Clariant AG delivered strong second-quarter results and secured a major legal victory as the Amsterdam District Court dismissed Shell's ethylene damage claim in its entirety, removing a significant overhang on the company's share price. The company reported an 80 basis point year-on-year increase in EBITDA margin to 18.2%, driven by robust pricing and volume growth in care chemicals, and a 15 percentage point improvement in free cash flow conversion to 52% on a last 12-month basis. Clariant also increased its performance improvement program savings target by CHF20 million to CHF100 million by 2027, with CHF90 million expected by the end of 2026. However, the catalyst business was severely impacted by the Middle East conflict, with volumes declining 14.2% year-on-year and EBITDA dropping 32.5%, while group EBITDA before exceptional items decreased 7.7% in the first half of 2026. CEO Konrad Kaiser noted that the legal win positions the company strongly for remaining cases, as almost half of them will be served in the Netherlands using a similar methodology that the court found failed to demonstrate causality.
Clariant AGClariant secured a major legal victory as Dutch court dismissed Shell's claim, removing a significant overhang.
Shell plcDutch court dismissed Shell's ethylene damage claim against Clariant, a legal setback for Shell.