In the first quarter 2026, SGL Carbon generated consolidated sales of €184.5 million, which was €49.8 million, or 21.3%, lower than in the prior year (Q1 2025: €234.4 million). This is partly due to a decline in sales resulting from the discontinuation of unprofitable business activities as part of the restructuring of the Carbon Fibers business unit in mid-2025. With the discontinuation of the loss-making acrylic fiber and precursor production, sales activities for these products were also terminated. Furthermore, lower demand in the Graphite Solutions business unit and the challenging order situation in Process Technology weighed on sales development in the first three months of 2026.
The decline in sales of higher-margin products led to a 11.6% quarter-over-quarter decrease in adjusted EBITDA to €29.6 million (Q1 2025: €33.5 million). This figure includes a one-time compensation payment of €7.7 million resulting from the adjustment of an existing supply contract with a semiconductor customer. The adjusted EBITDA margin improved from 14.3% to 16.0% in the first quarter of 2026.
“High inventory levels at our semiconductor customers are currently still weighing on demand for our specialty graphite products. The agreed contractual terms also complicate the establishment of long-term business relationships with our customers. We are therefore in discussions to find solutions for future partnership-based cooperation that serve the interests of both parties,” explains Andreas Klein, CEO of SGL Carbon, regarding the received compensation payment.
With slightly lower depreciation and amortization of €12.2 million (Q1 2025: €12.8 million) and taking into account one-time and extraordinary items of minus €1.5 million, EBIT for the first quarter rose to €15.9 million (Q1 2025: €3.4 million). This is primarily attributable to the completion of the restructuring. In the prior year, high restructuring expenses had a negative impact of €16.6 million on the first quarter. As a result, a positive consolidated net income of €5.9 million was reported in the first quarter of 2026 (Q1 2025: negative €6.1 million).
Development of the business units
The Graphite Solutions (GS) business unit reported sales of €106.4 million in the first quarter 2026, down 8.8% from the same quarter of the previous year (Q1 2025: €116.7 million). Due to persistently high customer inventories, demand from the semiconductor market segment remained low. SGL Carbon had already indicated in recent months that it would support semiconductor customers in reducing their inventory levels to pave the way for future collaboration beyond the original contract term. GS’s sales therefore also include previously described compensation payment of €7.7 million resulting from the adjustment of an existing supply contract with a semiconductor customer.
The decline in GS’s sales had a negative impact on the business unit’s adjusted EBITDA. On a quarter-over-quarter basis, adjusted EBITDA fell by 14.8% to €18.4 million (Q1 2025: €21.6 million), despite a profit-impacting compensation payment of €7.7 million. This is primarily due to the decline in volume of high-margin products for the semiconductor industry and the resulting lower utilization of production capacity. In addition, negative price effects, slightly higher raw material prices, and currency effects impacted adjusted EBITDA. The adjusted EBITDA margin decreased accordingly to 17.3% on a quarterly basis (Q1 2025: 18.5%).
The Process Technology (PT) business unit reported a 30.1% decline in sales to €25.5 million in the first quarter of 2026 (Q1 2025: €36.5 million). Rising energy prices, high labor costs, regulatory requirements, and the resulting uncertainty in the chemical industry are causing many companies to postpone capital projects as well as maintenance and replacement investments.
The decline in sales is also reflected in the development of adjusted EBITDA, which fell significantly from €11.0 million in the first quarter of the previous year to €4.1 million. In addition to volume effects, lower selling prices weighed on PT’s adjusted EBITDA. Consequently, the adjusted EBITDA margin decreased to 16.1%. It should be noted that the margin for the first quarter of 2025, at 30.1%, was significantly above the full-year 2025 average of 24.3%.
Sales in the Fiber Composites (FC) business unit - a merger of the former Carbon Fibers and Composite Solutions - amounted to €47.7 million in the first quarter of 2026, down from €76.6 million in the same quarter of the previous year. The decline of €28.9 million is primarily due to a negative sales effect compared to the previous quarter resulting from the discontinuation of lossmaking business activities as part of the Carbon Fibers restructuring in mid-2025.
The significant cost reductions resulting from the restructuring of the carbon fiber business led to an improvement in the FC business segment's adjusted EBITDA of €7.5 million to €9.0 million in the first quarter of 2026 (Q1 2025: €1.5 million). This figure also includes the earnings contribution from activities accounted for using the equity method, in particular the joint venture Brembo SGL Carbon Ceramic Brakes (BSCCB), which contributed €4.0 million (Q1 2025: €1.6 million). Accordingly, the adjusted EBITDA margin increased from 2.0% to 18.9%.
Outlook
With the outbreak of armed conflict in the Middle East, the risks of a further slowdown in overall economic growth have increased. Should the conflict persist and cause lasting disruptions to energy and raw material supply chains, we cannot rule out negative impacts on our sales markets. Regardless of the economic conditions, we will continue to engage in dialogue with our semiconductor customers in the coming months to shape future cooperation.
Based on current information and assuming that conditions do not deteriorate further, we confirm the revenue and earnings forecast for fiscal year 2026 issued on March 19, 2026. For the 2026 fiscal year, we continue to expect consolidated revenue of between €720 million and €770 million and adjusted EBITDA of between €110 million and €130 million.
Further details on business performance in the first quarter of 2026 can be found in the quarterly statement.
