16 January 2023

AIM: MPAC

This announcement contains inside information for the purposes of Article 7 of Regulation (EU) No 596/2014 which is part of UK law by virtue of the European Union (Withdrawal) Act 2018

Mpac Group plc

(''Mpac'', "Company" or "Group")

Full Year Trading update

FY22 trading performance in line with market expectations and encouraging outlook for FY23

Mpac Group plc, a global leader in high-speed packaging and automation solutions, today announces a trading update (unaudited) for the year ended 31 December 2022 ("FY 22").

The Group had an improved H2 22 over H1 22 and expects to report full year revenue and underlying profit before tax in line with market expectations.

Order intake in H2 22 was significantly above H1 22, reflecting the resilience of the healthcare, and food and beverage end markets.  Service order intake and revenue continued to perform well in FY 22 with growth over the prior year. The Group ended 2022 with a closing order book of circa £69.0m (December 2021: £78.4m) which provides good coverage of FY 23 forecast revenue.  Our closing order book, along with an increasing prospect pipeline, leaves the Group well placed and with an encouraging outlook as we enter FY 23.

As announced in July 2022, the unprecedented global supply chain disruption and increasing macro-economic uncertainty impacted both operational efficiencies and the timing of customer order intake.  By responding dynamically and implementing mitigation measures, which included increasing stock levels, securing alternative sources of electronic components, close management of our supply chain and cost savings initiatives, the Group was able to meet customers' expectations and improve margins and profitability in H2 22. 

These supply chain challenges resulted in longer Mpac project build time frames during the year, leading to higher levels of working capital in H2 than previously anticipated and accordingly impacting year end net debt. The Group's balance sheet continues to be strong, and these increased levels of working capital are anticipated to largely unwind during H1 23.

The Group continues to make good progress in the development and build of the clean energy casting and unit cell assembly line for FREYR Battery.  Completion dates have been updated to accommodate customer specification changes and we are on track to complete the contract in Q2 2023.

Our full year results, for the year ended 31 December 2022, are expected to be announced in the week commencing 20 March 2023.

Tony Steels, Chief Executive, commented:

"I am pleased to report projected financial performance for 2022 in line with market expectations which were revised at the end of H1 2022.  Our management teams have worked tirelessly to implement mitigation measures to address the short-term operational challenges caused by disrupted global supply chains.  Furthermore, the positive H2 2022 performance has contributed to a strong closing order book and a healthy prospect pipeline, providing an encouraging outlook. I would like to thank our global team, who have continued to excel in extremely challenging circumstances." 

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