Business conditions remained difficult throughout 2011 for Chemicals Pakistan, resulting in a lower outcome compared to last year. Domestic downstream market conditions remained subdued during the year as the energy shortages persisted along with the ongoing economic crisis creating uncertainty and suppressing overall demand. Throughout the year, the polyester market continued to experience difficult market conditions due to the volatility in feedstock and cotton markets. The continued shortage of gas and resultant usage of expensive furnace oil in the Soda Ash business continued to impact margins. However, despite the overall volume decreasing in 2011, prices increased on the back of higher raw material prices, resulting in revenue increasing by 8 percent.
In Q4, revenue decreased by 1 percent, on the back of lower volumes in all businesses. Polyester and Soda Ash remained particularly effected due to the lower downstream demand driven by the severe energy shortage, resulting from the persisting gap between supply and demand of natural gas.