Ms. Miriam Tuerk reports

CLEAR BLUE TECHNOLOGIES ANNOUNCES FISCAL 2023 FINANCIAL RESULTS

Clear Blue Technologies International Inc. has released its financial results for the full year. A complete set of financial statements and management's discussion and analysis has been filed at SEDAR+.

Full-year 2023 financial results:

• Revenue was $5,403,589, a 105-per-cent increase from $2,636,972 in full-year 2022, due to strong revenues in the back half of the year;
• Recurring revenue of $1,032,056, a 26-per-cent increase from $819,054 in full-year 2022;
• Gross margin increased to 46 per cent versus 37 per cent in full-year 2022; this very high gross margin percentage is indicative of the unparalleled value of the company's Smart Power intellectual property;
• Non-international financial reporting standard adjusted EBITDA (earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization) was ($1,959,397) as compared with ($3,760,719) for the previous period, a 48-per-cent improvement;
• As of Dec. 31, 2023, bookings increased 24 per cent to $2,469,846 compared with $1,991,275 as of Dec. 31, 2022, with delivery anticipated over the next three years;
• Cash decreased from $853,330 as of Dec. 31, 2022, to $534,451 as of Dec. 31, 2023;
• As of Dec. 31, 2023, the company has received approximately $3,762,239 of a $4-million Federal Economic Development Agency for Southern Ontario interest-free loan facility and $746,929 of a $750,000 National Research Council of Canada industrial research assistance program grant; an additional $125,000 extension to original funding was approved subsequent to year-end; to date, the company has received $3,202,943 of $5-million from a Sustainable Development Technology Canada grant.

Notable developments during fourth quarter 2023:

• In the quarter, the company shipped 1,021 power control devices across 14 orders, a quarterly record for units shipped.
• On Nov. 21, the company announced Watt Renewables to be its preferred power partner as it scales up its business in Africa, including Nigeria. The announcement included an initial order of $1.58-million for 160 systems of the planned 1,000 sites that Watt is targeting over the next three years.

Subsequent highlights:

• On Feb. 24, 2024, Clear Blue disclosed that it converted a previously announced Parallel Wireless project to a full Esite-Micro solution, which shipped in Q4.
• On Feb. 29, 2024, the company released the Esite edition of Illumience and provided an update on its road to zero diesel research and development program.

Full-year 2024 financial outlook

Clear Blue closed 2023 with two very strong quarters, demonstrating a clear upswing in its performance with robust quarterly growth. First quarter 2024 presented some challenges. Delays in customer orders due to Red Sea shipping issues extended delivery times by three to six months, impacting inbound payments. Additionally, the expected $1.54-million SDTC grant for its existing contract was delayed until April due to enhanced government reviews, requiring it to push some orders into second quarter.

Despite these challenges, Q1 performance remained robust. Quarterly revenue is projected to be approximately $800,000, marking a 206-per-cent increase from the previous year's $262,137. From a trailing four-quarter perspective, TFQ Q1 2024 is estimated at approximately $5.9-million, up from the previous period's $1,674,003, reflecting a 253-per-cent increase.

Looking at the broader economic landscape, customers continue to push forward on capital project fundraising, albeit with lengthening project financing timelines to 12 to 18 months compared with the previous six-month norm. However, several long-term partners are nearing financing closings in second quarter/early third quarter, forecasting significant order volumes and strong growth for Clear Blue in 2024.

Over all, management is reiterating its previous guidance of 2024 revenue expected to be significantly greater than 2023 and 2022 revenue, which was $5.4-million and $2.6-million, respectively. Clear Blue's business growth has accelerated following a challenging 2022 and 2023. This is expected to lead to increased order intake in 2024, followed by revenue growth.

Conference call

When:  May 29, 2024, at 11 a.m. Eastern Time (United States and Canada)

Topic:  Clear Blue 2023 annual financial earnings call

Register in advance for this webinar.

About Clear Blue Technologies International Inc.

Clear Blue, the smart off-grid company, was founded on a vision of delivering clean, managed, wireless power to meet the global need for reliable, low-cost, solar and hybrid power for lighting, telecom, security, Internet of Things devices and other mission-critical systems. Today, Clear Blue has thousands of systems under management across 37 countries, including the United States and Canada.

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