Belgian water treatment company Ekopak announced on Wednesday that it has decided to exclude the figures from the already completed part of the ambitious Antwerp-based Waterkracht project from its financial results as a precaution.
The Waterkracht project aims to use hydropower technology to save 20 billion litres of water annually by recycling the wastewater of the city's 600,000 inhabitants and upgrading it to cooling water for the port of Antwerp-Bruges.
Waterkracht makes up part of the circular project within the Blue Deal of the Flemish Government, a programme to combat water scarcity and drought. Flemish Environment Minister Zuhal Demir claims that the project further proves "what Flanders is capable of as an innovative region."
Ekopak reassures that, based on existing budgets and cash flow forecasts, it has the capacity to stay on track and complete the project.
However, in the case of scenarios such as a temporary reduction in revenue or growth in the Water as a Service (WaaS) programme requiring pre-financing, a liquidity deficit could arise, potentially hindering Ekopak's ability to continue funding Waterkracht.
The board is aware of these possible risks and plans to explore alternative financing options. The management team will be reinforced to enhance efficiency and optimise working capital requirements. De Tijd reported that the audit committee of the board of directors and the board are meeting today (2 April) to discuss solutions to these concerns.
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"After reviewing all factors, the board of directors has prudently decided to exclude the results from the already completed part of Ekopak's Waterkracht project from its financial results," the company stated. As a result, its revenue has been adjusted to €47.6 million from €55.5 million, and its net result now stands at -€12.2 million compared to -€7 million before the adjustment.
In recent weeks, the company, primarily owned by Marc Coucke, has faced turbulence with a drop in stock value by 40% since the beginning of this year. Questions have been raised following an article by the Dutch-language Belgian media outlet Apache regarding the completion of the Waterkracht circular water project at the Port of Antwerp.
The trading of Ekopak shares resumed at 09:00 on Wednesday on the Brussels stock exchange, according to the Financial Services and Markets Authority (FSMA). The share trading was suspended at 10:05 on Monday pending the company's announcement.
