Eqtec revenue more-than-quadruples in 2021

Hydrogen, biofuel and sustainable energy company Eqtec reported revenue of €9.2m (£7.75m) in its final results on Monday, up from €2.2m year-on-year.

The AIM-traded firm said its losses for the 12 months ended 31 December totalled €4.7m, narrowing from €5.8m in 2020.

It said its net assets increased to €43.4m at year-end, from €25.3m a year earlier, after it raised £16m (€19m) before expenses in May, in an institutional investor-led, oversubscribed placing.

Eqtec’s cash balance stood at €6.4m at year-end, in line with what it reported at the end of the 2020 financial year.

The company agreed a new loan facility of €1.39m with shareholder Altair Group Investment in January, with a maturity date of 31 December 2021.

The loan, fully drawn down to repay an outstanding debt with another lender, had a lower interest rate than the previously-held debt facility, and was itself repaid in full in June 2021, six months ahead of schedule.

“We set ambitious targets for 2021 and delivered more than four times revenue over 2020, building the momentum we intended,” said chief executive officer David Palumbo.

“We converted more opportunities than ever into focused, planned projects and amongst these was closure of both of our targeted Market Development Centres in Italy and Croatia.

“We formalised majority-owned joint ventures in Croatia and the Aegean and invested in our go-to-market presence across the US, the UK, France, Italy and Ireland, with a view to increasing pace and impact in those markets.”

Palumbo said critically, the firm also started extending its partnership network to “major players” that would “credibly support” its growth into new geographies and solutions.

“I am especially proud of these achievements in the face of strong market headwinds, including significant price increases and delays in receiving critical raw materials or manufactured parts.

“Our business platform grows increasingly resilient as we add partners and new talent to our global network.

“From post-Covid challenges to COP26 to more recent geopolitical events, we experience more demand than ever and are taking our place as a leading technology innovator for fossil fuel replacements and clean, baseload energy and biofuels, as well as an innovator of new business models for energy independence and security.”

At 0859 BST, shares in Eqtec were up 6.45% at 0.83p.