North American operations generated Adjusted EBITDA of $11 million in the quarter, unchanged from the prior quarter and compared to $37 million in the same quarter last year. European operations delivered Adjusted EBITDA of $10 million in the quarter versus $7 million in the prior quarter and $12 million in the same quarter last year.
North American OSB shipments increased by 10% quarter-over-quarter, primarily due to increased productivity and more fiscal days in the 2Q. 2Q shipments were in line with the same quarter last year as improved mill productivity offset production curtailments.
In Europe, Norbord's shipments were 3% higher versus the prior quarter and 11% higher than the same quarter last year. Three of the four mills achieved quarterly production records and the European operations produced at approximately 100% of stated capacity compared to 95% in the prior quarter and 95% in the same quarter last year (based on restated capacity).
"The poor North American OSB demand/capacity ratio continued to impact OSB prices in the 2Q," said Peter Wijnbergen, Norbord's President and CEO. "We curtailed production at several mills in response to the slower than expected rebound in new home construction demand. However, the May and June US housing data was encouraging, we are starting to see a pick-up in export orders and our sales to home improvement and industrial customers continue to grow. All this supports our belief that the OSB market dynamic will gradually improve in the coming quarters. In the meantime, our manufacturing costs continue to decline as we focus on our controllables and benefit from lower resin prices and the weaker Canadian dollar."
Norbord Inc. is a leading global manufacturer of wood-based panels and the world's largest producer of oriented strand board (OSB).
