The past year

Our Group CEO Christian Hallberg sums up an eventful year for Tempcon. Unfortunately, this year we have had to cancel the filming due to the prevailing pandemic mode.

When we now look back at 2021 and sum up the year, we can state that it has been a very intense year for Tempcon with continued strong growth. We have welcomed four new companies that add new skills, new business and increased geographical coverage to the Tempcon family. At the same time, it has not escaped anyone that this year has also been a special year with the ongoing pandemic that has affected everyone’s everyday life. Of course, we in the transport industry have also been affected like so many others during this time. However, we can be proud that during the entire pandemic we have carried out our missions in a satisfactory manner. We have been fully operational and have managed to maintain our quality despite many times difficult circumstances in the form of shutdowns, sharp volume fluctuations and driver shortages. We have also continued our development work to be able to offer many customized solutions based on our customers’ wishes and needs. In the wake of the pandemic, we have been hit by a number of cost-driving factors that we cannot influence. The shortage of drivers in Sweden and Europe drives staff costs upwards at the same time as vehicle costs increase due to long delivery times for new vehicles, which means that we have to drive longer than planned with the older ones. This leads to increased costs for, among other things, service and maintenance. We also see that the service costs themselves increase due to the difficulty of obtaining certain spare parts due to component shortages. In addition, we have seen sharply increased prices for virtually all fuels such as diesel, HVO, LBG, RME and also electricity. Something that increased further at the turn of the year. To meet these challenges, we work together to constantly improve our productivity by utilizing the vast knowledge that exists within the Group.

Working environment
The staff is our most important resource and we put a lot of energy into creating a business that is dynamic, flexible and developing for both the organization and the individual. The importance of being an attractive employer cannot be overestimated and it is as much about retaining skills as attracting new employees. In order to obtain a measure of the value of the situation within the Group, we conducted a joint employee survey in the spring, which gave us important input into how we should prioritize many of these issues in the future. Something we followed up during the latter part of the year. At the same time, the systematic environment work takes place every day, around the clock, at all our terminals and hauliers as a natural part of everyday life, and we will continue to see work environment legislation as a minimum level for our work.

Sustainability
We at Tempcon have a holistic approach to sustainability issues with a strong focus on the environment. With deep knowledge and the ability to invest, we are constantly taking steps towards a more sustainable business. Last year, we were able to present one of Sweden’s first CO₂-positive terminals, which this year was followed up by being able to also offer CO₂-neutral transports. We offer the market fossil-free transport through 100 percent renewable fuels and transport with gas-powered vehicles that are mainly powered by renewable biogas, which greatly reduces CO₂ emissions. Since 2020, we also have fully electrified transports, a business that we will now expand further. We are based on the Group’s values, where we see great commitment in all our companies and operations. Something that is not least noticeable in the daily operation where challenges become exclamation marks every day. We build credibility by keeping what we promise to all our stakeholders such as customers, employees, suppliers, owners and more. During the latter part of the year, we have worked on some challenging projects where we have really seen the value of working together. All in all, this makes me really happy and proud because then I know we are on the right track.

Growth
Several of our companies and operations can look back on a very good year and a good financial development, which is both gratifying and positive. At the same time, we can see that some of our companies have some challenges. Here we have initiated intensive change work that will lead to a more stable development of these companies as well. We have also signed several new large customer agreements this year, which contributes to continued strong organic growth. We will continue our growth journey together with our customers and be sensitive to their wishes and needs. We will use our common resources to develop our customer offering and create new business.

Future
The sharp cost increases we have seen in 2021 will probably follow the industry in the future and mean that we must use our resources in an even more optimal way. At the same time, today we have a total offer that few, or none, on the market can match. We will take advantage of this in the coming years and through this further improve our business. Because with a stable and sustainable economy, we have the conditions to continue to develop our operations where coordination makes us stronger and more efficient. It also creates the conditions for continued intensive sustainability work together with our customers and suppliers. The high acquisition rate the Group has historically had will probably decrease somewhat in the coming years, but that does not mean that we are ready. Tempcon is a young group and at the same time as we are working on the next acquisition in the Nordic region, we have a strong focus on coordinating current operations and companies. A work that takes place in parallel. With commitment and credibility we will succeed together!