Borregaard (BRG) CMD 2026 summary

Strategic direction and value creation

• Focus remains on scaling specialization, productivity, and disciplined capital allocation, prioritizing higher-value products and applications, and expanding capacity for specialty growth, with sharper execution.

• Five value creation levers: specialization, capacity, geographic scaling, productivity/cost discipline, and sustainability/regulatory trends.

• Geographic expansion targets underpenetrated markets, especially in Asia, Oceania, and Latin America, leveraging proven solutions and local representation.

• The business model is highly diversified, resilient, and based on renewable raw materials, supporting consistent returns and margin expansion since IPO.

• Continuous improvement and innovation underpin operational efficiency, asset utilization, and higher-value product mix.

Business segment developments and growth opportunities

• BioSolutions targets growth by scaling core champions, accelerating emerging stars, moving up the value ladder, and expanding geographically, especially in agriculture, plant nutrition, and animal feed.

• Agriculture now accounts for 45% of BioSolutions revenues and is expected to outpace crop protection in value creation by 2028.

• Specialty Cellulose/BioMaterials focus on premium niches in regulated and high-purity markets, leveraging a flexible biorefinery platform and ongoing capacity expansion.

• Manufacturing improvements include a 5%-10% capacity increase at Sarpsborg by 2027, debottlenecking, energy efficiency, and digitalization/AI for process optimization.

• Fine Chemicals and bioethanol have normalized after strong years, with future growth expected from capacity increases and product mix improvements.

Financial guidance and capital allocation

• Targets average annual top-line growth of 5% through the business cycle, mainly driven by specialization, product mix improvements, capacity expansion, and price increases.

• Aims to maintain an EBITDA margin of 25%, supported by cost discipline, productivity, and profitable investments.

• Investment focus is on debottlenecking, climate projects, and productivity improvements, with expansion investments requiring at least a 15% IRR pre-tax.

• Dividend policy increased to a payout range of 40%-60% of net profit, with flexibility for extraordinary dividends or buybacks if over-capitalized.

• Profitable climate investments are expected to reduce CO2 emissions by 35,000–60,000 t/year and lower annual energy costs by ~45 mNOK.