DGAP-News: Business performance of SMA Solar Technology AG impaired by chip shortage and one-time item in 2021

DGAP-News: SMA Solar Technology AG / Key word(s): Annual Report/Annual
Results
Business performance of SMA Solar Technology AG impaired by chip shortage
and one-time item in 2021

31.03.2022 / 07:00
The issuer is solely responsible for the content of this announcement.

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SMA Solar Technology AG corporate news

Business performance of SMA Solar Technology AG impaired by chip shortage
and one-time item in 2021

Overview of fiscal year 2021:

- Sales of €984 million (2020: €1,027 million)

- 13.6 GW inverter output sold (2020: 14.4 GW)

- Earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization (EBITDA) of
€9 million impacted by one-time item in the double-digit million euro range
(2020: €72 million)

- Equity ratio still high at 39% (December 31, 2020: 42%)

- Managing Board anticipates sales of between €210 million and €220 million
as well as EBITDA of between €12 million and €16 million in first quarter of
2022 and confirms sales and earnings guidance for the year as a whole


Niestetal, March 31, 2022 - In the 2021 fiscal year, SMA Solar Technology AG
(SMA/FWB: S92) generated sales of €983.7 million (2020: €1,026.6 million).
The slight drop in sales of around 4% compared with the previous year can be
attributed to the considerable challenges in relation to the global
coronavirus pandemic and the situation concerning the supply of electronic
chips, which became increasingly strained in the course of the year.
International suppliers were unable to satisfy global demand, which is
significantly higher as a result of the economic recovery as well as
advancing digitalization. The consequences of the coronavirus pandemic as
well as the chip shortage were keenly felt in the SMA Business Solutions
segment in particular. By contrast, sales in the Home Solutions and Large
Scale & Project Solutions segments remained at the previous year's level
despite the challenges. EBITDA fell to €8.7 million (EBITDA margin: 0.9%;
2020: €71.5 million, 7.0%). Earnings have been impacted by a one-time item
in the mid double-digit million euro range. This resulted from an onerous
long-term contract for operation and maintenance (O&M) services for PV power
plants, which SMA exited.

Net income came to -€23.0 million (2020: €28.1 million). Earnings per share
thus dropped to -€0.66 (2020: €0.81). At €221.7 million, net cash remained
nearly at the same level as at the end of the previous year (December 31,
2020: €226.0 million). The equity ratio fell slightly to 39.0% at the end of
the reporting year (December 31, 2021: 41.8%). In addition, SMA has a credit
line of €100 million from domestic banks.

"The shortage of chips, which worsened significantly once more in the second
half of the year, impaired the business performance of SMA in 2021
considerably," explained SMA Chief Executive Officer Jürgen Reinert. "As a
European manufacturer, we were particularly affected here because, for the
most part, the suppliers of the electronic components are located in the
U.S. and have the goods produced in China. Accordingly, the customers in
these regions are given preferential treatment when it comes to supply. In
addition, a one-time item owing to an onerous contract in the area of
operation and maintenance services for PV power plants impacted our result.
SMA has exited the unfavorable contract in order to cut losses and free
consecutive fiscal years from financial burdens. There is no other contract
in SMA's O&M portfolio that shows comparable conditions." Last year, SMA
strengthened its position in key fields for the future and thereby forged
ahead with its strategic direction as an energy transition company. "Our
subsidiary company coneva supplied customers including the parcel delivery
company DHL with an innovative solution for optimized, automatically
controlled charging of electric vehicles," said Reinert. "In the area of
storage, we were engaged to supply the world's largest grid-forming storage
power plant at Torrens Island, Australia, and in the business field of green
hydrogen production, projects with SMA system technology for the processing
of direct current for electrolysis went into operation in the U.S., Europe,
Asia and Australia. We also achieved further successes in the area of
sustainability. The accounting firm Deloitte, for example, confirmed to us
as part of their audit of the non-financial statement for 2021 that 100% of
the SMA group's business activities are EU taxonomy-eligible."

For the first quarter of 2022, the SMA Managing Board is anticipating sales
of €210 million to €220 million (Q1 2021: €240.4 million) and earnings
before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization (EBITDA) of €12
million to €16 million (Q1 2021: €20.1 million). The SMA Managing Board
confirms its sales and earnings guidance for the 2022 fiscal year as
published on March 1, 2022, which forecasts an increase in sales to between
€900 million and €1,050 million and EBITDA of between €10 million and €60
million. The Managing Board currently sees no threat to the guidance due to
the war in Ukraine. A conclusive assessment is currently not possible. "SMA
started the new year with a large order backlog," said Reinert. "We expect
the shortage of electronic components to continue in the coming months.
However, we will continue to do all we can to also satisfy our order intake,
which remains very healthy. In the medium to long term, we see outstanding
growth potential for SMA. The fight against the global climate crisis as
well as the intensified pursuit of an electricity supply that is independent
of energy imports will again accelerate the conversion to decentralized
structures based on renewable energy sources in the coming years. SMA is in
an outstanding position to participate in this growth both in its core
business of photovoltaics and in significant future business fields such as
battery-storage systems, e-mobility and hydrogen production."

The SMA Annual Report 2021 is available online at
www.SMA.de/IR/FinancialReports.

About SMA
As a leading global specialist in photovoltaic and storage system
technology, the SMA Group is setting the standards today for the
decentralized and renewable energy supply of tomorrow. SMA's portfolio
contains a wide range of efficient PV and battery inverters, holistic system
solutions for PV and battery-storage systems of all power classes,
intelligent energy management systems and charging solutions for electric
vehicles and power-to-gas applications. Digital energy services as well as
extensive services up to and including operation and maintenance services
for PV power plants round off SMA's range. SMA inverters with a total output
of more than 110 gigawatts have been installed in more than 190 countries
worldwide. SMA's multi-award-winning technology is protected by around 1,700
patents and utility models. Since 2008, the Group's parent company, SMA
Solar Technology AG, has been listed on the Prime Standard of the Frankfurt
Stock Exchange (S92) and is listed in the SDAX index.


SMA Solar Technology AG
Sonnenallee 1
34266 Niestetal
Germany

Head of Corporate Communications:
Anja Jasper
Tel. +49 561 9522-2805
Presse@SMA.de

Press Contact:
Susanne Henkel
Senior Corporate Communications Manager
Tel. +49 561 9522-1124
Presse@SMA.de

Disclaimer:
This corporate news serves only as information and does not constitute an
offer or invitation to subscribe for, acquire, hold or sell any securities
of SMA Solar Technology AG (the "Company") or any present or future
subsidiary of the Company (together with the Company, the "SMA Group") nor
should it form the basis of, or be relied upon in connection with, any
contract to purchase or subscribe for any securities in the Company or any
member of the SMA Group or commitment whatsoever. Securities may not be
offered or sold in the United States of America absent registration or an
exemption from registration under the U.S. Securities Act of 1933, as
amended.

This corporate news can contain future-oriented statements. Future-oriented
statements are statements which do not describe facts of the past. They also
include statements about our assumptions and expectations. These statements
are based on plans, estimations and forecasts which the Managing Board of
SMA Solar Technology AG (SMA or company) has available at this time.
Future-oriented statements are therefore only valid on the day on which they
are made. Future-oriented statements by nature contain risks and elements of
uncertainty. Various known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other
factors can lead to considerable differences between the actual results, the
financial position, the development or the performance of the corporation
and the estimates given here. These factors include those which SMA has
discussed in published reports. These reports are available on the SMA
website at www.SMA.de. The company accepts no obligation whatsoever to
update these future-oriented statements or to adjust them to future events
or developments.


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31.03.2022 Dissemination of a Corporate News, transmitted by DGAP - a
service of EQS Group AG.
The issuer is solely responsible for the content of this announcement.

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Language: English
Company: SMA Solar Technology AG
Sonnenallee 1
34266 Niestetal
Germany
Phone: +49 (0)561 / 9522 - 0
Fax: +49 (0)561 / 9522 - 100
E-mail: info@sma.de
Internet: www.sma.de
ISIN: DE000A0DJ6J9
WKN: A0DJ6J
Indices: SDAX, TecDAX
Listed: Regulated Market in Frankfurt (Prime Standard);
Regulated Unofficial Market in Berlin, Dusseldorf,
Munich, Stuttgart, Tradegate Exchange
EQS News ID: 1316233



End of News DGAP News Service
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1316233 31.03.2022