Plug Power, Altech Advanced Materials, Nel ASA - Ambitious valuations

Plug Power - Order from Hungary

The fuel cell technology pioneer is building a comprehensive green hydrogen ecosystem, from production to storage and delivery to power generation, to help its customers achieve their business goals and decarbonize the economy. Creating the first commercially viable market for hydrogen fuel cell technology, the Company has installed more than 50,000 fuel cell systems and over 165 refueling stations, more than any other supplier globally. It is also the largest purchaser of liquid hydrogen. In order to complete its value chain, the US company plans to build and operate a green hydrogen highway across North America and Europe. It also plans to build a gigafactory to manufacture electrolyzers, fuel cells, and several green hydrogen production facilities that will produce 500t of liquid green hydrogen per day by 2025. The sales target for 2023 will then be USD 3 billion, with a gross margin of 30% and an operating profit of at least 17%.

Above all, the new segments, which currently do not contribute any significant revenues, are expected to climb to become the primary revenue drivers, according to CEO Andy Marsh. While "Material Handling" will generate almost 90% of the Company's revenue of around 500 million in 2021, this segment is expected to rise to approximately USD 1 billion by 2025 as the Company builds up new customer groups. The "New Markets" area, where the Company plans to generate just USD 10 million in revenue in 2021, is budgeted to generate USD 0.5 billion in revenue by 2025. The "Green Hydrogen Market" segment, on the other hand, is expected to explode, bringing in half of the total revenue of an estimated USD 1.5 billion.

Plug Power has now received an order from the Hungarian oil and natural gas company MOL to supply an electrolysis unit with a capacity of ten megawatts for the Danube refinery in Százhalombatta. In total, this will enable 1,600t of hydrogen to be produced per year. The start-up is planned for next year.

Despite another order alongside Walmart, Plug Power has significant potential for a setback, as reported in an Update.

Altech Advanced Materials - Study shows clear potential

With a stock market value of EUR 6.21 million, the Heidelberg-based Company's shares are still at the beginning of their development, unlike Plug Power. Also, on the entrepreneurial side, no comparison can yet be made with the market leader in fuel cell technology. However, the recently prepared economic feasibility study showed the clear potential for Altech's Silumina AnodesTM battery material. Altech uses an anode coating with high-purity aluminum oxide (HPA) and an enrichment of silicon. As a result, battery performance can be increased by more than 15%, and service life can be extended by as much as 30%. The Company is currently conducting research into increasing the proportion of silicon on the anode, which would result in performance increases of between 50% and 100%.

Construction of the production plant in the Schwarze Pumpe industrial park in the municipality of Spreewald in Saxony is currently in the planning stage. In the future, around 10,000 tons of anode composite material are to be produced there annually at full capacity. Annual sales at full capacity would then be EUR 153 million, with EBITDA estimated at EUR 52 million, corresponding to an EBITDA margin of around 34% based on the available calculations.

"Our research and development results to date, together with the pre-feasibility study results, demonstrate the enormous technological and economic potential of our novel anode composite material and the targeted production in Schwarze Pumpe. We are convinced that this is a breakthrough technology for the future of lithium-ion batteries and can give an enormous boost to European battery technology. Silumina AnodesTM has the potential to be a game-changer in battery performance," says Uwe Ahrens, CTO of Altech Advanced Materials.

Indeed, Altech could revolutionize the battery market in the future with its innovative technology. Nevertheless, it must be kept in mind that the Company is still in the early stages of development, making it suitable for speculative investors. Since the announcement, the share price has risen from EUR 1.00 to EUR 1.35; the previous all-time high was EUR 3.60.

Goldman loves Nel ASA

US investment bank Goldman Sachs kept Nel ASA at "buy" with a price target of NOK 22, equivalent to EUR 2.23, ahead of the Company's upcoming first-quarter figures. Seasonally lower total revenues and other income quarter-on-quarter, as well as continued pressure on gross margins, had a negative impact. On the other hand, positive change in the fair value of financial instruments supported Nel's reported results, analyst Zoe Clarke said.

It was also reported that the Norwegian company, through its subsidiary Nel Hydrogen Fueling, received two orders for H2StationT refueling systems from a European customer for a total volume of EUR 3 million. Similar to Plug Power, the chart picture is battered. Accordingly, the next support area is at EUR 1.30.

Renewable energies and the shift from fossil fuels to alternative energy sources are the future. Altech Advanced Materials could succeed in revolutionizing battery materials. Plug Power and Nel ASA are currently facing difficulties from a technical perspective.