PNE AG: Strong Q1 earnings driven by power generation and continued business expansion

PNE AG has made a dynamic start to fiscal year 2022, both operationally and financially. This is shown by the quarterly statement which was published today.

For the first quarter of 2022, the Group reports sales revenues of euro 29.5 million (prior year: euro 16.1 million), total aggregate output of euro 37.9 million (prior year: euro 49.4 million), earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization (EBITDA) of euro 15.8 million (prior year: euro 6.3 million) and undiluted earnings per share of euro 0.13 (prior year: euro 0.01).

"We have achieved the best Q1 EBITDA result in the company's history and further increased our already well-filled project pipeline to 7.2 GW/GWp. At the same time, we are ensuring the stabilisation of our earnings at a high level through the expansion of our own portfolio and the service business," said Markus Lesser, CEO of PNE AG. "Earnings were driven by the "Power Generation" segment, where total output increased significantly due to our larger installed base combined with the improved wind supply and high electricity prices. We also saved around 110,000 tons of CO2 through our own electricity generation in the first quarter, thus contributing to climate protection and energy security," Lesser continued.

Wind and PV project pipeline grows significantly

The pipeline for wind and photovoltaic projects increased by 939 MW/MWp year-on-year to 7.2 GW/GWp. Thereof, 5,778 MW are attributable to onshore wind energy projects and 1,423 MWp to photovoltaic projects. In Germany alone, the PNE Group worked on wind farms with a nominal capacity of approx. 1,957 MW (Q1 2021: 1,817 MW). Of these, eight wind farms with a nominal capacity of 135.1 MW were under construction, including one service project. The construction of wind farms on behalf of customers in Sweden, Poland and France has been continued and the development of further projects was advanced both nationally and internationally.

Expansion of own portfolio continues

At the end of the first quarter, the wind farm portfolio operated by PNE had a capacity of 233.2 MW. Right after the end of the first quarter in April, the portfolio was expanded to 252.6 MW. The commissioning of further wind farms for the company`s own portfolio is expected this year. In total, PNE currently has 112.3 MW under construction for its own operations. The approval procedures for further projects are underway. The Group is thus coming closer to the targeted expansion of its own operations to up to 500 MW by the end of 2023.

Service business grows - market entry in Lithuania

The expansion of the service business is also helping to further increase the share of steady earnings. In the first quarter of 2022, the international business of operations management and technical inspections and tests in Sweden and Poland was expanded with additional services and by the new market of Lithuania. As a result, the volume of orders PNE manages in operations management was again significantly increased to over 2,200 MW.

Forecast confirmed

Markus Lesser, CEO of PNE AG, summarizes: "PNE is on track and excellently positioned for its further development. In line with the results of the first quarter of 2022, we confirm our goals for the entire year: We expect Group EBITDA of euro 20 to 30 million in respect of our guidance for the 2022 fiscal year."