Highlights

  • Fluence reported Q3 2026 Revenue of US$20.4 million, up 5.8% on the same quarter in 2025.
  • Year-to-date EBITDA reached US$4.7 million, already above the US$4.1 million recorded for the whole of FY2025.
  • New orders of US$8.0 million missed internal expectations, with Backlog easing to US$47.1 million at quarter end.
  • The company formally suspended Egyptian operations on 12 October 2026 as part of its planned exit and liquidation.

Earnings at Fluence Corporation (ASX:FLC) have already outpaced the whole of last year, yet a slower quarter for new contracts and delayed customer payments have tempered the water treatment specialist's progress heading into the final months of 2026.

Fluence designs and supplies decentralised water, wastewater and reuse treatment systems, including its Aspiral MABR wastewater plants and NIROBOX packaged units, alongside recurring operations and maintenance revenue, for customers across the Americas, the Middle East, Asia and Africa.

Core Units Drive Revenue and Margin Gains

In its Business update for the quarter to 30 September 2026, released on 29 October, Fluence reported unaudited revenue of US$20.4 million, up 5.8% year on year. Revenue from smart product solutions and Recurring Revenue rose 44.6%, while revenue from core business units climbed 35.0%.

For the nine months, revenue reached US$58.0 million, up 11.3%, and gross margin improved by 6.2 percentage points to 35.2%. Quarterly EBITDA of US$1.3 million marked the eighth straight positive quarter and lifted the year-to-date total to US$4.7 million from US$1.4 million a year earlier.

The wind-down of the Ivory Coast addendum project reduced revenue there by US$1.8 million year to date. Seven milestones worth €42.4 million have been collected, and completion is forecast for December 2026.

Orders Slip as Customers Delay Investment

New orders for the quarter totalled US$8.0 million, which management said fell below expectations because customers delayed Investment decisions rather than cancelling projects. Year-to-date orders were US$31.6 million, down 20.3%, although recurring revenue orders rose 93.5% to US$3.3 million in the quarter. Notable wins included a US$2.3 million NIROBOX effluent plant in Saudi Arabia, US$2.0 million of Aspiral plants in Southeast Asia and China, and a strategic Aspiral pilot in Colorado.

Backlog fell to US$47.1 million from US$59.8 million in June, though smart products and recurring revenue now make up 98.2% of it.

Cash Timing and the Fourth-Quarter Outlook

Cash declined to US$6.7 million at 30 September 2026 from US$10.9 million in June after a US$4.3 million operating outflow, which the company linked to more than US$5.5 million of delayed receipts, including 2025 Ivory Coast maintenance fees, that it expects to collect imminently.

Management expects positive EBITDA in Q4 2026, strong double-digit growth in core units for FY2026 and Q4 to be the strongest order quarter of the year, although full-year orders are no longer expected to exceed FY2025. Operating Cash Flow is expected to turn positive in Q4, but below the original forecast. Shareholders at an extraordinary general meeting on 22 October 2026 approved all four resolutions, including termination benefits for Jeremy Dayment and the conversion of interest owed to two directors into shares.

Shares were priced at A$0.056 on 2 November 2026, up 1.82% on the day, giving a Market Capitalisation of A$64.16 million and a 12-month decline of 55.2%.