Nel ASA's Order Book Swells 339% While Revenue Collapses 63% in Q3 2026
Published on 10/15/2026 at 13:41 | Editorial boerse-global.de
Nel ASA delivered a jarring set of third-quarter 2026 figures today: order intake surged, yet revenue from customer contracts fell off a cliff and losses deepened. The Norwegian hydrogen specialist's shares moved -5.6% on the session as investors weighed whether a bulging backlog can eventually translate into actual business.
The headline numbers tell two very different stories. Order intake climbed 339% year over year to NOK 253 million, pushing the total order backlog to NOK 1,314 million — a 34% increase. Revenue from customer contracts, by contrast, dropped 63% to NOK 111.65 million. Total revenue and income came in at NOK 138.12 million.
That gap between bookings and billings sits at the heart of today's reassessment. A growing backlog creates a foundation for future sales, but it is not proof that a recovery is already underway. New orders and current earnings are moving in opposite directions, and how Nel bridges that divide will matter more than any individual order headline.
PEM Carries the Order Momentum
The strongest contribution came from the PEM segment, which accounted for 97% of order intake. PEM orders jumped 473% to NOK 245 million, and PEM revenue rose 65% to NOK 89 million — making it the one area delivering on both the bookings and revenue fronts.
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A concrete example of that pipeline is the previously announced US order. Nel Hydrogen US received a contract worth roughly USD 12 million from an unnamed global technology company headquartered in the United States. The deal covers multiple containerized PEM electrolysers from the MC series along with associated services, with delivery expected in 2027.
That contract supports the outlook for future PEM activity, though it does not justify assuming a near-term revenue rebound across the group. For the bullish case to hold, orders must eventually show up in the revenue line. A further rise in order intake alone would not close the gap visible today.
Alkaline Segment Drags on Results
The alkaline business remains the central weight on earnings. Revenue there plummeted 91% to NOK 23 million, and the segment posted an EBITDA loss of NOK 41 million. That deterioration shows the weakness cannot be waved away by pointing to successful PEM bookings — a stronger division does not necessarily scale fast enough to offset a weaker one.
Nel is testing a new pressurized alkaline technology and planning a production line at Herøya. Those initiatives are separate from the reported business performance: tests and expansion plans do not yet demonstrate an economic recovery in the segment.
Group-wide, EBITDA landed at NOK -93 million, compared with NOK -37 million in the same quarter a year earlier. The net loss widened to NOK 140.68 million from NOK 84.7 million. The cash position declined to NOK 1,078 million from NOK 1,757 million a year earlier.
That lower cash balance does not by itself explain the full use of funds, but it underscores the importance of an operational turnaround. So far, the order recovery has not come with any relief at the group earnings level.
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The Delivery Horizon Sets the Next Test
As long as the enlarged backlog can still feed a later revenue pickup, the recovery scenario remains plausible. Should the revenue weakness persist, the argument built on strong orders loses its persuasive force.
The expected delivery of the US order serves as a concrete future operational checkpoint. Until then, the key yardstick lies in upcoming business figures: they would need to show Nel narrowing the distance between order success and revenue performance.
The investment case, then, does not hinge on a shortage of positive signals. It hinges on their evidentiary weight. Order intake points to future business; today's revenue and losses still demand proof of execution. Even a revenue improvement on its own would not yet establish a return to profitability.
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