Panel producers, bracing up for renewed decline

The main players on the thermo-insulating panel market do not expect a market rebound this year, either, after a decline of above 30% last year, and an upbeat scenario sees flat demand at the 2009 level. Thus, producers' targets have shifted to boosting exports and market share. As production capacity is currently 250-260% oversized against demand, domestic producers have to halt part of production lines, meaning on the one hand a temporary headcount reduction and on the other, rising maintenance costs, not covered by production. The thermo-insulating panel market last year dropped by around 33%, in line with market estimates, to a volume of around 5.5 million square metres. In terms of value, the decline was even steeper, by over 40%, so that the value of the market in 2009 revolved around 76m euros. Domestically, producers' attention mainly focuses on investment projects with secured funding, as many projects risk being left unfinished because of tight access to funding.