Group total

Order intake and revenue

The year was characterized by high customer activity and strong broad-based demand, with record high order intake levels in mining and infrastructure. Underlying demand in general engineering was solid throughout the year, while the automotive segment was impacted by component shortages. A cautious pick up in aerospace was noted at the beginning of 2021, with significant growth during the second half of the year although against low levels in the preceding year. The energy segment continued to improve, although oil and gas activity did not catch up to pre-pandemic levels. Organic order intake grew at a double-digit rate in all major regions. Changed exchange rates had a negative impact of –3 percent on order intake and revenues, respectively. Sandvik’s order intake amounted to SEK 108,900 million (86,288), and revenues were SEK 99,110 million (86,409), implying a book-to-bill ratio of 110 percent.

Earnings and return

Sandvik’s revenue totaled SEK 99,110 million (86,409). EBIT was SEK 18,644 million (11,184), corresponding to 18.8 percent (12.9) of revenues. The adjusted EBIT increased to SEK 18,107 million (14,531) and the adjusted EBIT margin increased to 18.3 percent (16.8) compared to the previous year. Movements in metal prices for Sandvik Materials Technology made a positive contribution to EBIT of SEK 487 million (–172 ). Changes in foreign exchange rates affected earnings negatively by SEK –898 million (–974) compared with the preceding year. Net financial items amounted to SEK –194 million (54). The result before taxes for the Group was SEK 18,451 million (11,238), and SEK 18,460 million (11,270 ) for continuing operations. Income tax had a total impact of SEK –3,967 million (–2,517) on earnings, corresponding to 22 percent (22) of profit before taxes. Profit for the year attributable to owners of the Parent Company was SEK 14,461 million (8,735). Basic earnings per share for the Group amounted to SEK 11.53 (6.96) and SEK 11.54 (6.99) for continuing operations. Return on capital employed was 19 percent (13) and return on equity was 20 percent (14).

Working capital

Relative net working capital for the year was 24 percent (28) of revenues. In absolute terms net working capital amounted to SEK 26,803 million (20,096) at the end of the year. In terms of volume, net working capital increased by SEK 3,726 million (–2,055) compared with the preceding year. Changed currency rates increased net working capital by SEK 1,511 million (–2,486) compared with the preceding year. The structural effect from acquisitions and divestments decreased working capital by SEK 1,249 million (–132).

Cash flow and financing

Cash flow from operating activities decreased to SEK 13,177 million (15,347). Net cash flow after investing activities was SEK –13,014 million (10,571). At the end of the year, cash and cash equivalents amounted to SEK 13,585 million (23,752). Interest-bearing liabilities, including net pension liabilities, less cash and cash equivalents, yielded a net debt of SEK 26,902 million (2,645). The net debt to equity ratio was 0.35 (0.04). Sandvik’s revolving credit facility of SEK 9,000 million was unutilized at year-end. Under the Swedish bond program, totaling SEK 15,000 million, bonds corresponding to a nominal amount of SEK 1,000 million were outstanding at year-end. Under the European bond program, totaling EUR 3,000 million, a nominal amount of EUR 1,383 million was outstanding at year-end. The remaining maturity of bonds averaged 2.0 years for Swedish bonds and 5.5 years for European bonds. At year-end, the international credit rating agency Standard & Poor’s had a rating of A- for Sandvik’s long-term borrowings, and A-2 for Sandvik’s short-term borrowings.

Equity

Equity at year-end amounted to SEK 77,332 million (65,082), or SEK 61.6 per share (51.9). The equity ratio was 50 percent (55).

Investments

Investments in non-current assets for the full year 2021 amounted to SEK 3,598 million (3,278) corresponding to 99 percent of scheduled depreciation. Proceeds from the sale of companies and shares, net of cash, amounted to SEK 423 million (778). Acquisition of companies and shares, net of cash, amounted to SEK –23,578 million (–3,274). Investments in internally generated intangible assets were SEK 431 million (405).

Acquisitions during the year

On July 7, Sandvik Mining and Rock Solutions completed the acquisition of DSI Underground which included DSI’s ownership stake in joint ventures (Rocbolt Technologies) based in China, South Africa, Mongolia and Australia.

On July 31, Sandvik Manufacturing and Machining Solutions completed the acquisition of 67 percent of Chuzhou Yongpu, with a call option/put option to buy the remaining part in three years’ time.

On September 29, Sandvik Manufacturing and Machining Solutions completed the acquisition of the US-based company CNC Software Inc.

On October 1, Sandvik Manufacturing and Machining Solutions completed the acquisition of the US-based company DWFritz Automation Inc.

On October 1, Sandvik Mining and Rock Solutions completed the acquisition of the Australian-based company Tricon.

On October 4, Sandvik Materials Technology completed the acquisition of Accuratech Group.

On October 15, Sandvik Manufacturing and Machining Solutions completed the acquisition of the US-based company Cambrio.

On November 2, Sandvik Manufacturing and Machining Solutions completed the acquisition of the Polish company Fanar.

On December 9, Sandvik Rock Processing Solutions completed the acquisition of the South African-based company Kwatani.

On December 23, Sandvik Manufacturing and Machining Solutions completed the acquisition of the US-based company GWS Tool Group.

On December 23, Sandvik Manufacturing and Machining Solutions completed the acquisition of the Canada-based company ICAM Technologies Corporation.

On December 27, Sandvik Manufacturing and Machining Solutions completed the acquisition of the US-based company Dimensional Control Systems.

Impact on the financial reporting due to Covid‑19

As of December 31, there has been no significant impact on the financial reporting due to Covid‑19 related to valuation of goodwill, expected credit losses, valuation of inventory or government grants.

Parent company¹⁾

The Parent Company’s revenues for 2021 amounted to SEK 12,244 million (9,599) and the operating result was SEK 4,328 million (2,950 ). The result from shares in Group companies of SEK 2,205 million (–1,558) for the year consists primarily of contributions and dividends offset by costs related to the separation of Sandvik Materials Technology. Interest-bearing liabilities, minus cash and cash equivalents and interest-bearing assets, amounted to SEK 21,688 million (7,057). The Parent Company’s total assets increased by SEK 12,095 million, from SEK 64,335 million to SEK 76,430 million. Investments in non-current assets amounted to SEK 1,070 million (430).

The number of employees in the Parent Company and the subsidiaries operating on commission for Sandvik AB as of December 31, 2021 was 3,703 (3,354).

Dividend

The Board of Directors proposes a dividend of SEK 4.75 per share (4.50+2.00). The dividend proposal represents 42 percent (75) of adjusted earning per share, dilutive for the Sandvik Group in total.

Employees

The average number of employees amounted to 40,636 (38,666 ), of which 20 percent (19) were women. The employee turnover rate was 10 percent (8). Wages, salaries and other remunerations for the year totaled SEK 21,194 million (18,864).

Guidelines for the remuneration of senior executives

The guidelines for the remuneration of senior executives adopted by the 2021 Annual General Meeting are set out below. The Board of Directors does not propose any new guidelines.

Scope of the guidelines

These guidelines encompass the President and other members of the Group Executive Management. The guidelines do not apply to any remuneration decided on or approved by the General Meeting.

The guidelines’ promotion of the Company’s business strategy, long-term interests and sustainability

A prerequisite for the successful implementation of the Company’s business strategy and safeguarding of its long-term interests, including its sustainability, is that the Company is able to recruit and retain qualified personnel. To this end, it is necessary that the Company offers competitive remuneration. These guidelines enable the Company to offer senior executives a competitive total remuneration. For more information regarding the Company’s business and sustainability strategy, please see the Company’s website: home.sandvik.

Types of remuneration

The total remuneration package should be based on market terms, be competitive and reflect the individual’s performance and responsibilities as well as the Group’s earnings trend. The remuneration may consist of fixed salary, variable remuneration, pension benefits and other benefits.

Fixed salary

The purpose of the fixed salary is to attract and retain senior executives with the right competence for the respective positions. The salary level should be determined by comparing the salary to similarly complex positions within a defined peer group.

Variable remuneration

– Variable share related remuneration

The Company may offer long-term share related or share price related remuneration. Such programs are adopted by the General Meeting and are therefore not covered by these guidelines. There are currently ongoing long-term share related incentive programs for senior executives and key employees in the Group. For more information on these programs, see the Company’s website: home.sandvik.

– Variable cash remuneration

The Company may offer short or long-term variable cash remuneration. The fulfillment of objectives for awarding such remuneration shall be measured over a period of one to three years. Such remuneration may amount to not more than 75 percent of the fixed annual salary per year.

Variable cash remuneration shall be conditional upon the fulfillment of defined and measurable criteria. These criteria shall aim at promoting the Company’s business strategy and performance as well as its long-term interests, including its sustainability. At the beginning of each year the Board of Directors and the Remuneration Committee shall establish the criteria, including key performance indicators (KPIs) and the target ranges, deemed relevant for the upcoming measurement period. The criteria may be financial, with at least three KPIs, and non-financial, and shall always be related to business performance. At least 80 percent of the variable cash remuneration shall be linked to the financial criteria. The President and Group Function heads shall be measured on Group level KPIs and the Business Area Presidents shall be measured on both Group level and Business Area level KPIs. The established KPIs shall be presented on the Company’s website: home.sandvik. The extent to which the criteria for awarding variable cash remuneration have been fulfilled shall be determined when the measurement period has ended and will be published in the Report on Evaluation of Remuneration the following year. For financial criteria, the evaluation shall be based on the latest financial information made public by the Company.

– Special arrangements

In specific cases, the Company may offer one-off remuneration provided that such remuneration is only made on an individual basis, for the purpose of recruiting or retaining senior executives, does not exceed an amount corresponding to 100 percent of the individual’s fixed annual salary and maximum variable cash remuneration, and is not paid more than once per year and individual.

– Right to withhold or reclaim remuneration

Terms and conditions for variable remuneration shall be designed so that the Board of Directors (i) has the right to limit or refrain from payment of variable remuneration if exceptional economic circumstances prevail and such a measure is considered reasonable, and (ii) has the right to withhold or reclaim variable remuneration paid to an executive based on results that afterwards were found to have been misstated because of wrongdoing or malpractice (so called malus and clawback).

Pension benefits

For the President, the pension benefit shall be defined contribution and the pension premiums shall amount to not more than 37.5 percent of the fixed annual salary. For the other senior executives, pension benefits shall be defined contribution and amount to not more than 55 percent of the fixed annual salary, in accordance with the Swedish ITP1 pension scheme. Exceptions to this main rule may be decided on for senior executives with existing defined benefit schemes provided that the cost of such schemes does not exceed the above mentioned cap.

Other benefits

Other benefits may include, for example, life insurance, medical insurance and company car benefit. Such benefits may amount to not more than 5 percent of the fixed annual salary. For senior executives in need of double accommodation, paid accommodation, etc. may be added in line with Sandvik’s regulations and such benefits may amount to not more than 20 percent of the fixed annual salary.

Termination of employment

Severance pay may be paid when employment is terminated by Sandvik. The President and the other senior executives may have a period of notice of not more than 12 months, in combination with severance pay corresponding to 6–12 months fixed salary. When employment is terminated by the senior executive, the notice period may not exceed six months and no severance pay shall be paid.

In case a senior executive is not entitled to severance pay, but is covered by a non-compete undertaking, the senior executive may instead be compensated for such a non-compete undertaking. Any remuneration paid as compensation for a non-compete undertaking shall not exceed 60 percent of the fixed salary at the time of notice of termination of the employment and shall not be paid for a longer period than 18 months. Fixed salary during the notice period together with any compensation for the non-compete undertaking shall not exceed an amount equivalent to the senior executive’s fixed salary for 24 months.

Consideration of remuneration to the Company’s employees

When preparing the proposal for these guidelines, the employment conditions applied within the Company as a whole have been used as a benchmark, following the principle that the remuneration packages of all Sandvik employees should be based on the complexity of the position, performance and market practice. In general, the same combination of remuneration components such as fixed salary, variable remuneration, pension and other benefits are offered within Sandvik.

The decision-making process to determine, review and implement the guidelines

The Board of Directors has established a Remuneration Committee. The Committee’s tasks include preparing the Board of Directors’ decision to propose guidelines for senior executive remuneration. The Board of Directors shall prepare a proposal for guidelines at least every fourth year and submit it to the General Meeting. The guidelines shall be in force until new guidelines are adopted by the General Meeting. The Remuneration Committee shall also monitor and evaluate programs for variable remuneration for the executive management, the application of the guidelines for senior executive remuneration as well as the current remuneration structures and compensation levels in the Company. The members of the Remuneration Committee are independent of the Company and its executive management. The President and the other senior executives do not participate in the Board of Directors’ processing of and resolutions regarding remuneration-related matters to the extent that they are affected by such matters.

Decisions on remuneration to the President are taken by the Board of Directors, based on proposals from the Remuneration Committee, and decisions on remuneration to the other senior executives are taken by the Remuneration Committee.

Adjustments to local rules

Remuneration under employments subject to other rules than Swedish may be duly adjusted to comply with mandatory rules or established local practice, taking into account, to the extent possible, the overall purpose of these guidelines.

Derogation from the guidelines

The Board of Directors may temporarily resolve to derogate from the guidelines, in whole or in part, if in a specific case there is special cause for the derogation and a derogation is necessary to serve the Company’s long-term interests, including its sustainability, or to ensure the Company’s financial viability. As set out above, the Remuneration Committee’s tasks include preparing the Board of Directors’ resolutions in remuneration-related matters. This includes any resolutions to derogate from the guidelines.

For information concerning the current remuneration of senior executives, including ongoing long-term incentive programs, refer to note G4.

Research and development (R&D)

Each business area is responsible for its own R&D activities. Focus areas are machining materials and process development, additive manufacturing, alloys, powder metallurgy, electrification and digital solutions.

Sandvik has a portfolio of approximately 6,382 (5,977) active patents. In 2021, 835 (853) new patents were granted. Investments in R&D were SEK 3,682 million (3,429), corresponding to 3.7 percent (4.0) of revenues. The number of employees in R&D, including Quality Assurance, was 2,987 (2,534).

Tax

Sandvik is a multinational group with many inter-company transactions. The OECD has issued guidelines for transfer pricing of cross-border transactions in multinational groups. Sandvik adheres to these guidelines and also to the local legislation of each country to ensure that a correct pricing model is deployed and that a correct amount of tax is paid in each country. Sandvik monitors the OECD’s tax reform work and the EU initiatives on tax transparency carefully and observes these standards as and when enacted. Sandvik strives to have good relations with our stakeholders, such as tax authorities, non-governmental organizations and investors.

Sandvik has initiated cooperation with tax authorities in several countries. We are convinced that an open discussion and cooperation with tax authorities around the globe will help us to reduce uncertainty about the taxes we are obliged to pay. We contribute to the local communities and countries in which we operate in the form of, for example, taxes and employment opportunities. In 2021, the Group paid SEK 4,154 million (3,518) in income taxes globally. Income tax comprises just a portion of all taxes paid by Sandvik worldwide. In addition, we pay social security contributions, environmental and energy taxes, property taxes, etc. Furthermore, Sandvik collects and pays taxes at the request of governments and authorities, including indirect taxes and withholding taxes.

Environment

In Sweden, Sandvik conducts licensed operations at nine plants. All of them hold a requisite environmental permit. A number of guideline values were exceeded for emissions to air and water during the year. All occurrences were notified to the authorities and corrective actions were taken to comply with the target values. A renewed application for exemption of allowed noise limits for 2022–2024 was submitted.

Statutory sustainability report

Sandvik has, in accordance with the Annual Accounts Act, prepared a statutory sustainability report, approved for issue by the Board of Directors and the President and CEO. The Statutory Sustainability report and Sustainable Business Report comprise Value-creating offerings, Sustainable solutions creating value, UN Sustainable Development Goals, Sustainability targets, Risk management, Sustainability governance and Non-financial notes.

Events after the end of the period

From January 1, 2022 Sandvik Materials Technology has been classified as asset held for distribution.

Sandvik appointed Cecilia Felton as Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer, CFO, effective February 1, 2022. Cecilia Felton, who served as interim CFO since November 1, 2021, will also be a member of the Group Executive Management.

Sandvik has completed the acquisition of the tube engineering solutions company Gerling GmbH. The company will be reported within Sandvik Materials Technology.

As a result of the ongoing war in Ukraine, Sandvik is continuously following up on risks and mitigating activities to reduce the impacts on the Group. In 2021, the revenues from Russian customers amounted to SEK 3.6 billion (3.6 percent of total Group revenue) and from Ukrainian customers to SEK 0.2 billion (0.2 percent of total Group revenue).