AKASOL AG: Sales up 33.1% in the first half of 2018

• Sales growth of 33.1% to EUR 9.3 million in the first half of 2018 (H1 2017: EUR 7.0 million)
• Orders on hand until 2024 up slightly from the end of March 2018 to EUR 1.47 billion as of June 30, 2018
• Adjusted EBIT of EUR 1.2 million in the first half of 2018 (H1 2017: EUR 0.7 million); adjusted EBIT margin: 12.5% (H1 2017: 10.5%)
• Confirmation of the full-year sales forecast of EUR 22 million to EUR 24 million and an adjusted EBIT margin of around 7%

Darmstadt, August 27, 2018 – AKASOL AG (“AKASOL”), a leading German manufacturer of high-performance lithium-ion battery systems for buses, commercial, rail and industrial vehicles, marine and stationary applications, continued to grow as expected in the first half of 2018.

At EUR 9.3 million, sales revenues were 33.1% higher than in the same period of the previous year (H1 2017: EUR 7.0 million). The order backlog until 2024 rose slightly since the end of March 2018 amounting to EUR 1.47 billion as of June 30, 2018.

Sven Schulz, CEO of AKASOL: “In the first half of 2018, AKASOL showed the sales growth we announced in connection with the IPO. Even before the start of series production at our Langen plant, we had already generated more than 60% of the respective total annual sales for fiscal years 2016 and 2017 in the first six months of the current year. That indicates how strongly demand is rising for high-performance battery systems for buses and e-commercial vehicles. The fact that Daimler EvoBus commissioned us to develop the next generation of battery systems even before the start of series production underlines our outstanding and technologically leading market position.”

For the successful IPO of AKASOL on June 29, 2018, IPO-related one-time expenses of EUR 2.2 million were incurred in the first half of 2018, including for legal and transaction consulting as well as auditing services. Without these expenses, AKASOL achieved positive adjusted EBITDA (earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization) of EUR 1.4 million (H1 2017: EUR 1.0 million) and positive adjusted EBIT (earnings before interest and taxes) of EUR 1.2 million (H1 2017: EUR 0.7 million). The adjusted EBIT margin (as a percentage of sales) was 12.5% (H1 2017: 10.5%).

Costs of materials rose to EUR 3.9 million in the first half of 2018 (H1 2017: EUR 2.6 million) as a result of the growth in sales and preparations for series production at the Langen plant. Adjusted EBITDA and adjusted EBIT in the first half of 2018 were also affected by the scheduled increase in personnel in view of the start of series production in the third quarter of 2018. As of June 30, 2018, AKASOL employed 116 permanent employees (June 30, 2017: 82). As a result, personnel expenses rose from EUR 2.3 million in the previous year to EUR 2.8 million in the first half of 2018, while the personnel expense ratio fell slightly from 33.0% in the previous year to 30.2% due to the disproportionately low increase in personnel expenses compared to sales.

As a result of the capital increase in connection with the IPO, the equity ratio increased to 86.6% (March 31, 2018: 11.6%).

Dr. Curt Philipp Lorber, CFO of AKASOL: “We are poised to start series production for Daimler and a Scandinavian bus and truck maker at our plant in Langen in the third quarter, as announced. We are also already looking closely at sites for our plant in the US and our research and development center in Hesse in order to quickly achieve initial success in these projects after having strengthened our capital base by going public in late June.”

AKASOL intends to use the proceeds from the IPO of approximately EUR 100 million to double its production capacity at the plant in Langen, Germany, to expand into the US by establishing a production site in Michigan, to invest in further test and validation facilities and for research and development.

For the full year 2018, the Management Board of AKASOL AG forecasts sales between EUR 22 million and EUR 24 million and an adjusted EBIT margin of around 7%.

The full report for the first half of 2018 will be available for download on the website https://www.akasol.com/en/financial-reports later today.

Contact:
cometis AG, Georg Grießmann
Phone: +49 – (0)611 – 20 58 55 61 | EMail: griessmann@cometis.de

About AKASOL:
AKASOL is a leading German manufacturer of high-performance lithium-ion battery systems for buses, commercial vehicles, rail vehicles, industrial vehicles, marine and stationary applications. Building on nearly 30 years of experience, AKASOL is a pioneer in developing, testing and manufacturing certified battery systems for the commercial transport sector. AKASOL AG’s shares are traded on the Prime Standard segment of the Frankfurt Stock Exchange since June 29, 2018.

Based in Germany, AKASOL operates a facility in Langen with an annual capacity of up to 300 MWh which is planned to be expanded to 600 MWh by 2020. To AKASOL’s knowledge, this is Europe’s largest production plant for commercial vehicle lithium-ion battery systems, currently capable of producing high-performance battery systems for up to 1,500 fully electric buses or up to 6,000 commercial vehicles per year, depending on battery size. AKASOL’s systems are manufactured to the industry standards demanded by leading OEM clients. Current clients include Daimler, a Scandinavian bus and truck manufacturer, Alstom, Bombardier, Rolls-Royce Power Systems (MTU Friedrichshafen) and Medatech. AKASOL boasts a technology-independent product portfolio. This allows the Company to choose the best battery cells and battery chemistry according to the clients’ individual needs.

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