Nel ASA: A Sector in Turmoil Leaves Norway’s Electrolyser Maker Fighting for Time
28.06.2026 - 21:02:19 | boerse-global.de
The hydrogen industry is rewriting its pecking order at breakneck speed, and Nel ASA is on the wrong side of the shift. While US rivals Bloom Energy and FuelCell Energy ride a wave of data-centre demand, the Norwegian electrolyser specialist has shed 40% of its market value in a single month — and the next two weeks offer no relief from the executive suite. The stock closed Friday at €0.20, leaving the 200-day moving average of €0.21 firmly in the rear-view mirror and putting the 52-week low of €0.17 within striking distance.
The immediate catalyst for the sell-off is a leadership vacuum. CEO HĂĄkon Volldal announced his resignation on June 15, sending the shares down nearly 9% that day. He remains in post during a six-month notice period while the board searches for a successor, but the search coincided with the start of a two-week quiet period before the half-year report on July 15. Management is now barred from public communication, depriving investors of any tactical guidance at a moment when confidence is already fragile.
What makes the quiet period especially painful is the underlying business deterioration. First?quarter orders collapsed to just 85 million Norwegian kroner — a 73% year-on-year plunge — while the order backlog shrank 24% to 1.113 billion kroner. Revenue slid 5% to 148 million kroner, and the EBITDA loss, though improved by 15 million kroner, still stood at 100 million kroner. The only cushion is a liquidity pile of 1.443 billion kroner (roughly €124 million), but analysts are drawing little comfort from it. The consensus recommendation is “Underperform”; Morgan Stanley sees a target of just 2.00 NOK, and DNB goes as low as 1.50 NOK.
Should investors sell immediately? Or is it worth buying Nel ASA?
Technically, the picture is equally grim. The stock has given back almost all of its spring recovery. The RSI is approaching oversold territory, but with annualised volatility above 85%, any bounce is likely to be short-lived. The first hurdle to reclaim is €0.21; if that fails, the 52-week low beckons. If Nel does manage to break back above the 200-day line, the next resistance sits at the 100-day moving average of €0.23.
The macro calendar between now and the report adds another layer of uncertainty. The European Central Bank publishes fresh inflation data on Tuesday, which will shape rate expectations for capital-intensive hydrogen projects. The same day brings the US JOLTS report, followed by the main US jobs report on Thursday, and the ISM manufacturing PMI on Wednesday. Any sign of weakness in the American industrial economy feeds directly into demand for energy infrastructure — and that spells further headwinds for equipment suppliers like Nel.
Meanwhile, the broader hydrogen rotation that has lifted FuelCell Energy 21% in a single session on a Jefferies upgrade has left European names behind. ITM Power lost 42% in a month, despite a £40 million state investment from Great British Energy and £46.5 million in grant funding for its Chronos gigafactory. Ceres Power dropped 10.9% on Friday alone, even as Berenberg raised its price target to 980 pence. The market is rewarding execution and signed contracts — Bloom Energy landed a 130% revenue surge and a $20 billion backlog — while punishing companies still translating promises into binding orders.
Nel’s new pressurised alkaline electrolyser, launched in May and designed to cut project costs by up to 60%, has yet to translate into order momentum. The July 15 half-year report will be the first real test of whether that technology is gaining traction. Until then, the stock is at the mercy of market psychology and macro data — and with the CEO departure unresolved, the psychology is decidedly bearish.
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