Nel ASA’s CEO Departure Threatens to Undermine a €135 Million EU Bet on Green Hydrogen

Håkon Volldal's exit from Nel ASA raises execution risks for Herøya electrolyser expansion; stock drops ~7% as €0.22 nears key support, with Q2 results due July 15.

The abrupt departure of Håkon Volldal has left Nel ASA searching for a new chief executive at a moment when the Norwegian hydrogen specialist is supposed to be accelerating its industrial-scale electrolyser production. Volldal, who took the helm in July 2022, is jumping to packaging group Elopak ASA, triggering a six-month notice period that will keep him in place until at least January 2027. Chairman Arvid Moss was quick to stress that the company’s strategic direction remains unchanged, though investors have yet to be convinced.

The timing could hardly be more delicate. Only last May, Nel unveiled its “Next Generation Pressurized Alkaline” electrolyser platform, a technology designed to slash the cost of large-scale green hydrogen projects. The company is targeting turnkey costs of under $1,450 per kilowatt for a 25?megawatt plant. Just as critically, the European Union has pledged up to €135 million in grant funding for the Herøya factory in southern Norway, where Nel plans to ramp production capacity to four gigawatts per year. Volldal was the driving force behind that expansion, and his exit raises questions about execution momentum.

The stock has already felt the chill. Over the past seven days, shares have dropped roughly 7% to trade at €0.22 on the Oslo exchange. The monthly decline is steeper at about 20%, although year?to?date the equity still holds a 17% gain — a reminder that the longer?term narrative remains intact for now.

Technically, the picture is fragile. The price briefly breached the 200?day moving average of €0.21 on Wednesday but immediately reversed course, sliding 4.8% the following day. At €0.22, the stock now sits less than 4% above that key support level. If it breaks decisively lower, the 52?week trough of €0.17 comes back into focus. On the upside, the 50?day moving average at €0.27 represents a gap of roughly 16%, while the relative strength index at 36 suggests the stock is approaching oversold territory — a zone that sometimes attracts bargain hunters but offers no guarantee of a rebound.

Adding to the pressure, Nel’s second?quarter results are due on 15 July 2026. The first quarter offered little comfort: revenue slipped 4.7% year?on?year to 148.1 million Norwegian kroner, and the loss per share deepened to ?0.08 NOK. One potential cloud that has since lifted is the legal dispute with Iwatani, settled in early June for approximately $7.5 million. Analysts view the accord as a clearing event that allows management to refocus on winning new contracts in the second half of the year.

Whether the board can find a successor quickly enough to preserve confidence — and keep the Herøya expansion on schedule — will be the dominant question for Nel shareholders through the summer. The €135 million EU grant is a powerful tailwind, but a leadership vacuum at such a critical juncture could easily stall the momentum Volldal helped build.