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  Communiqué de la société HYDROGEN REFUELING SOLUTIONS (HRS) du 27/04/2023

  27/04/2023 - 18:25

H1 2022/2023 RESULTS: Strong growth and operating performance under control


H1 2022/2023 RESULTS

Strong growth and operating performance under control

INCREASE IN THE 2022/2023 ANNUAL REVENUE GROWTH TARGET FROM 50% TO 70%.

H1 revenue up 137% to €10.9m

Increase of the 2022/2023 revenue target to €29m compared to an initial target of at least €25.5m, in line with the strong sales momentum

  • Order backlog of €109m as of January 19, 2023
  • Projects shortlisted or at final negotiation stage for a total amount of €92m
  • Commercial pipeline of around €1 bn at the prospecting stage

Recruitment plan ahead of schedule

Cash and cash equivalents of €27m

Grenoble, April 27, 2023 – HRS , a European designer and manufacturer of hydrogen refueling stations, presents its half-year results for the 2022/2023 financial year (from July 1, 2022 to June 30, 2023), approved by the Board of Directors on April 27, 2023.

Hassen Rachedi, founding Chairman & CEO said: “Our 2022/2023 half-year results reflect the growth trajectory we have followed since the IPO to meet the growing demand for HRS hydrogen stations.

Our sales momentum is reflected in the strong increase in our revenue, already visible in the first half, but also in our order backlog and sales pipeline, allowing us to increase our annual revenue target to €29 million, representing estimated growth of 70%.

This performance has been driven by the signing of major deployment of stations agreements since the beginning of the year with key players such as Engie, pHYnix and Plug Power, and by the ramp-up of the partnership with Hympulsion, all of which attest to the quality of our solutions and our ability to quickly and efficiently produce stations suited to the needs of a fast-growing market.

We are continuing to control our costs during this phase of structuring and growth, despite the isolated impact on our operating performance of the additional costs associated with the development and the start of production of the new 1-tonne/day stations. Our financial structure also remains solid with a comfortable cash position of €27 million and our 2025 objectives are maintained.

The year 2023 is an important one for HRS, marked by the inauguration of our new production and R&D site, one of the largest industrial sites in Europe for hydrogen mobility. This will provide us with all the capacity needed to achieve our goals and support the transition to sustainable mobility.” 

P&L at December 31, 2022 presented under IFRS :

 €000 H1 2021/2022 H1 2022/2023 Change
Revenue 4,591 10,897 +6,306
Operating expenses[1] (5,268) (13,890) -8,622
Purchases consumed (2,347) (8,024) -5,677
Personnel expenses (1,877) (3,759) -1,882
External expenses (1,045) (2,108) -1,063
EBITDA[2] (677) (2,993) -2,316
Net depreciation, amortization and provisions (350) (622) -272
EBIT (before non-recurring items) (1,027) (3,615) -2,588
Financial income/(expense) (17) 69 +86
Taxes 242 860 +618
Net income/(loss) (794) (2,684) -1,890

ACCELERATED GROWTH AND START OF PRODUCTION ON THE FIRST 1 TONNE/DAY STATIONS

The first half confirmed the positive momentum in the acquisition of new hydrogen stations orders, consolidating HRS' leading position in its market. First half revenue rose 137% to €10.9 million, including €9.2 million for the Hydrogen Stations segment, up 141%. Hydrogen Stations revenue comprised €1.4 million from the 21 stations that went into production during the previous two financial years and €7.9 million from the 11 stations that went into production this year. Meanwhile, the Industrial Piping core business posted revenue of €1.7 million, mainly boosted by two new contracts.

The Company recorded an EBITDA loss of €2.9 million for H1 2022/2023, down €2.3 million compared to the first half of the previous year, impacted by three factors during the period:

  • First of all, the strong seasonality of revenues between the first and second half of the year, as 2/3 of sales will be realized in the second half;
  • Then, personnel expenses and other operating expenses increased to support HRS' development and amounted to €5.9 million. They include external expenses of €2.1 million (up €1.1 million related to the cost of services and sales and marketing activities). Personnel expenses increased by €1.9 million to €3.8 million, in line with the increase in the number of employees (+23 employees compared to December 31, 2021) and in line with the Company's structure and strong growth;
  • Finally, and to a lesser extent, a one-off impact on the gross margin, which fell from 38% to 26% in one year, mainly due to the start of production on the first HRS40 stations (1 ton/day), which are not currently generating their normalized gross margin. The initial effects of this new station will be optimized in the coming months and should allow for an improvement in gross margin as volumes of sales of the H40 stations increase.

After net depreciation, amortization and provisions of €0.6 million, the Company posted an EBIT loss of €3.6 million before non-recurring items.

After tax income of €0.8 million and net financial income of €0.1 million, the Company posted a net loss of €2.6 million for H1 2022/2023, a decrease of €1.9 million compared to the previous year.

A SOLID FINANCIAL STRUCTURE TO SUPPORT THE CONTINUED INDUSTRIAL AND COMMERCIAL EXPANSION OF HRS

Cash flow statement in thousands of euros 2021/2022 H1 2022/2023
Cash flow before cost of financial debt and tax (1,267) (2,792)
Change in WCR (10,950) (1,815)
NET CASH FLOW FROM OPERATING ACTIVITIES (I) (12,289) (4,607)
     
O/W net acquisitions of fixed assets  (16,211) (6,777)
O/W net change in short-term investments - (2,136)
NET CASH FLOW FROM INVESTING ACTIVITIES (II) (16,489) (8,912)
     
O/W variation nette des emprunts  +5,005 +5,822
NET CASH FLOW FROM FINANCING ACTIVITIES (III) +5,010 +5,824
CHANGE IN CASH FLOW (I + II + III) (23,768) (7,695)
CASH AND CASH EQUIVALENTS: CLOSING 34,669 26,974

Operating cash flow for the financial year ended December 31, 2022 amounted to a €4.6 million outflow, comprising a gross operating cash outflow of €2.8 million before net cost of debt and tax and a controlled increase in working capital to a €1.8 million outflow linked to the growth in activity with the start of production on 11 new stations, including the first H40 stations (1 ton/day). This increase in working capital is, however, 50% lower than on December 31, 2021, due, on the one hand, to an increased rate of conversion of invoices into cash and, on the other hand, to the use of inventories made to meet strong demand.

At the same time, cash flow from investing activities totaled €8.9 million, mainly including i) the development of industrial facilities totaling €5.8 million net, primarily for the new production site, ii) €0.9 million in R&D, and iii) a €2.1 million reduction in the value of the shares held in Gaussin and Haffner Energy at the closing date of the first half of the year on December 31, 2022.

Cash flow from financing activities amounted to a €5.8 million inflow due to new borrowings totaling €6.5 million to finance the new site and the repayment of €0.6 million in borrowings over the period. HRS posted cash and cash equivalents of €27.0 million as of December 31, 2022, compared to €34.7 million as of June 30, 2022, and gross borrowings of €13.3 million excluding lease liabilities. Cash and cash equivalents include the fair value of Gaussin and Haffner Energie shares €2.9 million on December 31, 2022.

SIGNIFICANT SALES MOMENTUM IN THE FIRST HALF - INCREASED VISIBILITY

During the first half of the year, HRS signed major deployment agreements in both France and Europe with Engie and pHYnix, as well as three other orders for a total of four additional stations, including one for a major city bus depot in France[3].

This sales momentum brought the order backlog to €109 million when the half-year revenue was published on January 19, 2023, comprising 74 stations to be delivered by 2026, of which 32 were already under construction, built or are being delivered during the first half.

Since this half-year update, the order book has increased, as HRS has intensified its partnership with Hympulsion within the framework of the ZEV program with the order of large-capacity stations, signed a major agreement with Plug Power and received a first order from Flex'hy, one of the eight companies comprising Green Corp Konnection. This portfolio of stations ordered or to be ordered will fuel growth in the second half of 2022/2023 and in the years ahead.

At the same time, the HRS's commercial pipeline also updated half-yearly, reached €1,186 million in potential orders and identified projects on January 19, 2023. In detail, it is composed of:

  • several stations in the final negotiation or selection stage in calls for tender representing potential revenue of €92 million (down €13 million) with deliveries staggered over the 2022-2030?period. This decrease is due to the transfer of a large number of stations to the order backlog;
  • calls for projects and prospecting for which HRS has submitted additional station projects for delivery between 2023 and 2027, representing over €1,094 million in potential revenue (up €344 million). The market has notably accelerated, driven by major European cross-border plans (European Commission) and Southern Europe (Spain and Italy), where HRS is developing its sales network.

UPWARD REVISION OF ANNUAL GROWTH TARGET FOLLOWING STRONG NEW ORDER MOMENTUM

This excellent sales momentum and the production schedule provide the Company with excellent visibility. HRS has therefore revised its annual growth objective upwards and is now targeting revenue of €29 million as of June 30, 2023, representing growth of 70%, compared to the previous forecast of at least 50% revenue growth (approximately €25.5 million). The seasonal nature of the Company's business will once again be significant, as it was last year, with the second half of the year almost twice as strong as the first in terms of business.

SIGNIFICANT PROGRESS OF THE COMPANY'S DEVELOPMENT PLAN

HRS is pursuing its business plan aimed at turning it into a European leader in the design and construction of hydrogen refueling stations, with a focus on heavy transport. HRS is also pursuing its industrial and commercial deployment plan, particularly in the following areas:

  • The construction of its new production and R&D site, one of the largest industrial sites in Europe for hydrogen mobility. The work initiated in 2021 is entering the completion phase. The production center will be delivered shortly and the offices towards the end of H1 2023. This 14,300 m² facility located on a 2.6-hectare site, the only one of its kind in Europe, will meet the strong increase in demand by boosting production capacity to 180 stations per year. The site houses a cutting-edge test area, a hydrogen refueling station for all types of vehicles, and a green hydrogen production facility. The building will also be fitted with 10,000 m² of solar panels. The building will be certified BREEAM Very Good, a certification method for the environmental and human performance of built environments;
  • Intensive recruitment plan to support robust business growth in France and Europe. As part of its ambitious 2021-2025 recruitment plan, HRS almost doubled its headcount for the 2021-2022 financial year, adding 37 employees as of June 30, 2022. The company has stepped up the restructuring of its teams, in particular the design office and the operational teams for Commissioning/After Sales Service-Maintenance Together with the service providers, about 100 people are currently working for the development of HRS and numerous recruitments for the new production site are underway to support the upcoming projects;
  • Deployment of a sales force in Europe. The recruitment of two business developers to strengthen the sales force in France was carried out in addition to the Iberian sales force, whose offices are due to open soon, and the partnership in Italy with Simplifhy. The recruitment of business developers, in the German-speaking and northern European zones, remains a priority. Furthermore, HRS is looking into expanding into the Middle East, where hydrogen mobility projects are being launched.

In addition, after the half-year closing, HRS concluded bank loans for a total of €3.5 million with its partner banks BNPP, Crédit Agricole, Crédit Coopératif, and Société Générale. These loans are intended to finance investments in the interior equipment of the new plant and the associated social buildings.

Then, in order to increase its financial flexibility, HRS has negotiated and continues to negotiate bilateral lines of credit with its partner banks for a total amount of approximately €8 million. These financings demonstrate the confidence that partner banks have in the HRS business model.

Based on all these elements and its commercial strength, HRS reaffirms its confidence in achieving the objectives of its 2021-2025 development plan

HRS reaffirms its target of generating revenue of €85 million by June 30, 2025, aiming to deliver 100 new stations over the 2021-2025 period. HRS also confirms its target of achieving an EBIT margin before non-recurring items (EBIT/revenue) of around 20% by June 30, 2025

Next financial press release:

FY 2022/2023 revenue, July 27, 2023 after close of trading

ABOUT HRS

Founded in 2004, Hydrogen-Refueling-Solutions (HRS), formerly TSM, is pioneer in hydrogen mobility. European designer and manufacturer of hydrogen refueling stations, for over ten years, the Company has been committed to reducing transport emissions.

Thanks to its unique experience and know-how, HRS has developed a complete range of hydrogen refueling stations for all types of fuel cell vehicles that is perfectly suited to the needs of a fast-growing European market. At its Champ-sur-Drac site, HRS has mass production capacities that enable it to assemble up to 60 units per year in record time, in as little as 8 weeks.

The Company posted 2021/2022 revenue of €17.0 million. As of June 30, 2022, the company had 78 employees. (ISIN code: FR0014001PM5 - ticker symbol: ALHRS).

CONTACTS

Relations investisseurs
ACTUS finance & communication
Grégoire SAINT-MARC
hrs@actus.fr
00 33 1 53 67 36 94
Financial press relations
ACTUS finance & communication
Anne Catherine BONJOUR
hrs-presse@actus.fr
00 33 1 53 67 36 93
Corporate press relations
ACTUS finance & communication
Déborah Schwartz
hrs-presse@actus.fr
00 33 1 53 67 36 35

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  Original Source : HYDROGEN REFUELING SOLUTIONS (HRS)