Maiden profit for Bglobal
SMART metering specialist Bglobal has announced its maiden profit and a surge in revenues.
The AIM-listed Lancashire company said it has passed several milestones, including buying near neighbour Utilisoft for £12.8m in May.
In the six months to September 30 group revenues rocketed 114% from £5.82m in the first half of 2009 to £12.46m.
A profit of £770,000 was declared, compared with a loss last year of £670,000.
Chief executive Tim Jackson-Smith, said: “The group has passed a number of milestones in the period – we completed our first acquisition, are now profitable and cash generative.
“We believe the energy industry is about to undergo major changes that have, at their heart, the need for smart metering and the group is ideally positioned to benefit from these.”
Mr Jackson-Smith, a former corporate lawyer in Manchester, only became chief executive last month after the sudden departure of his predecessor Tony Barnes.
He said a slow start to the rate of installation of energy-saving smart meters had been overcome and the rate was now at an acceptable level.
“Installation performance by Bglobal Metering in the first quarter of this financial year was behind the board’s expectation and additional costs were incurred as the business built up its installation capability.
“Installations have been much stronger in the second quarter resulting in 32,243 meters being installed in total in the first six months of this financial year, with 7,043 meters installed in the month of September alone.”
Revenue from meter installations increased to £8.37m from £5m last time.
Looking forward he said: “The energy sector is on the brink of major infrastructure developments which will see significant changes to the way energy is delivered.
“Smart metering is at the heart of these changes and I believe that the end-to-end, fully funded proposition that Bglobal is able to offer sees the Group well placed to play a major role in the market and benefit from the changes to come.”
Chairman Peter Kennedy added: “We are now in a period of consolidation in the industrial and commercial market place and are excited about the products we will be bringing to market in the next 12 months to help meet the industry challenges that lie ahead.
The company said it would not pay a dividend as it was focused on investing in the business.
