Achievements of the year:
- CEOG, the world's first multi-megawatt hydrogen power plant, under construction since September 2021;
- 6 new projects under development since June 2021 taking the project portfolio to 17;
- Organisation of five regional teams fuelled by 28 new hires to support the Company's international expansion goals;
- Cash and cash equivalents of €95 million boosted by the successful June 2021 IPO and destined to help accelerate the Company's development.
Robust outlook:
- Potential for 2,364 MW in RE power and 5,406 MWh in hydrogen storage capacity;
- Renewstable® Barbados ("RSB"), the second HDF Energy project to welcome a majority investor in February 2022;
- Confirmation of the construction schedule for the mass-production multi-MW fuel cell (FC) factory scheduled for commissioning in 2023;
- Investment in the largest decarbonised hydrogen plant currently planned in the Caribbean;
- Confirmation of our targets: €100 million in revenues, with a clear acceleration expected from 2023, and an EBITDA margin of around 35% by 2025.
Bordeaux, 14 April 2022 - Hydrogène de France ("HDF Energy" or the "Company") - Euronext Paris: HDF - a pioneer in the development of infrastructure for continuous or on-demand electricity generation from hydrogen derived from renewable energies (wind or solar), reports its earnings for the 2021 financial year. The consolidated financial statements were approved by the Board of Directors on 14 April 2022. The audit procedures on the annual financial statements have been completed and the auditors' report will be issued shortly. The annual financial report, including the consolidated financial statements for the year ended 31 December 2021 and the notes thereto, will be available by 29 April 2022,
in the "Regulated information" section of the Company's website (www.hdf-energy.com under "Investors").
Damien Havard, Chairman and CEO of Hydrogène de France, said: "HDF Energy enjoyed unparalleled growth over the year. We have expanded our teams with a view to winning new international projects in a booming environment for hydrogen power. Our most advanced projects all cleared new milestones, including CEOG, the first Renewstable® power plant and a world first, now under construction.
We have built a commercial portfolio based on power plant development and high-power fuel cell sales that positions us as a leader in our markets and will enable us to generate revenues representing between 12% and 17% of the total investment in the Renewstable® projects we are developing.
The IPO has given the Company the financial means to step up its development everywhere in the world where hydrogen power represents a defining economic and strategic challenge. Thanks to the support of our two strategic partners, RUBIS and TERÉGA , and the trust shown by our institutional and individual investors, HDF Energy aims to pursue its development by cementing its world leadership in continuous or on-demand power generation from hydrogen and renewable energies. We are also seizing opportunities to step up the development of the hydrogen industry worldwide."
2021 financial results in line with the structuring of development activities
2021 revenues related to the final development stages of the CEOG project
HDF Energy posted revenues of €885,000 in 2021 compared to €1,936,000 the previous year. As in the previous three years, revenues mainly comprise sums recognised in respect of the project development and project management assistance contract with CEOG, a company that has been accounted for using the equity method since the end of July 2018. The CEOG project, which has now entered the construction phase following the end of the project management assistance contract, accordingly generated less revenues in 2021.
For information, advance payments received but not recognised under 2021 revenues amounted to €2.1 million (recorded under contract liabilities in the balance sheet), including €2.0 million relating to the CEOG fuel cell supply contracts. No advance payments were received but not recognised under revenues in 2020.
As a reminder, HDF Energy's project development revenues are recognised on a percentage-of-completion basis, based on the costs actually incurred over a given period, and may fluctuate depending on the development phase of the various projects. However, the value created is only recognised once control of the SPV is lost, which usually occurs when an investor acquires a majority stake.
Similarly, the supply of fuel cells only contributes to the Company's revenues when the cells are actually delivered, bearing in mind that manufacturing may be spread over a year or more, and despite the fact that rights to payment under sales contracts are not subject to recourse.
In view of its business and the revenue recognition principles laid down in IFRS 15, HDF Energy believes that revenues will not be a pertinent indicator for assessing the Company's development over the coming years. It does not anticipate a significant acceleration in revenues before 2023.
Since June 2021, further projects have entered the development phase, bringing the project portfolio to a cumulative 591 MW in electricity generation and 1,429 MWh in energy storage capacity.
In the coming years, HDF Energy's value creation will stem primarily from the development of non-intermittent renewable energy projects. The Company estimates that it is in a position to generate revenues representing between 12% and 17% of the total project capex borne by the SPV during the development and construction phases, including development services and the supply of fuel cells during the power plant construction phase.
Increase in operating expenses reflecting HDF Energy's development
Operating expenses rose sharply to €5.3 million in 2021 from €2.1 million the previous year, reflecting the Company's development path and the acceleration of its projects. The sharp increase in personnel expenses from €0.9 million to €2.3 million was due to the team reorganisation programme and the hiring of 28 new employees in 2021 to support the Company's business development plans. External project development expenses followed the same trend, rising from €1.0 million in 2020 to €1.8 million. In addition, the Company recorded €0.9 million in fundraising fees (including €0.8 million in IPO fees), which also increased external expenses.
Net financial expense totalled €0.7 million mainly comprising a charge relating to the non-conversion premium on convertible bonds (OC 2021), which were the subject of a debt compensation in the context of the IPO.
After tax income of €1.2 million (including €1.1 million in deferred taxes), the Group posted a consolidated net loss of €3.5 million for 2021 (including €1.6 million in non-recurring expenses breaking down as €0.9 million fundraising fees and €0.7 million financial expenses), compared to net income of €0.4 million in 2020.
Financial structure bolstered by successful IPO
In June last year, the Company raised a net amount of €104 million[1] from the issue of new shares as part of its IPO on Euronext Paris.
At 31 December 2021, cash and cash equivalents amounted to €95.1 million, plus €4.0 million in cash (included under the €4.2 million non-current financial assets) tied up in the CEOG project, thereby guaranteeing the Company the financial resources required to continue its development and accelerate its commercial rollout.
Shareholders' equity amounted to €109.1 million at 31 December 2021.
New Renewstable® plants
New development phase for Renewstable® Barbados
The Company has welcomed RUBIS as a majority investor in the Renewstable® Barbados project. RSB, the Caribbean's largest hydrogen power project, will provide clean, resilient, stable and competitive baseload power to 16,000 residents, day and night, 24/7. Using only the sun as its primary source of electricity (50 MW of solar energy), RSB will combine 128 MWh of green hydrogen storage and battery storage to guarantee continuous year-round energy supply.
Strengthening of the Asia pipeline with projects in the Philippines and Indonesia
HDF Energy recently signed a Memorandum of Cooperation with the Mindanao Development Authority, the Zamboanga Sibugay Provincial Government, a group of municipalities on the island of Olutanga and the Zamboanga del Sur II Electric Cooperative (Zamboanga Sibugay Province) in the Philippines for the study and development of several Renewstable® power plant projects.
This agreement reinforces HDF Energy's strategic presence in Asia, where the Company last year formed a subsidiary, staffed by a local team, that has already made significant progress in power plant development with projects underway in Indonesia. HDF Energy is continuing its expansion in the region by setting up operations in Cambodia and Vietnam.
Confirmation of a high-power fuel cell factory for 2023
At the same time, HDF Energy is continuing to develop the Blanquefort factory destined to mass produce high-power fuel cells, for which the building permit application is currently under review. The factory should accordingly be operational in 2023, as planned. While its primary purpose is to equip Renewstable® power plants with fuel cells, it will also supply high-power fuel cells for the maritime, rail and data centre markets. HDF Energy has already signed agreements with leading partners in these sectors. Lastly, HDF Energy has been preselected by the French government, within the framework of the EU's Important Projects of Common European Interest (IPCEI) funding programme, to transform this factory into a Gigafactory (creation of more than 500 industrial jobs).
Continuation of the conquest strategy
HDF Energy is entirely focused on extending the project portfolio and moving each project through its major development phases (prospecting, development and construction). The pipeline is a leading indicator of the Company's value creation prospects over the coming years.
In 2022, the Company aims to pursue its strategy of conquest backed up by a sustained ambition to increase its headcount to 100 employees by the end of 2022. HDF Energy specifically plans to double its business development teams (30 talents in February 2022, experienced in the development of major electricity production projects) and to significantly strengthen its technical and industrial teams (ramp-up of the Blanquefort factory).
With these human resources investments and the large-scale strategic project development partnerships concluded with industrial shareholders RUBIS and TERÉGA, HDF Energy has the means to rapidly increase the number of opportunities identified while ensuring optimal project development.
In addition to the Caribbean-Latin America and Asia-Pacific regions, HDF Energy has noted encouraging developments in Africa, which is poised for a sharp rise in the number of projects identified in 2022.
As key player in major hydrogen projects, HDF Energy took a majority interest in the NewGen Carbon Neutral Hydrogen project in Trinidad and Tobago
Over the past few years, HDF Energy has acquired expertise in the development and financing of large hydrogen projects. Recognising the need to accelerate the development of the hydrogen industry and its transition to low carbon models, HDF Energy intends to leverage this expertise in strategic industrial projects.
To this end, HDF Energy acquired, in April 2022, a 70% majority stake in NewGen in Trinidad and Tobago, a project initiated by local company Kenesjay Green Ltd ("KGL") (see press release dated 12 April).
When completed, the NewGen project, representing a total investment of over $200 million, will be one of the world's largest clean hydrogen production facilities (electrolyser over 125 MW), using a smart combination of solar energy and energy from excess heat from power plants. It will produce competitive, carbon-free hydrogen to meet 20% of the hydrogen needs of the existing world-class ammonia plant in the Point Lisas petrochemical hub in Trinidad.
HDF Energy plans to arrange conventional project financing for the NewGen project, mostly in the form of debt plus a smaller portion in equity. HDF will eventually retain only a minority stake in the NewGen project once it is opened to investors, thereby limiting its financial commitment.
Green hydrogen central to energy sovereignty solutions
HDF Energy does not anticipate any direct impact on its business from the current conflict in Ukraine. Rather, it notes that the geopolitical environment has highlighted the issues of energy independence of countries and regions. Current discussions in some countries could be highly conducive to the development of opportunities in HDF Energy's key markets.
Confirmation of medium-term objectives
In view of the strong appeal of its solutions, the Company aims to roll them out swiftly so as to secure strategic positions as a source of long-term growth and profitability, confirming the target of delivering €100 million in revenues and an EBITDA margin of around 35% by 2025.
Read financial information on Hydrogène de France
at www.hdf-energy.com
ABOUT HYDROGÈNE DE FRANCE (HDF ENERGY)
HDF Energy is a global pioneer in hydrogen energy. HDF Energy develops high-capacity Hydrogen-Power plants and is active, through dedicated project companies, in their operation. These plants will provide continuous or on-demand electricity from renewable energy sources (wind or solar), combined with high power fuel cells supplied by HDF Energy.
HDF Energy develops two types of Hydrogen-Power plants:
- Renewstable® (POWER TO POWER): Multi-megawatt power plants, producing stable electricity 24h/day, composed of an intermittent renewable source and on-site hydrogen energy storage.
- HyPower® (GAS TO POWER): Multi-megawatt power plants producing electricity on demand from green hydrogen from gas transportation networks.
HDF Energy has integrated key fuel-cell know-how under a memorandum of understanding with Ballard (seven-year exclusive license agreement) and has developed the world's first mass production plant for high-power fuel cells for energy, which will be commissioned in France (Bordeaux Metropole) in 2023. Through this activity, HDF Energy will also serve the mobility, maritime and rail markets, and data centers.
HDF Energy has positioned itself as a powerful accelerator of the energy transition by offering non-intermittent, grid-friendly and on-demand renewable power.
HDF shares have been listed on the regulated market of Euronext Paris compartment B since 24 June 2021.
Contacts
| HDF ENERGY | Investor Relations | Press Relations |
| Sylvain CHARRIER + 33 (0)5 56 77 11 11 sylvain.charrier@hdf-energy.com | Olivier LAMBERT + 33 (0)1 53 67 36 33 hdf-energy@actus.fr | Serena BONI +33 (0)4 72 18 04 92 sboni@actus.fr |
APPENDIX
Summary of all projects initiated and developed by HDF Energy
Regional breakdown showing stage of maturity and power to be installed
| Construction | Development | Prospecting | |||||
| Plant MW | Storage MWh | Plant MW | Storage MWh | Plant MW | Storage MWh | ||
| EMEA | 55 | 128 | 172 | 400 | 165 | 352 | |
| Latin America & Caribbean | 213 | 566 | 410 | 1,192 | |||
| Asia | 91 | 159 | 358 | 577 | |||
| Southern Africa | 84 | 230 | 741 | 1,662 | |||
| Indian Ocean | 31 | 74 | 44 | 106 | |||
| Total | 55 | 128 | 591 | 1,429 | 1,718 | 3,849 | |
Summary income statement
| 12 months ended | |||
| (€000) | 31 December 2021 | 31 December 2020 | |
| Revenues | 885.0 | 1,936.0 | |
| Other income from operations | 375.7 | 716.4 | |
| Total income from operations | 1,260.6 | 2,652.4 | |
| Purchases consumed, change in WIP and finished goods inventories | 423.8 | 0.0 | |
| External expenses | (1,843.3) | (1,025.3) | |
| Personnel expenses | (2,273.0) | (921.8) | |
| Taxes and duties | (66.1) | (22.0) | |
| Depreciation, amortisation and impairment | (616.7) | (102.3) | |
| Share of earnings of associates and joint ventures | 0.0 | (23.8) | |
| Income from disposal of fixed assets, securities and operations | 0.0 | 0.0 | |
| Other operating income and expenses | (879.7) | 1.0 | |
| EBIT | (3,994.3) | 558.2 | |
| Net financial income/(expense) | (683.7) | 5.5 | |
| Income before tax | (4,678.0) | 563.7 | |
| Corporate income tax | 1,157.9 | (145.4) | |
| Consolidated net income/(loss) | (3,520.1) | 418.3 | |
Summary statement of financial position
| (€000) | 31 December 2021 | 31 December 2020 | |
| Intangible assets | 3,714.1 | 2,384.3 | |
| Property, plant and equipment | 482.8 | 288.6 | |
| Other non-current assets | 6,954.1 | 318.9 | |
| Non-current assets | 11,151.0 | 2,991.8 | |
| Current assets | 104,447.8 | 5,091.3 | |
| o/w Cash and cash equivalents | 95,123.3 | 26.2 | |
| TOTAL ASSETS | 115,598.8 | 8,083.0 | |
| Shareholders' equity | 109,145.0 | 3,239.9 | |
| Non-current borrowings | 129.9 | 796.6 | |
| Post-employment benefits | 68.2 | 60.7 | |
| Other non-current liabilities | 113.8 | 727.2 | |
| Non-current liabilities | 311.9 | 1,584.6 | |
| Current borrowings | 115.2 | 71.2 | |
| Trade payables | 1,111.6 | 888.9 | |
| Contract liabilities | 2,110.0 | 0.0 | |
| Other current liabilities | 2,805.1 | 2,298.5 | |
| Current liabilities | 6,141.9 | 3,258.6 | |
| TOTAL EQUITY AND LIABILITIES | 115,598.8 | 8,083.0 |
[1] Excluding bond conversions and transaction-related fees
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