Annual results FY 2025/26: Verbio turns its results around and resumes paying dividends

Group EBITDA at EUR 193.7 million - exceeding both the previous year's figure and the forecast | Dividend of EUR 0.20 per share proposed | Market environment for biofuels and renewable molecules with growth opportunities | Bio-based chemicals expand the business model

Leipzig, September 24, 2026 - Verbio has turned its results around in the financial year 2025/26. Group EBITDA rose by more than 1,300 percent to EUR 193.7 million, compared with EUR 14.2 million in the previous year. The Company thus also exceeded the EBITDA forecast, which had been raised during the year to between EUR 160 million and EUR 180 million. Net financial debt at June 30, 2026 fell by 44 percent to around EUR 92 million (June 30, 2025: EUR 164.0 million). The Management and Supervisory Boards will propose to the annual general meeting on December 4, 2026 that a dividend of EUR 0.20 per share be paid.

On the production side, Verbio once again achieved record figures; worldwide, 1.218 million tonnes of biodiesel and bioethanol were produced in the financial year 2025/26 (FY 2024/25: 1.202 million tonnes), as well as 1,410 GWh of biomethane (FY 2024/25: 1,190 GWh). The CO₂ savings from the products produced and traded amounted to 4.7 million tonnes of CO₂ equivalent.

Group revenue rose by 18.5 percent to EUR 1,872.7 million (FY 2024/25: EUR 1,579.8 million). The equity ratio increased to 59.7 percent (FY 2024/25: 58.2 percent). Verbio invested just under EUR 90 million, in particular in expanding its bio-based chemicals business in Europe and its production plants in the USA.

Stabilisation in the biofuels market

These figures clearly demonstrate what Verbio is capable of in a fair competitive environment. From a market perspective, the national implementation of the revised Renewable Energy Directive (RED III), which came into force, in part retrospectively, from January 1, 2026, is having a stabilising effect: the double counting of advanced biofuels has been abolished, monitoring and certification mechanisms have been tightened, and the physical fulfilment of the quota obligation for CO₂ reduction is once again taking centre stage.

This will help to curb the key causes of the market distortions resulting from fraud in recent years. Verbio highlighted these problems at an early stage, and has worked hard at a political level to curb the biodiesel fraud.

Verbio has further improved the CO₂ efficiency and economic performance of its biorefineries through stricter capital discipline, more efficient processes across the entire value chain, and rigorous multiple use of biomass. The consistent multiple use of the biomass used in production and the marketing of co-products such as glycerine, phytosterols and biogenic CO₂ have increased the value added per tonne of raw material. This was supported by a market environment characterised by high prices for fossil fuels, which has enhanced the competitiveness of virtually all Verbio products.

"Verbio's position today is significantly better than it was twelve months ago. We have decreased our debt levels, improved the efficiency of our production plants and benefited from changes to the regulatory framework conditions," said Claus Sauter, Chief Executive Officer of Verbio SE.

Biomass is part of the critical infrastructure

Furthermore, there is a veritable paradigm shift taking place in Europe, with biomass finally being recognised once again as an important pillar of regional agriculture and as part of the solution to energy security, price stability and climate change mitigation. The risks to security of supply and high prices for fossil fuels associated with geopolitical crises underscore the importance of secure, regional and independent supplies of energy and raw materials. For months now E10 has been the cheapest liquid fuel at European filling stations, and its market share is growing steadily.

Worldwide demand for renewable molecules is on the rise: India is already blending 20 percent bioethanol into petrol, with E30 seen as the next stage of expansion; Japan, Vietnam and Indonesia are introducing or preparing to introduce blends ranging from E10 to E20; and the EU is considering the introduction of E20. The fact that higher blending ratios also have a dampening effect on prices is evident in the USA, where E15 is by far the cheapest liquid fuel available at the filling station today.

"Biomass is part of the critical infrastructure. It is produced regionally, and it forms the basis for a wide range of renewable molecules. Our raw materials do not have to pass through the Strait of Hormuz - they come from local agriculture, which strengthens regional bio-based value creation and enhances our independence from imported fossil fuels. Smart motorists fill up with E10," said Sauter.

Biomethane: a practical response to high diesel prices with potential beyond the transport sector

In view of this, biomethane is a real all-rounder. Bio-LNG produced from regional residual materials can replace fossil diesel in heavy goods vehicle freight transport - with fuel costs up to 50 percent lower and CO₂ reduction of up to 100 percent. A range of over 1,000 kilometres per tank means that this fuel is suitable for long-distance travel as well. Verbio's own fleet of approximately
170 Bio-CNG and Bio-LNG trucks has been proving its practical viability for a number of years.

With its own Bio-LNG production facilities in Germany and 46 of its own and partner stations along important transit routes, Verbio offers a market-ready solution that combines sustainability and cost-effectiveness to give transport companies a genuine competitive advantage. This helps to keep transport costs low, thereby keeping the prices of consumer goods stable. Verbio offers support to transport companies interested in making the switch in the form of comprehensive expertise and bespoke solutions.

"Bio-LNG is available, tried and tested, and economically viable. We have made upfront investments in production, our network of filling stations and our fleet of vehicles. It is now up to the politicians to act. The climate change mitigation benefits of Bio-LNG must be recognised in the truck toll scheme, and renewable fuels must be treated on an equal footing when it comes to tax relief," said Sauter. In doing so he called for better framework conditions to enable a faster market ramp-up for this alternative fuel system.

New demand for biomethane is also emerging, from outside the transport sector. In Germany the Building Modernisation Act (Gebäudemodernisierungsgesetz) is helping to open up the heating market to biomethane. The planned green gas quota for the entire gas market, if designed appropriately, will offer additional opportunities for the use of biomethane in industrial applications.

Bio-based chemicals as the logical next step for Verbio

The potential of biomass extends far beyond its use as an energy source. With bio-based chemicals, Verbio is tapping into material applications and replacing fossil carbon with renewable carbon - defossilisation rather than decarbonisation.

"A sustainable supply of energy and raw materials requires both: renewable electrons where electrification is feasible, and biomass-based molecules where electrification is not possible or not economically viable," emphasised Sauter.

These developments take us back to the place where Verbio first began. Twenty-five years ago the Company commissioned its first production equipment in Bitterfeld. What was once a biodiesel plant has now become an integrated biorefinery that produces not only biodiesel but also glycerine and phytosterols from European rapeseed oil.

This year, the manufacturing of bio-based speciality chemicals will add a further stage to the value chain. Verbio has invested just under EUR 100 million in the world's first industrial-scale ethenolysis plant based on rapeseed methyl ester. Around 50 new jobs will be created, in addition to the approximately 120 existing jobs at the location. The plant will be brought online in stages; the official opening ceremony, attended by guests from industry and politics, will take place on October 6, 2026.

In the future, up to 60,000 tonnes of bio-based speciality chemicals are set to be produced there annually - high-value renewable carbon compounds that can replace fossil-based raw materials in lubricants, detergents and cleaning products, as well as plastics. The technology is based on a Nobel Prize-winning innovation, which Verbio is scaling up for industrial application for the first time.

"With this investment, we are expanding our business model beyond the biofuels market. We provide renewable carbon molecules that the chemical industry urgently needs in order to become more independent of fossil raw materials and, as a result, more sustainable and competitive," said Sauter.

Trading office in Geneva ensures proximity to the market

Through its subsidiary in Geneva, Verbio has significantly expanded its global trading business in biomass molecules and has now become a major player on the European market. Trading has delivered the Company a more accurate picture of global trade flows, the availability of raw materials and price trends; in a business characterised by worldwide flows and widely differing local regulatory frameworks, this represents a direct advantage in terms of planning.

Dividends

The Management and Supervisory Boards will propose the payment of a dividend of EUR 0.20 per share at the annual general meeting of Verbio SE to be held on December 4, 2026. The dividend was suspended in the previous year.

"A year ago, I said that we would stick to our target of paying a reliable dividend and that we intended to return to our usual level in the medium term. These announcements are being fulfilled with today's proposal," said Sauter.

Outlook for the financial year 2026/27

For the financial year 2026/27 the Management Board expects the Group's EBITDA to be between EUR 210 million and EUR 250 million, which is higher than in the financial year 2025/26. The expected increase in Group EBITDA is primarily due to the higher contribution to earnings from the Bioethanol/Biomethane segment. This is driven in particular by higher production volumes in North America, rising biomethane production and additional contributions to earnings from the GHG quotas business.

The positive trend in earnings, as well as lower capital expenditure compared with the previous year, is expected to contribute to a further significant reduction in net financial debt. The investments comprise, among other things, the further conversion of the plant in South Bend, Indiana (USA) into a combined bioethanol/biomethane production plant.

"Our aim remains the same - to be among the best in our markets. That is why we will continue to work with a high degree of discipline and consistently further strengthen our competitiveness," concluded Sauter.

The detailed annual report 2025/26 is available from 8.30 AM on September 24, 2026 at https://www.verbio.de/finanzberichte. Detailed figures for segments and quarters are set out in the corporate news release published on the same day.

• Verbio_PressRelease_FY_2025-26_24092026_EN.pdf 171 KB
• Image 1_Claus Sauter_(c)Verbio_André Wirsig 2 MB
• Image 2_Verbio_Ethenolysis Plant_(c)Verbio 18 MB
• Image 3_Verbio Bio-LNG and Bio-CNG Filling Station (c)Verbio 13 MB
• Image 4_Verbio Plant_South Bend (c) Verbio 1 MB
• Image 5_Verbio Bitterfeld Site Under Construction 2001 at the very beginning(c)Verbio 60 KB