KAI Lodzhistik JSC - Sofia - Short Company profile

The largest glass and ceramics companies in Bulgaria had a not very successful 2024, with the total revenues of the top 10 companies in the sector being just under 2 billion euros, a 12.2% decrease compared to 2023. The leader in the ranking - the glass packaging manufacturer BA Glass Bulgaria, is part of the Portuguese group BA Glass and owns the factories in Sofia and Plovdiv (the former Druzhba Glass Factories). Both companies produce glass bottles and jars, which are sold in over 20 countries. In Bulgaria, customers are beer, wine and alcoholic beverage producers, as well as canneries. BA Glass Bulgaria reduced its revenues by 10.9% in 2024 to 1.4 billion euros. The result reflects the sales of the entire Portuguese group BA Glass, which go through the Bulgarian company. The company reports increased production in 2024, which is the result of improved efficiency and the renovation of one of the old furnaces and a workshop in Plovdiv. The project was implemented in 2023 and the furnace has been operating since February 2024. In 2022, a new furnace was built in Sofia. In 2024, BA Glass added three new factories to its portfolio - in the United Kingdom, Poland and Mexico, but closed its production in Greece. The group currently has 13 packaging plants - twelve in Europe and one in Mexico. Second, third and fourth places in the ranking are occupied by the plants of the Turkish group Sisecam in Targovishte. The largest company among them is the flat glass manufacturer Trakia Glas Bulgaria, whose sales in 2024 fell by 18.5% to 146 million euros. The revenue of the household glass manufacturer "Pashabahce Bulgaria" also decreased - by 27.1% to 116.7 million euros. The automotive glass manufacturer "?i?ecam Automotive Bulgaria" also recorded a nearly 19.7% drop in sales, which continues to operate at a loss. With over 63.6 million euros in sales, the manufacturer of glass packaging for the food industry - Pleven-based "Rubin Trading" - occupies 6th position in the ranking. In recent years, the Bulgarian company, which is not part of a group, has been implementing an ambitious investment program for over 400 million leva. In 2024, the relative share in net sales revenues on the domestic market is 12.2%, and exports - 87.8%. The company reports that the amount of production sold in tons in 2024 is 44.5% more than in 2023, and the cost price per ton of finished product has decreased by 11.6%. The largest increase was in operating expenses for personnel - by 28.2%. "New Glass" - Novi Pazar takes ninth place with over 27.4 million euros in revenue for 2024. The company has a long history, originating from the former "Kitka" factory. After several privatization deals, today it is part of the Greek Helleinic Glass Industries - a leader in the field of glass production with over 60 years of tradition in this industry. The Bulgarian company is the only one in the group with a business scope of household glass production. The country's largest manufacturer of faience, terracotta and granite tiles - "Khan Asparuh", Isperih, part of "KAI Group", is in fifth position with revenues that in 2024 exceed 74.6 million euros, but decrease by just over 10%. The company's history begins in 1973. In 1998, it was privatized and the ECM (Europe Capital Management) fund entered its management as a majority shareholder. In 2004, "Khan Asparuh" acquired "Khan Omurtag" in Shumen (8th in the ranking) and began the implementation of a project to modernize and expand the two factories. A series of investments led to a 24-hour production cycle, and the two factories reached an installed capacity of about 28 million sq. m per year. In 2007, a new majority shareholder joined the group - the US-based private equity fund Advent International. After its exit in 2015, in a deal for about 195 million euros, KAI became part of Mohawk Industries - the largest flooring manufacturer in the world and a multinational group listed on the New York Stock Exchange. Over 77% of KAI Group's production is sold abroad. And Khan Omurtag indicates that 51.5% of its production is sold outside the country. The sanitary ware manufacturer Roca Bulgaria (7th place), which owns the former Fayans factory in Caspian and is part of the Spanish Roca group, reports double-digit sales growth, exceeding 43 million euros in 2024. The company sells its products under the Roca, Laufen and Fayans brands. In 2024, sales to both group companies and unrelated parties registered growth. There was a strong increase in deliveries to Central Europe and especially to the Czech Republic. In tenth place with 24.8 million euros in sales in 2024 is Plovdiv-based Robertshaw, which produces ceramic components for white goods (ignitable electrodes for burners, mechanical and electromechanical parts for stoves, ceramic materials). The company was previously called Cast Futura - BG and was part of the Italian CastFutura, which was acquired by the American Robertshaw at the end of 2018. The company is owned by Robertshaw Italy. The Bulgarian company was established in 2003 as a small workshop in the village of Gorna Malina, Elin Pelin municipality, and later expanded its production with a factory in Plovdiv, where it rents premises.