Horisont Energi publishes the Q1 Report for 2023

SANDNES, Norway, 16 May 2023: Horisont Energi (EURONEXT: HRGI) today publishes the Q1 Report for 2023.

The first quarter of 2023 did not yield the desired outcomes for Horisont Energi. Our two partners decided to step out of the Barents Blue project, and at the end of the quarter we were informed that we were not awarded the licence needed for the CO₂ storage project Errai. On the positive side we signed a cooperation agreement with the Spanish ammonia specialist Fertiberia as potential partner for the realization of Barents Blue.

First quarter in brief:

January:

• Announced Haugaland Næringspark as selected site for a new CO₂ terminal, the Gismarvik CO2 terminal, through an option agreement with Haugaland Næringspark
• Contracts awarded to several suppliers for various concept studies for the Gismarvik CO₂ terminal and for the other parts of the project

February:

• Announced a new potential partnership for Barents Blue ammonia plant where the leading green fertiliser company Fertiberia replaced Equinor and Vår Energi
• MoU signed between E.ON, Neptune Energy and Horisont Energi on the development of a European CCS value chain

March:

• Barents Blue project announced reduction from maximum three to two ammonia production trains
• Barents Blue’s request for 105 MW of power for three trains was rejected. New request was made for 45 MW of power, focusing on the first ammonia production train.
• Errai storage license not awarded to Horisont Energi

“We have spent the time following the non-award of Errai at the end of March 2023 to reassess our plans and ambitions. Horisont Energi remains firm in the belief in the fundamentals of carbon storage and clean ammonia. We are now working hard to move forward in the Barents Blue and Polaris projects, and to get into material carbon storage positions,” says Bjørgulf Haukelidsæter Eidesen, CEO of Horisont Energi.

The company is considering the different options that are available going forward and is currently working towards establishing a new partnership for the Barents Blue ammonia plant and the Polaris carbon storage licence and working towards utilising the Gismarvik CO₂ terminal for new carbon storages, but also utilising other value chains for new carbon storages. This will complete the carbon storage value chain that Horisont Energi is developing together with E.ON.

The company is also working to establish Polaris as a third-party storage for CO₂ volumes in Northern Norway, in addition to CO₂ from Barents Blue. Furthermore, Polaris may be a solution for larger CO₂ volumes for customers from the continent wanting to secure CO₂ storage early.

Financial results:

• The result for the first quarter 2023 is a net loss of NOK 75.1 million.
• The expenditures reflect a high activity level in the first quarter, particularly related to the Errai CCS project which accounted for two-thirds of the operating costs in the period. These investments will make future projects more cost and time efficient.
• The company has a total of NOK 354.2 million in cash as of March 31, providing a strong liquidity position for the current phase of operations.
• The company is fully funded beyond 2024 at normalised activity level.

Please find the Q1 Report attached here.