MEPCO achieves record performance in Q2 2021, expects positive momentum in Q3: CEO

Sami Safran, CEO of Middle East Paper Co.

Middle East Paper Co. (MEPCO) achieved unprecedented record performance on the operational and financial fronts during the second quarter of 2021, Chief Executive Officer (CEO) Sami Safran said in a statement.

Commenting on the company’s Q2 2021 financials, he explained that the global demand for cardboard packaging continued to follow the upward trend during the period, achieving stability in selling prices.

The results showed the financial impact of the increase in final product selling prices that were realized in the previous quarter, in addition to the contracted sales that were delivered in Q2 at high price levels.

Safran added that raw materials prices stabilized locally after a strong rise during Q1, coinciding with the enforcing of the export and import regulations for recovered paper.

He expects the company to maintain positive results in Q3 2021.

The expansion in manufacturing hygienic paper rolls segment is progressing at a steady pace, as the company is working to prepare infrastructure at the work site to install a production line by Q1 2022.

Safran indicated that all production inputs – natural gas, electricity, water, and sewage connections – are provided at the production site.

He pointed out that the partnership between MEPCO’s wholly owned subsidiary, Waste Collection and Recycling Co. (WASCO), and Jeddah Development & Urban Regeneration Co. includes the construction and operation of six assembly centers in Jeddah.

Operations at these assembly centers are projected to start during Q4 2021.

The project is a fundamental turning point, not only for WASCO, but also for the entire scope of waste management activity across the Kingdom, the CEO noted.

According to data compiled by Argaam, MEPCO reported net profit after Zakat and tax of SAR 60.8 million in H1 2021, a more than three-fold increase from SAR 15.6 million in the prior-year period.

The firm posted a net profit of SAR 43.1 million in Q2 2021.