Welcome, everyone, to Accsys Technologies Interim Results Presentation for the 6 months ending September 30, 2025. Today's speakers are Dr. Jelena Arsic van Os, Chief Executive Officer of Accsys Technologies, and Sameet Vohra, the company's Chief Financial Officer. Jelena and Sameet will take you through an overview of the business and financial performance for the year before we open the floor to questions. Please note that we will prioritize questions from Analysts. We will be showing some video during the presentation. You have the option to click on the enlarge button to make the video larger. With this, I would like to pass over to our speakers.
Good morning, everybody, and welcome to Accsys' Interim Results Presentation for the Six M onths ended September 30, 2025. I am very pleased to report that we have delivered an excellent first half with a significant improvement in profitability. Our growth across all regions is beating the underlying market trends, showing our focus strategy is effective and that the company is delivering on its promises. Accoya has seen strong growth across its sales regions, with a 22% increase in total sales volumes, gaining market share from competitive and alternative materials. Our premium market positioning is proving resilient against continuing macroeconomic challenges. Group revenues increased by 23% on a like-for-like basis compared to the prior year. This comparison adjusts for the transfer of North American sales from the group to Accoya U.S.A., our joint venture with Eastman Chemical Company, after it commenced operations toward the end of 2024 last year.
Accoya U.S.A. has had an excellent 2021 performance. It has shown rapid volume growth, with North American sales up 61% and positive momentum throughout the period. This demonstrates the strength of our technology, the Accoya Brand, and our customer relationships in the sizable North American Market. The joint venture reported close to break-even EBITDA for 2021. This translates to Accsys' joint venture equity accounted modest EBITDA loss of $0.3 million. This marks substantial progress compared to the equity accounted losses of $4.3 million last year, and we are all excited about what's to come. Accsys maintained gross margin above our target of 30%, maintaining pricing discipline. We also continue to maintain cost discipline and have retained $2.3 million in benefits from the business transformation program that we began in FY2024. We increased adjusted EBITDA for the half year by 160% to $10.4 million.
This is just slightly lower than the $10.8 million we reported for the full financial year 2025. With our EBITDA margin at 11.6%, Accsys is almost at the level of our phase 1 focus strategy target. Crucially, we have made solid progress on leveraging the balance sheet, a key strategic priority. Net debt has decreased by $2.8 million since 31 March 2025, driven by improved operating cash flow, and we have improved our Leverage Ratio from 2.5x to 2.1x at September 30th 2025. During the period, we achieved operating cash flow of EUR 8 million. In October 2025, outside of this reporting period, we successfully negotiated new improved terms for financing our debt with ABN AMRO and HSBC. This refinancing strengthens our capital structure and further de-risks our profile, positioning us to execute our strategy with greater confidence.
Our good performance is a clear signal of our continuous progress. Accsys is delivering on its commitments and is laying a solid foundation for further growth. I want to take this opportunity to sincerely thank the entire team across Accsys and Accoya U.S.A., as well as our customers and partners. Thank you for your dedication. Your efforts continue to drive our success and position us very well for the future. We are progressing our focus strategy, transforming Accsys into a fundamentally strong, operationally efficient, customer-centric, united, safe, and sustainable business. Together, these efforts are creating a strong and lasting platform for growth. Compared to the first half last year, we have significantly de-risked the company, having no exposure to large unfinished CapEx projects and significantly improved financial performance.
The company now operates three production sites: Arnhem, Barry, and Accoya U.S.A., and has secured future growth funding on improved terms with the extended maturity to October 2029. We are operationally more efficient with like-for-like gross margin improvement of 1.1% compared to the prior period, driven by efficiency measures, amongst them improved utilization of Acetic Anhydride in production. In addition, we have retained EUR 2.3 million of benefits from the business transformation program. As a growth company, we nevertheless continue to invest in volume expansion. We are investing in a new Acetyl Storage in Arnhem and have more than doubled Accoya's capacity in Barry from 6,000 to 14,000 cubic meters. Accsys aligns all its initiatives, investments, and growth plans around maximizing customer value.
With our fantastic products, we have customer-centricity at our core, and we continue expanding Accoya availability, adding three new distribution partners in the period, and Accoya projects continue winning awards, like a recent DNA Paris Design 2025 Award for Casa Angra Coastal Home in Brazil. Accoya is gaining market share globally despite relatively soft overall market sentiment in the building material industry. An organization is only as strong as its talent. We are strengthening our workforce across sites through ongoing investment in revenue-generating commercial headcount and in strengthening our site teams. Last, but certainly not least, in the first half, we invested in health and safety and environment, improving working conditions in our stocker hall in Arnhem. We also established our sustainability strategy, staying true to our purpose and values, and reaffirmed our commitment to building a better, more sustainable future.
Accsys Technologies' Sustainability Plan introduced our first Decarbonization Commitments and Targets, enhancing the already strong sustainability credentials of our products and our business. Before I hand over to Sameet to discuss our financials, I wanted to share a short video of one of our project highlights from this period: Accoya being used for the new roof and public space at the landmark NEMO Science Museum building in Amsterdam.
We staan hier op het dak van het NEMO Science Museum in het centrum van Amsterdam. Het is een ongelooflijk bijzonder pand, een prachtig ontwerp van Renzo Piano. Het staat bovenop de IJ-tunnel, midden in het water. Dit was eigenlijk allemaal beton. Om het lekkende dak te herstellen, moest alles ervan af. Toen hebben we nagedacht: als je toch al zo'n grote operatie doet, laten we dan ook kijken hoe we het nog veel beter kunnen maken. We hebben voor Accoya gekozen omdat het heel duurzaam is. Dat is het voordeel van dit hout. Op de plek waar normaal gesproken één hardhouten boom groeit, kun je vijf van deze bomen laten groeien, waardoor het gewoon veel beter voor het milieu is. We hadden het bewijs dat het werkte, want op een steiger hiernaast ligt het in het water.
Als het daar in het water kan liggen, dan weten we zeker dat het op ons dak ook gaat werken. Het verwerkt heel mooi, dus alles sluit heel mooi op elkaar aan. We hadden ook een hele goede bouwer, moet ik eerlijk zeggen. We werden eigenlijk opgeattendeerd door het bureau van Renzo Piano zelf, en die vond het een heel erg interessant product. Mensen vinden het ontzettend mooi. Het is ook een dak dat steeds mooier gaat worden. De gemeente hebben we hier bij de opening gehad. Die vinden het een ontzettend toegevoegde waarde in Amsterdam. Het is ook publiek toegankelijk wat dat betreft. In de toekomst hopen wij het dak nog mooier te kunnen maken door de bankjes om die ook nog in Accoya te gaan uitvoeren.
Het is gewoon zonde dat je zoveel verschillende soorten hout op het dak hebt, terwijl het veel mooier is om het allemaal uniform uit te voeren.
A truly remarkable project. Thank you, Jelena. Over the next few slides, I'm going to talk you through the financial results for the half year in more detail. This slide summarizes the strong financial performance for the first half of the financial year. I'll go into more detail on the financial performance in the next couple of slides, but highlighting some of them now. Group sales volumes were up 1% to 30,575 cu. m. compared to the prior period. However, when you exclude the 3,802 cu.m. of sales made by the group to North America in the prior period before the Accoya U.S.A. joint venture commenced operations, the group sales volumes were up by 15%, with strong demand in all regions.
Total sales volumes, which includes all of the sales volumes from the JV, more clearly shows global demand for Accoya increased by 22% to 38,618 cu.m. , with 8,043 cu.m. coming from the JV. Group revenue increased by 5% to EUR 76.1 million for the first half of the year. However, like-for-like revenue, which adjusts for the group North America sales made in the prior period, increased by 23% year on year. Aggregated revenue, which includes 60% of the revenue of the JV, was up 21% to EUR 89.9 million. Gross profit was EUR 1 million higher than the prior period at EUR 23.2 million, and the gross profit margin remained above our target level of 30%.
Underlying EBITDA, which excludes the results of the joint venture, increased by 29% to EUR 10.7 million compared to EUR 8.3 million in the prior period, with a 260 basis points increase in the underlying EBITDA margin to 14.1%. This reflects the strong sales volume and revenue growth, maintaining a gross margin above 30% and the tight cost control discipline we have over operating costs. It was really pleasing to see that the Accoya USA JV was close to EBITDA break-even for the first half of the year compared to a loss of EUR 4.3 million in the prior period. Sales are accelerating in North America, and we expect the joint venture to be EBITDA positive for the financial year.
Adjusted EBITDA, our main profitability performance measure, was up by 160% to EUR 10.4 million, with an impressive 620 basis points increase in the margin to 11.6%, which is just below the target that we set for the end of phase 1 of our strategy. The EUR 10.4 million adjusted EBITDA is also slightly lower than the EUR 10.8 million that we reported for the whole of the last financial year. Net debt at 30 September 2025 stood at EUR 39.8 million, lower than the prior period and the figure at the end of March 2025. The leverage ratio improved to 2.1 times. I'll discuss the changes in revenue, profitability, and net debt in more detail in the coming slides. Going into more detail on our revenue performance for the year. As I previously mentioned, group revenue increased by 5% to EUR 76.1 million.
In the prior period, excluding the EUR 10.3 million of revenue from sales made to North America before the joint venture started operations, like-for-like revenue growth was 23%. The sales growth we've seen in H1 across all regions has fully replaced the North America volumes transferred to the JV. Despite the challenging macroeconomic environment, we have maintained strong pricing discipline with a 1.7% increase in average Accoya sales price for the period. As Jelena previously mentioned, we doubled capacity in our Barry coloring facility during the period due to increased demand for our color products. We saw a favorable product mix effect from this, with Accoya Color now making up a higher proportion of group sales volumes than the prior period. Accoya Color also undertakes tolling for the JV, and sales in the period increased by EUR 2.8 million from this.
Licensee and royalty income from the JV was EUR 1.6 million higher than the prior period, as the group receives a royalty based on sales made by the JV. The final licensee payment was also received during the period following successful completion of the performance test for the Kingsport Plant, thereby granting exclusivity for the North American market to the joint venture. Other represents Tricoya Panel Sales and Sales of Acetic Acid, which are broadly in line with the prior period. Aggregated revenue, which includes 60% of the joint venture's revenue, increased by 21% to EUR 89.9 million. On a constant currency basis, aggregated revenue grew by 23%, given the weakness of the US dollar against the euro. On the face of it, the gross margin decreased by 20 basis points to 30.5% for the period.
However, the prior period includes sales that were made to North America prior to the joint venture commencing operations. These sales amounted to 3,802 cubic meters, which represented 13% of group sales volume in the prior period. They contributed EUR 4 million of gross margin in the prior period and EUR 2.9 million of EBITDA, as the average sales price in North America is higher than all other regions. Therefore, a more representative way to look at gross margin progression in the first half of this financial year is to exclude the EUR 4 million from the comparator, resulting in the like-for-like gross margin improving by EUR 5 million to 23.2 million and 110 basis points to 30.5%.
This EUR 4 million gross margin reduction has been offset by sales volume growth, favorable sales mix, and higher average sales price from other regions, together with the receipt of royalties and license fees from the joint venture. Our main production costs relate to raw material spend on raw wood and net acetyls. Raw wood costs are in line with the prior period, as higher appearance grade raw wood costs have been offset by lower woodchip grade costs. We saw an improvement in gross margin arising on net acetyls from improved utilization of acetic anhydride in the production process, changing the supply mix, and favorable FX as the US dollar weakened against the euro. The increase in other costs reflects the investment in talent and headcount in operations to support sales growth, the effect of the annual salary increase, and higher inventory handling costs.
The gross margin at 30.5% continues to remain above our strategic level of 30%. This slide shows the adjusted EBITDA progression during the year, reflecting the strong financial performance. From an overall perspective, we saw a 160% increase in adjusted EBITDA from EUR 4 million to EUR 10.4 million and a 620 basis points increase in the adjusted EBITDA margin to 11.6%. This is already very close to the 12% target that we set for the end of phase 1 of our focus strategy, and it's very encouraging to see. The gross margin benefit to EBITDA amounted to EUR 1 million or EUR 5 million on a like-for-like basis, and we tightly controlled operating costs, which only increased by EUR 0.2 million compared to the prior period.
2.3 million of the benefits from the business transformation program in FY24 have been retained, even after the investments we've made in sales and marketing and operational headcount and strengthening local management teams in key areas. There are no further costs associated with Hull after the business was placed into liquidation in December 2024. The joint venture is close to EBITDA break-even for the period, with our 60% share of the EBITDA loss amounting to only EUR 0.3 million as the Kingsport Plant ramps up with accelerating North American sales growth. This is an improvement of EUR 4 million compared to the EUR 4.3 million loss recorded in the prior period. From a segmental perspective, EBITDA from our Accoya segment increased from EUR 10.7 million to EUR 12.7 million, with a healthy margin of 16.7%, up from 14.8% in the prior period.
This growth is primarily due to the strong sales growth, the improvement in gross margin, and tight cost control discipline on operating costs. Corporate costs amounted to EUR 2 million and were EUR 0.4 million lower than the prior period. Therefore, underlying EBITDA, excluding the joint venture, increased by 28% from EUR 8.3 million to EUR 10.7 million. The margin improved by 260 basis points to 14.1%, reflecting the strong underlying profitability of the group. As I mentioned before, adjusted EBITDA increased by 160% from EUR 4 million to EUR 10.4 million. This slide shows the evolution of net debt during the year. Net debt at the end of September 2025 stood at EUR 39.8 million, a decrease of EUR 2.8 million compared to the start of the financial year.
Debt reduction and deleveraging the balance sheet remains a key priority for us, and net leverage reduced from 2.5 times to 2.1 times at the end of September 2025. We experienced an increase in net working capital of EUR 4.2 million in the period, which is primarily related to higher inventory levels. This increase in inventory was planned to ensure product availability to support strong demand and customer service, as well as building up inventory ahead of the annual maintenance stock, which took place in Arnhem in October. Accordingly, operating cash flow conversion was 75%, in line with our phase 1 target. Tight working capital management remains a key area of focus for us. CapEx was EUR 2.9 million during the period, and this included expansionary growth CapEx on increasing our acetile storage and making health, safety, and environmental improvements in the Stacker Hall in Arnhem.
Interest paid and accrued amounted to EUR 2.3 million, of which EUR 1.1 million relates to accrued interest on the convertible loan notes. Tax received was EUR 0.7 million in respect to previous tax years. We recently completed the refinancing of our debt facility with a new EUR 55 million facility with ABN AMRO and HSBC on improved financial terms. The refinancing strengthens our capital structure, enhances financial flexibility, and further de-risks our profile, positioning us to execute our focus strategy and growth plans with greater confidence and resilience. The refinancing demonstrates continued strong support from ABN AMRO, and we are delighted to partner with HSBC, a bank of significant strength and reputation. In summary, we've had an excellent first half of the year with a significant improvement in profitability. We saw strong total sales volume growth of 22% with accelerating sales in North America, which increased by 61%.
The joint venture was close to break-even EBITDA in H1. Adjusted EBITDA was EUR 10.4 million with an 11.6% margin, close to our phase 1 target of 12%. We have continued to focus on deleveraging the balance sheet, with net leverage decreasing to 2.1 times, and the recently completed refinancing strengthens our capital structure and enhances financial flexibility on improved terms. I'd like to now hand you back to Jelena, who will take you through the business review.
Thank you, Sam. In January 2025, we set out our focus strategy, which will be delivered in three phases. The first phase to FY27 focuses on resetting operationally, maximizing returns and cash flow from our existing operations, and reinforcing the fundamentals, including reducing the debt and optimizing our capital structure. Our half-year results demonstrate good progress against our phase 1 targets.
Our strong sales growth put us on a good trajectory to meet the run rate target of 100,000 cubic meters by the end of FY2027. We have also significantly improved profitability, moving from 5.4% in adjusted EBITDA margin from last year to 11.6%. We are very close to our adjusted EBITDA margin target of 12%. We are also in line with our operating cash flow conversion at 75%. Importantly, we are deleveraging and de-risking the business, placing the company in a stronger position for growth. Our successful October refinancing gives us more favorable payment terms, with a reduction in quarterly repayments going forward. Global demand for our products has been strong. We had outstanding growth in the US, which I will provide more details on in the coming slides. We saw very good growth in our key European markets despite continued macroeconomic uncertainty.
The European market landscape reflects a mix of cautious recovery signals and ongoing challenges across key regions, shaped by economic pressures, regulatory challenges, and evolving demand in the construction and timber industries. Europe grew 22% in the reporting period. We saw growth in Germany, driven primarily by strong demand in the outdoor living market. High energy costs and slowing housing permits weigh on German outlook, but commercial and renovation segments remain more resilient. European growth was also supported by a good performance in Benelux, where we had positive momentum in Belgium after onboarding a recent distributor. Government initiatives for energy-efficient building materials continue to favor sustainable timber products. We achieved 40% growth in the U.K. and Ireland, our most established market, as we continue to build our strong reputation for joinery applications and gain more facade specifications.
The softwood market in the U.K. remains weak, with subdued import volumes and merchants limiting stock positions pending market clarity with the U.K. budget approaching. The U.K. budget is being announced tomorrow, with uncertainty of governmental measures to address the fiscal gap that is estimated between GBP 20 billion-GBP 50 billion. Across the rest of the world, we saw 28% growth, with bright spots in Australia and New Zealand as our partnerships with our distributors continue to develop and expand our presence. Accoya for Tricoya sales grew at a more moderate pace, with sales weighing towards the start of the period. Finally, we will be launching a new finished decking product in the second half with a phased market rollout. This will be the first time that we offer a finished product to the market, and it's an exciting new development for Accsys.
We also continue to see Accoya specified for incredible projects worldwide. The startup of Accoya U.S.A. last year was a significant milestone for Accsys, and I am very proud to share that it has got off to an excellent start. In North America, the joint venture grew sales volumes by an impressive 61%, with sales acceleration across the period driven predominantly by our existing distributors, many of whom we have a long-standing relationship with. The local availability and production provide them with the confidence to run faster. While a 10% tariff was announced in October on imported lumber, we have taken proactive steps to manage the impact of this going forward. Let's look at more detail at the US market developments. Our sales in the U.S. are outpacing overall market growth, allowing us to gain share from competitors.
With forecasts indicating strong and sustained demand for modified wood over alternative materials, we are confident that Accoya U.S.A. will continue to expand its presence in the growing market. Our main drivers in the U.S. are cladding and decking. These markets both have strong growth rates for modified wood, with double-digit growth forecasts for decking. Traditional timber products are seeing sharp declines in demand as customers opt for higher-performance modified and engineered solutions. Furthermore, increased regulation on the import of hardwoods, ipê and cumaru from Brazil has had a positive benefit for Accoya in the U.S., and it has limited the supply of those woods. As you can see in the table, the hardwood market for decking is expected to contract. Our growth in the U.S. predominantly came from our existing distributors.
In addition, we have added three new distributors in the period, including one of the largest in the US hardwood specialty products, GMX Group, a wholesale distributor with a focus on retail customers, and our first Mexican direct distributor, CleanEye, and expect to see these new channels contribute strongly in H2. We continue to strengthen our relationship both with the direct distributors and our approved manufacturing partners. Our products are extremely well regarded in the marketplace, as this testimonial from Delta Millworks, featuring the owner and CEO, Robby Davies, and Baker Donnelly, Regional Sales Manager, one of our long-standing Accoya manufacturing customers, testifies.
Why do we like Accoya? Nothing performs as well as it. It's really, really consistent as far as its dimensions and how it holds up. Everybody calls me and says, "Oh, where I live is the harshest climate." It's terrible. Nothing holds up here.
Every time somebody says that to me, I reach for Accoya because I know it's going to let me sleep better at night. It's a blond wood, so it's a great blank canvas. We weren't able to offer as many finishes on Accoya as we can on anything else. The other thing that makes this so sustainable is the tree that they used to make this product can regrow about twice while this piece of wood is still under warranty. It's just an amazingly renewable product, and it's just year after year our best seller by far.
This fantastic Delta video highlights value that resonates strongly with us: quality, performance, and long-term reliability. These principles are at the core of how we strive to build and maintain our customer relationship, and they are something I'm incredibly proud of.
A big part of our focus strategy is to maximize returns from our existing assets, driving sustainable, profitable growth from our core sites in Arnhem and Barry. During this period, we have invested EUR 2.5 million in Arnhem to expand our acetyl storage capacity. From December 2025 onwards, we will gain improved logistical flexibility and increased uptime, enabling us to complete more batches per month. Furthermore, our logistical costs will reduce as we can now unload more acetyls during the week rather than in the weekend. On top of that, we are less vulnerable to interruptions in the chemical supply chain. In Barry, in response to strong demand for Accoya Color globally, we have taken steps to double our capacity. This includes introducing a second shift, expanding our own storage capacity, and outsourcing some external drying.
This builds on the planning facilities we added last December to be able to produce finished decking boards. We expect Accoya Color and finished decking boards to continue to be important demand drivers. Growth for this product range, including volume sold out to the joint venture, showed an increase of 56% year on year. We are very proud today to launch Accsys Cares, our first sustainability plan, which aims to deliver long-term value from all of our stakeholders. The plan highlights our commitments across four key pillars: people, planet, profit, and governance. It introduces our first decarbonization commitments and targets, further enhancing the already strong sustainability credentials of our products and our business. Finally, wrapping up today's messaging, we have delivered a strong H1, and we entered the second half of the year from a position of strength.
Our trading remains robust going into H2, supported by sustained global demand for our premium differentiated products. We expect continued sales acceleration in North America, and notwithstanding the impact of the recently announced tariffs, we expect the joint venture to be EBITDA positive for the financial year. While noting continuous macroeconomic challenges, the board is confident the company will continue to deliver further growth and profitability improvements for the year ahead, consistent with expectations, and to make further progress towards our strategic targets. Looking ahead, we remain confident in the long-term potential of our technology and strategy. We have a clear roadmap, market-leading products in attractive growth markets, and a fully funded manufacturing base that positions us to deliver significant shareholder value. I continue to be very excited by the prospects for our business. We are transforming, we are delivering, and we are growing. Thank you all for your attention.
With this, I will hand over to our operator now for the Q&A session.
To ask a question, please press star one one on your telephone and wait for your name to be announced. To withdraw your question, please press star one one again. We will now take the first question from the line of Martin van Steenbergen. One moment, please. From Martin van Steenbergen
Yes, thank you, operator. Good morning, Jelena. Good morning, Sameet. Good morning, Sameet. I have four questions, and I'll take them one by one if I may. To start off on the U.S., just to give us a bit of a sense on where the existing, so not the three new ones that you mentioned, but existing distributors, can you give some color on where they stand in terms of ordering levels versus assumed potential?
Just to give us a sense of what with the existing distributors, what type of growth lays ahead.
Martin, our existing distributors are already active in the US for a very long time. As we know, the Accoya sales are pretty technical sales. You need to pursue the market that you do have by far the best product in terms of performance, stability, and long-term durability. We are seeing in this period significant growth. Most of the U.S. growth that you are seeing in this result is actually coming from our existing distribution partners. They are today placed on the East Coast of the U.S., West Coast, and in Texas. We are working on increasing our presence in the Texas area because there we do have a big OEM like Delta Millworks that you just saw the video about.
They are located in Texas, but we do believe that that area could provide us more opportunity to grow. New distributors that we put in place in this half of the year, they are all starting to take the inventories and to push the market, predominantly gaining the market share and not fighting for the same business that our existing distributors are already having. There is a lot of efforts from our side going into education, specification selling, and helping the new distributors predominantly to actually focus on the new business generated and creating the Accoya pie to be bigger in this very sizable and profitable North American Market.
Just one follow-up, Jelena. The total distributors now, how much do you think you need more in terms of distributors to have a full national coverage, perhaps both in the U.S. and in Mexico?
I think in Mexico, CleanEye is quite a large player, so I believe we are going to give them an opportunity to deliver what we think that they can deliver. In the US, we do believe that today we have quite a good mix of large regional players, and they have also quite a good network of secondary distributors that are working with them. We do not expect that we will be adding a large amount of new distributors in the US. We would like the distributors that we already know appointed to actually prove that they can deliver on the expectations. We have quite defined KPIs in place that we follow very clearly. For the next half of the year, we are going to give the existing and the new ones a chance to fully deliver.
Got it. Got it.
The second question on the U.S. for Sam. The break-even has been achieved faster than expected. You're now guiding for profitable EBITDA levels for the full year. Does this have an impact on the plan/forecast equity injections from the group into the JV? I seem to remember that guidance was still for €4 million in fiscal 2026. Does that still stand, or should we assume a different amount now?
Yes. Thanks, Martin. Good question. Yeah, I mean, as you saw, the JV was very close to break-even for the first half of the year, and we do fully expect it to be profitable for the full year. Our initial expectations were, and in terms of what your modeling has in terms of capital injections going into the JV, that's all to do with growth.
The business needs wood, and it effectively needs a high level of working capital to meet that significant level of growth that we're seeing, not just for this financial year, but also the coming financial year, because really our strategy is about filling up that plant and having it operating at full capacity within the five years of our strategy, by the end of phase two. Any additional capital injections that we may need to put into the business will be all to do with providing it with additional working capital to fund growth. It might actually end up a little bit higher than the initial guidance of. No, I do not think it will be any more than the EUR 4 million that you have already got factored in.
All right. Thank you.
Moving on to Europe, I was just wondering, you mentioned good developments in the Benelux, Germany, already very strong in the U.K. and Ireland, but you mentioned plans to support France. Can you elaborate a little bit on your plans in France and perhaps on Germany? What type of where does Germany stand relative to prior sales levels? Are they approaching it, or are they still far away from it?
As I told you, the levels in Germany are increasing. Of course, if you look from the period of a couple of years ago, we still have a space to develop. If you look at the previous year, we do have quite a significant growth, and this is coming predominantly from the demand coming from outdoor living markets.
With the outdoor living markets, that is really decking. What we are seeing is that it is taking off with our Accoya Color range being available in Germany. We are continuing to work with our existing—we have a very large distributor in Germany. We are continuing to work with them, but we are also working on expanding that distribution network as we go into H2. Looking at France, we are predominantly now looking to strengthen our team in France, and we need to add commercial headcount to help us to cover this quite large and still unexplored market for Accoya. We had a couple of very nice projects that we delivered in the country, but certainly with the size of France, there is quite a large opportunity to grow there.
We have good distributors in place, but we are adding a headcount, a commercial headcount in the region to help us grow this market share.
Great. One final question on color. Can you shed some light on what you produced in H1 in color, given the capacity expansions that would probably help us to understand what could be expected going forward?
What we said, we actually increased almost more than a double capacity of color in Barry, starting from 6,000, what we had last year. Now we should be having certainly a capacity of we could be able to produce up to 14,000. We do believe that given the good strong demand for Accoya Color, we certainly could be doubling what we actually produce, so 6,000 to up to 12,000 in this financial year.
Of course, decking season is seasonal, so demand is quite seasonal. We do see that the season starts in spring, and our distributors are starting to build inventories starting from the beginning of our Q4. That is why also our Q4 is one of the largest quarters that we have as a company due to this specific effect.
All right. And my really final question is on your adjusted EBITDA margin. Close to your focus one target already. If I look at Bloomberg Consensus, it is considerably higher for fiscal 2026/2027, around the 16% level. Is that something you feel comfortable with given these very positive developments both in Europe and the U.S.?
Sorry, can you just repeat that percentage that Bloomberg is showing?
Yeah, Bloomberg, I think it says it is not quite clear whether that is now group or adjusted, but it is 16% level.
Yeah, I mean, that's probably your own group. I mean, we're already at group level. We are already, I mean, as you saw for H1 at 14% underlying margin with a group at, adjusted being just below the 12% target. I mean, we are very confident, and we firmly believe that we're on track to deliver the margin targets that we laid out in our investor strategy date earlier this year by the end of phase one of our strategy.
All right. I have a couple more questions, but I'll move back into the Q now. Thank you very much. All right. Thank you.
Thanks, Martin.
Thank you. We will now take the next question from the line of Johann Badenhoven from Edison Group. Please go ahead.
Good morning, Jelena. Sam.
Good morning, Johann.
Only three questions from me for now.
If you look at the volume growth, it was, of course, strong. We already talked about the USA. Looking at the volume growth of Accoya for Tricoya, that is, well, only 6%. Is there a special reason that there's a bit of a slowdown, or is it just a mixed effect or a different focus on the US? That's the first question, and we'll do the others later.
Yes, you are absolutely right, Johann. As we reported, Accoya for Tricoya volume grew 6.4%. This is also lower than percentage-wise what we also put in our market update in September, where we saw at the time 25% growth of Accoya for Tricoya. The reason for it is basically slower demand from our customers for Tricoya. That is also linked to the season, but also overall subdued soft market sentiment in the they all operate in that MDF space.
We are seeing this demand increasing and starting to pick up as of December this year. They were really running through the inventory reduction going towards the end of the calendar year. Now we are seeing the order book for Tricoya starting to fill in as we go into December.
Okay. Thank you. That's clear. Another question about your sort of guidance for EBITDA. EBITDA for the full year is in line with your expectations, but I seem to remember that previously sometimes you refer to consensus. In different words, is it too simple to just double the EBITDA of the first half for the full year, I mean?
I think when you look at the seasonality in terms of our business, quarter four is our largest quarter by sales volumes, really, because from a decking and cladding perspective, a lot of sales take place ahead of that spring season. Quarter four being our largest by volume, quarter three ultimately being our smallest because you have the effect of December. Our customers effectively stop ordering and taking collections just after mid-December, the Christmas shutdown. Then effectively in October, we have the annual maintenance stop in Arnhem where we are effectively selling out of finished goods. You could think despite that revenue and volume seasonality, profitability is going to be very similar to 50/50 between H1 and H2. That is why we are saying it is in line with our expectations. Okay.
We can look at the doubling, but in the first half, of course, you had EUR 2 million license income, which might not reoccur in the second half, which also then not helps EBITDA. No. I mean, it's not just license income because you also get the royalty. The largest part of that EUR 2 million is actually the royalty that we get from Accoya USA sales. We get a fixed percentage on their revenue. As you've seen, as their sales are accelerating, we're getting a higher royalty fee from them.
Yeah. Correct.
Last question for now, just about the import tariffs. It's only 10%, and you've said you've taken some actions, but can you tell us a bit more? Is it just raising prices, lowering costs, or a mix?
It is predominantly raising the prices, Jan.
We already put it in place, and we did not receive too much of the pushbacks from our customers. I think everybody in the US market is now getting accommodated to the tariffs, having impact on the price inflation of overall materials, if you like. We put a price increase in place starting from 1st of November. We also have, of course, ongoing dialogue with the sawmills where we are actively tracking what is the sentiment in the US market and also looking with them how we can, if you like, share the pain if that pain becomes larger. For so far, with the 10%, we do believe that we can manage this quite well.
Okay. Thank you very much.
Thank you. As a reminder to ask a question, please press star one and one.
Our next question comes from the line of Alastair Stewart from Progressive Equity Research. Please go ahead.
Good morning. Two or three questions. First, on the U.S.A., given that you've now got what seems to be a very solid distributor base and enthusiastic uptake by customers, have you any sort of can you give us any sort of guidance when you could be looking at further reactors from the U.S. facility? That is the first question. Secondly, interested to see a new distributor in Mexico. What sort of size do you think that, what is a proportion of U.S. output could Mexico be? Is it in a similar sort of mainly decking and cladding markets and looking above the border, any plans for Canada or any indications of how Canadian uptake could develop?
Yes. Thank you, Alastair. Thank you very much. Good questions.
If you look at our distribution base in the U.S., we do believe that with the capacity of the plant today, 43,000 cubic meters, we do have enough capacity for at least the next two years to feed demand and growth in this region. We are focusing the organization, and we are focusing basically everybody to get more returns from the existing assets in the next year or two. This was a part of our phase one of the focus strategy. We just continue working on it. Now, we are going to see in the next half of the financial year and also in the beginning of the financial year 2027, which is a key year for the company because this marks the end of our phase one of focus strategy, how things are developing.
In order to start talking about second reactor, you need at least 12-16 or 18 months from the design to basically ordering the equipment and putting it in place. Today, we have enough space in the U.S. and already a foundation put in place for the next reactor. That should speed up that process when the time comes. We do have enough space in the U.S. to put additional six reactors if that is necessary. I would like to really spend next year, year and a half, next 18 months utilizing what we already have. We do believe that we have enough capacity to meet the demand from a broader North American Market, not only U.S., but also talking about Canada and Mexico as well. Now, your comment, does this answer your question?
Sorry.
I was just asking about Mexico, the sort of potential growth there. Is it the same sort of end market that decking and cladding? While I'm on also, it was interesting to hear about France as well. They seem to be slightly late to the party, as it were. What's driving the uptick in demand from France? That will be all my questions.
Okay. Let me go back to Mexico and Canada because I think that those were the other two questions.
Yeah.
The CleanEye is quite a large distributor that also has a significant milling capacity. They are also capable of making some of the end products. They will be focusing on cladding and decking predominantly. The market in Mexico is large. We also are supporting the Caribbean region from the U.S.
We do have already a couple of very nice projects that are happening there. Is Mexico going to be bigger than the U.S.? I do not think so.
I do not think I was suggesting that, but how big could it be as part of the U.S. output?
We do have quite ambitious expectations from them. We just signed off that agreement with CleanEye. I would like to give them at least half a year to see what they can deliver in order to start shaping expectations and certainly communicating those expectations internally. They are quite capable professional companies with the milling capacities. They could be important for us. For us, the U.S. Market is by far the fastest growing, the most profitable, and certainly more than 90% of the Accoya U.S.A. sales should come from the U.S. itself.
Looking at Canada, we do have one of our largest, well, actually, the largest distributor we have in the U.S. is a US-Canadian company with roots in Canada. We do sell Accoya in Canada already for some years. With import tariffs from Canada and between Canada and the US, some of the trade is slowing down. Nevertheless, we also have an opportunity, if necessary, to ship smaller amounts from Europe directly to Canada if that is going to serve customers better. As said, we do expect U.S. plant predominantly to serve the U.S. Market, but we do have now today established partners in Canada, Mexico, and Caribbeans as well.
Right. Thanks very much.
Oh, sorry.
France.
Yeah. France. In France, also decking and cladding market, we had a couple of good projects that were done in the country.
We also have a good collaboration with the Architects in France. It is a huge country. With Accoya Color now being more available, also coming with the new decking collection, we do need more feet on the ground to educate and push growth to a faster pace. Predominantly cladding and decking and Accoya Color is one of the most wanted products we see in France.
Great. Thanks very much indeed.
Of course.
Thank you. We will now take the next question from the line of Adrian Carsey from Panmure Liberum. Please go ahead.
Good morning. Well done on a good set of results, guys. A couple of questions from me, although I had some more, but most of them have been asked already. Could you perhaps give us a bit more color in terms of the pricing environment across different territories?
Are we seeing greater pricing in certain territories rather than the others? To go back to the question on distributor relationships, would you be able to sort of give us some indication about how conversations are progressing in certain territories with signing additional distributor clients?
Yes. Pricing, as we already reported today, the average sales price in the reporting period went up with a 1.7%. We are not reporting specifically per country or per region, but in average, this was the good, I would say, marker for you to look across both across Europe and the U.S. Very, very similar price increase. Of course, we are very careful, and we know that what we are selling is a value. We are very careful of keeping that premium place in the building materials. We are reacting on the tariffs in the US.
We are reacting to the inflationary pressures in Europe and the U.K., and we will continue to do that. It looks to us that the market is actually accepting that as well. Looking at the distributors, adding new distributors across the regions. As I already mentioned, we are talking with the distribution partners in Germany. We are also talking with the new distribution partners in Central and Eastern Europe. I'm not ready to announce anything yet, but we do expect that we will be expanding our distribution base predominantly in the next half a year in the markets where Accsys is providing Accoya. We do believe that as of today, the number of distributors and coverage in the US is good. We want to give our new distribution partners a chance to actually deliver on the expectations that we have for them.
I hope this answers your question, Adrian.
Thank you very much.
Thank you. I would now like to turn the conference back to Dr. Jelena Arsic van Os for closing remarks.
Thank you very much. As I said in the last page of our presentation, we are remaining confident in the long-term potential of our technology and strategy. The company is transforming. We are growing, and we are delivering. We have a very clear roadmap in front of us with a market-leading product in very attractive growth markets. We will continue to do what we are doing. Hopefully next half a year when we hear each other, we will just confirm the expectations that we all have. Thank you very much. With this, we will close our result call for today.
This concludes today's conference call. Thank you for participating. You may now disconnect.