thyssenKrupp AG Business Report FY ended Sep. 2015

Business Highlights

Financial Overview

(in million EUR)
  FY ended Sep. 30, 2015 FY ended Sep. 30, 2014* Rate of
change (%)
Factors
Overall
Sales 42,778 41,212 3.8 1)
EBIT 1,050 1,145 (8.3) -
Components Technology
Sales 6,753 6,172 9.4 2)
EBIT 294 234 25.6  -
Steel Europe
Sales 8,697 8,819 (1.4) 3)
EBIT 514 195 163.6 -
Steel Americas
Sales 1,773 2,060 (13.9) 4)
EBIT (147) 64 - -

*FY ended Sep. 2014 figures have been adjusted due to the adoption of IFRS 11.

Factors
1) Overall Sales
-In the FY ended September 30, 2015, the Company's sales increased by 3.8% to EUR 42,778 million. Sales increased was due to the growth in components and elevator businesses and favorable exchange rate effects.

2) Components Technology
-The Company's Components Technology business area experienced an increase in sales of 9.4% in the FY ended September 30, 2015 to EUR 6,753 million. Sales rose thanks to the production ramp-ups for new products, the ramp-ups of new plants, an increase in demand for axle module assembly and positive currency translation effects. This was influenced by the fact that demand growth in the European and US markets for cars and trucks remained robust.

3) Steel Europe
-Sales in the Company's Steel Europe segment decreased 1.4% in the FY ended September 30, 2015 to EUR 8,697 million. This was primarily due to the sustained weakness of steel prices on the European spot markets, mainly owing to significantly lower raw material prices.

4) Steel Americas
-During the FY ended September 30, 2015, the Steel Americas segment decreased its sales by 13.9% over the previous year to EUR 1,773 million due to the influence of the sale of thyssenkrupp Steel USA.

Restructuring

Divestiture of high-performance alloy unit
-In April 2015, the Company announced that it is selling the VDM group, a high-performance alloy unit, to Lindsay Goldberg, represented in Europe by Lindsay Goldberg Vogel, Dusseldorf, Germany. As part of the necessary refinancing measures at Outokumpu, Outokumpu's all shares in VDM and AST were transferred to the Company at the end of February 2014. The VDM group is based in Werdohl, Germany and employs around 2,000 people worldwide. (From a press release on April 17, 2015)

Recent Development in China

Expansion of hot-dip coasted sheet business
-ThyssenKrupp Steel Europe will strengthen its market position in premium hot-dip coated sheet for the Chinese automotive industry. The Company already has operations in the country via a joint venture with Chinese steel producer Angang Steel – TKAS Auto Steel Co. (Tagal). Now ThyssenKrupp Steel Europe is additionally acquiring an interest in an Angang group company which is currently building a hot-dip coating facility in the city of Chongqing. ThyssenKrupp Steel Europe will own 12.5 percent of this enterprise directly and 37.5 percent indirectly via Tagal. The contracts have been signed, and the closing is expected in the coming months. The hot-dip coating line is scheduled to go into operation later 2015. (From a press release on May 12, 2015)

Contract

-In 2015, the Company has received an order for column assist electric power steerings (EPSs) for Renault-Nissan's next-generation CMF B compact car series. The Company will add new plants in Hungary in 2016 and Mexico in 2018 and will start supplying the EPSs in 2017. The EPS features high torque applicable to medium-sized vehicles and can be incorporated into a steering system that enables integral system development. The Company has successfully won the order appealing these strengths. The Company's column type EPSs are manufactured in China and Brazil and supplied to U.S. carmakers. In 2019, the Company is planning to make 1.3 million units of column type EPSs a year for Renault-Nissan models. (From an article in the Nikkan Jidosha Shimbun on June 9, 2015)

R&D Expenditure

(in million EUR)
  FY ended Sep. 30, 2015 FY ended Sep. 30, 2014* FY ended Sep. 30, 2013
Total 735 709 647

*FY ended Sep. 2014 figures have been adjusted due to the adoption of IFRS 11.

R&D Structure

-The Company has approximately 3,000 employees working in research and development at over 100 development centers in the world.

Technological Alliance

Co-developing ultra-lightweight wheels with Maxion Wheels
-In June 2015, ThyssenKrupp Carbon Components and Maxion Wheels have established a cooperation agreement to develop and market new ultra-lightweight aluminum and carbon fiber hybrid wheels for the premium vehicle OEM market. The combined technologies could generate a weight savings of up to 40 percent when compared to high performance forged aluminum wheels. The partners have built and extensively tested prototypes for use on luxury cars and SUVs. Testing took place at certified Maxion Wheels test labs. In addition, the ThyssenKrupp – Maxion Wheels team is working with the Volkswagen Group to test prototypes on a vehicle. Public road tests have shown improved performance, e.g. superior damping which leads to less vibration and road noise. (From a press release on June 19, 2015)

Product development

InCar plus automotive development project
-The Company presented the results of its InCar plus research project, a project designed to find new solutions for energy efficiency, electromobility, and weight reduction in automotive manufacturing. 40 new components and solutions were developed for the automotive industry under InCar plus, with components offering weight savings of up to 50% and cost savings of up to 20%. Additionally, InCar plus solutions enable reduced CO2 emissions of up to 8 grams per kilometer. Solutions that were designed for InCar plus include a new steel composite material, a redesigned rotor for use in electric motors, and use of carbon fiber components such as shock absorber tubes and steering column parts.

Capital Expenditures

(in million EUR)

 

FY ended Sep. 30, 2015 FY ended Sep. 30, 2014* FY ended Sep. 30, 2013
Overall 1,235 1,260 1,313
-Components Technology 392 356 389
-Steel Europe 458 516 408
-Steel Americas 86 89 170

*FY ended Sep. 2014 figures have been adjusted due to the adoption of IFRS 11.

Investment outside Germany

<Mexico>
-In April 2015, the Company announced that it has opened a new steering components plant for the North American automotive industry in Puebla (Mexico). With the new steering systems plant the Company now produces components for the automotive industry at four sites in Mexico. The product portfolio ranges from engine and steering components to springs and stabilizers to the assembly of axle modules. The Company plans to invest more than EUR 500 million in its North American components business alone up to 2020. Altogether it will invest over EUR 800 million in the growth region North America up to 2020. (From a press release on April 24, 2015)

-In February 2015, the Company announced that it has started production at a new automotive components site in Mexico. The plant in Puebla will assemble front axles for Volkswagen. The existing assembly site had become too small. The acquisition of several new orders necessitated a capacity expansion. At the new 11,000 square meter site all logistics and assembly processes are now centralized under one roof. Over 2,200 axis modules can be produced and delivered to the customer daily. The Company supplies axles for all Volkswagen's model platforms in Mexico, including the "Jetta", "Golf A7" and "Beetle". The new site employs around 240 people. In addition to the new site in Puebla, the Company is currently building a further axle assembly plant 70 kilometers away in San Jose Chiapa. This plant will supply components to Audi. Production for the new "Q5" model is planned to start there in 2016. (From a press release on February 11, 2015)

<China>
-In November 2014,  the Company announced that it has opened a new plant for automotive components in Changzhou, Jiangsu Province, China. At the new location for powertrain technology, cylinder-head covers for the Chinese automotive market are manufactured. The Company has invested around EUR 40 million in the new plant. From now on, up to 200 people will produce about one million cylinder-head covers there per year. (From a press release on November 4, 2014)