ITM Power Narrows Losses as Boardroom Buying Meets a Refinery Deal Still Short of a Signature

ITM Power has given investors two separate threads to pull on this week: a director's share purchase and a set of full-year figures that show the electrolyser maker growing quickly while still burning cash. Neither on its own settles the question of when the company turns profitable — and the answer, on management's own guidance, is not next year.

The clearest signal comes from the accounts for 2026. Revenue hit a record £43.6 million, up 68% on the prior year, and the improvement was not confined to the top line. The adjusted EBITDA loss shrank from £33.0 million to £20.2 million, so the extra volume arrived alongside a lighter cost burden rather than on top of an unchanged one.

Cash remains the balance sheet's defining feature. ITM Power closed the year with £215.6 million in liquid funds, and its order book stood at £144.0 million, of which 83% was described by the company as profitable. That combination — a healthier backlog and a substantial cash cushion — frames the runway, though neither is proof of profitability in itself. Investors still have to weigh the money in hand against the losses still being booked.

Guidance Points to a Smaller Loss, Not a Profit

For 2027 the company has guided to revenue of £50 million to £60 million, a range that sits entirely above the year just closed. The loss forecast, however, stays firmly in negative territory: adjusted EBITDA is expected to come in between £17 million and £20 million in the red.

That would mark another step in the right direction, but it is a gradual closing of the gap rather than the promised arrival at breakeven. The takeaway for shareholders is that revenue growth and operating profitability need to be judged as two separate stories for at least another year. Progress will be measurable on both counts.

Hydropulse Blueprint Still Awaits Final Contracts

Longer-term context comes from the subsidiary Hydropulse, which on 12 October agreed a heads of terms with a European oil refinery for a planned green hydrogen project. The outline covers 150 megawatts, electrolysers drawn from ITM's Alpha platform, and a ten-year contract term.

Joint technical pre-planning is already under way. What does not yet exist is a binding contract: the arrangement remains subject to definitive agreements, and a final investment decision is targeted for 2027, with production expected in 2029. Those dates describe an ambition, not secured revenue, and the distinction matters when weighing the project against the near-term numbers.

A Director's Purchase, and a Routine One Alongside It

On the governance side, non-executive director John Howarth bought 23,072 ordinary shares yesterday at £0.867 apiece, according to a regulatory notification. The stock was trading 2.4% higher at €1.06 today.

Howarth's transaction should be read alongside — not instead of — the regular purchases disclosed under the company's employee programme. On 15 October, chief executive Dennis Schulz, finance chief Amy Grey and technology head Simon Bourne all took part in the monthly share purchase plan, buying stock and receiving supplementary share allocations. Those are programme purchases, and they demonstrate management alignment rather than offering fresh evidence on order momentum. A single director's buy, similarly, says nothing about a new revenue outlook or the timing of the next operational milestone.

What does carry operational weight is the refinery project and the trajectory of the losses. The cash pile, the improving backlog and the narrowing deficit set the backdrop; delivery on the Hydropulse blueprint and further reduction of the shortfall are what will decide whether the growth story converts into profit.