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Consolidated unaudited revenue for the reporting quarter totaled 37.4 million euros, 11.6% less than in the same three-month period in 2019, while consolidated revenue for the nine months came to 111.4 million euros, marking a reduction by 0.7%, Harju Elekter informed the stock exchange.

Operating expenses for the reporting quarter decreased in all expense groups. Compared to the third quarter of 2019, distribution costs decreased by 24.1%, by 0.4 million euros to 1.2 million euros, as due to the impact of coronavirus, most sales work was done virtually. The largest change compared to the third quarter of 2019 was registered in the cost of sales, where a reduction by 4.8 million euros took place. Administrative expenses decreased by 3.1% year over year to 2.2 million euros. Labor costs remained at the same level, at 6.6 million euros. 

Earnings per share totaled 0.1 euros in the third quarter, compared with 0.08 euros per share in the third quarter of 2019. Earnings per share in the first nine months of the year totaled 0.25 euros, compared with 0.13 euros the year before.

Harju Elekter's core business, manufacturing activities, accounted for 86% of the group's consolidated revenue both in the reporting quarter and in the nine months. The group's three largest target markets are Estonia, Finland, and Sweden.

Quarterly sales to the Estonian market increased by 3.0 million euros year on year to 7.7 million euros, while sales for the first nine months were up by 3.8 million euros at 17.0 million euros. The main reason behind the increase in sales was that deliveries under a framework procurement of Elektrilevi OU mostly fell into the third quarter.

Quarterly sales to the Finnish market decreased by 2.2 million euros to 16.5 million euros in a year-on-year comparison and it was mostly affected by the decrease in orders. The decline in orders in the last quarter also affected the nine-month result, where revenue from the Finnish market decreased by 2.1 million euros to 54.9 million euros.

Quarterly sales to the Swedish market increased by 1.2 million euros to 6.6 million euros in  year-to-year comparison. The Swedish market's revenue increased by 2.7 million euros to 17.5 million euros in a nine-month comparison, being the second largest market overall. The growth in the Swedish market was secured by an increase in the sale of substations, manufactured in Estonia, to the Swedish market as well as the general increase in orders

In the reporting period, the group invested a total of 4.1 million euros in non-current assets, including 2.1 million euros in investment properties, 1.8 million euros in property, plant and equipment and 0.2 million euros in intangible assets.

The largest development project in the third quarter was the start of the construction of the fourth stage of the expansion of the production and office building in Lithuania. Investments aimed at the expansion of the plant will enable Harju Elekter UAB to double the plant's revenues. In addition, investments were made in the construction of a production facility in the Allika Industrial Park, and plots of land were purchased.

The company's share closed at 4.44 euros on the last trading day of the reporting quarter on the Nasdaq Tallinn stock exchange. As at Sept. 30, 2020, AS Harju Elekter had 4,831 shareholders. The number of shareholders increased by 261 during the reporting quarter.