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Press release

FIRST HALF 2022 RESULTS

09.09.22
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FIRST HALF 2022 RESULTS
SUCCESSFUL VEGA C QUALIFICATION FLIGHT OPENS UP SUBSTANTIAL NEW BUSINESS OPPORTUNITIES
REVENUES UP WHILST PROFITABILITY IS IMPACTED BY RISING ENERGY COSTS


Highlights
- Substantial new commercial opportunities further to the successful Vega C qualification flight
- Ariane 6’s launch agreement with Amazon launch agreement secures P120 production volumes through the medium term
- Signed PNRR-related contracts enhance product roadmap visibility
- Completed acquisition of TEMIS provides substantial strengthening to avionics capabilities
- Repeat successful tests of M10 engine testify European leadership in innovative liquid propulsion solutions


Financial results
- Net Order backlog: Euro 848 million (-3% compared to December 2021)
- Revenues: Euro 134 million (+5% compared to H1 2021)
- EBITDA Reported: Euro 3.2 million (Euro -4.9 million compared to H1 2021) – Adjusted: Euro 5.6 million (-46% compared to H1 2021)
- EBIT Reported Euro -6.2 million (Euro -8.6 million compared to H1 2021) - Adjusted -3.7 million (Euro -3.8 million compared to H1 2021)
- Result for the period: Euro -7.6 million (Euro -5.2 million compared to H1 2021)
- Net cash position: Euro 40.9 million


Guidance 2022
- Net Order backlog: Euro 870-920 million – confirmed
- Revenues: Euro 330-350 million – confirmed
- Reported EBITDA: Euro 17-25 million – updated
- Net income: Euro -2/+3 million - updated


Rome, 9th September 2022 – The Board of Directors of Avio S.p.A., leading aerospace company listed on the STAR segment of the Italian Stock Exchange, today reviewed and approved the H1 2022 results.
In the first six months of 2022, Avio carried out the inaugural mission of the new European light launcher Vega C, boasting a 50% higher payload capacity than Vega (2.3 tons vs. 1.5 tons in low orbit). The mission was successfully accomplished on July 13 at the Centre Spatial Guyanais in French Guiana, with the launch into orbit of the LARES 2 satellite for the Italian Space Agency plus 4 cubesats. Its performance makes Vega C the only European low-orbit launcher qualified to perform key institutional missions such as the European Union's Copernicus constellation. Since the maiden flight there has been a significant increase in customer interest and a boost to commercial pipeline building activities, so that new orders for launches with Vega C are now expected to be signed up in the coming months.
The next Vega C mission is scheduled for November 2022, with the mission to take two additional satellites from the Pléiades Neo constellation into orbit for Airbus Defense & Space.
Two successful missions of the Ariane 5 heavy launcher took place in June, and after the end of H1 2022, in early September, with one more mission planned by the end of the year.
The inaugural launch of Ariane 6 is scheduled for 2023.

In April, Arianespace signed the largest contract in its history with Amazon to put a significant portion of Amazon's Kuiper communication constellation into orbit with an upgraded version of the Ariane 64 launcher through 18 launches starting from 2024. Avio is involved in the development and production of the P160 first-stage engine (an upgraded version of the P120), which is also designed to yield a further 10 percent performance increase to Vega C and also to future Vega E. With this contract, Avio also expects to achieve economies of scale on the P120/P160 production, which will also benefit the overall Vega program.


In May, June, and July 2022 Avio successfully conducted the first series of tests of the new LOX-Methane M10 engine in its own testing facility in Sardinia. Avio’s M10 engine is the very first of its type to be tested in Europe. The first test and the following ones, with a total engine ignition time of more than 800 seconds, allow for a linear and timely development of the program, which will culminate with the planned launch of Vega E in 2026, delivering further enhanced performance compared to Vega C and at an even more competitive cost.
In June 2022, Avio announced the signing of an initial tranche of a contract with the European Space Agency for a total value at completion of ca. Euro 340 million in connection with the development of new launch technologies within the scope of the Italian National Recovery and Resilience Plan. Through such contract Avio will develop a new high-thrust engine that will exploit the LOX-methane technology of the M10 engine along with other technologies such as non-pyrotechnic separation systems and cryogenic propellant tanks. These technologies will be tested through two technology demonstrators scheduled for launch in 2024 (suborbital version) and 2026 (orbital version), respectively. Such technologies will increase Avio’s launcher capabilities and competitiveness.


Regarding the ongoing conflict in Ukraine, Avio confirms that it has over time built a significant stock of AVUM engines available for Vega and Vega C, so Vega's operation through the medium term is not going to be impacted by the war events to date.
Furthermore, ESA has recently decided to provide further financial support to start technical and industrial actions aimed at mitigating procurement risk in the long-term through additional technical solutions.


Today Avio also announces the closing of the acquisition of the whole capital of Temis srl, a company with significant avionics expertise and a key supplier to the Vega program. As part of the transaction, Avio also acquired a 5 percent stake in ART Spa, Temis’ former controlling shareholder, with a concurrent Long Term Cooperation Agreement designed to support Temis’ operations and supply chain. Avio’s acquisition was financed partly with cash and partly with treasury shares, as authorized by Avio's shareholders' meeting held in April 2022, after receiving all necessary authorizations as per the Golden Power Law. With this transaction Avio acquires crucial core competencies in the field of avionics, also internalizing a significant part of supplier costs linked with the Vega program. TEMIS' expertise and ART's support to TEMIS will be especially relevant with a view to developing new advanced avionics systems also in connection with programs to be funded within the scope of the Italian National Recovery and Resilience Plan.


Avio also announces the signing of an MoU with CDP Venture Capital SGR for structured cooperation in the important aerospace startup scenario emerging in Italy. Leveraging this agreement, Avio has joined the Takeoff startup accelerator based in Turin and directed by Plug & Play. This program will provide Avio with the opportunity to review and engage with a number of entrepreneurial initiatives also with a view to making potential future investments.


With regard to the economic and financial results, the order backlog is stable at the levels reached in the last year, amounting at Euro 848 million (-3%, compared to December 2021). This is thanks to the acquisition of new orders related to the production of the P120, Vega development, as well as development contracts for the new Teseo defense system for NavArm. In addition, in August Avio announced further production orders for the Aster system, with tactical propulsion strengthening as a key sector for Avio's future growth.
In the first half of 2022, the Group achieved revenues of Euro 134 million, up 5% from the first half of the previous year, mainly due to the development activities of the Vega C and Vega E launchers.


Reported EBITDA, amounting to Euro 3.2 million, marks a decrease compared to the first half of the previous year, largely attributable to the significant increase in energy costs affecting the entire Italian industrial sector and economy since the end of 2021.
Reported EBIT, amounting to Euro -6.2 million, marks a decrease compared to last year, following the same dynamics of Reported EBITDA, net of lower amortization.


Non-recurring costs, which are excluded from Adjusted EBITDA (Euro 5.6 million), and Adjusted EBIT (-Euro 3.7 million), amounted to approximately Euro 2.4 million in the first half of the year (in line with HY 2021), with the most significant part related to extra costs incurred for the maiden flight of the Vega C program.


The result for the period, at Euro -7.6 million, follows a similar trend with respect to the Reported EBIT, including also tax charges.
The Net Cash Position as of June 30 2022 amounts to Euro 40.9 million (Euro 57.2 million as of December 31, 2021 and Euro 36.6 million as of June 30, 2021) with a better result compared to the typical seasonal trend thanks to the performance of working capital, despite the payment of dividends and further purchases of treasury shares, together with a sustained level of investments (Euro 10.4 million in the six-month period). The solid net cash position enables the Group to meet upcoming growth requirements.
Today, the Board of Directors also approved the kick-off of the "Performance Share 2022-2024" Plan, already approved on April 28, 2022 by the Shareholders' Meeting of Avio S.p.A. thus enabling to proceed with the assignment to Avio's top management of the rights to receive, free of charge, up to a total maximum of 105,460 Shares of the Company, equal to 0.40% of the total shares, subject to the achievement of certain minimum performance targets at the end of the three-year period 2022-2024 linked with the new order intake, as an indicator mirroring the sustainability and growth of the business in the medium term and measured as the cumulative value of new contract acquisitions in the three-year period 2022-2024. The information document “Performance Share Plan Prospectus” is available on the Investor Relations website of Avio, in the 2022 Shareholders’ meeting section.


Finally, the Board of Directors updated the company’s guidance for the 2022 annual results to take into account the changed energy cost scenario in Europe and in Italy, which has further worsened after June and through August 2022, making it difficulty to predict related developments in the course of the coming months. For such reasons, the guidance has been updated as follows:
Order backlog: Euro 870-920 million - confirmed
Revenues: Euro 330-350 million - confirmed
Reported EBITDA: Euro 17-25 million – updated*
Net income: Euro -2<->+3 million – updated
* confirmed Euro 5 million for Non-recurring costs, implying a Euro 22-30 million for EBITDA Adjusted.
As of June 30, Avio S.p.A. held 1,103,233 treasury shares, equal to 4.19 percent of the share capital.

"The first half of 2022 once again demonstrated Avio's technological capability thanks to the successful qualification flight of the new Vega C and the successful testing of the new M10 methane engine for Vega E, the first of its kind in Europe. - commented Giulio Ranzo, CEO of Avio."
"Visibility on new orders is increasing due to the availability of new products and technologies recognized by customers globally, as demonstrated by the contract between Arianespace and Amazon for the Kuiper constellation. The NRPP projects add new long-term prospects adding to our competitiveness and diversification."
"Finally," Ranzo concludes, "we are pleased to be able to announce the acquisition of TEMIS, a former Avio supplier with strategic expertise in avionics, a key area for our business in
the future. Such vertical expansion in our value chain will give us access to core competencies and also improve the profitability of our business."
 

HY 2022 (204.98 KB)