Nel ASA's Order Book Swells as Revenue Dwindles — and a Leadership Handover Looms

Nel ASA's latest quarterly update paints a picture of two businesses moving in opposite directions. Orders are pouring in, yet the cash register tells a very different story. For investors, the gap between what has been ordered and what has actually been delivered is the number that matters most.

The Norwegian hydrogen specialist reported order intake of NOK 253 million for the third quarter of 2026 — a jump of 339 percent compared with the same period last year. Its order backlog stood at NOK 1,314 million. Those figures, released roughly two weeks ago, describe booked business rather than realised income, and they say nothing on their own about when orders will convert into revenue or whether the eventual deliveries will be profitable.

Revenue from customer contracts, by contrast, fell 63 percent year on year to NOK 112 million. The shortfall between the backlog and the reported top line is stark, and it widened rather than narrowed during the quarter.

A Tale of Two Technologies

The divergence runs deeper than the headline numbers. Nel's PEM electrolyser business grew revenue by 65 percent to NOK 89 million, but that advance could not offset weakness in the alkaline segment, where sales dropped to NOK 23 million. The split makes clear that a uniform recovery across both technologies is not yet on the cards.

Behind the revenue line, losses remain substantial. EBITDA came in at minus NOK 93 million, and the company posted a net loss of NOK 141 million. Cash and liquid assets totalled NOK 1,078 million at the end of the quarter — a buffer that sits alongside, rather than offsets, a still-negative operating result. Order growth alone, in other words, offers no relief on the financial front just yet.

Building Capacity Before Demand Arrives

Nel is pressing ahead with its first automated production line for pressurised alkaline electrolysers at Herøya. The ramp-up is planned in stages: annual capacity of 500 MW by the end of 2026, rising to 1 GW in 2027. Manufacturing capability, however, is not the same as customer demand. The expansion describes what Nel will be able to produce, not additional revenue already secured — which is why the interplay between order intake and plant utilisation will be the metric to watch.

Signed, Sealed — but Not Yet Delivered

Two recent announcements illustrate the distance between an order and a booked sale. Nel Hydrogen US has won a contract from an unnamed global US technology group for several containerised PEM electrolysers and associated services. At roughly USD 12 million, with delivery expected in 2027, this is a firm order — but it represents future business, not revenue already earned.

A letter of intent with Rheinmetall, announced about three weeks ago, sits further back on the spectrum. The two companies intend to examine how Nel's electrolyser technology can be combined with the Giga-PtX concept for decentralised production of synthetic fuels. No binding order or project award was disclosed.

New Faces at the Top

The organisational backdrop to these tasks is a leadership transition. Morten Holum is to succeed Håkon Volldal as CEO and will take up the post no later than 1 May 2027. Kjell Christian Bjørnsen, the finance chief, is lined up as interim CEO during the handover period, while Torbjørn Berg steps in temporarily to head the finance function.

Personnel changes, though, are unlikely to move the needle on their own. The yardstick for investors remains operational: whether Nel can convert its existing orders into revenue, align its production plans with actual demand, and narrow its losses. A letter of intent, a signed order and a recognised sale each carry very different weight — and only progress on the last of those would turn a stronger order book into a broadly supported recovery.