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Plastics manufacturer Lotte Chemical had one of its best ever years in 2018 after bringing in revenues of £321.4m.

Based at Wilton International, near Redcar, Lotte Chemical had not made a profit since 2013 and had seen its operating losses rise to as much as £48.9m in 2015.

But the company shook off its past results to post an operating profit of £33.3m for the year ending December 31 2018 after it took advantage of changes in the European market.

Lotte Chemical benefitted from a shortage of supply in Europe when a rival company was forced to declare force majeure - an unforeseeable circumstance that meant the firm was unable to fulfil its contract.

The contract breach led to changes in the European market that helped Lotte Chemical take its turnover from £245.5m to £321.4m. European sales alone increased from £91.4m to £137.2m.

Speaking in the company’s accounts, CEO Jae Hwang said: “The European PET resin market experienced an exceptional year in 2018. Initially European supply and demand, plus limited competition from Asian producers, resulted in a balanced market quarter one.

Consequently sales were in line with budget and expectations however in April the declaration of Force Majeure by a major European PTA producer quickly impacted the majority of European PET producers and the market moved from balanced to short.

“The above coincided with a period of exceptionally hot weather across Europe with particular noticeable impact on North Western Europe. Hence the combination of limited European production, exceptional summer temperatures and strong Asian pricing resulted in the market remaining strong until the end of the summer season and quarter three.”