By Rachel More and Tom Käckenhoff
BERLIN (Reuters) - Thyssenkrupp (ETR:TKAG) Nucera laid out growth plans on Monday after reporting strong sales and operating income, as the company works to meet growing demand for the green hydrogen hailed as key to decarbonising the German economy.
"Another strong global workforce expansion is planned and necessary to achieve our growth targets," Chief Executive Werner Ponikwar told reporters after presenting quarterly results.
The company, which Thyssenkrupp majority-owns after taking it public in a blockbuster market debut in July, also wants to expand production with new locations, including in India.
While in its infancy, so-called green hydrogen, which is produced using renewable energy, has been identified as a key energy source in the push towards a lower-carbon economy in Germany and other European Union countries.
Reporting its first financial results since going public, Nucera said earnings before interest and taxes (EBIT) rose 59% year-on-year to 7 million euros ($7.56 million) in the third quarter of its 2022/23 financial year.
Sales almost doubled to 187.5 million euros, driven mainly by its alkaline water electrolysis, where investors see potential for the business to scale up quickly.
Shares in Nucera rose by as much as 5% following the release of the results, before settling at around 4.2% higher by late morning.
The company confirmed its mid- and long-term targets, but warned that necessary spending on its growth strategy would weigh on its EBIT margin, which came in at 3.7% in the third quarter, down from 4.4% a year prior.
The company expects its EBIT margin to turn negative in the next quarter, but finance chief Arno Pfannschmidt said he still expected a positive result this financial year.
Nucera plans to forego a dividend for the foreseeable future, as outlined in its stock market prospectus.
"We want to invest all the funds we have available here in growth," Pfannschmidt said.
($1 = 0.9258 euros)