Hello all, and a warm welcome to the GARO Interim Report from January to March 2022. My name is Lydia, and I'll be your operator today. If you'd like to ask a question at the end of the presentation, you may do so by pressing star followed by the number one on your telephone keypad. It's my pleasure to hand you over to our host, Patrik Andersson, CEO. Please go ahead when you're ready.
Thank you, and welcome everyone to the presentation of GARO's Q1 2022. My name is Patrik Andersson, and I'm the CEO of the group. With me today, I have Helena Claesson, our CFO, to present the financial performance. Next slide, please. We start with an introduction. GARO is a company that develops, manufactures, and sells innovative products and systems for electrical installation under our own brand on the European markets. Developing products that are at the forefront has always been a significant aspect of our success. Focus is on developing user-friendly and safe products with a modern design and a long service life. The market for electrical installation material and charging infrastructure is continuing to grow, and we foresee a positive trend for GARO.
At the same time, the increased demand for products and solutions to achieve a fossil-free society is leading a growing number of players to become aware of their environmental impact. This makes the sustainable aspect a crucial factor in the choice of product or service. Next slide, please. We divide our business into two business areas, GARO E-mobility, which consists of our product area, E-mobility, and GARO Electrification, which covers our product areas, electrical distribution products, projects, and temporary power. We have operations in Sweden, Norway, Ireland, Finland, Poland, and the UK, and we also sell to other European countries where we do not own subsidiaries, which is increasing business. We have today production on four sites, two in Gnosjö in Sweden, where we also have our head office, one in Värnamo in Sweden, and the 4th site in Szczecin in Poland.
We have in both countries decided during the quarter to invest in the future. In Poland, a new production and logistics facility of approximately 15,000 square meters, a considerable increase in capacity, primarily in the GARO E-mobility business, but also in the GARO Electrification. The project is planned to commence in Q2 of 2022, and the facility is expected to be completed by summer 2023. GARO will also expand operations in Sweden by relocating a significant part of the operations in the GARO Electrification to new facilities in Hylte Stop, 10 km from Gnosjö. The new facility in Hylte Stop is a leasing contract starting end of 2022, and the existing lease in Värnamo has been terminated and a smaller industrial property in Gnosjö will be divested with assessed market value of SEK 15 million. We have approximately 500 employees in the group.
Next slide, please. E-mobility. Our fastest-growing product area is E-mobility, where we develop and market all types of chargers for rechargeable vehicles. We have product and turnkey solutions for different environments, such as home, public, workplace, and along the highway. On top of this, we make the E-mobility business even more complete. We also offer service agreement to help the customer with yearly service and updates. We believe it's important to make it easy for the user and make it possible to charge where the people live and work. This area accounted for 38% of the total sales, up from 32% in the year earlier. Next slide, please. In the business area Electrification, one of the three product areas electrical distribution products consists of approximately 3,500 products and turnkey solutions for the electrical installation market.
Examples of the products are components, safety switches, meter cabinets, outlet boxes, plugs and sockets, which are products used every day in different applications, such as new buildings, renovation, industry, E-mobility solutions, etc., and contribute to 38% of the revenues. Our product area Projects provides complete and customized solutions for all types of power supply for apartments, villas, industry, and also E-mobility solutions, accounted for 19% of the total sales. Product area Temporary Power, with a product portfolio consisting of temporary electricity, lighting, heating, and charging products used on construction sites and in events, accounted for 5% of the sales. These product areas together with the E-mobility offer a unique and easy make it easy for the customer. An example of this is when the customer needs a charging solution with different chargers from E-mobility.
They also need power supply from projects and safety and installation products from electrical distribution products. These make it easy, simple, and safe for the customer and end user. Next slide, please. We go further on with product development. We regard challenges as new opportunities, and we are driven by curiosity to try new approaches. Developing products and solutions for a sustainable future is a self-evident focus for us. We are to always maintain a high rate of development when it comes to smart products to meet current and future needs. The same trend today is increasing demand for safety from various players in the markets. In parallel with the regulations becoming stricter with regard to all types of electrical products. GARO welcomes this development regarding safety and certification.
With the help of innovative product development, our products are adapted based on unique national requirements and regulations to the European markets. Material choice, functionality, and energy efficiency are three keywords in addition to sustainability. Those parameters are our strategy for product development. With strong product development encompassing all of our product areas, we are creating unique opportunities to develop sustainable products that satisfy the markets. Next slide, please. Operational highlights. We start with growth and profitability. Sales development during Q1 was strong in both business areas despite difficulties regarding the supply of components. GARO's broad product portfolio, service, and support make the company rather unique, and the positive development within all product areas shows that we have significant synergies between the two business areas, E-mobility and Electrification.
The good sales development during the start of the year also contributed to a good improvement in profitability despite recruitments within sales and increased marketing. GARO E-mobility had a sales growth of 56% in the quarter, driven by wall boxes and charging stations, and this could have been more if they had access to components. Demand across the whole product range was good, but primarily within AC chargers. We see a positive development in almost all our markets. Notably is the U.K. and Finland, were weaker, while in Norway was weaker due to increased market maturity. We also continue to see strong sales through contract customer s in Europe, and the group's external exports are doubling sales.
Driving factors for the e-mobility business is of course increasing number of rechargeable cars in Europe, and this makes the high demand within charging infrastructures in all such home working places and along the highway. After events after the quarter, GARO has signed a framework agreement with a global vehicle manufacturer regarding charging infrastructure for the European markets. The first delivery is expected during Q3 2022, and orders will be placed on an ongoing basis; the agreement does not guarantee any volumes. Electrification growth amounted to 20% during the quarter, with a strong trend in electrical distribution products and project business. The new construction and renovation sector remained favorable during the quarter, which has driven sales in all product groups. During the quarter, we also saw strong sales of car heaters in Sweden and Finland.
The project business has an area trending positively, mainly in Sweden and in the UK, and the temporary power remained on corresponding levels and at the same quarter last year. Next slide, please. Outlook for Q2 2022. The challenging situation regarding the supply of components continues in Q1 and has become worse towards the end of the period, mainly affecting the business area E-mobility. We also see long lead times for new hybrid and electric vehicles on the market. This may affect installations on the wall box in the short term . Therefore, we estimate that the E-mobility sales in quarter two will be in line with the same period last year. Now over to Helena for the financial performance. Next slide, please.
Thank you, Patrik. I would like to start with the Financial S ummary of Q1 . We have had a good quarter with net sales of almost SEK 382 million, giving us a growth of 31% compared to the same quarter in 2021. The growth came entirely through organic growth, seen in three out of four of our product groups. That is electrical distribution products, projects, and e-mobility. Also, the growth has been achieved despite the challenges regarding sourcing material and components, as Patrik just mentioned. Operating margin for the quarter came in at 17.5%, giving us an EBIT of SEK 67 million, and is a significant improvement compared to the same period last year. Scale effects from higher volumes, a positive product mix, and good cost control in general are the main explanations for this.
Our balance sheet is strong with a net cash of SEK 1.7 million compared to net debt of SEK 6.6 million in the same quarter last year. Next slide, please. Now let's look into the two new business areas separately, and we'll start with GARO E-mobility. Net sales increased by 56%, all driven by organic growth, giving us sales that amounted to SEK 146 million compared to SEK 94 million in the same quarter last year. We had particularly strong sales growth in the United Kingdom and in Finland. Sweden also showed good sales to wholesalers, where the end customers are workplaces, private homes, property, and real estate owners. More and more wholesalers are choosing to offer GARO's products in their standard range, which enables fast deliveries and a high availability.
Contract customers, such as energy companies and players in the automation industry established in Europe, continued to develop well during the quarter, and several deliveries were made under existing framework agreements. In this category, we could see a sales growth of more than 100%. During the quarter, we have continued to invest in the UK market , as well as in resources for service and support. EBIT amounted to SEK 31 million, and operating margins in the quarter came in at 20.9% compared to the same quarter last year. Next slide, please. We continue to look into the business area, GARO Electrification. Net sales increased by 20%, driven by organic growth, and amounted to SEK 235 million, compared to SEK 197 million in the same quarter last year.
High demand was seen in a lot of product areas, driven by new constructions, renovations, and energy efficiency, together with the expansion of the charging infrastructure. The sales within the product area, electrical distribution products, varied depending on the product group. For example, we see good sales of car heaters in Sweden and in Finland, where GARO has a leading position in the Nordic region. Project sales were up to 30%, where we have had good demand for customized power stations, cable cabinets, and switch gears. Also in the U.K. and Ireland, the sales within the project are driven by the charging infrastructure, giving good sales growth. Sales within temporary power remained at similar levels as for the same quarter last year. EBIT increased to SEK 36 million, and margins came in at 15.3%, slightly better than the same quarter last year. Next slide, please.
Cash flow from operating activities amounted to SEK 12.2 million in Q1, compared to SEK 16.6 million in the same quarter last year. This was explained by a higher need for working capital, mainly due to the higher inventory value of components and higher accounts receivable, a result of tactical material purchases where we are securing the need for electrical components going forward. In the quarter, we have had investments of almost SEK 17 million, of which eight were related to product development. We have a strong balance sheet with a net cash position for March amounting to SEK 1.7 million. We have an equity/assets ratio of 62.3% and available liquidity, including overdraft facilities of more than SEK 170 million. Now back to you, Patrik.
Next slide, please. Thank you, Helena. Strong growth and development opportunities. Here, our strategy remains the same. The main driver of growth will be organic growth. A successful product development has been and will continue to be a key to this growth. On top of this, we are always looking for potential acquisitions where we can add either new products, product areas or companies with an edge. An example of this is the acquisition of EV Charge Partner to strengthen our E-mobility business. We are also looking at new geographical markets with a focus mainly of north part of Europe. GARO's vision is to become the leading brand in its chosen markets. Next slide, please. Outlook. In the short term, as I mentioned before, we foresee challenges in the meeting demand in the GARO E-mobility , l ess area.
On long term, we assess the core market condition have essentially not changed. The market for charging infrastructure is growing structurally with rising number of rechargeable vehicles, and we see a continuing strong trend with further expansion of the charging infrastructure in all markets. Demand for construction related products, combined with important renovation and energy efficiency sector is expected to remain at a good level. All in all, we have a positive view on the long-term market condition, mainly driven by growth in charging infrastructure. Thank you for listening, and we are now ready for questions.
Thank you, Patrik. If you'd like to ask a question, please press star followed by the number one on your telephone keypad now. To withdraw your question, it's star followed by two. Please also ensure your device is unmuted locally when preparing to speak. Our first question today comes from Olof Cederholm of ABG. Your line is open.
Good afternoon, it's Olof with ABG. Fantastic quarter, very strong growth in all of the businesses. If I maybe can start with Electrification, which was particularly strong, I think. How should we think about that sales momentum going forward? Is there a risk that the momentum will slow down a little bit? As I understand, a part of the strong Q1 came from car heaters, which may not be there in Q2. How should we think about that business?
Yeah. I think you're thinking the right way here. Of course, we had good sales in car heaters during the quarter. We can see a good demand for electrification, as we mentioned, with construction and renovation sector, but maybe not on that level that we had in Q1 . We see good business for electrification, so we think it will increase, but not on that level as Q1 .
Yeah. Are there any component issues in that business for you?
Of course, we have some shortage, but not so big problem that we have with electrical components, as we mentioned for the Mobility business. Of course, some components here and there. Overall, quite good supply in Electrification.
Excellent. If I may ask about cost inflation. You're able to deliver pretty good margins. I would assume that there is cost inflation going on in your business. Have you seen a material effect from that, or do you expect this to increase going forward?
Of course, we have seen higher costs on materials. As we mentioned in the report, we have good discussions with our suppliers, but we have also increased our prices to customers. Of course, that will continue during the year. We assume with the price levels going up. I think we have a good model in the company, and we can handle that in a good way. I think we show that during the quarter and also during 2020. Of course, we will handle this during the rest of the quarter 2022, also with increasing prices. We have a good model in the company for handling that.
Yeah. If I just may, my last question before I return to the queue. I have more questions after that as well, but I'll let other people in. First, on the E-mobility side, how do you safeguard against rising costs there? Because I would assume that the lead times are longer now. If I order a Garo charger, when will I get it? And how do you make sure that you get a good margin on that whenever I get it, so to speak?
Of course, we have longer lead time. As you said, we had some shortage of some components. Also which type of charger you are buying, you have different lead time, of course. To save the margin, if we have so to call a bigger project, we have that on offer. The offer is, we can increase the prices during time, and we have some price windows to our wholesalers and so on. I think we could handle that quite good. As I said, we have a good model. Of course, we can lose some money in some business. Overall, I think, as I said, we have a good model in the company to handle the prices.
Very good. Thank you. I'll return to the queue.
Yep. Thank you.
The next question comes from Kenneth Toll Johansson of Carnegie. Please go ahead.
Yeah. Thank you. I was thinking about the outlook for EBIT margins. They were very, very strong compared to my estimates, at least in Q1. When we move into Q2, you will probably not have the same sales growth that you had year-over-year in Q1, but you have also added employees to drive growth. Should we expect a much lower EBIT margin in Q2?
Yeah, I think you should expect a lower margin, as you said. This is, as we mentioned, a short term. We see some problem with the supply components. On long term, as we mentioned, we think this market for the mobility business will be good. We are building an organization, and we are making investment in capacity. Of course we will see a bit lower margin in short term. We, this company, is looking at long term, and we have to build organization, capacity, new products. Of course, on short term, we will have a lower margin. That's correct.
I mean, speaking about that, the EBIT margin in E-mobility is very high, especially when we compare to some other players in that area. There is always a trade-off between sales growth and EBIT margin in the short term, but now when you have such high EBIT margins in E-mobility, are you becoming even more aggressive to grow that, or do you think that you haven't focused on growth enough, if I put it that way?
I think we focus on growth. As we mentioned in report, we're increasing in export sales. We are increasing in our subsidy in U.K. I think we increasing the organization and have focus on that, of course. We have also focused on the margin, and we think it's important, as we have mentioned before, to have this broad range, not to have it just one wall box or one power station. Our broad range, we think is very good for the margin on long term. I think we have a focus on both growth and of course margin, which is important for our company.
Great. Then the last question, the component shortages. I understand that it's hard to know what kind of component shortage you will have in three months or so, but could you elaborate a little bit, the shortages you have? Are they related to imports from China so that the lockdown situation in China is affecting your suppliers in Europe? Or could you elaborate a little bit on the causes for the shortages, please?
Yeah. The shortage is related to electronic components. Of course, some of them is related to China, some of them is related to Europe, and so on. They come from different places for these PCB boards. Of course, China is some reason, but of course, other reasons also. It's quite hard to predict because it's a lot of components on these PCB boards, and we have different PCB boards also. It's many thing affecting the shortage at this stage, and it's very hard to predict and explain all the components. China and Europe, of course, is some of the reasons, yes.
If I may throw in the last one, what CapEx levels are you looking for in the investments that you're doing in Sweden and also in Poland? Are most of them going to be spent in 2023?
When it comes to the new facilities in Poland, we communicated those CapEx, I believe, in earlier. It's somewhere about SEK 90 million. I would say maybe a third or something will be used during 2022, since we are forecasting to have that property in place during Q2 2023.
Mm. Mm.
Otherwise, CapEx-wise, I would say that we will be more or less on the same levels as we have been the last two, three years.
Mm.
Where we are investing in product development and product.
Okay.
Yeah.
Very good. Plus the Swedish expansion, it's not that CapEx heavy?
No. The Swedish is a rented facility. Yes, we need more, so to say, workplaces, but it's not machine heavy in expensive machinery or test equipment or similar. It's more or less basic workplace.
Mm-hmm. Good. Thanks a lot.
Thank you.
Mm-hmm. Thanks.
Thank you. We also have Olof registered again for follow-up questions.
Yes, thank you. I have a few follow-ups then. Can you talk a little bit about your DC and fast charging business? How's this developing?
It's developing. Of course, it's going well, but on low levels. So to say, we can see that the infrastructure building today is mostly AC chargers because you install AC chargers at your home, working places, and also at public charging, shopping malls and things like that. They are starting to build more and more DC stations. We think that most of the sales today and in the future will be AC chargers because the cars have very long range today. Of course, we are also selling our DC charger 24 kilowatts and 50 kilowatts because you want to have some DC in combination with the AC chargers. We are selling them but on low levels at this stage.
Yeah. Some of the competitors on the DC side are, you know, really moving fast towards more, you know, bigger charging stations with more kilowatts than you have. Are you going to follow them or will you continue to work in your sort of area of that DC market?
We will focus more on that we call destination charging and that is up to around 50 kW. We can also offer bigger chargers, but we will have them the main focus, AC and DC, maybe up to 50 or 150 kW. We could offer bigger also, but the main focus will be there.
Yeah. Very good. Just following on, you know, Kenneth's questions about the component situation. I understand this is super difficult. Are there any signs from your supply chain that the situation would improve again in Q3 or is it just no visibility whatsoever?
I would say there's no visibility. It's very, very hard to predict at this stage. I can't say anything on that. We have to make the work we are doing every day to make the supply better and better and find components and redesign and do the work we have done for two years now and continue with that. That has been successful, but we can't predict anything about quarter three. Sorry for that.
No, understood. I think you're not alone in that situation.
Oh.
I still had to ask.
Of course.
Well, with that, thank you. Thank you so much. That's all for me.
Thank you.
As a reminder, if you'd like to ask a question, please press star followed by the number one on your telephone keypad. We have no further questions in the queue, so I'll hand back to Patrik Andersson for any final remarks.
Thank you, everyone, for listening and have a nice evening. Goodbye.
This concludes today's call. Thank you for joining. You may now disconnect your line.