Risks and Uncertainties
Bittium has identified several business, market and finance related risk factors and uncertainties that can affect the level of sales and profits.
The coronavirus pandemic has caused changes in the company´s operating environment. The company management has been actively following and anticipating the development of the pandemic and has taken measures to prevent and remedy the impacts of the pandemic. It is difficult to estimate the length of the situation or its impacts on business operations and financial results.
The global disruption in the availability of electronic components and their price development has caused fast changes in the company´s operating environment. The company monitors the development of the situation and actively strives to ensure the availability of components required for product deliveries. Poor availability of components can weaken the progress of customer projects and the ability to deliver products.
Market Risks
The global economic uncertainty may affect the demand for Bittium´s services, solutions, and products and provide pressure on, e.g., pricing. In the short term, such uncertainty may affect, in particular, the utilization and chargeability levels and average hourly prices of R&D services. Growing political uncertainty may also affect the demand for Bittium´s services, solutions, and products and the price competitiveness in the different geographical areas. Bittium is also increasingly exposed to legal, economic, political, and regulatory risks related to the countries in which its suppliers and other cooperation partners are located. Such risks may result in delays in deliveries or in situations where there will be no orders in the forecast quantities, currency losses, elevated costs, or litigations and related costs.
As Bittium´s customer base includes, among others, companies operating in the field of telecommunication, defense, and other authorities, as well as companies delivering products to them and companies operating in the healthcare sector, the company is exposed to market changes in these industries.
A significant part of Bittium´s net sales accumulate from selling products and R&D services to defense and other authorities, as well as companies delivering products to them. Deviation in anticipated business development with such customer concentrations may translate as a significant deviation in Bittium´s outlook, both in terms of net sales and operating result, during the ongoing financial period and thereafter.
Bittium seeks to expand its customer base on a longer term and reduce dependence on individual companies, and hence the company would thereby be mainly affected by the general business climate in the industries of the companies belonging to Bittium´s customer base instead of the development of individual customer relationships. The more specific market outlook has been presented in this report in the “Market outlook´ section.
Business Related Risks
Bittium´s operative business risks are mainly related to the following items: uncertainties and short visibility on customers´ product program decisions, their make or buy decisions and, on the other hand, their decisions to continue, downsize or terminate current product programs, execution and management of large customer projects, ramping up and down project resources, availability of personnel in labor markets, accessibility on commercially acceptable terms and, on the other hand, successful utilization of the most important technologies and components, competitive situation and potential delays in the markets, timely closing of customer and supplier contracts with reasonable commercial terms, delays in R&D projects, a realization of expected return on capitalized R&D investments, obsolescence of inventories and technology risks in product development causing higher than planned R&D costs, and risks related to the ramp-up of product manufacturing. Revenues expected to come from either existing or new products and customers include normal timing risks. Bittium has certain significant customer projects, and deviation in their expected continuation could also result in significant deviations in the company´s outlook. In addition, there are typical industry warranty and liability risks involved in selling Bittium´s services, solutions, and products.
Bittium´s product delivery business model faces such risks as high dependency on actual product volumes, timing risks, and potential delays in the markets. The above-mentioned risks may manifest themselves as lower amounts of products delivered or higher costs of production, and ultimately, as lower profit. Bringing Bittium´s products to international defense and other authorities´ markets may take longer than anticipated because the projects are typically long, and the purchasing programs are prepared in the lead of national governments and within the available financing. Once a supplier has been selected, product deliveries are typically executed over several years.
Some of Bittium´s businesses operate in industries that are heavily reliant on patent protection and therefore face risks related to the management of intellectual property rights, on the one hand, related to accessibility on commercially acceptable terms of certain technologies in the Bittium´s products and services, and on the other hand, related to an ability to protect technologies that Bittium develops or licenses from others from claims that third parties´ intellectual property rights are infringed. Additionally, parties outside of the industries operate actively to protect and commercialize their patents and therefore in their part increase the risks related to the management of intellectual property rights. At worst, claims that third parties´ intellectual property rights are infringed could lead to substantial liabilities for damages. In addition, the progress of the customer projects and delivery capability may also be affected by potential challenges in global accessibility of key technologies and components on commercially acceptable terms, as well as by the acceptance of the necessary export licenses. The company changed its name to Bittium Corporation as of July 1, 2015 and started using the new trademark. The registration and the use of the new trademark can include customary risks involved in taking in use a new trademark.
Financing Risks
Global economic uncertainty may lead to payment delays, increase the risk for credit losses, and weaken the availability and terms of financing. To fund its operations, Bittium relies mainly on income from its operative business and may from time to time seek additional financing from selected financial institutions. Bittium has EUR 20.0 million senior loan and EUR 10.0 million committed overdraft credit facility agreement with Nordea Bank Plc. The maturity date for the senior loan is May 24, 2024, and the credit limit agreement is valid until May 24, 2024. Bittium has EUR 10.0 million committed overdraft credit facility agreement with OP Corporate Bank Plc valid until May 24, 2022.
These agreements include customary covenants related to, among other things, equity ratio, transferring property, and pledging. There is no assurance that additional financing will not be needed in case of investments, networking capital needs, or clearly weaker than expected development of Bittium´s businesses. Customer dependency in some parts of Bittium´s business may translate as an accumulation of risk with respect to outstanding receivables and ultimately with respect to credit losses.