Inspired Regulatory News (INSE)

30 January 2017

Inspired Energy plc

("Inspired Energy" or the "Group")

Trading Update and Notice of Results

Inspired Energy (AIM: INSE), a leading energy procurement consultant to UK corporates, is pleased to provide a trading update for the financial year ended 31 December 2016.

Group Results

Inspired continues to deliver on its growth strategy and expects to report results in line with market expectations, which were revised upwards during 2016:

· Group revenues are expected to be c.40 per cent ahead of 2015, with adjusted EBITDA* c.45 per cent ahead of the previous year.

· Procurement Corporate Order Book stood at £28.0 million (2015: £24.5 million) representing year on year growth of 14 per cent.

· Trading remained strong throughout the year, a trend which is continuing into the start of the new financial year.

· Following the acquisition of Informed Business Solutions Limited ("Informed") in September 2016, net debt is expected to be approximately £10.8 million at the year end.

Corporate Division

The Corporate Division enjoyed another excellent year, delivering strong organic growth and the Board is delighted by the successful acquisition of Informed in September 2016. Since the acquisition, Informed has broadened the Group's customer base and strengthened the Group's presence in the multi-site retail and leisure markets for energy procurement. The integration of the business is now virtually complete and the entire team has now relocated to Inspired Energy's head office in Kirkham.

The Procurement Corporate Order Book ("Order Book"), remains a consistent guide to future performance of the Group and provides strong visibility of revenues for the next three years. Accordingly, the Group is pleased to announce that, as at 31 December 2016, the Order Book stood at £28.0 million (2015: £24.5 million) representing year on year growth of 14 per cent. On a like-for-like basis, excluding the acquisitions concluded in FY16 and FY15, the organic Order Book grew by 9% to £19.1 million (2015: £17.5 million). Order Book Sales were £13.5 million in the year (2015: £12.2 million).

Following the acquisitions made within the Corporate Division in FY15 and FY16, and consistent with the Group's stated strategy, the Corporate Division increased its contribution to total Group revenues, representing approximately 75 per cent. of Group revenue and EBITDA, an increase of 8 per cent. against 2015 (67 per cent.).

SME

The SME Division has performed well in the year and continued to deliver strong growth in revenue, profits and cash generation, in line with the Board's expectations.

Janet Thornton, CEO of Inspired Energy, commented: "Inspired had a very strong 2016 in which the business delivered on its stated growth strategy. I am delighted that we have been able to conclude and integrate all three acquisitions completed over 2015 and 2016 whilst simultaneously delivering on our organic growth targets.

"We continue to seek out attractive acquisitions and I am confident that 2017 will be another year of positive growth for Inspired."

Final Results

Inspired Energy expects to announce its full year results for the year ended 31 December 2016 on 27 March 2017.

 * Earnings before exceptional costs (transaction fees in relation to acquisitions), depreciation, amortization and share-based payment costs

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