Betolar Oyj ($BETOLAR)

Welcome to Betolar's Q1 2026 Business Review. Today, we talk about our business review, record high sales driven by new projects, push for metal extraction technology continues. Firstly, disclaimer regarding our forward-looking statements. On our agenda today, we will talk about the Q1 2026 highlights, financial review. And lastly, we have the Q&A. I'm Tuija Kalpala. I'm the President and CEO of Betolar. I'm here with Mikko Wirkkala, our CFO. And please, during the presentation, feel free to put any questions you may have on the online questionnaire box, so we can then see your questions and then at the end answer to them. Thank you. Main events and after the period happenings in Q1, we had the record high sales, which we are very happy about. So during the January-March, our revenue was higher than ever before in the company's history. Also, we continue to push for metal extraction. We received a follow-on order from Anglo American Sakatti mine. This is a mining project in Northern Finland, and we're doing a project regarding their mine tailings. We had -- we published this new cooperation with Epanko mine tailings, where Betolar together with EcoGraf and Geological Survey of Finland are collaborating together to transforming this Epanko mine tailings using our metal extraction technology, and this project is in Tanzania. We also introduced to the market our new solution for protecting critical infrastructure. This is against, for example, for drones and other threats, and I'll talk about this a bit later. Also, in the Q1, trading on our OTCQX started. So this is a marketplace in the United States. Highlights during the period. So when looking at the market, so I would say that the market condition remained favorable for Betolar solutions, really driven by increased interest in this critical infrastructure, and also, there was a lot of interest and increasing demand also for strategic and critical minerals. These growing security concerns during the past couple of months, including the need to protect, for example, these electrical substations and other essential assets and critical infrastructure are really accelerating the demand for practical, rapidly deployable infrastructure protection solution, which we have now available for our customers as well as what we see during the period is also there is a growing demand for sustainable and circular materials. When looking at the sales side, Q1 revenue reached a record high level, which we are super happy about. This was really supported by strong project execution and our customer satisfaction, new customer engagement, and also, these follow-on orders, which also tells about the customer satisfaction, as we are able to continue working with our existing customers. The momentum continued across Mining & Metals as well as in Circular Materials and these infrastructure solutions, including the progress in the company's largest project order to date, which was related to infrastructure, which we announced last year. And also, we have increasing commercial discussion related to this critical infrastructure protection solutions that we have. On the innovation side, in Q1, we focused on really solution-driven development with clear commercial relevance. We advanced our metal extraction technology towards larger scale demonstration and also introduced this new solution to protect critical infrastructure, addressing growing risk from drones and other physical threats. The infrastructure protection solution has entered now the commercialization phase, which is supporting near-term revenue opportunities while strengthening societal resilience. We currently have 26 active patent families, 49 granted patents and about 70 patent applications are pending. So we are still very much focused on developing new type of technologies and R&D, but really looking at this commercial relevance. Then, talking about our growth plan for this year and beyond. As we have previously talked about, the key part of our strategy is really this metal extraction technology. We published this about a year ago. And we have been very much working around and further developing this technology, and we have many patents also pending related to this technology. This technology recovers critical and strategic metals from different kind of slag materials as well as mine tailings with very high efficiency, while at the same time, producing low-carbon circular cement. So what we are aiming with this is really creating a zero-waste value chain where all inputs become valuable outputs. And by transforming these underutilized materials, we are really aiming at creating new revenue streams and increasing the resource self-sufficiency. And we are aiming, of course, to help our customers to move towards more sustainable and resilient operating models. So here, you see 3 different boxes. This is what we are really focusing right now and moving forward is on the mining and metals and really this metal extraction technology. And with this, we're expecting value in the long term. So these are long projects, requires many times also some investments. So these are long-term value opportunities for us and our customers. Circular Materials side, this is more like a faster route to cash flow. So we have these different kind of materials that we are already selling in the marketplace. We are selling these materials already in Finland and India, where we have a subsidiary. And this is a growing business area as well as we are -- we continue looking at developing different cement-free and low-cement solutions for our customers. And then lastly, we have here the critical infrastructure protection. This is also a fast route to cash flow. And this is something that we have now started commercializing. We have several patents pending on this area as well. And we see that's a really interesting growing opportunity for us in the short term. Then, Mining & Metals side. So this side was really developing very positively during Q1 through our continued projects with existing customers and also with new engagements with new customers. Mining & Metals side, we have customers in Australia, Canada, also in Europe, and this side is continuing and growing. We also received a follow-on order from Anglo American Sakatti mine project, which is in Northern Finland. And we are really advancing this commercial cooperation with them and progressing this metal extraction technology towards industrial scale evaluation. In addition, we initiated the new cooperation with the Epanko mine tailing project in collaboration with EcoGraf and Geological Survey of Finland, really assessing the potential to recover these valuable metals from these mine tailings and enable circular material production. Circular Materials side, this was also developing very positively. We had growth in Indian market, where we are selling ground granulated blast furnace slag. This continued to grow as well as in Finland. We commenced the sales of the slag to concrete industry, enabling immediate adoption of low-carbon materials and expanding commercial activity in circular construction materials. And also, during the period, we focused on executing our largest project to date related to infrastructure. And now, on the protecting critical infrastructure solution. So after the period, we announced this new cost-effective solution for protecting critical infrastructure from drones and other physical threats. We see that critical infrastructure plays a vital role in the functioning of society. And any damage to these assets can cause widespread and long-lasting disruptions. Betolar's protection solution is primarily designed to safeguard electrical substations and the main transformers, but it's also suitable for protecting other types of critical infrastructure, whether it's water or any type of energy facilities that needs protection as well. So where we are with this solution and commercialization? So we have started commercializing this solution, and we really see near-term revenue opportunities with this. As mentioned earlier, we already have several patents pending for this area. Then, over to Mikko for financial review.

Thank you, Tuija. Let's have then look at our first quarter financials. Starting from the revenue, the revenue was EUR 441,000, which was the highest quarterly result in the company history. This was roughly 3x higher compared to last year first quarter. And the revenue, as Tuija said, was mainly driven by the large order, which we got during the fourth quarter last year related to the infrastructure project. Then, this year, we are also publishing a new line item here, other operating income. And this line item includes mainly our public grants, what we are booking to our income statement. In the first quarter '26, the other operating income was EUR 200,000, and this was some EUR 228,000 less compared to last year. This is mainly explained by one-off item what we had last year. And this was when we received a public grant from Business Finland and that was paid, and what was actually paid was a higher amount what we had booked initially. So this onetime item explains why the other operating income is lower compared to last year. When looking at our EBITDA, so we are slightly better than last year. But as mentioned, the other operating income item that was lower is then bringing the result only to the same level where we were last year. If looking at our cost level, we were able to still lower our costs compared to last year, and we are planning to keep the cost in check. And also -- but at the same time, we are also then focusing our cost there so that we can advance our strategy regarding the metal extraction technology, and also, the critical infrastructure, what Tuija mentioned earlier. If we then have a look at our balance sheet, our cash and cash equivalents and short-term fund investments that we had in total EUR 5.2 million at the end of the first quarter, and then, if we add the undrawn grants on top of that one, so then we -- the total amount was EUR 6.1 million. And if we then have a look at our operational indicators, so order intake in the first quarter, EUR 221,000, and this was more than double compared to last year, but of course, much lower than the fourth quarter what we had when we had the record high order intake during that quarter. But as Tuija mentioned that during this quarter, we were mostly focusing on delivering the large project order. The number of new nonrecurring engineering projects was 3 during this quarter, so 3x higher compared to last year. And, of course, one of these orders was the follow-on order from Anglo American. And number of personnel, we are now on average at 28 people, and this is then the result of the different cost actions what we have executed during the last year. And as mentioned about our financial position, our cash balance was EUR 5.2 million. And then, we still have the [indiscernible] France remaining, what we haven't drawn yet. And this project from [indiscernible] Finland that is ending now during the second quarter of this year. And also, we had another project that -- which ended during the first quarter and where we are expecting to receive the money from this grant during the second quarter and some may also go to the third quarter this year. And we are all the time in active discussions with different parties that when we are looking at our financing, and this includes multiple options there. So for example, that we are all the time looking for new public grants there, it can be on a national level, it can be on EU level, and we have been actively advancing these application processes. But we will then come back to [indiscernible] when we have something to report regarding the outcomes of these ones. And when it comes to the guidance for the 2026, we keep that unchanged, and we are expecting our revenue to grow significantly compared to the previous year. This was in a nutshell the financial position and outlook and all the financial part of this first quarter. And we can then move to our Q&A.

Yes. So thank you. There's been many, many questions. So let's take the questions and answer. You still have time to add a few more. First question is related, or it says, I will read it, you started a new collaboration with EcoGraf and Geological Survey of Finland. Is there a clear trend in the market where mining companies are looking for broader solutions, specifically for the treatment of tailings and other side streams? And how do you see Betolar's competitive advantage in this market in the long term? This is a really good question, and I would say definitely, yes. So what we see is definitely that there's a growing interest with these mine tailings and finding solutions what to do with them. There's 2 reasons for that. Firstly, mine tailings is considered one of the world's largest waste problems. So there's so much mine tailings in the world, and there's not really not many commercial solutions on what to do with these mine tailings. Secondly, there's quite a lot of interesting and valuable minerals, strategic and critical metals within these mine tailings. And what we have been really looking at is that how we can capture these valuable metals out from these mine tailings and then utilize the remaining material as this kind of circular cement or green cement, however, you would like to call it. So we see that there's definitely a lot of opportunities and interest in the market for our solution, for our metal extraction technology related to this. So then, there's another question related to our infrastructure project. How much of the major infrastructure project has been delivered and recognized as revenue? And how much remains recognized? So I would say that this infrastructure project, which is the largest project by revenue to date is ongoing, and it's going very well. We are not necessarily disclosing exactly when is the project closing. But I would say that it's going well. And, of course, we're hoping that this project will continue and -- for a long time, and we'll get more projects like this. Then, moving on to next question. You mentioned that you have started selling circular economy materials in Finland as well. What is the current competitive situation in the market in Finland? And how significant business could this be for Betolar? So we have been -- we have this GGBFS right now in Hamina in Finland. We have a storage facility in there, and we are selling this GGBFS to Finnish market. And we definitely see a growing opportunity in Finland with this material. And, of course, there's a competition. We're not the only one selling it in Finland, but it doesn't matter because we see that there's still room and opportunity for us to grow in this area in Finland as well as in India, where this business has been growing on, I would say, almost every month, we have been doing record high sales. Then, to your next question. Congratulations on the revenue growth figures. I would like to ask about the Anglo American follow-up order. If everything goes as planned, on what schedule could this metal separation technology to be scaled to a broader, more revenue-generating use? So what we would say about this Anglo American Sakatti thing, we're very happy that the project is going well, and it continues. At this point, it's very difficult to say when this technology would be taken into use. We're still in kind of testing and evaluating this. And as soon as we have more information, we will, of course, then share that information. But we're super happy that things are going well, and these kind of studies and testings are ongoing. Then to another question. How does the order pipeline look right now? Mikko, would you like to take this one?

Well, we are not exactly disclosing the entire order book what we are having, but you can make a rough estimate that when you're looking at the received orders, orders what we are having in. Of course, some of the orders are, for example, that when we are selling the GGBFS, the material sales. So that is realizing quite often during the same quarter that when we get the orders there. But then, if looking at on a big picture that typically that when we are getting these nonrecurring engineering projects, so we are getting the order in and then it takes -- depending on the project, it takes a few months to deliver the project there. So you can make a rough estimate based on this one. But basically, the new orders is giving quite nice picture about the near term. But of course, that we all the time have the orders for the longer projects; for example, this infrastructure project that is then taking a lot of time to complete. So these longer projects are -- we are still expecting those to generate revenue during the near quarters.

Okay. Then there's another question for Mikko. If we look at your available funding, when do you think that you would have to start finding new external funding if your order intake does not accelerate from the current level?

Yes. What we have said also earlier publicly that when we raised capital that was in 2024, we said that with that capital increase that we are able to operate smoothly until 2027. And this message has not changed since that one. And basically, we -- of course, we are all the time looking for revenue growth, and you have seen the results that we have been able to grow every year. Our revenue, and also, the results, have been improving there. We are constantly working on that very hard to make that happen. And then, at the same time, as mentioned, that we are discussing different financing opportunities there, and then, basically, turning every stone that there are. And -- but we will then inform more that when we have something to report on these ones. But we are working very actively to secure this one. And, of course, that the main importance is that we are growing our business.

Indeed. So then we have a last question. A new solution for protecting critical infrastructure sounds very interesting. How quickly do you expect this innovation to bring tangible revenue? And who are the potential customers in practice? Yes, we fully agree that it's very interesting, and we're very excited about this new solution. We kind of expect, as mentioned, that this would bring revenue in the short term. So this is something that we're actively doing sales activities on. So we believe that there is an opportunity in the marketplace in Finland, Europe, outside Europe for this innovation that we have and potential customers. So potential customers are, for example, these electrical substations. That's where we're starting these sales from. But also we see any other critical infrastructure owner or has these kind of assets, whether it's related to water treatment, natural gas-related infrastructure, even oil and gas, any type of energy storages or facilities that would require this kind of protection from, for example, drones or other possible, threats. That's all the questions. So then, on the last slide...

Yes. So looking at the next events what we have there, and this has been very nice to receive your questions online, but it would be much nicer to get those face-to-face. So -- and there, you have the opportunity to meet us in the investor fair at Tampere, Finland, on the May 2026. And Tuija will be there on stage giving you more information about our metal extraction technology and also the critical infrastructure part. And Tuija and I, both we will be there at the stand. And if you want to meet us there, please come there. I recommend coming in at the early part of the day when we are both present there. And if you happen to miss that one, our next result info will be then happening in August, and then, we will have our half year review, and you will hear about the next steps what we have been able to then conclude during the second quarter. And then, looking forward in the autumn, so in the October 28, we are then having our third quarter business review. Thank you very much for your interest, and then, looking forward to see you, in Tampere.