Active launch of rehabilitation programs in Ukraine has led to an increase in the share of project sales of Sweetondale roofing and insulation products from 10% in 2023 to 38% in 2024, the company’s press service told Interfax-Ukraine.
According to Sweetondale sales directorate head Oleksandr Manuylo, the structure of demand has changed significantly compared to last year, when the main areas of sales were retail (42%) and sales to cottage low-rise construction projects (47%), as well as compared to the pre-war period.
“In late 2022 and early 2023, the main drivers of support for the construction sector were completions by large developers and commercial projects. In the second half of 2023, rehabilitation programs and some municipal programs began to take hold. According to our sales statistics, the share of project sales has gradually increased from 25% in 2021 to 38% year-to-date,” Manuilo said.
He added that due to the additional mobilization measures, the end-user flow in the retail and DIY channel has significantly decreased.
“It can be stated that investment uncertainty on the part of new commercial projects, limited funding of budget programs and lack of end-consumer activity lead to stagnation of classic sales channels. A significant shift of construction market volumes has begun, first from commercial construction to the public sector and then to military infrastructure development,” Manuilo said.
He noted that now it is extremely difficult to keep production costs at the pre-war level. The issues of supplying enterprises with electricity during blackouts, risks of missile attacks on production and storage infrastructure, border blocking by Poland, instability of supplies of raw materials and components, mobilization of certain categories of specialists have been added to the risk factors.
“We try to keep a competitive price level for our products, but forced price adjustments have occurred up to +15% depending on the direction of production,” Manuilo said.
According to him, despite the full-scale war, the company’s production units not only do not stop, but also actively develop. “Sweetondale’s team of experts and technologists have conducted research and improved products and systems. New insulation and waterproofing products have been developed taking into account all modern building regulations and European standards, which is confirmed by the relevant certificates. Updating the range of Sweetondale products is a strategic step that will improve competitiveness in the market by optimizing the range and focusing on the most effective technical solutions,” said Manuilo.
In particular, for industrial and civil construction the company presented professional lines: mineral insulation THERMOWOOL, polymer insulation CARBOLEX and bitumen insulation HYDROBASE. For private cottage and low-rise construction, ULTRAWOOL mineral insulation, STYROPLIT polymer insulation and WATERBIT bitumen insulation are recommended.
“Our internal analysis and some independent agencies state that we hold between 40 and 50% market share in our product lines. Right now, the mineral and polymer insulation product lines are operating at their potential maximum in line with seasonality,” Manuilo said.
Until 2022 Sweetondale sold 80% of its products in Ukraine. After two years of full-scale war, the export share dropped to a minimal 10% due to logistical problems as well as seasonal fluctuations in demand in European markets.
“The geography of our presence is Romania, Poland, Norway, Finland and the Baltic States. We have increased the number of foreign trading partners to utilize our production capacities. We plan to increase the volume of exports in future periods, but the share of exports will remain unchanged,” he said
According to Opendatabot, the authorized capital of Zavod “Sweetondale” LTD (“Zavod ‘Sweetondale’ LTD, USREOU Code 32944149) is UAH 13.5 million, for 2023 the company received revenue of UAH 1 billion 633.461 million, which is 73.7% higher than the results of 2022, net profit amounted to UAH 333.088 million, which is three times higher than the results of 2022.
Sweetondale was founded in 2012 by Gary Alan Stern. Initially specialized in industrial equipment engineering and leasing. Negotiations to acquire the plants owned by Russia’s Technonikol began in 2015 and were finalized in February 2018. Today, the company includes three plants for the production of roofing and insulation materials: a plant for the production of mineral insulation in Cherkassy, a plant for the production of polymer insulation and a plant for the production of bitumen-polymer roll materials in Kamenskoye.
