Industrial Minerals


Bentonite drives strong Q4 growth for Greece’s S&B

23 March 2011

by Mark Watts

Ongoing bauxite capacity constraints offset by increased demand from steel industry

Keywords: S&B Industrial Minerals, S&B, bentonite, perlite, bauxite, fluxes

S&B Industrial Minerals SA reported a 16% rise in profit in the fourth quarter of 2010, as demand recovery across mineral markets was offset by bauxite capacity constraints.The Greece-based producer posted an operating profit of €3.6m. ($5.1m.) for the fourth quarter, up from €3.1m. in the same period a year earlier, while sales rose 12% to €420.1m. “Business activity remained strong throughout the year as the initial restocking effect steadily recalibrated into sustained demand, particularly in the metallurgical segments,” S&B’s CEO Efthimios Vidalis said, but added that business had not returned to pre-crisis levels.S&B said sales volumes rose over 2010 for higher-value segments such...