Latest news with #DroneDeliveryCanada
The Market Online
a day ago
- Business
- The Market Online
A leading provider of integrated drone solutions across North America
Canadian based Volatus Aerospace Inc. is a leading provider of integrated drone solutions across North America with expanding operations in Latin America and globally. The company serves civil, public safety and defense markets. And in May, the company announced a transformative merger with Drone Delivery Canada. Lyndsay Malchuk recently caught up with Glen Lynch, CEO of Volatus Aerospace to discuss the company's background, their technology, and how Volatus stands apart from all the rest. The following is a transcription of the above video, and The Market Online has edited it for clarity . Lyndsay: Let's start with just a bit of a background if we could, can you walk us through Volatus' journey and really how it's grown into a key player in the drone tech and services space? Glen: Certainly. So, the company was founded about six years ago with the belief that drones would replace piloted aircraft for specifically logistics and aerial survey intelligence type works. And then eventually it would actually start to replace human beings in jobs that were dull, dirty, or dangerous, which is really the theme of autonomous or automated systems. So now the company has become an innovator in aerial intelligence and logistics. We grew fairly quickly, 50% from organic growth and 50% through acquisition. So we are an acquisitive company. And last August with the completion of Drone Delivery Canada, that was our 18th acquisition. So now we have a service that basically delivers intelligence and cargo services globally. We've got a strong presence in public safety, infrastructure, oil and gas and energy. We've pioneered off-grid nested drone solutions. So basically autonomous drone in a box that are dropped off at mining and industrial sites and operated remotely and really become known for our regulatory strengths that have allowed us to operate beyond the confines of typical regulations through waivers and special applied operating certificates. Lyndsay: What are some of those standout technologies or platforms Volatus has built? Let's expand on that a little bit. I mean, how do these set you apart from others in the drone industry? Glen: Well, funny enough, R&D is part of our DNA, and we have a portfolio of technologies. What really sets us apart from many is that we're truly a technology agnostic company. We've developed more of an integrated ecosystem of aerial solutions that include much of our own technologies, but also other people's technologies. The concept is to leverage our remote operations capabilities from our OCC in the Toronto area for the remote operation of air vehicles beyond visual line of sight of the pilot. So a lot of the IP was for remote operations came from Drone Delivery Canada including our ground-based infrastructure and many of the cargo delivery drones. And today we conduct nearly daily flights where the air vehicle is more than 3000 kilometers away from the pilot operator in Toronto. On the inspection side, we've got AI driven inspections. We do thermal leak detection, remote sensing activities and I should also mention our Volatus Academy, which I'm quite proud of. That's our training and education platform where we focus on platform agnostic training and STEM programs, specifically our SEAR program, which is our scientific experiential aerial research program that works with high school students to have them understand drone technology, sensors and use data that they collect to populate algorithms that ultimately can contribute to things like the early detection of Dutch Elm disease, projects like that. And then of course, the last thing is focusing on our regulatory approvals that allow us to use all of this ecosystem or engage it in operations that are beyond what most companies can. Lyndsay: Let's just walk over to the financials if we could. Can you break down some of those highlights for us? You know, revenue growth, profitability, any big investments or partnerships that have helped drive that performance for you? Glen: So, the company has experienced some decent growth. We're still a small business by definition, but our revenues in 2021 were basically $660,000 and 2024, a few years later, were $27 million, and we're targeting $50 million in 2025. We've pivoted a lot towards recurring revenue models where we're dealing with long-term contracts with oil and gas and power utilities versus the early days of individual one-off type contracts. Not to say that we don't still have a fair number of individual buildings or projects that we will inspect, but a lot of our focus now is on larger scale, bigger customers, bigger contracts basically. On the equipment sales side, we have about $12 million in unfulfilled demand in Canada alone for solution sales. So big opportunities there. Our defense strategy focuses on ISR or intelligence, reconnaissance and surveillance type services with a focus in Canada, Europe, and Southeast Asia. A lot of focus around NATO allies. Our revenue mix is about 60% on the service side, which is basically our turnkey services, our training and our consulting services, and 40% on solution sales. That's expected to shift more and more towards the service side of the business as we continue to grow. Margins have also grown. So, from about 24% to about 35%, we're targeting 40% to 45% in the near future. That's a year over year growth that will continue to improve as our business mix changes and as our business evolves. And one key thing, I'm quite proud of our post-merger strategies, our synergies that we were able to realize with Drone Delivery Canada. We forecast $3 million in savings in the first 100 days. We actually achieved $3.8 million and near break even in Q4 last year. So, our adjusted EBITDA was just a little better than a $200,000 loss, which is putting us kind of on track for our target to a positive EBITDA on a go forward basis by the end of the year. Lyndsay: Let's unpack that merger just a little bit more with Drone Delivery Canada. Now that that's complete how does that boost Volatus' capabilities and position in the market? Glen: So, it brought a lot to us. It was very much a technology company that had focused on remote operations and logistics services. So, it definitely strengthened our cargo logistics technologies and IP, but it's also given us a lot of enhanced capabilities through the operational control center and the staff that came with that, giving us national and international operating capabilities that I would say are second to none right now. It added long-term regulatory approvals and positioned us as a dual leader in both logistics and remote operations for intelligence type products. Lyndsay: So, it wasn't just that, which was the big news. the company also announced a major national expansion of its drone services on May 27th of this year. What does that rollout actually look like on the ground, and how does it fit into your bigger picture goals? Glen: So that's really about nationwide beyond visual line of sight. In other words, where the air vehicle is at a long distance away from the operator. It makes us very scalable. It enables coast to coast remote operations of drones but with an internal self-approval mechanism. So as long as we fall within the confines of our approval, the conditions of the approval, it allows us to self-approve a large percentage of the operations that we would be working towards. So, it advances our national drones as a service model, our nested drone solutions, basically drone in a box, industrial drone in a box that are just deployed. And it gives us immediate scalable benefits and increased gross margins in intelligence, the remote sensing area and in the logistics business. And it's a significant support of many of the federal government's goals that were announced yesterday during their news conference. Lyndsay: You have so much going on, and even more so the big news that just dropped. So, with Canada's fast tracking military spending and prioritizing domestic vendors, is Volatus quietly positioning itself for an elephant sized defense contract? And if so, why aren't these prospective wins that you're speaking of not reflected in your baseline forecast? Glen: So, largely because they're elephants. The simple truth of the matter is many of these are very large scale opportunities, and if you forecast them in your model, they're big misses. If you don't forecast them, they're big wins. Right? And frankly, these are new opportunities if you think about it. Back in November, we knew that things were changing from a geopolitical standpoint, and in fact, Volatus engaged a full-time lobby firm, David Pratt & Associates in Ottawa to support us. But right after that, in January our previous Prime Minister stepped down from government, which basically put everything on hold until May 27th when the government effectively started to operate again. And of course, June 9th was a big day for the announcement of some of the policies that we've been expecting. So that's part of why, with an election and a new government, you really never know how much momentum is going to go in which direction. But we followed that pretty closely. And the big deal now is the federal mandate, or the government stated goals aligns with the defense and economic and security objectives that Volatus is well positioned to fulfill. We provide cost effective ISR and logistics for the border, for the Arctic. We can work on everything from security to public safety to sovereignty issues. It's a major opportunity for growth in defense contracts and domestic innovation, especially as the government attempts to repatriate that $0.75 of every dollar that we spend in the defense industry south of the border. Their goal is to become an energy superpower and that creates inspection and monitoring opportunities for Volatus. And of course, in the resource sectors, things like mining, like the Ring of Fire in Ontario and rare earths in British Columbia and Quebec. Those are all opportunities in every phase of the development, from the exploration to the development and management of the mine to the transportation infrastructure, roads and railways that are going to carry are all opportunities for Volatus. And that ties in also with the major acceleration in infrastructure programs and investment which align with our capabilities and mapping and inspection services. So, I think there's a significant opportunity, let's say it's more like a herd of elephants right now. I think we've got some good opportunities, not just for Volatus, but for the entire Canadian aerospace and RPAS industry. Lyndsay: Well, let's look ahead here then, Glen. What's next in terms of growth and innovation for Volatus and how do you plan to stay ahead in a space that's really moving as fast as drone tech? Glen: So, we'll continue to scale our drones as a service, particularly with the remote drone in a box or drone infrastructure type capabilities. We want to expand our US and international regulatory envelope so that we can achieve the same level of operations as we can in Canada. We'll be pursuing waivers to support larger drone operations as the regulations evolve. We've got a change in regulations in November. Volatus has already positioned itself to adapt and capitalize on those opportunities. But we've already started looking at saying, 'okay, now with the baseline or with the bar having been raised, now we will look to go one step beyond that into larger and more capable drones.' We have a real eye on industrial and logistics use cases with some of our partner technologies that are being enabled by these new regulations that are coming. And ultimately if you look at the objectives of the government in terms of targeting economic leadership on a global scale and achieving more security independence, those are all areas that Volatus will be very tightly focused on in the days, months and years ahead. Lyndsay: Well, Glen, I really appreciate you taking the time and giving us really a peek behind the curtain at what Volatus is really building. You can find Volatus Aerospace trading on the venture under the ticker symbol FLT, and on the OTCQB under the ticker symbol TAKOF. Check them out at for more information. Join the discussion: Find out what everybody's saying about this stock on the Volatus Aerospace investor discussion forum, and check out the rest of Stockhouse's stock forums and message boards. The material provided in this article is for information only and should not be treated as investment advice. For full disclaimer information, please click here
Yahoo
29-05-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Volatus Releases Q1 2025 Financial Results
Generated revenue of $5,713,158 in Q1 2025 Achieved 30% EBITDA improvement over Q1 2024 Continuation of optimization efforts post Volatus and Drone Delivery Canada merger of equals Subsequent to quarter end, closed $3,000,000 fully subscribed LIFE Offering Subsequent to quarter end, announced closing of shares for debt transaction of $2,646,000 and an additional $446,400, strengthening balance sheet Volatus will host a webinar and live Q&A on Monday, June 2, 2025, at 8 am ET (see registration link below). TORONTO, May 29, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Volatus Aerospace Inc. (TSXV:FLT) (OTCQB:TAKOF) (Frankfurt:A3DP5Y/ABBA.F) ("Volatus" or "the Company"), a leader in aerial solutions, is pleased to announce its financial results for the three months ended March 31, 2025 (Q1 2025). All dollar figures are stated in Canadian dollars, unless otherwise indicated. The Company generated revenues of $5,713,158 for the three months ended March 31, 2025, with a 32% gross margin. Adjusted EBITDA improved by 30%, or $402,004 between Q1 2024 and Q1 2025. The Company also and generated cash from operating activities of $1,448,565 in the quarter. Q1 2025 Financial Highlights: Adjusted EBITDA achieved a 30% year-over-year improvement, reducing the loss from ($1.39 million) in Q1 2024 to ($978K) in Q1 2025. Revenue was $5,713,158 compared to $6,623,741 in Q1 2024. This reduction reflects the Company's strategic repositioning toward a more resilient and profitable revenue mix, as well as temporary impacts from macroeconomic and geopolitical conditions. The Company witnessed increased demand for equipment in the US market driven by tariff policy changes, resulting in 47% quarter-over-quarter increase in equipment sales. The service revenue saw a contraction consistent with winter slowdown in Canada and the northern US regions. Gross profit for Q1 2025 was $1,829,973, representing a gross margin of 32%, compared to 34% in Q1 2024. This marginal decline is primarily attributable to the higher proportion of lower-margin equipment sales in the revenue mix for the quarter. Available cash on hand as of March 31, 2025, was $1,182,611 compared to $1,803,187 at December 31, 2024. Subsequent to quarter end, the Company closed an additional $3,000,000 in an equity issuance on May 1, 2025, resulting inproforma available cash of $4,182,611. The Company generated cash flow from operating activities of $1,448,565. Comprehensive loss was ($4,285,320) in Q1 2025 compared to ($2,991,319) in Q1 2024. On a pro forma basis, considering the combined operations of Volatus Aerospace Corp. and Drone Delivery Canada, total operating expenses (excluding depreciation, finance cost and share based payments) in Q1 2024 were $5,316,814. In comparison, the equivalent expense base in Q1 2025 declined by $1,780,668, underscoring the effectiveness of ongoing cost optimization efforts. Q1 2025 Operational Highlights: Major Regulatory Advancements Support National-Scale BVLOS Operations Announced partnership with Ondas Holdings to support and scale autonomous operations for border surveillance Announced partnership with Draganfly for Transformative Oil & Gas Exploration project Announced a partnership with DroneUp LLC to support the acceleration of drone deliveries in the United States Surpasses 75,000 flight hours in pipeline integrity monitoring Announced a partnership with Dufour Aerospace AG to support remote cargo deliveries Announced a partnership with Rigi Technologies S.A. to add autonomous drone delivery technologies in its portfolio of solutions Obtained Canada-wide approval from Transport Canada to conduct long-distance, remotely piloted beyond visual line of sight (BVLOS) drone operations at night in atypical airspace Announced a shares-for-debt transaction with respect to $2,646,000 of unsecured convertible debentures Subsequent to Q1 2025 Operational Highlights: Announced Broad National Expansion of Drone Operating Authorities Across Canada, Unlocking Scalable, High-Value Aerial Operations Fulfilled demonstration order with a G-20 Defense Organization Secured extension to Service Agreement with Canadian Government Announced closing of fully subscribed LIFE Offering of $3,000,000 Announced Shares-for-Debt Transaction for $446,400 Obtained clearance for high-value RPAS deployments in the oil & gas sector 'During Q1 2025, Volatus focused on navigating ongoing geopolitical challenges by diversifying our operations and securing key regulatory approvals, strategic steps that position us to convert a growing sales pipeline into realized revenue,' said Glen Lynch, CEO of Volatus Aerospace. 'As we enter the core flying season, we look forward to increasing operational efficiency through our Operations Command Centre, enabling us to better serve large enterprise and government clients while advancing toward profitability.' Webinar: In conjunction with this release, Volatus will host a webinar on Wednesday, June 2nd at 8:00 AM EST at which time Glen Lynch, Chief Executive Officer, and Abhinav Singhvi, Chief Financial Officer, will review financial results and major milestones with Danielle Gagne, Head of Corporate Communications as moderator. Investors are invited to register for the webinar here. Registration Link: Audio Replay Options: An audio replay of the event will be archived on the Investor Relations page of the company's website here. Three months ended March 31 2025 2024 Revenue $ 5,713,158 $ 6,623,741 Direct costs $ 3,883,185 $ 4,397,985 Gross Profit 1,829,973 2,225,757 OPERATING EXPENSES Advertising & marketing $ 135,575 293,339 IT & tech $ 245,180 $ 256,802 Personnel $ 2,440,528 2,196,722 R&D $ 11,756 $ 11,840 Office cost $ 438,182 583,199 Travel $ 64,288 $ 57,621 External partner cost $ 200,637 200,072 Depreciation and amortization $ 1,496,425 1,098,088 Share based Payments $ 165,454 126,822 5,198,025 4,824,504 (Loss) from Operations (3,368,052 ) (2,598,748 ) OTHER ITEMS - INCOME/(EXPENSE) Finance cost $ (645,685 ) (379,106 ) Other income (expense) $ (3,468 ) (10,168 ) Gain (loss) on investments (58,963 ) Tax expenses (210,377 ) Gain (Loss) on disposal of property and equipment - (7,184 ) Foreign exchange translation $ 1,225 3,887 Net Loss $ (4,285,320 ) $ (2,991,319 ) Total comprehensive Income (loss) for the period attributable to: Owners of Volatus Aerospace Corp. (4,241,643 ) (2,915,143 ) Non-controlling interest (43,677 ) (76,176 ) (4,285,320 ) (2,991,319 ) Q1 2025 Q4 2024 Q3 2024 Q2 2024 Q1 2024 Q4 2023 Q3 2023 Q2 2023 Revenue 5,713,158 6,783,176 6,618,504 7,121,993 6,623,741 10,500,995 8,274,349 8,684,991 Direct costs 3,883,185 4,209,577 4,366,107 4,617,447 4,397,985 7,700,881 5,265,775 5,724,516 Gross Profit 1,829,973 2,573,599 2,252,397 2,504,546 2,225,757 2,800,114 3,008,574 2,960,475 32 % 38 % 34 % 35 % 34 % 27 % 36 % 34 % OPERATING EXPENSES Advertising & marketing 135,575 100,878 331,763 397,357 293,339 278,781 541,635 629,686 IT & tech 245,180 157,851 210,328 259,456 256,802 28,439 243,602 211,960 Personnel 2,440,528 1,958,572 1,787,175 1,515,536 2,196,722 1,312,983 1,727,086 1,788,347 R&D 11,756 25,429 4,011 - 11,840 771,861 104,832 364,263 Office cost 438,182 673,047 497,706 554,050 583,199 605,396 722,276 610,650 Travel 64,288 38,959 77,011 40,143 57,621 126,710 90,804 167,364 External partner cost 200,637 386,259 2,117,840 430,141 200,072 436,686 243,443 326,979 Depreciation and amortization 1,496,425 1,315,544 1,294,350 1,116,698 1,098,088 1,647,364 843,744 797,487 Share based Payments 165,454 77,523 124,861 126,822 126,822 173,671 195,372 178,361 5,198,025 4,734,061 6,445,045 4,440,202 4,824,504 5,381,891 4,712,793 5,075,097 (Loss) from Operations (3,368,052 ) (2,160,462 ) (4,192,648 ) (1,935,656 ) (2,598,748 ) (2,581,777 ) (1,704,219 ) (2,114,622 ) OTHER ITEMS - INCOME/(EXPENSE) Finance cost (645,685 ) (1,072,341 ) (992,806 ) (491,664 ) (379,106 ) (667,949 ) (425,671 ) (368,635 ) Other income (expense) (3,468 ) (133,884 ) (2,669 ) 153 (10,168 ) 14,955 (39,229 ) 41,237 Unrealized gain on investments (58,963 ) 247,661 - - Gain (Loss) on disposal of property and equipment - (1,541 ) (194,662 ) 319,044 (7,184 ) (125,476 ) 228,769 (0 ) Foreign exchange translation 1,225 92,541 (109,037 ) 25,508 3,887 (24,156 ) 19,946 (16,191 ) Net Loss (4,074,943 ) (3,028,025 ) (5,491,822 ) (2,082,615 ) (2,991,319 ) (2,775,864 ) (1,920,403 ) (2,458,211 ) Deferred Tax Income/ (Expense) (210,377 ) (100,899 ) 464,216 Net Loss (4,285,320 ) (3,128,924 ) (5,491,822 ) (2,082,615 ) (2,991,319 ) (2,311,647 ) (1,920,403 ) (2,458,211 ) Total comprehensive Income (loss) for the period attributable to: Owners of Volatus Aerospace Corp. (4,241,643 ) (3,099,840 ) (5,440,827 ) (2,070,150 ) (2,915,143 ) (1,997,089 ) (2,427,597 ) (2,427,468 ) Non-controlling interest (43,677 ) (29,084 ) (50,994 ) (12,465 ) (76,176 ) (314,559 ) 507,194 (30,743 ) (4,285,320 ) (3,128,924 ) (5,491,822 ) (2,082,615 ) (2,991,319 ) (2,311,647 ) (1,920,403 ) (2,458,211 ) Loss per share Basic and Diluted (0.01 ) (0.01 ) (0.02 ) (0.02 ) (0.02 ) (0.02 ) (0.02 ) (0.03 ) About Volatus Aerospace: Volatus Aerospace is a leader in innovative global aerial solutions for intelligence and cargo. With a strong foundation of over 100 years of combined institutional knowledge in aviation, Volatus provides comprehensive solutions using both piloted and remotely piloted aircraft systems (RPAS). We serve industries such as oil and gas, utilities, healthcare, and public safety. Our mission is to enhance operational efficiency, safety, and sustainability through cutting-edge, real-world solutions. Note Regarding Non-GAAP Measures: In this press release we describe certain income and expense items that are unusual or non-recurring. There are terms not defined by International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS). Our usage of these terms may vary from the usage adopted by other companies. Specifically, gross profit, gross margin, and Adjusted EBITDA r Normalized EBITDA are undefined terms by IFRS that may be referenced herein. We provide this detail so that readers have a better understanding of the significant events and transactions that have had an impact on our results. Throughout this release, reference is made to 'gross profit,' 'gross margin,' and 'Adjusted EBITDA' which are non-IFRS measures. Management believes that gross profit, defined as revenue less operating expenses, is a useful supplemental measure of operations. Gross profit helps provide an understanding on the level of costs needed to create revenue. Gross margin illustrates the gross profit as a percentage of revenue. Adjusted earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization ("Adjusted EBITDA"). The Company defines Adjusted EBITDA as IFRS comprehensive loss excluding interest expense, depreciation and amortization expense, share-based payments, income tax expense, integration and due diligence costs, one time profit or loss (non-recurring), and impairment of goodwill, property, plant, and equipment and right-of-use assets (ROU). The Company believes that Adjusted EBITDA is a meaningful financial metric as it measures cash generated from operations which the Company can use to fund working capital requirements, service future interest and principal debt repayments and fund future growth initiatives. Readers are cautioned that these non-IFRS measures may not be comparable to similar measures used by other companies. Readers are also cautioned not to view these non-IFRS financial measures as an alternative to financial measures calculated in accordance with International Financial Reporting Standards ('IFRS'). Adjusted EBITDA does not have any standardized meaning under IFRS and therefore may not be comparable to similar measures presented by other issuers and should not be construed as alternatives to comprehensive loss or income determined in accordance with IFRS. For more information with respect to financial measures which have not been defined by GAAP, including reconciliations to the closest comparable GAAP measure, see the "Non-GAAP Measures and Additional GAAP Measures" section of the Company's most recent MD&A which is available on SEDAR. Forward-Looking Statement: This news release contains statements that constitute "forward-looking information" and "forward-looking statements" within the meaning of applicable securities laws, including statements regarding the plans, intentions, beliefs, and current expectations of the Company with respect to future business activities and operating performance. Often, but not always, forward-looking information and forward-looking statements can be identified by the use of words such as "plans", "expects", "is expected", "budget", "scheduled", "estimates", "forecasts", "intends", "anticipates", or "believes" or variations (including negative variations) of such words and phrases, or statements formed in the future tense or indicating that certain actions, events or results "may", "could", "would", "might" or "will" (or other variations of the foregoing) be taken, occur, be achieved, or come to pass. Forward-looking information includes information regarding: (i) the business plans and expectations of the Company; and (ii) expectations for other economic, business, and/or competitive factors. Forward-looking information is based on currently available competitive, financial, and economic data and operating plans, strategies, or beliefs as of the date of this news release, but involve known and unknown risks, uncertainties, assumptions and other factors that may cause the actual results, performance or achievements of the Company to be materially different from any future results, performance or achievements expressed or implied by the forward-looking information. Such factors may be based on information currently available to the Company, including information obtained from third-party industry analysts and other third-party sources, and are based on management's current expectations or beliefs. Any and all forward-looking information contained in this news release is expressly qualified by this cautionary statement. Investors are cautioned that forward-looking information is not based on historical facts but instead reflects expectations, estimates or projections concerning future results or events based on the opinions, assumptions and estimates of management considered reasonable at the date the statements are made. Forward-looking information and forward-looking statements reflect the Company's current beliefs and is based on information currently available to it and on assumptions it believes to be not unreasonable in light of all of the circumstances. In some instances, material factors or assumptions are discussed in this news release in connection with statements containing forward-looking information. Such material factors and assumptions include, but are not limited to: the commercialization of drone flights beyond visual line of sight and potential benefits to the Company; and meeting the continued listing requirements of the TSXV. Although the Company has attempted to identify important factors that could cause actual actions, events or results to differ materially from those described in forward-looking information, there may be other factors that cause actions, events or results to differ from those anticipated, estimated or intended. The forward-looking information contained herein is made as of the date of this news release and, other than as required by law, the Company disclaims any obligation to update any forward-looking information, whether as a result of new information, future events or results or otherwise. There can be no assurance that forward-looking information will prove to be accurate, as actual results and future events could differ materially from those anticipated in such statements. Accordingly, readers should not place undue reliance on forward-looking information. Neither the TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in policies of the TSX Venture Exchange) accept responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release. CONTACT DETAILSAbhinav SinghviChief Financial officer+1 COMPANY WEBSITEhttps:// SOURCE: Volatus Aerospace in retrieving data Sign in to access your portfolio Error in retrieving data
