Iste wins 2.19 billion won hydrogen package deal from energy institute

Iste said Monday it has signed a 2.19 billion won ($1.64 million) contract with the Korea Institute of Energy Research to supply and install a hydrogen compression package for a RE100-based pilot complex on Jeju, a deal equal to 6.8 percent of the company's recent annual revenue.

The contract runs from Oct. 7 to April 30 next year, with final delivery scheduled for December 2026 and payment made in full after the contract ends, according to a regulatory filing. The amount excludes value-added tax.

The package is for a state-backed demonstration project on RE100-based hydrogen pilot complex infrastructure technology being pursued by the Korea Institute of Energy Research, the Jeju provincial government and the Korea Agency for Infrastructure Technology Advancement.

The order lands as Iste reports its strongest quarter since it was founded. Second-quarter revenue reached 16.9 billion won ($12.6 million), up 401 percent from a year earlier, while operating profit came to 2.07 billion won ($1.55 million) and net income 1.77 billion won ($1.32 million), both swinging to profit from a year-earlier loss.

Chief Executive Officer Cho Chang-hyun said the company recorded its largest quarterly revenue ever, crediting a sales mix centered on higher-value products and a broader customer base, and pointed to an order backlog of 41.4 billion won ($30.9 million) at the end of June.

"With a sales mix centered on high-value-added products and diversified customers, we recorded our largest quarterly revenue since the company's founding," Cho said. "With an order backlog of 41.4 billion won at the end of the second quarter, we will continue our growth trend in the second half."

Iste makes semiconductor equipment centered on FOUP cleaners as well as a hydrogen energy business covering hydrogen charging stations and water electrolysis EPC.