Apr 28, 2022 7:55 PM
Voltabox AG
/ Key word(s): Annual Report
Voltabox Takes Path out of Consolidation in 2021 - Significantly Reduced Revenue in Line With Expectations - Revenue from continuing business activities at € 3.5 million; EBITDA at € -3.7 million - Management Board expects positive corporate development from the second half of the year onwards - Unqualified audit opinion as a result of significant consolidation efforts in the reporting year - Equity ratio of around 30% at balance sheet date - capital base and liquidity strengthened in the meantime by capital increase Paderborn, April 28, 2022 - Today, Voltabox AG ["Voltabox" or the "Company"; ISIN DE000A2E4LE9] published its consolidated financial statements and annual financial statements for the 2021 fiscal year. Thanks to the successful restructuring of the Company, the risks for Voltabox have been significantly reduced and the auditor issued an unqualified audit opinion. On this basis, the Management Board continues to work intensively with a selected team on the development of a new corporate strategy. As a result of the recent consolidation, the balance sheet total was reduced from € 40.1 million to € 5.7 million in the past fiscal year; at the same time, the Company has largely eliminated its debt. The reorganization not only resulted in a reduction of the balance sheet total through write-downs and derecognitions as well as the divestment of discontinued business activities, but also required a significant reduction of the workforce. For example, the number of employees was reduced within one year from 186 as of December 31, 2020 by three quarters at the end of the reporting year. In the 2021 fiscal year, personnel expenses decreased accordingly by 74.4% to € 2.8 million. Patrick Zabel, CEO of Voltabox AG since March of this year, comments: " There is a painful road behind us. However, the goals we have achieved open up the opportunity to reposition the company free from the burdens of the past. We have now successfully mastered the most difficult and toughest challenges. Now we are fully focused on the tasks ahead of us. Voltabox must be given a new profile quickly." The divestments already mentioned include the successful sale of the activities in North America and the automotive business. In addition, Voltabox has outsourced its own production in the course of the sale by its former parent company and the relocation of the company's headquarters to Paderborn. In the future, this will create the option to flexibly use production facilities without having to be solely responsible for capacity utilization. In this way, the company is following the modern approach of relying on production and technology hubs in a network of cooperation partners. Revenue from continuing business activities amounts to € 3.5 million in 2021 and also includes those industries that Voltabox intends to continue to address in the future. After an increased cost of materials ratio as a result of sales below book value and significantly reduced, but still relatively high personnel expenses, EBITDA amounts to € -3.7 million in the reporting year. This corresponds to an EBITDA margin of -105.9%. As a result of scheduled depreciation and amortization of property, plant and equipment and intangible assets amounting to € 3.3 million, EBIT came to € -10.0 million. The consolidated net income of € -12.8 million corresponds to earnings per share of € -0.81 in the reporting year. As of the balance sheet date and thus before the capital increase successfully implemented in the current fiscal year, the equity ratio was 30.0%. Cash flow from operating activities decreased to € -8.2 million in the reporting period (prior year: € 3.7 million). The main reasons for this are the significant reduction in other current liabilities and cash flow from discontinued operations. Cash flow from investing activities improved to € 9.9 million (previous year: €-5.5 million) as a result of the divestments made in the reporting year. In the 2022 fiscal year, the Management Board expects revenue of around € 2.5 million. A key influencing factor will be the supply chain problems that will continue to exist throughout the first half of the year. In addition, the intentional focus on strategy development and the accompanying priority of serving the existing business to the extent that it is possible to procure parts will also be a factor. Accordingly, revenue generation will take place primarily in the second half of the year. The Company expects EBITDA to be € -2.5 million. In addition, the Management Board assumes that free cash flow will be less than € -2.5 million. "Our target figures for the current fiscal year continue to reflect the fact that Voltabox is undergoing a transformation. We are confident that Voltabox will return to positive corporate development in the coming years. However, it is important that this happens sustainably and that our business models are profitable. I willingly repeat myself here: In order to create the conditions for this, we still need time in the current fiscal year," emphasizes CEO Patrick Zabel. As already explained, Voltabox is consciously realigning and repositioning itself in the market by looking at things from different angles - both internally and with external support. For this process, the Voltabox team has been strengthened with specialists from the field of industrial electromobility. Their expertise and know-how is making its mark after just a few weeks and months. In addition, Voltabox is being advised by Trionity Invest GmbH as part of the strategy development process. The new majority shareholder also secures the refinancing of the Company. "The first feedback from our customers on the new Voltabox is very positive. They clearly notice the spirit of optimism that we are conveying with our team and that we are working very seriously and with great concentration on our new solution offering. The dialogue with our partners is very constructive and aimed at sounding out what the approaches to future collaboration might look like. To this end, we will consistently draw on our extensive network, which as a battery manufacturer and technology provider enables us to roll out our solutions for electromobility more reliably than ever before," emphasizes Patrick Zabel.
Voltabox AG (ISIN DE000A2E4LE9), which is listed on the regulated market (Prime Standard) of the Frankfurt Stock Exchange, is a technology driven provider for e-mobility solutions in industrial applications. Its core business lies in intrinsically safe, highly developed high-performance lithium-ion battery systems that are modular and in serial production. The battery systems are primarily used in buses for public transportation as well as in agricultural and construction machinery.
28.04.2022 Dissemination of a Corporate News, transmitted by DGAP - a service of EQS Group AG. |
Language: | English |
Company: | Voltabox AG |
Technologiepark 32 | |
33100 Paderborn | |
Germany | |
Phone: | +49 (0)5250 9930 964 |
E-mail: | info@voltabox.ag |
Internet: | www.voltabox.ag |
ISIN: | DE000A2E4LE9 |
WKN: | A2E4LE |
Listed: | Regulated Market in Frankfurt (Prime Standard); Regulated Unofficial Market in Berlin, Dusseldorf, Hamburg, Munich, Stuttgart, Tradegate Exchange |
EQS News ID: | 1338715 |
End of News | DGAP News Service |
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1338715 28.04.2022