also reflects S&P’s expectations with regard to the commissioning of ZapSibNeftekhim (ZapSib).

The Stable Outlook reflects the agency’s view that ZapSib will add significant volumes, improve the overall profitability and cash generation of the company, and at the same time will reduce the company’s exposure to oil price volatility through the expansion of the petrochemical business.

Alexander Petrov, member of the Management Board and CFO of SIBUR, said:

“I am pleased to say that with the assignment of S&P credit rating, SIBUR now has investment grade credit ratings with stable outlook from the Big Three credit rating agencies. This is above all the result of continuous work aimed at creating an efficient business model that ensures cash flow stability. The assigned credit rating factors in positive contributions from the completion and launch of our new plant in Tobolsk, ZapSibNeftekhim, which will increase the share of the petrochemical business in our overall portfolio, making it more diverse and resistant to changes in the macro environment. We hope that investment grade ratings from the leading credit rating agencies will allow us to increase exponentially the range of investors we can attract, including those that invest in stable, investment grade securities.”