NEL ASA's third-quarter revenue fell 63% year over year to 112 million Norwegian kroner. PEM orders climbed sharply as the company's net loss widened to 141 million NOK.
NEL ASA reported a net loss of 141 million NOK for the third quarter of 2026, compared with a loss of 85 million NOK a year earlier. The Norwegian hydrogen company published its results on October 15.
Revenue from customer contracts plunged, while the company's PEM electrolyzer business grew and supplied almost all new orders. Those figures track different stages of the business: orders show incoming work, while revenue is recognized as projects are carried out.
Sales Missed Expectations
Revenue from customer contracts was 112 million NOK, down 63% from 303.4 million NOK in the third quarter of 2025. It also fell well below the average analyst estimate of 202.2 million NOK. Total revenue and other income dropped to 138 million NOK from 349 million NOK a year earlier.
Operating performance remained under pressure. EBITDA was negative 93 million NOK, and the net loss widened to 141 million NOK. NEL ended the quarter with 1.078 billion NOK in cash. Its total order backlog stood at 1.314 billion NOK. That cash figure is a quarter-end balance, not a measure of how long the company can fund operations.
PEM Carried New Orders
The PEM segment moved against the direction of group revenue. Sales rose 65% year over year to 89 million NOK, while order intake climbed 473% to 245 million NOK. Across NEL, new orders rose about 339% to 253 million NOK.
NEL called the activity strong. CEO Håkon Volldal credited improved project execution and a competitive product, and said the momentum was continuing into the fourth quarter. That remains management's assessment, not a reported fourth-quarter result. Volldal said containerized PEM systems were driving order intake, according to the quarterly earnings-call transcript.
PEM accounted for 245 million NOK, or about 97% of NEL's quarterly order intake. Its backlog increased by 126 million NOK from the prior quarter to 1.116 billion NOK. The alkaline electrolyzer business added 8 million NOK in orders and ended the quarter with a 198 million NOK backlog.
During the quarter, NEL booked about USD 20 million in PEM stack orders for submarine programs in the U.S. and U.K. It also booked orders for French submarine programs, including an order from Collins Aerospace. Deliveries for individual items are scheduled from 2027 to 2028.
Separately, on October 13, Nel Hydrogen US announced an approximately USD 12 million order from an unnamed U.S. technology company. The order covers multiple containerized MC-series PEM electrolyzers and related services, with delivery planned for 2027, according to the company's order announcement.
Backlog Is Not Revenue
The PEM figures give investors a clear measure of growth, but they do not erase the weak group-wide sales result. Booking an order does not by itself put revenue on the books. Revenue depends on project execution and when contract work qualifies for recognition. NEL's release points to better execution, but customer-contract revenue shows the distance between new business and reported sales.
The company said it was making progress on factors under its control. It also said it was maintaining financial discipline and investing for future growth. Those statements come alongside a wider net loss and negative EBITDA, leaving investors to weigh reported execution gains against current financial performance.
In Oslo trading, NEL shares fell as much as 1.39% to 2.13 NOK. That was an intraday move, not a closing price. A discussion of how downturns can pressure investors to sell appears in this look at market corrections.
What Investors Can Track
Investors can compare PEM orders with completed projects and recognized revenue, while keeping the company's losses and cash balance in view. Backlog indicates contracted work ahead, but it does not guarantee when revenue will be recorded or how much will be recognized. Order intake captures new business during a period; revenue reflects work recognized under customer contracts.
