Revenue drops at energy industry specialist
Leeds-headquartered Getech, which provides data, knowledge and software to the energy industry, has reported revenues of £3.6m (2019: £6.1m) in its final results for the 12 months ended 31 December 2020.
It attributes this fall to its customers’ reducing their levels of short-term project work, which also drove lower sales of off-the-shelf data.
The listed company made a pre-tax loss of £1.8m (2019: £3.1m) and an adjusted EBITDA loss of £0.5m (2019: £0.9m profit).
However, despite a tough business environment Getech says its orderbook was robust, totalling £2.7m at 31 December 2020 (31 December 2019: £3.1m).
And it notes the COVID-19 necessitated move to home working was smooth, with projects continuing to be delivered on time and to cost.
Chairman Richard Bennett and CEO Jonathan Copus said the transition to a net zero economy is “an unprecedented challenge” which will require the replacement of more than 50% of the world’s energy infrastructure and new supplies of rare earths and other metals.
They added: “We see the global energy mix of our future as being built with many different renewable energy technologies, delivered through a distributed architecture.
“This presents a huge opportunity for Getech and our overarching goal is to build a portfolio of products, services and assets under management that build value and provide long-term sustainable cash flows.”
Commenting on nearer term matters, they said the business would focus on optimising the value and sustainability of its customers’ petroleum portfolios, whilst also supporting their diversification into zero carbon assets and technologies.
They noted: “While customer sentiment remains relatively subdued in comparison with the pre-COVID-19 environment, it is encouraging to see some momentum returning.
“In Q1 2021, this was evidenced by new data sales and service work, both of which were largely absent in H2 2020.
“Existing customers are also renewing their software licences, all of which is helping to build the orderbook and increase recurring revenues.”
“2021 will be about continuing to service our current petroleum customers whilst building on our foundations for growth in the green hydrogen, carbon capture, strategic minerals and geothermal sectors.
“Similar to our early steps into the hydrogen sector, we also see the potential for acquisitions within geothermal and strategic minerals as a path to both accelerate the build-out of our offering and to provide access to operating projects.”
