Document and Entity Information	9 Months Ended
Document and Entity Information	Sep. 30, 2018
Document and Entity Information [Abstract]
Entity Registrant Name	Orion Engineered Carbons S.A.
Entity Central Index Key	0001609804
Current Fiscal Year End Date	--12-31
Document Fiscal Year Focus	2018
Document Type	6-K
Document Fiscal Period Focus	Q3
Amendment Flag	false
Document Period End Date	Sep. 30, 2018

Interim Condensed Consolidated Income Statements - USD ($) shares in Thousands, $ in Thousands	3 Months Ended		9 Months Ended
	Sep. 30, 2018	Sep. 30, 2017	Sep. 30, 2018	Sep. 30, 2017
Profit or loss [abstract]
Revenue	$ 393,954	$ 334,936	$ 1,192,239	$ 988,614
Cost of sales	(284,798)	(239,879)	(857,907)	(705,140)
Gross profit	109,156	95,057	334,332	283,474
Selling expenses	(36,327)	(33,665)	(109,927)	(97,115)
Research and development costs	(4,872)	(4,655)	(14,577)	(13,299)
General and administrative expenses	(22,140)	(18,795)	(61,609)	(57,141)
Other operating income	264	669	723	2,943
Other operating expenses	(3,333)	(4,298)	(6,889)	(8,588)
Restructuring income	0	0	40,253	0
Restructuring expenses	(905)	(952)	(12,673)	(1,674)
Restructuring income/(expenses), net	(905)	(952)	27,580	(1,674)
Earnings before taxes and finance income/costs (operating result (EBIT))	41,843	33,361	169,633	108,600
Finance income	13,273	12,263	25,733	33,131
Finance costs	(18,956)	(22,190)	(48,858)	(64,330)
Share of profit or loss of joint ventures	160	142	453	404
Financial result	(5,523)	(9,785)	(22,672)	(30,795)
Profit before income taxes	36,320	23,576	146,961	77,805
Income taxes	(12,169)	(8,436)	(45,891)	(27,422)
Profit for the period	$ 24,151	$ 15,140	$ 101,070	$ 50,383
Earnings per share (USD per share), basic	$ 0.40	$ 0.26	$ 1.70	$ 0.85
Weighted average number of ordinary shares, basic (in thousand of shares)	59,722	59,320	59,545	59,320
Earnings per share (USD per share), diluted	$ 0.40	$ 0.25	$ 1.66	$ 0.83
Weighted average number of ordinary shares, diluted (in thousand of shares)	60,867	60,460	60,875	60,462

Interim Condensed Consolidated Statements of Comprehensive Income - USD ($) $ in Thousands	3 Months Ended		9 Months Ended
	Sep. 30, 2018	Sep. 30, 2017	Sep. 30, 2018	Sep. 30, 2017
Statement of comprehensive income [abstract]
Profit for the period	$ 24,151	$ 15,140	$ 101,070	$ 50,383
Exchange differences on translation of foreign operations
Change in unrealized gains/(losses)	(722)	(6,551)	(13,271)	(13,756)
Income tax effects	(308)	227	(1,180)	94
Unrealized net gains/(losses) on net investments in a foreign operation
Change in unrealized gains/(losses)	0	5,609	(12)	18,523
Income tax effects	0	(1,656)	4	(5,830)
Unrealized net gains/(losses) on cash flow hedges
Change in unrealized gains/(losses)	1,584	389	(763)	(626)
Income tax effects	(388)	(85)	402	138
Net other comprehensive income to be reclassified to profit or loss in subsequent periods	166	(2,067)	(14,820)	(1,457)
Actuarial gains (losses) on defined benefit plans
Change in unrealized gains/(losses)	501	(1,783)	708	(2,616)
Income tax effects	(161)	590	(215)	873
Net other comprehensive income not to be reclassified to profit or loss in subsequent periods	340	(1,193)	493	(1,743)
Other comprehensive income, net of tax	506	(3,260)	(14,327)	(3,200)
Total comprehensive income, net of tax all attributable to equity holders of the parent	$ 24,657	$ 11,880	$ 86,743	$ 47,183

Interim Condensed Consolidated Statements of Financial Position - USD ($) $ in Thousands	Sep. 30, 2018	Dec. 31, 2017
Non-current assets
Goodwill	$ 56,157	$ 58,180
Other intangible assets	55,967	70,722
Property, plant and equipment	431,045	462,129
Investment in joint ventures	5,251	5,585
Other financial assets	3,082	3,564
Other assets	3,215	3,883
Deferred tax assets	53,052	43,546
Total Non-current assets	607,769	647,609
Current assets
Inventories	203,374	159,334
Trade receivables	289,135	234,273
Other financial assets	9,192	3,890
Other assets	31,680	35,038
Income tax receivables	14,122	16,377
Cash and cash equivalents	55,183	72,284
Total Current assets	602,686	521,196
Total Assets	1,210,455	1,168,805
Equity
Subscribed capital	84,254	83,770
Treasury shares	(3,757)	(3,773)
Reserves	(34,499)	(55,403)
Profit for the period	101,070	75,262
Total Equity	147,068	99,856
Non-current liabilities
Pension provisions	64,170	65,390
Other provisions	10,868	13,344
Financial liabilities	658,745	680,699
Other liabilities	11	6
Deferred tax liabilities	34,178	25,121
Total Non-current liabilities	767,972	784,560
Current liabilities
Other provisions	57,632	59,471
Trade payables	167,888	169,624
Other financial liabilities	9,192	7,013
Income tax liabilities	36,841	15,539
Other liabilities	23,862	32,742
Current liabilities	295,415	284,389
Equity and liabilities	$ 1,210,455	$ 1,168,805

Interim Condensed Consolidated Statements of Cash Flows - USD ($) $ in Thousands	3 Months Ended		9 Months Ended
	Sep. 30, 2018	Sep. 30, 2017	Sep. 30, 2018	Sep. 30, 2017
Statement of cash flows [abstract]
Profit for the period	$ 24,151	$ 15,140	$ 101,070	$ 50,383
Income taxes	12,169	8,436	45,891	27,422
Profit before income taxes	36,320	23,576	146,961	77,805
Depreciation and amortization of intangible assets and property, plant and equipment	22,804	23,924	71,833	70,201
Share based incentive compensation	3,552	3,110	9,505	6,319
Gain on sale of property, plant and equipment	0	0	(40,253)	0
Other non-cash expenses/(income)	322	515	25	727
(Increase)/decrease in trade receivables	(14,102)	3,651	(67,141)	(16,848)
(Increase)/decrease in inventories	(28,664)	6,542	(50,438)	(9,113)
(Decrease)/increase in trade payables	5,078	(22,083)	17,630	(10,647)
(Decrease)/increase in provisions	340	3,970	(2,839)	(17,590)
Increase/(decrease) in other assets and liabilities that cannot be allocated to investing or financing activities	11,295	(5,342)	2,457	(4,760)
Finance income	(13,273)	(12,263)	(25,733)	(33,131)
Finance costs	18,956	22,190	48,858	64,330
Cash paid for income taxes	(12,307)	(5,621)	(29,176)	(18,009)
Other cash paid	0	0	(4,741)	0
Cash flows from operating activities	30,321	42,169	76,948	109,284
Cash received from disposal of property, plant and equipment	0	0	64,672	0
Cash paid for the acquisition of intangible assets and property, plant and equipment	(22,383)	(19,858)	(82,253)	(56,316)
Cash flows from investing activities	(22,383)	(19,858)	(17,581)	(56,316)
Repayments of term loan liabilities	(2,067)	(2,084)	(6,255)	(26,786)
Cash inflows related to other financial liabilities	7,401	9,599	14,861	20,385
Cash outflows related to other financial liabilities	(14,072)	(4,901)	(26,370)	(11,532)
Interest and similar expenses paid	(10,114)	(7,604)	(33,711)	(25,342)
Interest and similar income received	5,509	4,340	14,241	8,768
Dividends paid to shareholders	(11,945)	(11,905)	(35,753)	(33,860)
Cash flows from financing activities	(25,288)	(12,555)	(72,987)	(68,367)
Change in cash	(17,350)	9,756	(13,620)	(15,399)
Change in cash resulting from exchange rate differences	(920)	677	(3,481)	3,327
Cash and cash equivalents at the beginning of the period	73,453	55,401	72,284	77,906
Cash and cash equivalents at the end of the period	$ 55,183	$ 65,834	$ 55,183	$ 65,834

Interim Condensed Consolidated Statements of Changes in Equity - USD ($) $ in Thousands	Total	Subscribed capital	Treasury shares	Capital reserves	Translation reserve	Cash flow hedge reserve	Reserve for hedges of a net investment in foreign operation	Reserve for actuarial gains (losses) on defined benefit plans	Retained Earnings
Number of common shares, Beginning of Period (in shares) at Dec. 31, 2016		59,320,214
Equity, Beginning of Period at Dec. 31, 2016	$ 55,743	$ 83,770	$ (3,773)	$ 139,399	$ 4,237	$ 793	$ (16,055)	$ (21,006)	$ (131,622)
Entity Information [Line Items]
Profit for the period	50,383								50,383
Other comprehensive income, net of tax	(3,200)				(13,662)	(488)	12,693	(1,743)
Total comprehensive income, net of tax all attributable to equity holders of the parent	47,183				(13,662)	(488)	12,693	(1,743)	50,383
Dividends paid	(33,860)			(33,860)
Share based payments	6,319			6,319
Number of common shares, End of Period (in shares) at Sep. 30, 2017		59,320,214
Equity, End of Period at Sep. 30, 2017	75,385	$ 83,770	(3,773)	111,858	(9,425)	305	(3,362)	(22,749)	(81,239)
Entity Information [Line Items]
Beginning of period, as adjusted	91,314	$ 83,770	(3,773)	102,529	(1,312)	(314)	(1,486)	(23,198)	(64,902)
Number of common shares, Beginning of Period (in shares) at Dec. 31, 2017		59,320,214
Equity, Beginning of Period at Dec. 31, 2017	99,856
Entity Information [Line Items]
Profit for the period	101,070								101,070
Other comprehensive income, net of tax	(14,327)				(14,341)	(361)	(118)	493
Total comprehensive income, net of tax all attributable to equity holders of the parent	86,743				(14,341)	(361)	(118)	493	101,070
Dividends paid	(35,753)			(35,753)
Share-based payments (in shares)		401,737
Share based payments	4,764	$ 484	16	4,264
Number of common shares, End of Period (in shares) at Sep. 30, 2018		59,721,951
Equity, End of Period at Sep. 30, 2018	$ 147,068	$ 84,254	$ (3,757)	$ 71,040	$ (15,653)	$ (675)	$ (1,604)	$ (22,705)	$ 36,168

Organization and principal activities	9 Months Ended
Organization and principal activities	Sep. 30, 2018
Corporate Information And Statement Of IFRS Compliance [Abstract]
Organization and principal activities	Organization and principal activities Orion Engineered Carbons S.A. (“Orion” or the "Company") is entered in the commercial register of Luxembourg under no. B 160558; the Company’s registered office is in Luxembourg; its business address is 6, Route de Trèves, L-2633 Senningerberg (Municipality of Niederanven), Grand Duchy of Luxembourg. Orion’s unaudited interim condensed consolidated financial statements comprise Orion and its subsidiaries (the “Orion Group” or the “Group”). Orion was incorporated on April 13, 2011. Orion’s fiscal year is the calendar year. Orion Group is a leading global manufacturer of carbon black products and is based in Luxembourg. Carbon black is a powdered form of carbon that is used to create the desired physical, electrical and optical qualities of various materials. Carbon black products are primarily used as consumables and additives for the production of polymers, printing inks and coatings (“Specialty Carbon Black” or “Specialties”) and in the reinforcement of rubber polymers (“Rubber Carbon Black” or “Rubber”). Specialty Carbon Black are high-tech materials which are mainly used for polymers, printing systems and coatings applications. The various production processes result in a wide range of different Specialty Carbon Black pigment grades with respect to their primary particle size, structure and surface area/surface chemistry. These parameters affect jetness, tinting strength, undertone, dispersibility, oil absorption, electrical conductivity and other characteristics. The types of Rubber Carbon Black used in the rubber industry are manufactured according to strict specifications and quality standards. Structure and specific surface area are the key factors in optimizing reinforcement properties in rubber polymers. As at September 30, 2018, the Orion Group operates 12 wholly owned production facilities in Europe, North and South America, Asia and South Africa and three sales companies. Another ten holding companies and two service companies, as well as two former operating entities in Portugal and France (currently in dissolution), are consolidated in the Orion Group. In June 2018, production ceased at the Bupyeong plant in South Korea and was consolidated into the second production plant in South Korea located in Yeosu. Additionally, the Group operates a joint venture with one production facility in Germany. Orion’s global presence enables it to supply Specialty Carbon Black customers as well as international customers in the tire and rubber industry with the full range of carbon black grades and particle sizes. Sales activities are supported by sales and representative offices all around the globe. Integrated sales activities with key account managers and customer services are carried out in the United States, Brazil, South Korea, Germany and China. The Group’s unaudited interim condensed consolidated financial statements were authorized for issue by management on November 1, 2018.

Basis of preparation of the interim condensed consolidated financial statements

9 Months Ended

Sep. 30, 2018

Corporate Information And Statement Of IFRS Compliance [Abstract]

Basis of preparation of the interim condensed consolidated financial statements

Basis of preparation

The unaudited interim condensed consolidated financial statements as at and for the nine months ended September 30, 2018 have been prepared in accordance with IAS 34 Interim Financial Reporting as issued by the International Accounting Standards Board (“IASB”). Due to the change in the Group's presentation currency from euros to US dollars effective as of January 1, 2018 these unaudited interim condensed consolidated financial statements are prepared in US dollars, the new presentation currency of the Group.

A change in presentation currency is a change in accounting policy which is accounted for retrospectively. Therefore, comparative information for periods prior to January 1, 2018 included in these unaudited interim condensed consolidated financial statements have been restated into US dollars. Historical financial information included in the Group’s Annual Report on Form 20-F, filed with the U.S. Security and Exchange Commission on February 23, 2018, for the year ended December 31, 2017 previously reported in euro was the basis for restatement of historical information into US dollars using the procedures outlined below:


–	assets and liabilities denominated in non-US dollar currencies were translated into US dollars at the closing rates of exchange on the relevant balance sheet dates;


–	non-US dollar income and expenditure were translated at the average rates of exchange prevailing for the relevant periods;


–	the cumulative equity and translation reserves were nil at April 13, 2011, the date of incorporation of Orion, and these reserves have been restated as if the Group has reported in US dollars since that date. Share capital, share premium and the other reserves were translated at the historic rates prevailing at April 13, 2011, and subsequent rates prevailing on the date of each transaction;


–	all restated amounts were extracted from the Group’s underlying financial records at applicable historical exchange rates.

All International Financial Reporting Standards ("IFRSs"), interpretations (IFRICs, SICs) originated by the IFRS Interpretations Committee applicable for the period ended September 30, 2018 have been applied.

The unaudited interim condensed consolidated financial statements do not include all the information and disclosures required in the annual financial statements, and should be read in conjunction with the Group’s annual financial statements for the year ended December 31, 2017.

The unaudited interim condensed consolidated financial statements are prepared in US dollars, the presentation currency of the Orion Group. Except where stated otherwise, all figures are presented in thousands of US dollars (USD k) for the sake of clarity. Due to rounding, numbers presented throughout the tables and notes herein may not add up precisely to the totals presented and percentages may not precisely reflect the absolute figures.

First-time adoption of accounting standards

The accounting policies adopted in the preparation of the interim condensed consolidated financial statements are – with the exception of IFRS 9 and IFRS 15 – consistent with those followed in the preparation of the Group’s annual financial statements for the year ended December 31, 2017. The following amendments to IFRS were adopted on January 1, 2018:


•	IFRS 9 Financial instruments

IFRS 9 issued on July 24, 2014 replaces IAS 39 Financial Instruments: Recognition and Measurement. IFRS 9 determines requirements for recognition and measurement, impairment, derecognition and general hedge accounting. The latest issued version supersedes all previous versions. IFRS 9 became effective as of January 1, 2018.

The adoption of IFRS 9 had an effect on the measurement of certain of the Group’s financial instruments while it had no material impact on the hedge accounting models used by the Group.

The impact from the new impairment approach outlined in section 5.4 of IFRS 9 and the required initial recognition of a loss allowance at an amount equal to lifetime expected credit losses for trade receivables did not result in a transition adjustment on retained earnings as of January 1, 2018, as other previously recorded specific allowances are now covered under the new IFRS 9 allowance approach for expected credit losses.

In July 2017 the IASB clarified the accounting treatment for modification of financial liabilities under IFRS 9. A modification gain or loss is required to be calculated as the difference between the original contractual cash flows and the modified cash flows discounted at the original effective interest rate. Such modification gain or loss is recognized in the income statement in the period of modification, and the modified cash flows are then amortized using the new effective interest rate.

The Company has entered into various modifications of its term loan liabilities in the fiscal years 2016 and 2017 while it recorded gains or losses of such modifications over the remaining terms of the respective modifications as permitted under IAS 39. Such modification amounts would have been recorded as immediate gain or loss at each modification date if the Company would have already applied IFRS 9.

IFRS 9 is generally required to be applied retrospectively; however the recognition of a modification gain or loss for historic modifications made to financial liabilities outstanding on the adoption date is recorded as an accumulative catch-up adjustment in retained earnings on the adoption date. The cumulative effect of the modification adjustments amounted to a loss of USD 8,542k net of taxes and is reflected in the retained earnings as of January 1, 2018.


•	IFRS 15 Revenue from contracts with customers

The IASB issued IFRS 15 on May 28, 2014. IFRS 15 intends to combine and harmonize the revenue recognition methods issued in several standards and interpretations. IFRS 15 also determines the time and extent of revenue recognition. IFRS 15 replaces IAS 18 Revenue, IAS 11 Construction Contracts, IFRIC 13 Customer Loyalty Programs, IFRIC 15 Agreements for Construction of Real Estate, IFRIC 18 Transfer of Assets from Customers and SIC 31 Revenue-Barter Transactions. The Company has completed a group wide review of all material contracts with customers. The changes had no impact on the Company's revenue recognition. Performance obligations are almost entirely the transfer of goods. In a limited number of cases the service to ship goods to the Company's customers may qualify as a separate performance obligation while the price of such ancillary services are deemed to be immaterial and the realization of such services usually occurs at same point of time as the transfer of the main performance obligation. As the changes have no impact on revenue recognition there was no cumulative catch up adjustment recorded in retained earnings under the modified retrospective approach of adoption that is now applied.

Accounting standards issued but not yet effective

The IASB has issued accounting standards which were not yet effective in the current fiscal year. Any new accounting standards which are relevant for the Group’s consolidated financial statements will be adopted when they become effective.

The following relevant pronouncements by the IASB and IFRSIC were not effective as at the reporting date on September 30, 2018 and were not applied by the Group:


•	IFRS 16 Leases

In January 2016, the IASB issued the new standard IFRS 16 “Leases”, which supersedes the existing lease accounting according to IAS 17. The existing concept of operating and finance leases will be replaced and most leases will be recognized in the statement of financial position. IFRS 16 will be effective as of January 1, 2019.

The Group has operating lease contracts as well as very limited finance leases and the new standard will have an impact on Group accounting policies, procedures as well as financial statements and our key performance indicators. The Group has started to analyze the impact of IFRS 16. Refer to note (9.5) Contingent liabilities and other financial obligations in the last annual financial statements for fiscal year 2017 for details of our current lease obligations on an undiscounted basis totaling to $33.3 million. While the Group has not finalized its assessment, according to the provisions of the Standard, the right–to-use leased assets that do not meet the exemption criteria will increase property, plant and equipment and will result in the recognition of a corresponding lease obligation based on the existing contracts at the transition date. The exemption criteria will be applicable in rare cases. In 2017 the Group recorded $9.7 million as operating lease expenses. The Group estimates that a comparable amount of expenses will in the future be recorded as amortization and to a certain amount as finance expenses.

Segment information

9 Months Ended

Sep. 30, 2018

Operating Segments [Abstract]

Segment information

Operating segments

The Group’s business is organized by product for corporate management purposes and has the following two operating segments: “Rubber” and “Specialties”.

The performance of the operating segments is assessed by reference to Adjusted EBITDA (as defined below), which is the segment's measure of profit or loss. Group financing (including finance costs and finance income), adjustment items and income taxes are managed on a Group basis and are not allocated to the operating segments.

Segment reconciliation for the three months ended September 30, 2018 and 2017:



	In USD k						In USD k
	For the Three Months Ended Sep 30,						For the Three Months Ended Sep 30,
	2018						2017
	Rubber		Specialties		Total segments		Rubber		Specialties		Total segments
Revenue	259,800		134,154		393,954		209,873		125,063		334,936
Cost of sales	(198,851	)	(85,947	)	(284,798	)	(166,901	)	(72,978	)	(239,879	)
Gross profit	60,949		48,207		109,156		42,972		52,085		95,057
Adjusted EBITDA	37,886		34,671		72,557		23,745		40,341		64,086
Adjusted EBITDA Margin	14.6	%	25.8	%	18.4	%	11.3	%	32.2	%	19.1	%
Depreciation amortization and impairment of intangible assets and property, plant and equipment	(13,482	)	(9,322	)	(22,804	)	(14,621	)	(9,303	)	(23,924	)
Share of profit of joint venture	(160	)	—		(160	)	(142	)	—		(142	)
Adjustment items					(7,750	)					(6,659	)
EBIT					41,843						33,361

Segment reconciliation for the nine months ended September 30, 2018 and 2017:



	In USD k						In USD k
	For the Nine Months Ended Sep 30,						For the Nine Months Ended Sep 30,
	2018						2017
	Rubber		Specialties		Total segments		Rubber		Specialties		Total segments
Revenue	773,743		418,496		1,192,239		625,128		363,486		988,614
Cost of sales	(599,649	)	(258,258	)	(857,907	)	(489,728	)	(215,412	)	(705,140	)
Gross profit	174,094		160,238		334,332		135,400		148,074		283,474
Adjusted EBITDA	109,465		120,232		229,697		78,090		112,953		191,043
Adjusted EBITDA Margin	14.1	%	28.7	%	19.3	%	12.5	%	31.0	%	19.3	%
Depreciation amortization and impairment of intangible assets and property, plant and equipment	(42,856	)	(28,977	)	(71,833	)	(43,392	)	(26,809	)	(70,201	)
Share of profit of joint venture	(453	)	—		(453	)	(404	)	—		(404	)
Adjustment items					12,222						(11,838	)
EBIT					169,633						108,600

Definition of “Adjusted EBITDA”

“EBIT” (operating result) is defined as profit or loss for the period before income taxes and finance income and finance costs. “EBITDA” is defined as EBIT before depreciation, amortization and impairment losses. For management reporting purposes and as defined in the credit agreement governing our term loans “Adjusted EBITDA” is defined as EBITDA adjusted for acquisition related expenses, restructuring expenses, consulting fees related to Group strategy, share of profit or loss of joint venture and certain other adjustments. The Company believes that each of these items has less bearing on the performance of its underlying core business. “Adjusted EBITDA” is the management’s measure of the segment result.

Adjusted EBITDA is reconciled to profit or loss as follows:



Reconciliation of profit or loss	In USD k				In USD k
	For the Three Months Ended Sep 30,				For the Nine Months Ended Sep 30,
	2018		2017		2018		2017
Profit for the period	24,151		15,140		101,070		50,383
Add back income taxes	12,169		8,436		45,891		27,422
Profit before income taxes	36,320		23,576		146,961		77,805
Add back finance costs	18,956		22,190		48,858		64,330
Add back share of profit of joint ventures	(160	)	(142	)	(453	)	(404	)
Add back other finance income	(13,273	)	(12,263	)	(25,733	)	(33,131	)
Earnings before taxes and finance income/costs (operating result (EBIT))	41,843		33,361		169,633		108,600
Add back depreciation, amortization and impairment of intangible assets and property, plant and equipment	22,804		23,924		71,833		70,201
EBITDA	64,647		57,285		241,466		178,801
Add back share of profit of joint venture	160		142		453		404
Add back restructuring (income)/expenses, net ⁽¹⁾	905		952		(27,580	)	1,674
Add back consulting fees related to Group strategy ⁽²⁾	2,016		1,100		3,051		2,149
Add back long term incentive plan	3,552		3,110		9,505		6,319
Add back other adjustments ⁽³⁾	1,277		1,497		2,802		1,696
Adjusted EBITDA	72,557		64,086		229,697		191,043

(1) Restructuring income or expenses are related to further actions undertaken to realign our worldwide Rubber footprint and reflects in particular the proceeds of the land sale in South Korea exceeding the associated cessation costs in the nine months ended September 30, 2018.

(2) Consulting fees related to external consulting for establishing and executing Group strategies relating to Rubber footprint realignment, conversion to US dollar and US GAAP, as well as costs relating to our assessment of feasibility for inclusion in certain US indices.

(3) Other adjustments in the three months ended September 30, 2018 related in particular to EPA related costs of USD 0.6 million. Other adjustments in the nine months ended September 30, 2018 related in particular to license fees required for certain innovative technologies to meet the EPA requirements of USD 1.1 million and other EPA related costs of USD 1.1 million. Other adjustments in the three months ended September 30, 2017 include costs related to hurricane Harvey flooding in our Kingwood, Texas office and Orange, Texas plant of USD 0.9 million and costs in association with our EPA enforcement action of USD 0.5 million. Other adjustments in the nine months ended September 30, 2017 include costs of USD 1.8 million in connection with our EPA enforcement action and hurricane Harvey flooding in our Kingwood, Texas office and Orange, Texas plant of USD 0.9 million, partially offset by a reimbursement following a successful objection against reassessed real estate transfer taxes in Germany of USD 1.5 million.

Geographic information by legal entity



Revenues	In USD k		In USD k
	For the Three Months Ended Sep 30,		For the Nine Months Ended Sep 30,
	2018	2017	2018	2017
Germany	155,138	133,077	480,112	394,952
United States	104,027	83,042	300,932	249,449
South Korea	62,871	62,135	208,929	180,337
Brazil	25,191	20,249	68,456	59,345
China	19,939	16,370	58,425	42,203
South Africa	15,106	12,163	43,731	36,095
Other	8,568	5,255	19,124	17,751
Rest of Europe*	3,114	2,645	12,530	8,482
Total	393,954	334,936	1,192,239	988,614


*	Country of domicile of the Group (Luxembourg) USD nil



Goodwill, intangible assets, property, plant and equipment	In USD k	In USD k
	As at Sep 30,	As at Dec 31,
	2018	2017
Germany	128,034	145,837
Sweden	83,732	80,974
Italy	71,997	72,980
Poland	48,347	49,933
Rest of Europe	4,282	4,443
Subtotal Europe	336,392	354,167

United States	72,281	70,530
South Korea	85,592	109,905
South Africa	29,319	32,007
Brazil	8,982	13,661
China	10,581	10,733
Other	22	28
Total	543,169	591,031

Other operating income, other operating expenses, restructuring income and expenses, financial result

9 Months Ended

Sep. 30, 2018

Analysis of income and expense [abstract]

Other operating income, other operating expenses, restructuring income and expenses, financial result

Other operating income decreased by USD 2,220k from USD 2,943k for the nine months ended September 30, 2017 to USD 723k for the nine months ended September 30, 2018. Other operating income for the nine months ended September 30, 2017 mainly comprised of USD 1,432k reimbursement of property tax paid.

Other operating expenses decreased by USD 1,699k from USD 8,588k for the nine months ended September 30, 2017 to USD 6,889k for the nine months ended September 30, 2018. Other operating expenses for the nine months ended September 30, 2018 mainly include consulting fees of USD 3,051k and other items that have less bearing on the performance of the underlying core business of USD 2,802k compared to USD 2,149k and USD 1,696k, respectively, in the nine months ended September 30, 2017 – for further details please see Note 3 (Segment information). Other operating expenses for the nine months ended September 30, 2018 included allowances on trade receivables of USD 200k, compared to USD 629k in the nine months ended September 30, 2017.

The restructuring of the South Korean footprint concluded in the second quarter of 2018 resulting in cessation of production at the Bupyeong plant and the sale of the land to a third party. Restructuring income reflects the proceeds of the land sale less the remaining book value of the land. Restructuring expenses comprise required costs for land restoration of USD 4,021k and cost to consolidate the two South Korean production sites into one remaining site, including in particular personnel related termination costs of USD 4,363k incurred in the first six months of 2018 and certain additional expenses incurred after the closing of USD 905k in the three months ended September 30, 2018. For the nine months ended September 30, 2018 net restructuring income amounted to USD 27,580k as compared to expenses of USD 1,674k for the nine months ended September 30, 2017 related in particular to costs to consolidate the production sites.

Financial result includes finance income, finance costs and share of profit or loss of joint ventures. Financial result decreased by USD 8,123k from USD 30,795k net finance expenses for the nine months ended September 30, 2017 to USD 22,672k net finance expenses for the nine months ended September 30, 2018. Total net foreign currency revaluation losses recorded in the finance result amounted to USD 1,850k for the nine months ended September 30, 2018 compared to a loss of USD 3,871k for the nine months ended September 30, 2017. Interest related to the term loans amounted to USD 16,730k for the nine months ended September 30, 2018 compared to USD 17,918k for the nine months ended September 30, 2017.

The table below presents a breakdown of financial result for the nine months ended September 30, 2018 and 2017:



Financial Result	In USD k
	For the Nine Months Ended Sep 30,
	2018		2017
Interest expense on term loans	(16,730	)	(17,918	)
Amortization of transaction costs	(2,310	)	(2,506	)
Commitment bank charge	(1,264	)	(630	)
Interest income	2,857		1,018
Interest on non-current provisions	(1,545	)	(1,419	)
Other interest expense, net	(2,268	)	(5,436	)
Total net interest expenses	(21,260	)	(26,891	)
Gains from foreign currency revaluation	22,876		32,113
Losses from foreign currency revaluation	(24,726	)	(35,984	)
Net foreign currency revaluation impact	(1,850	)	(3,871	)
Bank guarantee expense	(15	)	(437	)
Share of profit of joint ventures	453		404
Financial Result	(22,672	)	(30,795	)

Share-based payments

9 Months Ended

Sep. 30, 2018

Share-Based Payment Arrangements [Abstract]

Share-based payments

On July 31, 2015 the Company established the Long Term Incentive Plan ("LTIP") providing for the grant of performance share units (“PSUs”) to employees and officers selected by the Compensation Committee of the Board of Directors (the “Compensation Committee”). PSU awards are earned based on achievement against one or more performance metrics established by the Compensation Committee in respect of a specified performance period. Earned PSUs range from zero to a specified maximum percentage of a participant's target award based on the performance of applicable performance metrics, and are also subject to vesting terms based on continued employment. The first performance period was settled at the beginning of the second quarter of 2018, with PSUs earned based on achievement of EBITDA metrics established by the Compensation Committee and total shareholder return relative to a peer group. The first vesting period ended March 31, 2018 (the “2015 Plan”) and earned and vested PSUs settled in one common share of the Company per vested PSU – issued to participants on April 30, 2018, except for certain PSUs settled in cash at fair market value to cover wage taxes or as substitute for share transfer restrictions. On August 2, 2016 the Compensation Committee established a consecutive LTIP (the "2016 Plan") having consistent terms with those of the 2015 Plan. On July 31, 2017 the Compensation Committee established a consecutive LTIP (the "2017 Plan"). On July 12, 2018 the Compensation Committee established a consecutive LTIP (the "2018 Plan"). All PSUs are granted under, and are subject to the terms and conditions of, the Company’s 2014 Incentive Compensation Plan, and do not increase the number of shares previously reserved for issuance under that plan. The following table details the costs charged to the income statement with respect to the 2015 Plan, 2016 Plan, 2017 Plan and 2018 Plan and equity incentive awards we issued to members of the Board of Directors of the Company, which unlike the LTIPs previously described, vested immediately.



	USD k
	For the Nine Months Ended Sep 30,
	2018	2017
Expense arising from equity-settled share based payment transactions (2015 Plan)	777	2,324
Expense arising from equity-settled share based payment transactions (2016 Plan)	3,326	3,102
Expense arising from equity-settled share based payment transactions (2017 Plan)	3,524	893
Expenses arising form equity-settled share based 2018 incentive	563	—
Expense arising from equity-settled share based payment transactions (2018 Plan)	1,315	—
Total expenses	9,505	6,319

The following table illustrates the number of, and movements in, performance share units ("PSUs") during the period.



	2015 Plan				2016 Plan				2017 Plan			2018 Plan		Total
	Number of PSUs				Number of PSUs				Number of PSUs			Number of PSUs		Number of PSUs
	2018		2017		2018		2017		2018		2017	2018	2017	2018		2017
Outstanding at January 1,	452,816		454,959		686,038		690,279		472,040		—	—	—	1,610,894		1,145,238
Granted during the period	—		—		113		—		830		473,646	449,783	—	450,726		473,646
Forfeited during the period	(5,694	)	(1,515	)	(8,544	)	(4,241	)	(5,521	)	—	—	—	(19,759	)	(5,756	)
Vested during the period	(447,122	)	—		—		—		—		—	—	—	(447,122	)	—
Outstanding at September 30,	—		453,444		677,607		686,038		467,349		473,646	449,783	—	1,594,739		1,613,128

The Company created and registered 400,453 new shares on April 30, 2018 of which 380,436 shares were used to settle the 2015 Plan. The remaining new shares plus 1,284 treasury shares were granted to our Board of Directors as a 2018 incentive. The fair value of the PSUs settled on April 30, 2018 amounted to USD 26.80 per PSU. The remaining portion of PSUs vested on March 31, 2018 was settled in cash at fair market value to cover employee wage tax obligations, or in very limited cases, as a substitute where share settlement was impeded. All obligations of the Company arising from the 2015 Plan were fulfilled through settlement during the reporting period and settlement is reflected in the consolidated statement of changes in equity of the Company.

The following table lists the inputs to the model used for the grant date fair values of the 2015 Plan, 2016 Plan, 2017 Plan and 2018 Plan.



	2015 Plan	2016 Plan	2017 Plan	2018 Plan
Dividend Yield (%)	2.14%	2.23%	1.88%	1.94%
Expected Volatility OEC (%)	25.16%	32.07%	33.77%	30.22%
Expected Volatility Peer Group (%)	13.90%	18.12%	17.30%	20.09%
Correlation	0.5234	0.4952	0.4574	0.3659
Risk-free interest rate (%)	0.90%	0.76%	1.45%	1.46%
Model used	Monte Carlo	Monte Carlo	Monte Carlo	Monte Carlo
Weighted average fair value of PSUs granted in USD	17.41	17.21	24.89	39.24

Inventories

9 Months Ended

Sep. 30, 2018

Property, plant and equipment [abstract]

Inventories

The impairment allowance as of September 30, 2018 and September 30, 2017, amounted to USD 5,012k and USD 5,027k, respectively, and developed as follows:



	In USD k
	2018		2017
As at January 1,	1,717		4,436
Currency translation	(60	)	535
Addition	3,788		3,308
Utilization	(252	)	(2,494	)
Release	(181	)	(758	)
As at September 30,	5,012		5,027

Financial assets and liabilities

9 Months Ended

Sep. 30, 2018

Financial Instruments [Abstract]

Financial assets and liabilities

The table below presents fair values and the allocation of the fair value measurements to the hierarchy levels as at September 30, 2018 and December 31, 2017.



	In USD k as at
	Sep 30, 2018			Dec 31, 2017
	Level 1	Level 2	Level 3	Level 1	Level 2	Level 3
Financial assets measured at fair value
Receivables from derivatives	—	6,826	—	—	3,554	—
Financial liabilities measured at fair value
Liabilities from derivatives	—	3,967	—	—	5,193	—
Liabilities for which fair values are disclosed
Term loan	—	664,439	—	—	684,234	—
Local bank loans	—	—	—	—	12,512	—

The receivables from derivatives of USD 6,826k and USD 3,554k as at September 30, 2018 and December 31, 2017, respectively, are presented in other non-current financial assets with an amount of USD 499k and USD 2,647k as at September 30, 2018 and December 31, 2017, respectively, and in other current financial assets with an amount of USD 6,327k and USD 907k as at September 30, 2018 and December 31, 2017, respectively. In 2014 and 2017 the Company acquired interest rate caps (both Euro and USD denominated) to hedge interest rate risks on current term loan financing. Since 2017, the Company has been entering into commodity derivative agreements to hedge the impact of raw material price fluctuations on cost of sales for specific sales.

The liabilities from derivatives of USD 3,967k and USD 5,193k as at September 30, 2018 and December 31, 2017, respectively, are presented in other financial liabilities. Those derivatives are solely used to hedge the on balance sheet payables and receivables and interest rate payments on the term loan as part of our hedging strategy.

On May 8, 2018 Orion signed an amendment to the credit agreement to reprice its EUR- and USD-denominated outstanding term loans. The repricing on the US dollar tranche reflects a 50 basis point reduction on margin from 2.50% to 2.00%, whereas on the euro tranche there is a 25 basis point reduction on margin from 2.50% to 2.25%. This repricing will reduce Orion's annual interest payments by approximately USD 2.4 million. Other provisions of the credit agreement remained unchanged. In conjunction with the amendment of the credit agreement, Orion effectively converted on May 11, 2018 USD 235,000k of its USD-denominated term loan into EUR by way of a cross currency swap as part of a new hedging approach. This swap transaction impacts both principal and interest payments associated with debt service and will result in a further annual interest payments savings of approximately USD 4.7 million over and above the interest savings achieved by the amendment itself. The swap became effective on May 15, 2018 and will expire on July 25, 2024, in line with maturity of the term loan. As a result of the new cross currency swap, Orion terminated the current USD denominated interest rate caps on May 14, 2018, and received the proceeds of the termination of USD 4.0 million on May 16, 2018.

A portion of the USD-denominated term loan was designated as a hedge of the net investment in a foreign operation to reduce the Company's foreign currency exposure. Since January 1, 2015 the Company had designated USD 180 million of the total USD denominated term loan held by a Germany-based subsidiary as the hedging instrument to hedge the change in net assets of a US subsidiary, which is held by a Germany-based subsidiary, to manage foreign currency risk. Due to the new hedging approach and the new cross currency swap described above, hedge accounting for the net investment hedge was discontinued on May 15, 2018. An unrealized loss of USD 2.2 million remains within other comprehensive income until it is recycled through profit and loss upon divestment of the hedged item.

In light of the above measures, the refinancing activities qualified as an extinguishment and an amount of USD 1.7 million of capitalized transaction costs was released through finance expenses in the three months ended June 30, 2018 while new transaction costs of USD 0.7 million were capitalized and will be amortized over time in line with maturity of the term loan.

The USD-denominated term loan decreased during the first nine months ended September 30, 2018 from USD 288,426k at December 31, 2017 to USD 285,810k due to a regular repayment of 0.75% of the initial principal amount. The USD-equivalent of the euro term loan decreased during the first nine months of 2018 from USD 395,808k at December 31, 2017 to USD 378,629k due to a regular repayment of 0.5% of the initial principal amount, and foreign exchange revaluation effects.

On May 11, 2018 the local South Korean entity fully repaid a local term loan facility with KEB Hana Bank in the amount of KRW 13.3 billion (equivalent to USD 12.3 million), using proceeds of South Korean land sale.

Deferred and current taxes	9 Months Ended
Deferred and current taxes	Sep. 30, 2018
Income Taxes [Abstract]
Deferred and current taxes	Deferred and current taxes The development of deferred tax assets and liabilities relates to changes in temporary differences and tax loss carry forwards. Income tax receivables decreased from USD 16,377k at December 31, 2017 to USD 14,122k at September 30, 2018 due to tax refunds received from tax authorities. Income tax liabilities increased from USD 15,539k at December 31, 2017 to USD 36,841k at September 30, 2018 due to the expense calculated for the period. Income taxes in the nine months ended September 30, 2018 amounted to USD 45,891k, compared to USD 27,422k in the nine months ended September 30, 2017, reflecting profit in these periods. The effective tax rate of 31.2% for the nine months ended September 30, 2018 deviated from the expected group rate of 32.0% primarily due to changes in recognition of valuation allowances on tax losses and deductible temporary differences in Brazil, South Africa and Luxembourg, impacting the rate by 3.44%. Offsetting these unfavorable impacts by 0.4% were benefits from tax exempt income due to ACE deduction in Italy. The remaining difference primarily relates to foreign tax rate differentials decreasing the tax rate by 3.59%. The effective tax rate of 35.2% for the nine months ended September 30, 2017 deviated from the expected group rate of 32.0% primarily due to non-creditable withholding taxes on tax exempt dividends received from the South Korean subsidiary. The tax effect for the nine months ended September 30, 2017 was 1.8% and the impact of this first quarter event had a reduced effect on the annual effective tax rate over the remainder of the year. Other non-deductible business expenses and non-deductible interest expenses due to local trade tax adjustments for the Group's German entities also impacted the rate by 6.1%. Offsetting these unfavorable impacts by 1.4% were benefits from tax exempt income due to domestic production activities in the United States and ACE deduction in Italy. Changes in recognition of losses and deductible temporary differences in Luxembourg, Germany, Brazil, South Africa, and Sweden resulted in a further 2.6% decrease. The remaining difference primarily relates to foreign tax rate differentials.

Contingent liabilities and other financial obligations

9 Months Ended

Sep. 30, 2018

Disclosure of contingent liabilities [abstract]

Contingent liabilities and other financial obligations

To safeguard the supply of raw materials, contractual purchase commitments under long-term supply agreements for raw materials, especially oil and gas, are in place with the following maturities:



	In USD k
	As at Sep 30,	As at Dec 31,
Maturity	2018	2017
Less than one year	189,770	109,207
1 to 5 years	310,900	236,639

Total	500,670	345,846

EPA Consent Decree

During 2008 and 2009, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (“EPA”) contacted all U.S. carbon black producers as part of an industry-wide EPA initiative, requesting extensive and comprehensive information under Section 114 of the U.S. Clean Air Act. EPA used that information to determine, for each facility, that either: (i) the facility has been in compliance with the Clean Air Act; (ii) violations have occurred and enforcement litigation may be undertaken; or (iii) violations have occurred and a settlement of an enforcement case is appropriate. In response to information requests received by the Company’s U.S. facilities, the Company furnished information to the EPA on each of its U.S. facilities. EPA subsequently sent notices under Section 113(a) of the Clean Air Act in 2010 alleging violations of Prevention of Significant Deterioration (“PSD”) and Title V permitting requirements under the Clean Air Act at the Company’s Belpre (Ohio) facility. In October 2012, the Company received a corresponding notice and finding of violation (an “NOV”) alleging the failure to obtain PSD and Title V permits reflecting Best Available Control Technology (“BACT”) at several units of the Company’s Ivanhoe (Louisiana) facility, and in January 2013 the Company also received an NOV issued by the EPA for its facility in Borger (Texas) alleging the failure to obtain PSD and Title V permits reflecting BACT during the years 1996 to 2008. A comparable NOV the Company’s U.S. facility in Orange (Texas) was issued by the EPA in February 2013; and EPA issued an additional NOV in March 2016 alleging more recent non-PSD air emissions violations primarily at the dryers and the incinerator of the Orange facility.

In 2013, Orion began discussions with the EPA and the U.S. Department of Justice (“DOJ”) about a potential settlement to resolve the NOVs received, which ultimately led to a consent decree executed between Orion Engineered Carbons LLC (for purpose of this Note 9, “Orion”) and the United States (on behalf of EPA), as well as the Louisiana Department of Environmental Quality. The consent decree (the “EPA CD”) was lodged in the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Louisiana and became effective on June 7, 2018. The consent decree resolves and settles the EPA’s claims of noncompliance set forth in the NOVs and in a respective complaint filed in court against Orion by the United States immediately prior to the lodging of the consent decree.

All five U.S. carbon black producers have settled with the U.S. government. Orion was one of the two last carbon black companies to sign a consent decree.

Under Orion’s EPA CD, Orion will install certain pollution control technology in order to further reduce SO2, NOx and particulate matter (PM) emissions at its four U.S. manufacturing facilities in Ivanhoe (Louisiana), Belpre (Ohio), Borger (Texas), and Orange (Texas). Orion estimates that the capital expenditures for these installations, to be incurred over approximately six years, at US dollar amounts of 110 to140 million. We caution, however, that the actual capital expenditures we might need to incur in order to fulfill the requirements of the EPA CD remain uncertain. The EPA CD allows some flexibility for Orion to choose among different technology solutions for reducing emissions and the locations where these solutions are implemented. The solutions Orion ultimately chooses to implement may differ in scope and operation from those it currently anticipates (including those discussed in the next paragraph) and factors, such as timing, locations, target levels, changing cost estimates and local regulations, could cause capital expenditures to exceed current estimates by a significant amount or affect Orion’s ability to meet the agreed target emission levels as anticipated or at all. Orion also agreed to and paid a civil penalty of USD 800,000 and agreed to perform environmental mitigation projects totaling USD 550,000. The EPA CD also requires the continuous monitoring of emissions reductions that Orion will need to comply with over a number of years. Noncompliance with applicable emissions limits could lead to further penalty payments to EPA.

As part of Orion’s compliance plan under the EPA CD, in April 2018 Orion signed a contract with Haldor Topsoe group to install its SNOX^TM emissions control technology to remove SO₂, NOx and dust particles from tail gases at Orion’s Ivanhoe, Louisiana Carbon Black production plant. The SNOX^TM technology has not been used previously in the carbon black industry.

Orion’s Share Purchase Agreement with Evonik in connection with the Acquisition provides for a partial indemnity from Evonik against various exposures, including, but not limited to, capital investments, fines and costs arising in connection with Clean Air Act violations that occurred prior to July 29, 2011. Except for certain less relevant allegations contained in the second NOV received for the Company’s facility in Orange (Texas) in March 2016, all of the other allegations made by the EPA with regard to all four of the Company’s U.S. facilities – as discussed above – relate to alleged violations before July 29, 2011. The indemnity provides for a recovery from Evonik of a share of the costs (including fines), expenses (including reasonable attorney’s fees, but excluding costs for maintenance and control in the ordinary course of business and any internal cost of monitoring the remedy), liabilities, damages and losses suffered and is subject to various contractual provisions including provisions set forth in the Share Purchase Agreement with Evonik, such as a de minimis clause, a basket, overall caps (which apply to all covered exposures and all covered environmental exposures, in the aggregate), damage mitigation and cooperation requirements, as well as a statute of limitations provision. Due to the cost-sharing and cap provisions in Evonik’s indemnity, the Company expects that substantial costs it has already incurred and will incur in this EPA enforcement initiative and the EPA CD could exceed the scope of the indemnity, perhaps in the tens of millions of US dollars. In addition, Evonik has signaled that it may likely defend itself against claims under the indemnity. While the Company intends to enforce its rights vigorously, there is no assurance that the Company will be able to recover costs or expenditures incurred under the indemnity as it expects or at all.

Related parties	9 Months Ended
Related parties	Sep. 30, 2018
Related Party [Abstract]
Related parties	Related parties In addition to the subsidiaries included in the consolidated financial statements, there is one joint venture of Orion that is accounted for using the equity method which classifies as a related party. Furthermore, related parties include key management personnel having authority and responsibility for planning, directing and monitoring the activities of the Group directly or indirectly and their close family members. We have not entered into material related party transactions other than in the normal course of business. Refer to note (5)Share-based payments for details of LTIP.

Events after the balance sheet date	9 Months Ended
Events after the balance sheet date	Sep. 30, 2018
Disclosure of events after reporting period [Abstract]
Events after the balance sheet date	Events after the balance sheet date On October 31st, 2018 Orion closed the acquisition of SN2A, the acetylene black production unit of LyondellBasell. This investment in acetylene black technology adds to Orion’s industry leading range of carbon black production technologies and is primarily targeted at conductive black applications for lithium ion batteries. Acetylene Black is an ultra-pure premium specialty carbon black distinguished by its high electrical conductivity and extreme purity. The Company‘s share buyback program put in place on March 1, 2018 has been active during October 2018, allowing the Company to repurchase its shares on an opportunistic basis, at what management believes were attractive prices. The Company will report the amount and average price per share of shares repurchased in the fourth quarter of 2018 in its full year 2018 earnings update. In addition, the Board of Directors has approved to double this buyback program to $40 million to take advantage of any additional buyback opportunities in the future. The timing and amount of any repurchases will depend on market conditions, share price, applicable legal requirements and other factors.

Basis of preparation of the interim condensed consolidated financial statements (Policies)

9 Months Ended

Sep. 30, 2018

Corporate Information And Statement Of IFRS Compliance [Abstract]

First-time adoption of accounting standards

The accounting policies adopted in the preparation of the interim condensed consolidated financial statements are – with the exception of IFRS 9 and IFRS 15 – consistent with those followed in the preparation of the Group’s annual financial statements for the year ended December 31, 2017. The following amendments to IFRS were adopted on January 1, 2018:


•	IFRS 9 Financial instruments

IFRS 9 issued on July 24, 2014 replaces IAS 39 Financial Instruments: Recognition and Measurement. IFRS 9 determines requirements for recognition and measurement, impairment, derecognition and general hedge accounting. The latest issued version supersedes all previous versions. IFRS 9 became effective as of January 1, 2018.

The adoption of IFRS 9 had an effect on the measurement of certain of the Group’s financial instruments while it had no material impact on the hedge accounting models used by the Group.

The impact from the new impairment approach outlined in section 5.4 of IFRS 9 and the required initial recognition of a loss allowance at an amount equal to lifetime expected credit losses for trade receivables did not result in a transition adjustment on retained earnings as of January 1, 2018, as other previously recorded specific allowances are now covered under the new IFRS 9 allowance approach for expected credit losses.

In July 2017 the IASB clarified the accounting treatment for modification of financial liabilities under IFRS 9. A modification gain or loss is required to be calculated as the difference between the original contractual cash flows and the modified cash flows discounted at the original effective interest rate. Such modification gain or loss is recognized in the income statement in the period of modification, and the modified cash flows are then amortized using the new effective interest rate.

The Company has entered into various modifications of its term loan liabilities in the fiscal years 2016 and 2017 while it recorded gains or losses of such modifications over the remaining terms of the respective modifications as permitted under IAS 39. Such modification amounts would have been recorded as immediate gain or loss at each modification date if the Company would have already applied IFRS 9.

IFRS 9 is generally required to be applied retrospectively; however the recognition of a modification gain or loss for historic modifications made to financial liabilities outstanding on the adoption date is recorded as an accumulative catch-up adjustment in retained earnings on the adoption date. The cumulative effect of the modification adjustments amounted to a loss of USD 8,542k net of taxes and is reflected in the retained earnings as of January 1, 2018.


•	IFRS 15 Revenue from contracts with customers

The IASB issued IFRS 15 on May 28, 2014. IFRS 15 intends to combine and harmonize the revenue recognition methods issued in several standards and interpretations. IFRS 15 also determines the time and extent of revenue recognition. IFRS 15 replaces IAS 18 Revenue, IAS 11 Construction Contracts, IFRIC 13 Customer Loyalty Programs, IFRIC 15 Agreements for Construction of Real Estate, IFRIC 18 Transfer of Assets from Customers and SIC 31 Revenue-Barter Transactions. The Company has completed a group wide review of all material contracts with customers. The changes had no impact on the Company's revenue recognition. Performance obligations are almost entirely the transfer of goods. In a limited number of cases the service to ship goods to the Company's customers may qualify as a separate performance obligation while the price of such ancillary services are deemed to be immaterial and the realization of such services usually occurs at same point of time as the transfer of the main performance obligation. As the changes have no impact on revenue recognition there was no cumulative catch up adjustment recorded in retained earnings under the modified retrospective approach of adoption that is now applied.

Accounting standards issued but not yet effective

The IASB has issued accounting standards which were not yet effective in the current fiscal year. Any new accounting standards which are relevant for the Group’s consolidated financial statements will be adopted when they become effective.

The following relevant pronouncements by the IASB and IFRSIC were not effective as at the reporting date on September 30, 2018 and were not applied by the Group:


•	IFRS 16 Leases

In January 2016, the IASB issued the new standard IFRS 16 “Leases”, which supersedes the existing lease accounting according to IAS 17. The existing concept of operating and finance leases will be replaced and most leases will be recognized in the statement of financial position. IFRS 16 will be effective as of January 1, 2019.

The Group has operating lease contracts as well as very limited finance leases and the new standard will have an impact on Group accounting policies, procedures as well as financial statements and our key performance indicators. The Group has started to analyze the impact of IFRS 16. Refer to note (9.5) Contingent liabilities and other financial obligations in the last annual financial statements for fiscal year 2017 for details of our current lease obligations on an undiscounted basis totaling to $33.3 million. While the Group has not finalized its assessment, according to the provisions of the Standard, the right–to-use leased assets that do not meet the exemption criteria will increase property, plant and equipment and will result in the recognition of a corresponding lease obligation based on the existing contracts at the transition date. The exemption criteria will be applicable in rare cases. In 2017 the Group recorded $9.7 million as operating lease expenses. The Group estimates that a comparable amount of expenses will in the future be recorded as amortization and to a certain amount as finance expenses.

Accounting standards issued but not yet effective

First-time adoption of accounting standards

The accounting policies adopted in the preparation of the interim condensed consolidated financial statements are – with the exception of IFRS 9 and IFRS 15 – consistent with those followed in the preparation of the Group’s annual financial statements for the year ended December 31, 2017. The following amendments to IFRS were adopted on January 1, 2018:


•	IFRS 9 Financial instruments

IFRS 9 issued on July 24, 2014 replaces IAS 39 Financial Instruments: Recognition and Measurement. IFRS 9 determines requirements for recognition and measurement, impairment, derecognition and general hedge accounting. The latest issued version supersedes all previous versions. IFRS 9 became effective as of January 1, 2018.

The adoption of IFRS 9 had an effect on the measurement of certain of the Group’s financial instruments while it had no material impact on the hedge accounting models used by the Group.

The impact from the new impairment approach outlined in section 5.4 of IFRS 9 and the required initial recognition of a loss allowance at an amount equal to lifetime expected credit losses for trade receivables did not result in a transition adjustment on retained earnings as of January 1, 2018, as other previously recorded specific allowances are now covered under the new IFRS 9 allowance approach for expected credit losses.

In July 2017 the IASB clarified the accounting treatment for modification of financial liabilities under IFRS 9. A modification gain or loss is required to be calculated as the difference between the original contractual cash flows and the modified cash flows discounted at the original effective interest rate. Such modification gain or loss is recognized in the income statement in the period of modification, and the modified cash flows are then amortized using the new effective interest rate.

The Company has entered into various modifications of its term loan liabilities in the fiscal years 2016 and 2017 while it recorded gains or losses of such modifications over the remaining terms of the respective modifications as permitted under IAS 39. Such modification amounts would have been recorded as immediate gain or loss at each modification date if the Company would have already applied IFRS 9.

IFRS 9 is generally required to be applied retrospectively; however the recognition of a modification gain or loss for historic modifications made to financial liabilities outstanding on the adoption date is recorded as an accumulative catch-up adjustment in retained earnings on the adoption date. The cumulative effect of the modification adjustments amounted to a loss of USD 8,542k net of taxes and is reflected in the retained earnings as of January 1, 2018.


•	IFRS 15 Revenue from contracts with customers

The IASB issued IFRS 15 on May 28, 2014. IFRS 15 intends to combine and harmonize the revenue recognition methods issued in several standards and interpretations. IFRS 15 also determines the time and extent of revenue recognition. IFRS 15 replaces IAS 18 Revenue, IAS 11 Construction Contracts, IFRIC 13 Customer Loyalty Programs, IFRIC 15 Agreements for Construction of Real Estate, IFRIC 18 Transfer of Assets from Customers and SIC 31 Revenue-Barter Transactions. The Company has completed a group wide review of all material contracts with customers. The changes had no impact on the Company's revenue recognition. Performance obligations are almost entirely the transfer of goods. In a limited number of cases the service to ship goods to the Company's customers may qualify as a separate performance obligation while the price of such ancillary services are deemed to be immaterial and the realization of such services usually occurs at same point of time as the transfer of the main performance obligation. As the changes have no impact on revenue recognition there was no cumulative catch up adjustment recorded in retained earnings under the modified retrospective approach of adoption that is now applied.

Accounting standards issued but not yet effective

The IASB has issued accounting standards which were not yet effective in the current fiscal year. Any new accounting standards which are relevant for the Group’s consolidated financial statements will be adopted when they become effective.

The following relevant pronouncements by the IASB and IFRSIC were not effective as at the reporting date on September 30, 2018 and were not applied by the Group:


•	IFRS 16 Leases

In January 2016, the IASB issued the new standard IFRS 16 “Leases”, which supersedes the existing lease accounting according to IAS 17. The existing concept of operating and finance leases will be replaced and most leases will be recognized in the statement of financial position. IFRS 16 will be effective as of January 1, 2019.

The Group has operating lease contracts as well as very limited finance leases and the new standard will have an impact on Group accounting policies, procedures as well as financial statements and our key performance indicators. The Group has started to analyze the impact of IFRS 16. Refer to note (9.5) Contingent liabilities and other financial obligations in the last annual financial statements for fiscal year 2017 for details of our current lease obligations on an undiscounted basis totaling to $33.3 million. While the Group has not finalized its assessment, according to the provisions of the Standard, the right–to-use leased assets that do not meet the exemption criteria will increase property, plant and equipment and will result in the recognition of a corresponding lease obligation based on the existing contracts at the transition date. The exemption criteria will be applicable in rare cases. In 2017 the Group recorded $9.7 million as operating lease expenses. The Group estimates that a comparable amount of expenses will in the future be recorded as amortization and to a certain amount as finance expenses.

Segment information (Tables)

9 Months Ended

Sep. 30, 2018

Operating Segments [Abstract]

Disclosure of segment reconciliation

Segment reconciliation for the three months ended September 30, 2018 and 2017:



	In USD k						In USD k
	For the Three Months Ended Sep 30,						For the Three Months Ended Sep 30,
	2018						2017
	Rubber		Specialties		Total segments		Rubber		Specialties		Total segments
Revenue	259,800		134,154		393,954		209,873		125,063		334,936
Cost of sales	(198,851	)	(85,947	)	(284,798	)	(166,901	)	(72,978	)	(239,879	)
Gross profit	60,949		48,207		109,156		42,972		52,085		95,057
Adjusted EBITDA	37,886		34,671		72,557		23,745		40,341		64,086
Adjusted EBITDA Margin	14.6	%	25.8	%	18.4	%	11.3	%	32.2	%	19.1	%
Depreciation amortization and impairment of intangible assets and property, plant and equipment	(13,482	)	(9,322	)	(22,804	)	(14,621	)	(9,303	)	(23,924	)
Share of profit of joint venture	(160	)	—		(160	)	(142	)	—		(142	)
Adjustment items					(7,750	)					(6,659	)
EBIT					41,843						33,361

Segment reconciliation for the nine months ended September 30, 2018 and 2017:



	In USD k						In USD k
	For the Nine Months Ended Sep 30,						For the Nine Months Ended Sep 30,
	2018						2017
	Rubber		Specialties		Total segments		Rubber		Specialties		Total segments
Revenue	773,743		418,496		1,192,239		625,128		363,486		988,614
Cost of sales	(599,649	)	(258,258	)	(857,907	)	(489,728	)	(215,412	)	(705,140	)
Gross profit	174,094		160,238		334,332		135,400		148,074		283,474
Adjusted EBITDA	109,465		120,232		229,697		78,090		112,953		191,043
Adjusted EBITDA Margin	14.1	%	28.7	%	19.3	%	12.5	%	31.0	%	19.3	%
Depreciation amortization and impairment of intangible assets and property, plant and equipment	(42,856	)	(28,977	)	(71,833	)	(43,392	)	(26,809	)	(70,201	)
Share of profit of joint venture	(453	)	—		(453	)	(404	)	—		(404	)
Adjustment items					12,222						(11,838	)
EBIT					169,633						108,600

Adjusted EBITDA is reconciled to profit or loss as follows:



Reconciliation of profit or loss	In USD k				In USD k
	For the Three Months Ended Sep 30,				For the Nine Months Ended Sep 30,
	2018		2017		2018		2017
Profit for the period	24,151		15,140		101,070		50,383
Add back income taxes	12,169		8,436		45,891		27,422
Profit before income taxes	36,320		23,576		146,961		77,805
Add back finance costs	18,956		22,190		48,858		64,330
Add back share of profit of joint ventures	(160	)	(142	)	(453	)	(404	)
Add back other finance income	(13,273	)	(12,263	)	(25,733	)	(33,131	)
Earnings before taxes and finance income/costs (operating result (EBIT))	41,843		33,361		169,633		108,600
Add back depreciation, amortization and impairment of intangible assets and property, plant and equipment	22,804		23,924		71,833		70,201
EBITDA	64,647		57,285		241,466		178,801
Add back share of profit of joint venture	160		142		453		404
Add back restructuring (income)/expenses, net ⁽¹⁾	905		952		(27,580	)	1,674
Add back consulting fees related to Group strategy ⁽²⁾	2,016		1,100		3,051		2,149
Add back long term incentive plan	3,552		3,110		9,505		6,319
Add back other adjustments ⁽³⁾	1,277		1,497		2,802		1,696
Adjusted EBITDA	72,557		64,086		229,697		191,043

(1) Restructuring income or expenses are related to further actions undertaken to realign our worldwide Rubber footprint and reflects in particular the proceeds of the land sale in South Korea exceeding the associated cessation costs in the nine months ended September 30, 2018.

(2) Consulting fees related to external consulting for establishing and executing Group strategies relating to Rubber footprint realignment, conversion to US dollar and US GAAP, as well as costs relating to our assessment of feasibility for inclusion in certain US indices.

(3) Other adjustments in the three months ended September 30, 2018 related in particular to EPA related costs of USD 0.6 million. Other adjustments in the nine months ended September 30, 2018 related in particular to license fees required for certain innovative technologies to meet the EPA requirements of USD 1.1 million and other EPA related costs of USD 1.1 million. Other adjustments in the three months ended September 30, 2017 include costs related to hurricane Harvey flooding in our Kingwood, Texas office and Orange, Texas plant of USD 0.9 million and costs in association with our EPA enforcement action of USD 0.5 million. Other adjustments in the nine months ended September 30, 2017 include costs of USD 1.8 million in connection with our EPA enforcement action and hurricane Harvey flooding in our Kingwood, Texas office and Orange, Texas plant of USD 0.9 million, partially offset by a reimbursement following a successful objection against reassessed real estate transfer taxes in Germany of USD 1.5 million.

Disclosure of geographic information

Geographic information by legal entity



Revenues	In USD k		In USD k
	For the Three Months Ended Sep 30,		For the Nine Months Ended Sep 30,
	2018	2017	2018	2017
Germany	155,138	133,077	480,112	394,952
United States	104,027	83,042	300,932	249,449
South Korea	62,871	62,135	208,929	180,337
Brazil	25,191	20,249	68,456	59,345
China	19,939	16,370	58,425	42,203
South Africa	15,106	12,163	43,731	36,095
Other	8,568	5,255	19,124	17,751
Rest of Europe*	3,114	2,645	12,530	8,482
Total	393,954	334,936	1,192,239	988,614


*	Country of domicile of the Group (Luxembourg) USD nil



Goodwill, intangible assets, property, plant and equipment	In USD k	In USD k
	As at Sep 30,	As at Dec 31,
	2018	2017
Germany	128,034	145,837
Sweden	83,732	80,974
Italy	71,997	72,980
Poland	48,347	49,933
Rest of Europe	4,282	4,443
Subtotal Europe	336,392	354,167

United States	72,281	70,530
South Korea	85,592	109,905
South Africa	29,319	32,007
Brazil	8,982	13,661
China	10,581	10,733
Other	22	28
Total	543,169	591,031

Other operating income, other operating expenses, restructuring income and expenses, financial result (Tables)

9 Months Ended

Sep. 30, 2018

Analysis of income and expense [abstract]

Disclosure of finance income and costs

The table below presents a breakdown of financial result for the nine months ended September 30, 2018 and 2017:



Financial Result	In USD k
	For the Nine Months Ended Sep 30,
	2018		2017
Interest expense on term loans	(16,730	)	(17,918	)
Amortization of transaction costs	(2,310	)	(2,506	)
Commitment bank charge	(1,264	)	(630	)
Interest income	2,857		1,018
Interest on non-current provisions	(1,545	)	(1,419	)
Other interest expense, net	(2,268	)	(5,436	)
Total net interest expenses	(21,260	)	(26,891	)
Gains from foreign currency revaluation	22,876		32,113
Losses from foreign currency revaluation	(24,726	)	(35,984	)
Net foreign currency revaluation impact	(1,850	)	(3,871	)
Bank guarantee expense	(15	)	(437	)
Share of profit of joint ventures	453		404
Financial Result	(22,672	)	(30,795	)

Share-based payments (Tables)

9 Months Ended

Sep. 30, 2018

Share-Based Payment Arrangements [Abstract]

Disclosure of detail as to expenses recorded within the profit and loss with respect to the LTIP

The following table details the costs charged to the income statement with respect to the 2015 Plan, 2016 Plan, 2017 Plan and 2018 Plan and equity incentive awards we issued to members of the Board of Directors of the Company, which unlike the LTIPs previously described, vested immediately.



	USD k
	For the Nine Months Ended Sep 30,
	2018	2017
Expense arising from equity-settled share based payment transactions (2015 Plan)	777	2,324
Expense arising from equity-settled share based payment transactions (2016 Plan)	3,326	3,102
Expense arising from equity-settled share based payment transactions (2017 Plan)	3,524	893
Expenses arising form equity-settled share based 2018 incentive	563	—
Expense arising from equity-settled share based payment transactions (2018 Plan)	1,315	—
Total expenses	9,505	6,319

Disclosure of the number of and movements in PSUs

The following table illustrates the number of, and movements in, performance share units ("PSUs") during the period.



	2015 Plan				2016 Plan				2017 Plan			2018 Plan		Total
	Number of PSUs				Number of PSUs				Number of PSUs			Number of PSUs		Number of PSUs
	2018		2017		2018		2017		2018		2017	2018	2017	2018		2017
Outstanding at January 1,	452,816		454,959		686,038		690,279		472,040		—	—	—	1,610,894		1,145,238
Granted during the period	—		—		113		—		830		473,646	449,783	—	450,726		473,646
Forfeited during the period	(5,694	)	(1,515	)	(8,544	)	(4,241	)	(5,521	)	—	—	—	(19,759	)	(5,756	)
Vested during the period	(447,122	)	—		—		—		—		—	—	—	(447,122	)	—
Outstanding at September 30,	—		453,444		677,607		686,038		467,349		473,646	449,783	—	1,594,739		1,613,128

Disclosure of indirect measurement of fair value of goods or services received, other equity instruments granted during period

The following table lists the inputs to the model used for the grant date fair values of the 2015 Plan, 2016 Plan, 2017 Plan and 2018 Plan.



	2015 Plan	2016 Plan	2017 Plan	2018 Plan
Dividend Yield (%)	2.14%	2.23%	1.88%	1.94%
Expected Volatility OEC (%)	25.16%	32.07%	33.77%	30.22%
Expected Volatility Peer Group (%)	13.90%	18.12%	17.30%	20.09%
Correlation	0.5234	0.4952	0.4574	0.3659
Risk-free interest rate (%)	0.90%	0.76%	1.45%	1.46%
Model used	Monte Carlo	Monte Carlo	Monte Carlo	Monte Carlo
Weighted average fair value of PSUs granted in USD	17.41	17.21	24.89	39.24

Inventories (Tables)

9 Months Ended

Sep. 30, 2018

Property, plant and equipment [abstract]

Disclosure of impairment allowance on inventories

The impairment allowance as of September 30, 2018 and September 30, 2017, amounted to USD 5,012k and USD 5,027k, respectively, and developed as follows:



	In USD k
	2018		2017
As at January 1,	1,717		4,436
Currency translation	(60	)	535
Addition	3,788		3,308
Utilization	(252	)	(2,494	)
Release	(181	)	(758	)
As at September 30,	5,012		5,027

Financial assets and liabilities (Tables)

9 Months Ended

Sep. 30, 2018

Financial Instruments [Abstract]

Disclosure of fair value measurement of assets

The table below presents fair values and the allocation of the fair value measurements to the hierarchy levels as at September 30, 2018 and December 31, 2017.



	In USD k as at
	Sep 30, 2018			Dec 31, 2017
	Level 1	Level 2	Level 3	Level 1	Level 2	Level 3
Financial assets measured at fair value
Receivables from derivatives	—	6,826	—	—	3,554	—
Financial liabilities measured at fair value
Liabilities from derivatives	—	3,967	—	—	5,193	—
Liabilities for which fair values are disclosed
Term loan	—	664,439	—	—	684,234	—
Local bank loans	—	—	—	—	12,512	—

Contingent liabilities and other financial obligations (Tables)

9 Months Ended

Sep. 30, 2018

Disclosure of contingent liabilities [abstract]

Disclosure of long-term supply commitments

To safeguard the supply of raw materials, contractual purchase commitments under long-term supply agreements for raw materials, especially oil and gas, are in place with the following maturities:



	In USD k
	As at Sep 30,	As at Dec 31,
Maturity	2018	2017
Less than one year	189,770	109,207
1 to 5 years	310,900	236,639

Total	500,670	345,846

Organization and principal activities - Narrative (Details)	Sep. 30, 2018 service_company facility holding_company sales_company
Disclosure of detailed information about business combination [line items]
Number of wholly owned production facilities	12
Number of sales companies \| sales_company	3
Number of holding companies \| holding_company	10
Number of service companies \| service_company	2
Portugal and France
Disclosure of detailed information about business combination [line items]
Number of former operating entities in dissolution	2
Germany
Disclosure of detailed information about business combination [line items]
Number of production facilities operating as a joint venture	1

Basis of preparation of the interim condensed consolidated financial statements - Narrative (Details) - USD ($) $ in Thousands		3 Months Ended		9 Months Ended		12 Months Ended
	Jan. 01, 2018	Sep. 30, 2018	Sep. 30, 2017	Sep. 30, 2018	Sep. 30, 2017	Dec. 31, 2017
Disclosure of initial application of standards or interpretations [line items]
Profit for the period		$ 24,151	$ 15,140	$ 101,070	$ 50,383
Gross finance lease obligations						$ 33,300
Contingent rents recognised as expense, classified as operating lease						$ 9,700
Retained Earnings
Disclosure of initial application of standards or interpretations [line items]
Profit for the period				$ 101,070	$ 50,383
Retained Earnings \| IFRS 9
Disclosure of initial application of standards or interpretations [line items]
Profit for the period	$ (8,542)

Segment information - Narrative (Details)	9 Months Ended
Segment information - Narrative (Details)	Sep. 30, 2018 segment
Operating Segments [Abstract]
Number of operating segments	2

Segment information - Operating results by segment (Details) - USD ($) $ in Thousands	3 Months Ended		9 Months Ended
	Sep. 30, 2018	Sep. 30, 2017	Sep. 30, 2018	Sep. 30, 2017
Disclosure of operating segments [line items]
Revenue	$ 393,954	$ 334,936	$ 1,192,239	$ 988,614
Cost of sales	(284,798)	(239,879)	(857,907)	(705,140)
Gross profit	109,156	95,057	334,332	283,474
Adjusted EBITDA	$ 72,557	$ 64,086	$ 229,697	$ 191,043
Adjusted EBITDA Margin	18.40%	19.10%	19.30%	19.30%
Depreciation amortization and impairment of intangible assets and property, plant and equipment	$ (22,804)	$ (23,924)	$ (71,833)	$ (70,201)
Share of profit of joint venture	(160)	(142)	(453)	(404)
Adjustment items	(7,750)	(6,659)	12,222	(11,838)
Earnings before taxes and finance income/costs (operating result (EBIT))	41,843	33,361	169,633	108,600
Rubber
Disclosure of operating segments [line items]
Revenue	259,800	209,873	773,743	625,128
Cost of sales	(198,851)	(166,901)	(599,649)	(489,728)
Gross profit	60,949	42,972	174,094	135,400
Adjusted EBITDA	$ 37,886	$ 23,745	$ 109,465	$ 78,090
Adjusted EBITDA Margin	14.60%	11.30%	14.10%	12.50%
Depreciation amortization and impairment of intangible assets and property, plant and equipment	$ (13,482)	$ (14,621)	$ (42,856)	$ (43,392)
Share of profit of joint venture	(160)	(142)	(453)	(404)
Specialties
Disclosure of operating segments [line items]
Revenue	134,154	125,063	418,496	363,486
Cost of sales	(85,947)	(72,978)	(258,258)	(215,412)
Gross profit	48,207	52,085	160,238	148,074
Adjusted EBITDA	$ 34,671	$ 40,341	$ 120,232	$ 112,953
Adjusted EBITDA Margin	25.80%	32.20%	28.70%	31.00%
Depreciation amortization and impairment of intangible assets and property, plant and equipment	$ (9,322)	$ (9,303)	$ (28,977)	$ (26,809)
Share of profit of joint venture	$ 0	$ 0	$ 0	$ 0

Segment information - Reconciliation of adjusted EBITDA (Details) - USD ($) $ in Thousands	3 Months Ended		9 Months Ended
	Sep. 30, 2018	Sep. 30, 2017	Sep. 30, 2018	Sep. 30, 2017
Restructuring And Related Costs [Line Items]
Profit for the period	$ 24,151	$ 15,140	$ 101,070	$ 50,383
Add back income taxes	12,169	8,436	45,891	27,422
Profit before income taxes	36,320	23,576	146,961	77,805
Add back finance costs	18,956	22,190	48,858	64,330
Add back share of profit of joint ventures	(160)	(142)	(453)	(404)
Add back other finance income	(13,273)	(12,263)	(25,733)	(33,131)
Earnings before taxes and finance income/costs (operating result (EBIT))	41,843	33,361	169,633	108,600
Add back depreciation, amortization and impairment of intangible assets and property, plant and equipment	22,804	23,924	71,833	70,201
EBITDA	64,647	57,285	241,466	178,801
Share of profit or loss of joint ventures	160	142	453	404
Add back restructuring (income)/expenses, net	905	952	(27,580)	1,674
Add back consulting fees related to Group strategy	2,016	1,100	3,051	2,149
Add back long term incentive plan	3,552	3,110	9,505	6,319
Add back other adjustments	1,277	1,497	2,802	1,696
Adjusted EBITDA	72,557	64,086	229,697	191,043
EPA enforcement action expense	$ 600	500	1,100	1,800
Catastrophic natural disaster remediation expense		$ 900	900
License fee requirement expense			$ 1,100
Reimbursed reassessed real estate transfer tax				$ 1,500

Segment information - Revenue geographical information (Details) - USD ($) $ in Thousands	3 Months Ended		9 Months Ended
	Sep. 30, 2018	Sep. 30, 2017	Sep. 30, 2018	Sep. 30, 2017
Disclosure of geographical areas [line items]
Revenues	$ 393,954	$ 334,936	$ 1,192,239	$ 988,614
Germany
Disclosure of geographical areas [line items]
Revenues	155,138	133,077	480,112	394,952
United States
Disclosure of geographical areas [line items]
Revenues	104,027	83,042	300,932	249,449
South Korea
Disclosure of geographical areas [line items]
Revenues	62,871	62,135	208,929	180,337
Brazil
Disclosure of geographical areas [line items]
Revenues	25,191	20,249	68,456	59,345
China
Disclosure of geographical areas [line items]
Revenues	19,939	16,370	58,425	42,203
South Africa
Disclosure of geographical areas [line items]
Revenues	15,106	12,163	43,731	36,095
Other
Disclosure of geographical areas [line items]
Revenues	8,568	5,255	19,124	17,751
Rest of Europe
Disclosure of geographical areas [line items]
Revenues	$ 3,114	$ 2,645	$ 12,530	$ 8,482

Segment information - Goodwill, intangible assets, property, plant and equipment geographical information (Details) - USD ($) $ in Thousands	Sep. 30, 2018	Dec. 31, 2017
Disclosure of geographical areas [line items]
Goodwill, intangible assets, property, plant and equipment	$ 543,169	$ 591,031
Subtotal Europe
Disclosure of geographical areas [line items]
Goodwill, intangible assets, property, plant and equipment	336,392	354,167
Germany
Disclosure of geographical areas [line items]
Goodwill, intangible assets, property, plant and equipment	128,034	145,837
Sweden
Disclosure of geographical areas [line items]
Goodwill, intangible assets, property, plant and equipment	83,732	80,974
Italy
Disclosure of geographical areas [line items]
Goodwill, intangible assets, property, plant and equipment	71,997	72,980
Poland
Disclosure of geographical areas [line items]
Goodwill, intangible assets, property, plant and equipment	48,347	49,933
Rest of Europe
Disclosure of geographical areas [line items]
Goodwill, intangible assets, property, plant and equipment	4,282	4,443
United States
Disclosure of geographical areas [line items]
Goodwill, intangible assets, property, plant and equipment	72,281	70,530
South Korea
Disclosure of geographical areas [line items]
Goodwill, intangible assets, property, plant and equipment	85,592	109,905
South Africa
Disclosure of geographical areas [line items]
Goodwill, intangible assets, property, plant and equipment	29,319	32,007
Brazil
Disclosure of geographical areas [line items]
Goodwill, intangible assets, property, plant and equipment	8,982	13,661
China
Disclosure of geographical areas [line items]
Goodwill, intangible assets, property, plant and equipment	10,581	10,733
Other
Disclosure of geographical areas [line items]
Goodwill, intangible assets, property, plant and equipment	$ 22	$ 28

Other operating income, other operating expenses, restructuring income and expenses, financial result - Other operating income (Details) - USD ($) $ in Thousands	3 Months Ended		9 Months Ended
	Sep. 30, 2018	Sep. 30, 2017	Sep. 30, 2018	Sep. 30, 2017
Analysis of income and expense [abstract]
Decrease in other operating income				$ 2,220
Other operating income	$ 264	$ 669	$ 723	$ 2,943
Reimbursement of property tax paid			$ 1,432

Other operating income, other operating expenses, restructuring income and expenses, financial result - Other operating expenses (Details) - USD ($) $ in Thousands	3 Months Ended		9 Months Ended
	Sep. 30, 2018	Sep. 30, 2017	Sep. 30, 2018	Sep. 30, 2017
Analysis of income and expense [abstract]
Decrease in other operating expense				$ 1,699
Other operating expenses	$ 3,333	$ 4,298	$ 6,889	8,588
Consulting fees related to Group strategy	$ 2,016	$ 1,100	3,051	2,149
Miscellaneous expenses			2,802	1,696
Allowance on trade receivables recorded			$ 200	$ 629

Other operating income, other operating expenses, restructuring income and expenses, financial result - Restructuring expenses (Details) $ in Thousands	3 Months Ended		6 Months Ended	9 Months Ended
	Sep. 30, 2018 USD ($)	Sep. 30, 2017 USD ($)	Jun. 30, 2018 USD ($) site	Sep. 30, 2018 USD ($)	Sep. 30, 2017 USD ($)
Analysis of income and expense [abstract]
Restructuring expense, land restoration			$ 4,021
Number of sites consolidated \| site			2
Restructuring expense, personnel related termination costs			$ 4,363
Net restructuring income (expense)	$ (905)	$ (952)		$ 27,580	$ (1,674)

Other operating income, other operating expenses, restructuring income and expenses, financial result - Finance income and expenses (Details) - USD ($) $ in Thousands	9 Months Ended
	Sep. 30, 2018	Sep. 30, 2017
Analysis of income and expense [abstract]
Decrease in finance income (cost)	$ 8,123
Finance income (cost)	(22,672)	$ (30,795)
Foreign exchange gain (loss)	(1,850)	(3,871)
Interest expense on borrowings	$ 16,730	$ 17,918

Other operating income, other operating expenses, restructuring income and expenses, financial result - Schedule of financial results (Details) - USD ($) $ in Thousands	3 Months Ended		9 Months Ended
	Sep. 30, 2018	Sep. 30, 2017	Sep. 30, 2018	Sep. 30, 2017
Analysis of income and expense [abstract]
Interest expense on term loans			$ (16,730)	$ (17,918)
Amortization of transaction costs	$ (1,700)		(2,310)	(2,506)
Commitment bank charge			(1,264)	(630)
Interest income			2,857	1,018
Interest on non-current provisions			(1,545)	(1,419)
Other interest expense, net			(2,268)	(5,436)
Total net interest expenses			(21,260)	(26,891)
Gains from foreign currency revaluation			22,876	32,113
Losses from foreign currency revaluation			(24,726)	(35,984)
Net foreign currency revaluation impact			(1,850)	(3,871)
Bank guarantee expense			(15)	(437)
Share of profit or loss of joint ventures	$ 160	$ 142	453	404
Financial Result			$ (22,672)	$ (30,795)

Share-based payments - Share-based compensation expense (Details) - USD ($) $ in Thousands	3 Months Ended		9 Months Ended
	Sep. 30, 2018	Sep. 30, 2017	Sep. 30, 2018	Sep. 30, 2017
Disclosure of terms and conditions of share-based payment arrangement [line items]
Share-based payment expense	$ 3,552	$ 3,110	$ 9,505	$ 6,319
2015 Plan
Disclosure of terms and conditions of share-based payment arrangement [line items]
Share-based payment expense			777	2,324
2016 Plan
Disclosure of terms and conditions of share-based payment arrangement [line items]
Share-based payment expense			3,326	3,102
2017 Plan
Disclosure of terms and conditions of share-based payment arrangement [line items]
Share-based payment expense			3,524	893
2018 Incentive Plan
Disclosure of terms and conditions of share-based payment arrangement [line items]
Share-based payment expense			563	0
2018 Plan
Disclosure of terms and conditions of share-based payment arrangement [line items]
Share-based payment expense			$ 1,315	$ 0

Share-based payments - Movement in PSUs (Details)		9 Months Ended
Share-based payments - Movement in PSUs (Details)	Apr. 30, 2018 USD ($) shares	Sep. 30, 2018 shares	Sep. 30, 2017 shares
Disclosure of terms and conditions of share-based payment arrangement [line items]
Outstanding at January 1, (in shares)		1,610,894	1,145,238
Granted during the period (in shares)		450,726	473,646
Forfeited during the period (in shares)		(19,759)	(5,756)
Vested during the period (in shares)		(447,122)	0
Outstanding at September 30, (in shares)		1,594,739	1,613,128
2015 Plan
Disclosure of terms and conditions of share-based payment arrangement [line items]
Outstanding at January 1, (in shares)		452,816	454,959
Granted during the period (in shares)		0	0
Forfeited during the period (in shares)		(5,694)	(1,515)
Vested during the period (in shares)	380,436	(447,122)	0
Outstanding at September 30, (in shares)		0	453,444
Number of shares issued through share-based payment transactions, new shares (in shares)	400,453
Number of shares issued through share-based payment transactions, treasury shares (in shares)	1,284
Weighted average fair value at measurement date, other equity instruments settled (in dollars per share) \| $	$ 26.80
2016 Plan
Disclosure of terms and conditions of share-based payment arrangement [line items]
Outstanding at January 1, (in shares)		686,038	690,279
Granted during the period (in shares)		113	0
Forfeited during the period (in shares)		(8,544)	(4,241)
Vested during the period (in shares)		0	0
Outstanding at September 30, (in shares)		677,607	686,038
2017 Plan
Disclosure of terms and conditions of share-based payment arrangement [line items]
Outstanding at January 1, (in shares)		472,040	0
Granted during the period (in shares)		830	473,646
Forfeited during the period (in shares)		(5,521)	0
Vested during the period (in shares)		0	0
Outstanding at September 30, (in shares)		467,349	473,646
2018 Plan
Disclosure of terms and conditions of share-based payment arrangement [line items]
Outstanding at January 1, (in shares)		0	0
Granted during the period (in shares)		449,783	0
Forfeited during the period (in shares)		0	0
Vested during the period (in shares)		0	0
Outstanding at September 30, (in shares)		449,783	0

Share-based payments - Share-based compensation fair value assumptions (Details)	9 Months Ended
	Sep. 30, 2018 USD ($)
2015 Plan
Disclosure of terms and conditions of share-based payment arrangement [line items]
Dividend Yield (%)	2.14%
Expected Volatility OEC (%)	25.16%
Expected Volatility Peer Group (%)	13.90%
Correlation	0.5234
Risk-free interest rate (%)	0.90%
Weighted average fair value of PSUs granted in USD	$ 17.41
2016 Plan
Disclosure of terms and conditions of share-based payment arrangement [line items]
Dividend Yield (%)	2.23%
Expected Volatility OEC (%)	32.07%
Expected Volatility Peer Group (%)	18.12%
Correlation	0.4952
Risk-free interest rate (%)	0.76%
Weighted average fair value of PSUs granted in USD	$ 17.21
2017 Plan
Disclosure of terms and conditions of share-based payment arrangement [line items]
Dividend Yield (%)	1.88%
Expected Volatility OEC (%)	33.77%
Expected Volatility Peer Group (%)	17.30%
Correlation	0.4574
Risk-free interest rate (%)	1.45%
Weighted average fair value of PSUs granted in USD	$ 24.89
2018 Plan
Disclosure of terms and conditions of share-based payment arrangement [line items]
Dividend Yield (%)	1.94%
Expected Volatility OEC (%)	30.22%
Expected Volatility Peer Group (%)	20.09%
Correlation	0.3659
Risk-free interest rate (%)	1.46%
Weighted average fair value of PSUs granted in USD	$ 39.24

Inventories - Impairment allowance roll forward (Details) - Inventory Valuation Reserve - USD ($) $ in Thousands	9 Months Ended
	Sep. 30, 2018	Sep. 30, 2017
Movement In Valuation Allowances And Reserves1 [Roll Forward]
Beginning Balance	$ 1,717	$ 4,436
Currency translation	(60)	535
Addition	3,788	3,308
Utilization	(252)	(2,494)
Release	(181)	(758)
Ending Balance	$ 5,012	$ 5,027

Financial assets and liabilities - Fair values to the fair value hierarchy (Details) - USD ($) $ in Thousands	Sep. 30, 2018	Dec. 31, 2017
Disclosure Of Fair Value Measurement Of Assets And Liabilities [Line Items]
Assets	$ 1,210,455	$ 1,168,805
Level 1 \| At fair value \| Derivatives
Disclosure Of Fair Value Measurement Of Assets And Liabilities [Line Items]
Liabilities	0	0
Level 1 \| At fair value \| Derivatives
Disclosure Of Fair Value Measurement Of Assets And Liabilities [Line Items]
Assets	0	0
Level 1 \| For which fair values are disclosed \| Borrowings \| Term loan
Disclosure Of Fair Value Measurement Of Assets And Liabilities [Line Items]
Liabilities	0	0
Level 1 \| For which fair values are disclosed \| Borrowings \| Local bank loans
Disclosure Of Fair Value Measurement Of Assets And Liabilities [Line Items]
Liabilities	0	0
Level 2 \| At fair value \| Derivatives
Disclosure Of Fair Value Measurement Of Assets And Liabilities [Line Items]
Liabilities	3,967	5,193
Level 2 \| At fair value \| Derivatives
Disclosure Of Fair Value Measurement Of Assets And Liabilities [Line Items]
Assets	6,826	3,554
Level 2 \| For which fair values are disclosed \| Borrowings \| Term loan
Disclosure Of Fair Value Measurement Of Assets And Liabilities [Line Items]
Liabilities	664,439	684,234
Level 2 \| For which fair values are disclosed \| Borrowings \| Local bank loans
Disclosure Of Fair Value Measurement Of Assets And Liabilities [Line Items]
Liabilities	0	12,512
Level 3 \| At fair value \| Derivatives
Disclosure Of Fair Value Measurement Of Assets And Liabilities [Line Items]
Liabilities	0	0
Level 3 \| At fair value \| Derivatives
Disclosure Of Fair Value Measurement Of Assets And Liabilities [Line Items]
Assets	0	0
Level 3 \| For which fair values are disclosed \| Borrowings \| Term loan
Disclosure Of Fair Value Measurement Of Assets And Liabilities [Line Items]
Liabilities	0	0
Level 3 \| For which fair values are disclosed \| Borrowings \| Local bank loans
Disclosure Of Fair Value Measurement Of Assets And Liabilities [Line Items]
Liabilities	$ 0	$ 0

Financial assets and liabilities - Narrative (Details) ₩ in Billions					3 Months Ended	9 Months Ended
	May 16, 2018 USD ($)	May 11, 2018 USD ($)	May 11, 2018 KRW (₩)	May 08, 2018 USD ($)	Sep. 30, 2018 USD ($)	Sep. 30, 2018 USD ($)	Sep. 30, 2017 USD ($)	May 15, 2018 USD ($)	May 07, 2018	Dec. 31, 2017 USD ($)
Subclassifications of assets, liabilities and equities [abstract]
Derivative financial assets					$ 6,826,000	$ 6,826,000				$ 3,554,000
Non-current derivative financial assets					499,000	499,000				2,647,000
Current derivative financial assets					6,327,000	6,327,000				907,000
Derivative financial liabilities					3,967,000	3,967,000				5,193,000
Disclosure of detailed information about borrowings [line items]
Borrowings expected reduction to interest paid				$ 2,400,000
Cash receipts from termination of interest cap	$ 4,000,000
Amortisation of transaction costs					1,700,000	2,310,000	$ 2,506,000
Transaction costs capitalised					700,000
US Denominated Credit Facility Term Loan
Disclosure of detailed information about borrowings [line items]
Borrowings, adjustment to interest rate basis				2.00%					2.50%
Borrowings decrease in interest rate				0.50%
Borrowings					$ 285,810,000	$ 285,810,000				288,426,000
Annual principal amount paid, percentage					0.75%	0.75%
EUR Denominated Credit Facility Term Loan
Disclosure of detailed information about borrowings [line items]
Borrowings, adjustment to interest rate basis				2.25%					2.50%
Borrowings decrease in interest rate				0.25%
Borrowings					$ 378,629,000	$ 378,629,000				$ 395,808,000
Annual principal amount paid, percentage					0.50%	0.50%
KEB Hana Bank Term Loan Facility
Disclosure of detailed information about borrowings [line items]
Repayments of non-current borrowings		$ 12,300,000	₩ 13.3
Cross Currency Swap Effective May 15, 2018
Disclosure of detailed information about borrowings [line items]
Borrowings expected reduction to interest paid		4,700,000.0
Nominal amount of hedging instrument		$ 235,000,000
Cross Currency Swap Effective January 1, 2015
Disclosure of detailed information about borrowings [line items]
Nominal amount of hedging instrument					$ 180,000,000	$ 180,000,000
Reserve for hedges of a net investment in foreign operation \| Cross Currency Swap Effective January 1, 2015
Disclosure of detailed information about borrowings [line items]
Accumulated other comprehensive loss								$ 2,200,000

Deferred and current taxes - Narrative (Details) - USD ($) $ in Thousands	3 Months Ended		9 Months Ended
	Sep. 30, 2018	Sep. 30, 2017	Sep. 30, 2018	Sep. 30, 2017	Dec. 31, 2017
Income Taxes [Abstract]
Income tax receivables	$ 14,122		$ 14,122		$ 16,377
Income tax liabilities	36,841		36,841		$ 15,539
Income taxes	$ 12,169	$ 8,436	$ 45,891	$ 27,422
Effective tax rate in %			31.20%	35.20%
Applicable tax rate			32.00%	32.00%
Tax rate effect of change in recognition of losses and deductible temporary differences			3.44%	2.60%
Tax rate effect of revenues exempt from taxation			0.40%	1.40%
Tax rate effect of foreign tax rates			3.59%
Tax rate effect of tax exempt dividends from subsidiary				1.80%
Tax rate effect from change in tax rate				6.10%

Contingent liabilities and other financial obligations, schedule of long-term supply agreement commitments (Details) - USD ($) $ in Thousands	Sep. 30, 2018	Dec. 31, 2017
Disclosure of maturity analysis for non-derivative financial liabilities [line items]
Raw material commitments under long-term supply agreements	$ 500,670	$ 345,846
Less than one year
Disclosure of maturity analysis for non-derivative financial liabilities [line items]
Raw material commitments under long-term supply agreements	189,770	109,207
1 to 5 years
Disclosure of maturity analysis for non-derivative financial liabilities [line items]
Raw material commitments under long-term supply agreements	$ 310,900	$ 236,639

Contingent liabilities and other financial obligations, narrative (Details)	Dec. 22, 2017 USD ($) producer	Dec. 31, 2017 facility
Disclosure of contingent liabilities [line items]
Number of U. S. carbon black producers settled with U.S. government \| producer	5
Number of facilities located in the United States \| facility		4
Legal proceedings contingent liability
Disclosure of contingent liabilities [line items]
Estimated time period to install capital improvements in all U.S. facilities (up to)	6 years
Environmental loss contingency, civil penalty to the EPA	$ 800,000
Environmental loss contingency, mitigation projects	550,000
Legal proceedings contingent liability \| Bottom of range
Disclosure of contingent liabilities [line items]
Estimated capital cost to install controls in all U.S. facilities	110,000,000
Legal proceedings contingent liability \| Top of range
Disclosure of contingent liabilities [line items]
Estimated capital cost to install controls in all U.S. facilities	$ 140,000,000

Related parties - Narrative (Details)	Sep. 30, 2018 joint_venture
Related Party [Abstract]
Number of joint ventures accounted for using the equity method	1

Events after the balance sheet date - Narrative (Details)	Oct. 31, 2018 USD ($)
Major ordinary share transactions
Disclosure of non-adjusting events after reporting period [line items]
Authorized repurchase amount	$ 40,000,000