Sustainable growth doesn’t happen overnight: Mersen's exceptional 2022 results
May 2023
Luc Themelin, Mersen’s Chief Executive Officer, discusses the Group’s exceptional 2022 results, its growth outlook and how Mersen is charting its course in unfamiliar economic territory.
Mersen’s sales exceeded the €1 billion mark in 2022 – capping off several strong years of supporting the development of manufacturers worldwide, despite a turbulent international environment.
Far from resting on our laurels, we are already preparing our next steps. And our momentum, driven both by our innovation prowess and by current market demand, shows no sign of slowing down.
Sustainable growth markets
With the real-life consequences of global warming becoming more and more apparent in our everyday lives, “sustainable” markets now play a major role in driving our industrial growth. This is particularly true of markets easing the energy transition from fossil fuels to electricity. Whether in electric vehicles or solar power, our expertise and product ranges are perfectly adapted to the stringent technical requirements of these sectors. Over the coming years, we will be investing heavily to increase our production capacity in Europe and the United States, as we commit to responsible growth in the short, medium and long term.
Unwavering confidence from the industry
Our growth objectives for the years ahead are not based on assumptions but on hard evidence. We have signed major contracts with several leading manufacturers to help them accelerate their expansion and meet the needs of today’s market. Over the next seven years, for example, we will be supplying smart busbars to ACC, the joint venture between Stellantis, TotalEnergies/Saft and Mercedes-Benz, for the “new-generation” batteries that will equip Europe’s electric vehicles tomorrow. We also have a five-year agreement to supply Wolfspeed, the world leader in silicon carbide, with graphite components and other high-tech materials needed to manufacture their silicon carbide wafers, which are crucial for the development of electric vehicle power electronics.
Our technology partnership with Soitec, meanwhile, will harness Mersen-powered innovation to fuel the rise of the electric vehicle market. Find out more about this alliance in our feature article.
CSR commitments taking shape
Today, we are faced with a complex balancing act as we try to grow our business while at the same time reducing its environmental impact. Our CSR results over the last few years have been particularly encouraging in this respect, with a 38% reduction in our greenhouse gas emissions intensity in 2022. As we take the next steps in our development, we will have to be especially diligent to maintain this trajectory.
Reducing our environmental footprint while planning to massively increase our production capacity through several site expansions may seem like a challenge. But we will benefit from the invaluable experience we have gained in controlling and mitigating the impact of our operations in recent years. Armed with this expertise, we will intensify our efforts to limit our waste, increase our recycling rates and reduce our water and energy consumption. But the health and safety of our employees will remain, as ever, our top priority.
The first of many milestones
With all our indicators in the green, we are now ideally positioned to secure further growth and reach our target of €1.7 billion in sales by 2027. We are confident in our strengths and in our ability to continue supporting the profound transformation underway in our industries. And our upcoming investments will ensure that we are able to supply our customers with the quantities they need for their growth – while living up to our decades-long reputation for quality.
Against this backdrop, we were delighted to be included in the SBF 120 index at the beginning of the year, and it makes us optimistic for the future. Being named one of Euronext Paris’ top 120 stocks is undeniable confirmation of our sound financial health and strength as a business. While we plan to change dimension over the coming years, we will remain true to the business model that has brought us so much success, as we continue along our path of carefully managed growth.