Financial Results for the First Quarter 2023

The transformation towards recurring revenues and Software as a Service (SaaS) continues. SaaS revenues were NOK 88 million in the quarter, an increase of 34 percent compared to the first quarter of 2022. Recurring revenue constituted 66 percent of total revenues and reached NOK 223 million in the quarter, an increase of 21 percent from the first quarter of 2022. This makes the ARR growth in the quarter Volue’s highest since listing.

“We are pleased to start the year with strong growth momentum. Revenues, ARR and SaaS are all moving in the right direction, and we are reaping the benefits from our commitment to investing for growth. The Energy segment continues to be the dominant force with 22 percent growth and improving margins from the same quarter the previous year. The demand backdrop for the segment is as attractive as it’s ever been. Europe’s response to energy security is a dedicated push for intermittent renewables. This has crystallised over the last year with a stronger magnitude than we anticipated when creating Volue in 2020. We have a clear vision on who will be the number one European player in this space by 2030 – and why it will be Volue,” says Trond Straume, CEO of Volue.

Volue established an office in Japan early in 2022 and launched its first offering to the market in September 2022. By the time of reporting the results for the fourth quarter 2022, the first customer contract was announced. Today, the number has increased to 11, and the team in Japan is exceeding the sales ambitions set when entering the year.

“The traction we are experiencing in Japan is a testament to the power of our platform. We have customer feedback stating that we are consistently outperforming our competitors in Japan, which bodes well for our future in the market,” Straume continues.

“Towards 2030, growth of intermittent renewables will largely come from small and new players. There is a striking contrast to the energy system of 2020, where incumbent players were responsible for the growth. At Volue, we have built a unique offering for those incumbent players, verified by the growth in our Energy Segments. To add to this growth, we see Portfolio Management as a Service being attractive for small and medium-sized players within wind, solar and batteries. In targeting this space, we continue to grow organically and assess structural options in our pursuit for the European number one position by 2030,” Straume says.

Volue has prioritised strategic investments in its SaaS platform and expansion into new markets. This has created short- to mid-term EBITDA impact and increased R&D capitalisation in line with plans. Measures are in place to counter margin effects, and Volue targets year-by-year improvement in profitability and cash conversion.

“Since listing Volue, scaling for growth has been our main objective. Coming out of 2022, we have increased our attention on profitability. In the first quarter of 2023, we realised organisational cost synergies in a way that will allow us to keep our growth momentum, and we adopted a more proactive approach to our portfolio. Part of that approach is a strategical assessment of our ownership in Industrial IoT,” says Straume.

Volue provides the following updated long-term guidance to the market

• Annual long-term organic growth of 15 percent reiterated
• Target of NOK 2 billion in revenues in 2025, including M&A, reiterated

• Year-by-year increase of adjusted EBITDA margin, cash conversion, share of ARR and SaaS revenues

Additionally, Volue has set the following priorities and ambitions for 2023:

• Long-term growth target of 15% reiterated, whilst lower 2023 non-recurring revenues may limit growth from 2022

• Continue to grow ARR and SaaS business in line with 2022 performance
• Focus on profitability initiatives to improve profitability and cash conversion
• Structural growth through M&A

Webcast and presentation:
For further details, please see the attached presentation.

*EBITDA and other alternative performance measures (APMs) are defined and reconciled to the IFRS financial statements as part of the APM section of the first quarter 2023 presentation on page 33.

*EBITDA and other alternative performance measures (APMs) are defined and reconciled to the IFRS financial statements as part of the APM section of the first quarter 2023 presentation on page 33.