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Saulius Budrevičius, the longstanding CEO of Lithuania’s prominent environmental management company, “Ecoservice”, has assumed a position on the board of board members at JSC “Eco Baltia”. As the largest and rapidly expanding group specializing in environmental resource management and recycling in the Baltics, “Eco Baltia” continues its dynamic growth under the stewardship of the board members, including Chairman of the Board Māris Simanovičs, and board members Santa Spūle and Sigita Namatēva. This strategic addition of S. Budrevičius to the board further bolsters the company’s accelerated expansion not only in the Baltics but also throughout Europe.

Māris Simanovičs, Chairman of the Board of JSC “Eco Baltia”, informs: ” Despite the prevailing challenges in the global secondary raw material market in recent years, we have made remarkable strides in the development of the “Eco Baltia” company group, even surpassing historical records by achieving the highest consolidated revenue figures last year. Significant investments are planned for the development of the group in the environmental management and recycling sectors this year and in the upcoming years. Moreover, we are actively assessing potential mergers and acquisitions of new companies in wider global markets. This juncture underscores the increased significance of professionals with international expertise in our organization. Consequently, we have forged an agreement with an esteemed industry expert who has demonstrated exceptional accomplishments in establishing and advancing a prominent environmental management company in Lithuania. This collaboration aims to drive the comprehensive development of the “Eco Baltia” group. “

Within the board of JSC “Eco Baltia”, S. Budrevičius will be responsible for research and development, as well as the implementation of various investment projects. Currently, S. Budrevičius also holds positions on the board of the subsidiary company LLC “Eco Baltia vide” and UAB “Ecoservice” as part of JSC “Eco Baltia” group. Prior to joining the company group, he gained over 15 years of experience as the CEO of “Ecoservice” in Lithuania and was a co-owner of UAB “Ecoservice.”

As a member of the board of JSC “Eco Baltia”, S. Budrevičius assumes the responsibility for overseeing research and development initiatives, as well as the successful implementation of various investment projects. Notably, S. Budrevičius also holds positions on the board of the subsidiary company LLC “Eco Baltia vide” and UAB “Ecoservice”, both integral parts of the JSC “Eco Baltia” group. Prior to joining the company group, S. Budrevičius amassed over 15 years of invaluable experience as the CEO of “Ecoservice” in Lithuania and served as a co-owner of UAB “Ecoservice”.

Saulius Budrevičius, board member of JSC “Eco Baltia”, stated: “ Already two years ago, when “Eco Baltia” acquired the leading Lithuanian company “Ecoservice,” we saw great potential for the development of these companies both in the domestic market and on an international scale. Through my years of experience, particularly in the establishment and expansion of an environmental management company in Lithuania, I have gained comprehensive expertise in diverse business operations. I am delighted to join “Eco Baltia” and eagerly look forward to leveraging my experience in driving the successful execution of new development projects and exploring untapped markets.”

The main goals of the Eco Baltia group in the upcoming years are related to the implementation of existing and new investment projects. In 2023, Eco Baltia continues to invest in the recycling and environmental management sectors, as well as plans to gradually start production in the new “PET Baltija” plant in Olaine, tripling the PET production capacity while reducing the increasing energy and labour costs. In the ongoing year, the group remains dedicated to fostering inter-company collaboration through the introduction of novel services and enhancing full-cycle waste management processes. Furthermore, investments will be allocated towards enhancing the qualifications of employees, improving working conditions, prioritizing occupational safety, and promoting employee well-being. Additionally, the group is committed to implementing sustainable practices and adhering to socially responsible and governance policies, thereby ensuring a comprehensive approach to corporate responsibility within the company.

Vytautas Plunksnis, Partner of INVL Baltic Sea Growth Fund and Chairman of the Eco Baltia Board, commented: “Since INVL Baltic Sea Growth Fund invested in Eco Baltia in 2020, we have witnessed the remarkable strides in company’s. This progress has been achieved through a combination of organic growth and strategic acquisitions, such as the inclusion of “Ecoservice” in Lithuania and “Tesil Fibres” in the Czech Republic. Strengthening market positions in the Baltics and further European regions, there is already a significant benefit from close cooperation, knowledge sharing, and exchange of expertise among all “Eco Baltia” group companies. The addition of international expertise to the “Eco Baltia” board is the next step in pursuing new development goals and further accelerating the company’s global growth.“

According to its unaudited financial statements, Eco Baltia, the largest environmental management and recycling group of companies in the Baltics, closed the first quarter of 2023 with consolidated net turnover of EUR 56.4 million, representing 21% over the indicator of the first three months of last year. The increase is mainly due to new business acquisitions, as well as a solid performance in the environmental management sector, productivity, efficiency facilitation and process automation. The company’s consolidated EBITDA increased to EUR 8.3 million in the first reporting period of this year (Q1 2022: EUR 7 million).

Māris Simanovičs, Chairman of the Board at Eco Baltia: “Despite the difficult situation on the international market, which has been significantly affected since last year by various economic factors and fluctuations in energy prices, we continue moving towards our strategic development goals. The main focus is on increasing the market share of the Group’s companies in both the environmental management and recycling sectors, thus strengthening Eco Baltia’s position in the Baltics and across Europe. Investing in process automation and digitalisation is also one of the development priorities, thereby reducing the impact of various external economic factors, including labour shortages, on business growth.” 

In 2023, Eco Baltia continued active work on the management of the Group’s businesses and contributed to the expansion of both business segments – PET and plastics recycling and environmental management – both through organic growth and acquisitions. Eco Baltia closed the first three months of this year with a profit of EUR 2.77 million (three-month result of 2022: profit of 2.74 million euro).

During the reporting period, work on capacity increase projects continued in the Eco Baltia’s PET bottle and plastic packaging recycling sector. Nordic Plast completed the testing of its new plastics sorting and recycling line, which was built last year with an investment of more than 2.8 million euro, ensuring stable operation and a gradual increase in production capacity. Whereas, PET Baltija, the recycler of PET bottles, continues working on the development of its new production facility in Olaine. It is planned to gradually start production at the facility during this year, more than tripling food-grade rPET production capacity.

In the first quarter of 2023, the PET and plastics recycling segment companies invested 0.7 million euro in development, while investments of the environmental management sector companies reached 2 million euro.

During this reporting period, Eco Baltia vide and Ecoservice group of companies, two largest subsidiaries of Eco Baltia, continued working on development of a number of projects, including the establishment and expansion of specialised sites for sorting construction waste and promotion of the sorting of household waste, textiles and other materials. At the same time, the “Tocha” brand and its service are being further promoted in the Latvian market, strengthening the market position while maintaining a consistently high quality bar. Environmental sector companies have also submitted proposals to a number of public tenders for waste management services, road maintenance and other services.

Continuing further development of Eco Baltia group, its main objectives in 2023, in line with its strategic goals, are to improve working conditions, support employees, ensure the highest level of occupational safety and improve ESG and sustainability. Investments in the recycling, waste and environmental management sectors will continue in the coming months this year to support further growth, efficiency and competitiveness of the Eco Baltia companies.

In 2023, Eco Baltia will continue fostering synergies between the Group’s companies to maximise the benefits of the full-cycle waste management process, involving all companies, thus strengthening its position as a major market player in the Baltics and Northern Europe.

The largest environmental management and recycling group of companies in the Baltics “Eco Baltia” has closed 2022 with its historically highest consolidated turnover of EUR 210 million, representing a 75% increase compared to 2021. Eco Baltia’s total combined sales revenue (pro-forma) in 2022 amounted to 240.5 million euro, while EBITDA for the reporting period amounted to 25.4 million euro (19.7 million euro in 2021). These are the historically best Eco Baltia business results, demonstrating strategic and focused international growth.

In 2022, the group’s businesses continued dynamic grow in line with its long-term strategy. In terms of business areas, Eco Baltia’s PET and plastic packaging recycling segment reached a turnover of EUR 100 million in 2022, while the environmental management segment – EUR 110 million.The overall increase in turnover was promoted by the acquisition of the company Ecoservice in 2021 and “TESIL Fibres” in September 2022. At the same time, total profit indicators of Eco Baltia have decreased by 9.5% to EUR 8.4 million last year, which can be explained due to a EUR 3.3 million revaluation of PET Baltija inventories.

Māris Simanovičs, Chairman of the Board at Eco Baltia, describes the last year: “Despite the challenges of fluctuating energy prices and the geopolitical situation, which had a significant impact on the international market, we have managed to further strengthen our positions at Latvian and global scale. The achieved results serve as proof that, even when adopting strategic decisions, conditions of nationwide crisis may also serve as a good basis for business growth. For example, the acquisitions of Ecoservice, the Lithuanian environmental management company, and TESIL Fibres, the leading Czech fibre producer, have enabled us to expand the group’s overall range of services. We have also made a number of investments in automation of various processes, which allowed us to both increase production capacity and address the situation in the area of related labour shortage, which is complicated in Latvia at the moment.”

In mid-September 2022, Eco Baltia’s largest subsidiary PET Baltija, one of the largest PET recyclers in Northern Europe, completed the acquisition of 100% shares in TESIL Fibres, the leading Czech polyester fibre producer. This transaction puts PET Baltija on the regional map as a key player in the PET recycling sector. Whereas, in the middle of the year, construction of a new PET recycling plant in Olaine was commenced, with the planned investments of Eco Baltia exceeding 10 million. The total amount of planned investments for the plant, including those made by the developer, is expected to be around 35 million euro, and it will be one of the largest under-the-roof production facilities in Latvia. Last year, Eco Baltia’s plastic packaging recycling company Nordic Plast, investing EUR 2.8 million, launched a sorting line modernisation project, gradually increasing production capacity by up to 30%.

Eco Baltia’s environmental management segment also showed solid growth in 2022, expanding its business portfolio and the companies’ services. Both in Latvia and Lithuania, environmental management companies continued to invest in sorting and managing construction waste. Ecoservice invested in the extension and improvement of the existing construction waste sorting site, while Eco Baltia vide commenced construction of a new site. Besides, investments in the modernisation and improvement of fleet and technical equipment were made last year to ensure uninterrupted operations and the highest quality services for our customers.

Last year, the total investments made by the group of companies in the development of the PET and plastic packaging recycling segment amounted to approximately 8.8 million euro, whereas, in the environmental management – 14.1 million euro.

Vytautas Plunksnis, Chairman of the Council at Eco Baltia: “Last year, Eco Baltia managed to achieve one of the highest growth rates in the company’s history. A well-developed long-term strategy is the basis for ensuring that development is possible also in the face of unpredictable external market conditions. Eco Baltia’s goal is to expand recycling options, and the concluded company acquisition deals will enable achievement of this goal, as well as promote interest from other market players, as we will be able to secure higher volumes of recycled materials and favourable terms of cooperation. From the moment of its foundation, Eco Baltia has proven its competitiveness at the Baltic and European level, and each new stage of its development is contributing thereto with gradually increasing rate.”

In 2023, Eco Baltia plans to continue investing in the recycling and environmental management sectors and to gradually start production at the new PET Baltija plant, more than tripling its food-grade rPET production capacity while reducing rising energy and labour costs. This year, the group will continue working on promoting business-to-business cooperation, borrowing and introducing new services and improving full-cycle waste circulation processes. Besides, targeted investments will be made in the improvement of the skills of employees, working environment, improvement of labour safety and well-being of workers, as well as in the introduction of corporate sustainability, social responsibility and governance policies.