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XP Power

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FY2019 Annual Report · XP Power
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9

ANNUAL REPORT  
& ACCOUNTS 
for the year ended 
31 December 2019 

P O W E R I N G  T H E   W O R L D ’ S   C R I T I C A L   S Y S T E M S

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
INTRODUCTION

WHAT WE DO

We provide our customers in the Healthcare, 
Industrial Electronics, Semiconductor 
Equipment Manufacturing and Technology, 
sectors with solutions to power their critical 
systems and get their products to market 
in the shortest possible time. We have 
moved steadily up the value chain from a 
specialist distributor, to designer, to design 
manufacturer.

Electronic equipment cannot operate directly 
from the electricity provided by the mains 
supply, which is a relatively high voltage 
alternating current.

All electronic equipment requires a stable, 
direct current in order to operate. In addition, 
we provide power converters that produce 
radio frequency alternating current (RF 
Power) used in various processes requiring 
plasma generation, dielectric or induction 
heating.

Our electronic power converters are 
designed into our customers’ end equipment, 
often with the aid of our engineering services 
expertise, and once designed, we enjoy a long 
revenue annuity for the life of the customer’s 
programme.

Our power solutions also provide the vital 
safety barrier between the potentially lethal 
mains supply and the user of the  
end equipment, and cannot be easily 
designed out.

Our target customers provide vital equipment 
where the cost of downtime or implications 
of failure are significant.

OUR PURPOSE

We power the world’s critical systems. 

OUR VISION

To be the first choice power solutions 
provider delivering the ultimate experience 
for our customers and our people.

OUR CULTURE

Our organisational culture underpins our 
business decisions. This is supported by our 
core values.

OUR CORE VALUES

Our core values of Integrity, Knowledge, 
Flexibility, Speed and Customer Focus 
are our DNA and are fundamental to our 
continued success.

INTEGRITY

KNOWLEDGE

FLEXIBILITY

SPEED

CUSTOMER FOCUS

 FOR MORE INFORMATION ON OUR CORE 
VALUES PLEASE SEE PAGES 52 AND 53.

CIFC

XP Power has made good strategic progress in a 
challenging year where one of our end markets 
has been in a cyclical trough and we have had to 
deal with the effects of Section 301 tariffs in the 
USA. Against this background we have continued 
to bring new products to market and win new 
design wins. We have also made significant 
steps to develop our supply chain and systems 
with the implementation of a new Enterprise 
Resource Planning system in our sales entities. 
We have made significant progress towards the 
achievement of our vision of being the first choice 
power solutions provider, delivering the ultimate 
experience to our customers and our people.

Our design win pipeline was strong in 2019, 
boding well for continued future market share and 
revenue growth.

We also continued to move our product portfolio 
up to higher power and technically more complex 
applications, and to expand the number of design 
wins with higher engineering solutions content. 
We enter 2020 with optimism.

DUNCAN PENNY
Chief Executive Officer

3 March 2020

 FOR MORE INFORMATION WITHIN 
THE REPORT VISIT US ONLINE AT: 
WWW.XPPOWERPLC.COM

OVERVIEW

CONTENTS

Overview
Introduction 

Highlights in 2019 

Our Investment Proposition 

XP Power at a Glance 

Our Products 

Chairman’s Statement 

Strategic Report
Our Marketplace 

Our Marketplace: Our Growth Drivers 

Our Business Model 

Our Competitive Advantages 

Our Strategy 

Our Strategy in Action 

Our Key Performance Indicators 

Performance: Operational Review 

Performance: Our Supply Chain 

Performance: Financial Review 

Managing our Risks 

Our Commitments to Sustainability  

Our Commitments to the SDGs  

Our Core Values 

Our Core Values in Action 

Our People and their Health and Safety  

Our Customers 

Our Suppliers 

Our Shareholders 

Our Communities 

The Environment 

Sustainability: 
Non Financial Disclosures Summary 

Governance
Chairman’s Introduction to Governance 

Governance: Board and Activities 

Directors and Officers 

Corporate Governance Report 

Audit Committee Report 

Remuneration Committee Report 

Remuneration Policy 

Remuneration Report – Annual Report 

Other Governance and Statutory Disclosures 

Statement by Directors 

Financials
Independent Auditor’s Report 

Consolidated Statement  
of Comprehensive Income 

Consolidated Balance Sheet 

Consolidated Statement of Changes in Equity 

Consolidated Statement of Cash Flows 

Notes to the Consolidated  
Financial Statements 

Company Balance Sheet 

Notes to the Company Balance Sheet 

Five Year Review Consolidated Information 

Advisers 

IFC

02

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108

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154

155

168

169

XP Power Annual Report & Accounts for the year ended 31 December 2019

01

 
 
 
OPERATIONAL HIGHLIGHTS

•  Robust order intake and 
revenues in Technology, 
Industrial Electronics and 
Healthcare sectors offset 
cyclical weakness in the 
Semiconductor Equipment 
Manufacturing sector

•  Strong free cash flow driven 
by improved working capital

•  Expansion of Vietnamese 
manufacturing facility 
completed in Q1 2019 
more than doubling our 
Vietnamese capacity. 
The Group now has the 
capability to manufacture 
more than 2,000 different 
products in Vietnam, up 
from less than 300 at the 
beginning of 2018

•  Good progress made  
with restructuring of 
low-power, high-voltage 
DC-DC manufacturing, with 
transfer of production from 
Nevada to Vietnam

 FOR MORE INFORMATION  
ON OUR PERFORMANCE  
PLEASE SEE PAGES 30 TO 35 

HIGHLIGHTS IN 2019

214.9

198.4

184.3

133.5

110.5

35.9

36.4

42.9

28.8

25.7

91

85

78

71

66

199.9

195.1

166.8

129.8

109.7

145.5

172.8

147.0

115.3

104.3

ORDER INTAKE

(£ millions)

+8%

(+4% in constant currency)

ADJUSTED OPERATING PROFIT

(£ millions)

-16%

DIVIDEND PER SHARE

(Pence)

+7%

REVENUE

(£ millions)

+2%

(-2% in constant currency)

ADJUSTED DILUTED EARNINGS  
PER SHARE

(Pence)

-16%

(after adjusting for specific 
items and non-recurring  
tax benefits)

2019

2018

2017

2016

2015

2019

2018

2017

2016

2015

2019

2018

2017

2016

2015

2019

2018

2017

2016

2015

2019

2018

2017

2016

2015

02

OUR INVESTMENT PROPOSITION

OVERVIEW

  Exposure to a broad cross section of 
end markets Industrial Electronics, 
Healthcare, Technology and Semifab 
– but with no direct exposure to 
consumer electronics.

 FOR MORE INFORMATION ON 
OUR MARKETPLACE PLEASE SEE 
PAGES 12 TO 15 

  A diverse customer base of over 
4,500 active customers, with no one 
customer accounting for more than 
10% of revenue.

 FOR MORE INFORMATION ON 
OUR MARKETPLACE DRIVERS 
PLEASE SEE PAGES 12 TO 15 

  A growing penetration of a global, 
blue-chip customer base.

 FOR MORE INFORMATION ON 
OUR GROWTH DRIVERS PLEASE 
SEE PAGES 16 AND 17 

  Powerful customer relationship 
management tools that allow 
the efficient management of our 
customer base, identification of 
pricing and product trends that enable 
the development of appropriate, 
innovative new products.

  An established broad portfolio of 
leading “Green” products that operate 
at high efficiency.

  Revenue annuity – although design-in 
cycles are often long, once our power 
converters are approved for use in our 
customers’ end equipment, XP Power 
enjoys a revenue annuity for the 
lifetime of the customers’ equipment, 
which is typically seven years.

  Attractive margins and lower capital 
investment requirements when 
compared to many manufacturing 
industries, resulting in strong free cash 
flow and margins that are amongst the 
highest in the industry.

 FOR MORE INFORMATION ON 
OUR BUSINESS MODEL PLEASE 
SEE PAGES 18 TO 20 

 FOR MORE INFORMATION 
ON OUR COMMITMENTS TO 
SUSTAINABILITY PLEASE SEE 
PAGES 48 AND 49 

 FOR MORE INFORMATION ON 
OUR REVENUE PLEASE SEE  
PAGE 19 

 FOR MORE INFORMATION ON 
OUR PERFORMANCE PLEASE SEE 
PAGES 30 TO 35 

  Progressive Dividend – the business 
model allows for a progressive 
dividend, which is paid quarterly.

 FOR MORE INFORMATION ON 
OUR DIVIDEND PLEASE SEE 
PAGE 20 

XP Power Annual Report & Accounts for the year ended 31 December 2019

03

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
XP POWER AT A GLANCE

XP Power’s portfolio of leading-edge, ultra-high efficient products are helping the world’s leading 
manufacturers to create new technologies and products. This enables us to power the world’s 
critical systems.

WHAT DOES  
XP POWER DO?
The world’s critical systems, 
taking the electrical mains supply 
from the grid and converting it 
into the correct form of electricity 
to power our customers’ 
equipment in critical applications.

Previously we were a specialist 
distributor and have moved up 
the value chain to designer and 
then to design manufacturer. We 
operate in the healthcare, industrial 
electronics, semiconductor equipment 
manufacturing and technology 
industries.

The design and integration of these 
essential power conversion devices into 
the end equipment they power involves 
many challenges and trade-offs. The 
result is a unique set of requirements 
from the customers who are constantly 
attempting to differentiate their 
equipment from their competitors.

Our long-term investment in research 
and development and excellent 
customer service has positioned XP 
Power as a key partner for the world’s 
leading manufacturers of critical  
capital equipment.

WHAT IS A POWER 
CONVERTER?
A power converter is an essential 
hardware component required in every 
piece of electrical equipment.

The task of the component is to convert 
the alternating current from the mains 
supply into stable direct current, which 
is required by all electronic equipment, 
or to a stable alternating current 
oscillating at very fast frequency in the 
case of an RF power converter. The 
power converter is also a safety critical 
component in any system as it protects 
the user of the equipment from the 
potentially lethal mains supply.

04

OUR POWERFUL OFFERING
•  Broad, leading-edge product line with 

ultra-high efficiency

•  Class-leading manufacturing ensuring 

excellent quality, reliability and 
competitive cost

•  Class-leading customer service 
and support through our highly 
knowledgeable and experienced sales 
team and power systems engineers

•  Engineering on three continents 

providing excellent support during 
design-in to reduce time to market

•  XP Power is one of few companies in 
the world that can offer a solutions 
from low to high voltage and from low 
to high power

Our offering enables us to meet 
our customers’ requirements
Our offering and expertise enables 
us to meet the requirements of our 
customers. Through the transition from 
a specialist distributor, to designer, to 
design manufacturer, we have a unique 
understanding of our customers and 
market. Our business model is to sell 
directly to our key customers, who sit in 
four market sectors: healthcare, industrial 
electronics, semiconductor equipment 
manufacturing, and technology.

OUR CULTURE
We are a diverse and transnational 
organisation and therefore ensuring a 
cohesive and complementary corporate 
culture is fundamental to our sustainable 
success.

We operate across four key 
industries: healthcare, industrial 
electronics, semiconductor equipment 
manufacturing, and technology.

01

Industrial Electronics
Power solutions for applications such as 
3D printing, process control, analytical 
instruments, smart grid, transport, 
robotics and renewable energy.

02

Technology
Power solutions for applications such as 
high end computing, broadcast, displays, 
satellite communications and security.

03

Healthcare
Medically approved power solutions for 
applications including analytics, imaging, 
patient monitoring, life science, robotic 
surgery and diagnostic equipment.

04

Semiconductor Equipment 
Manufacturing
Power solutions to power the 
electronics and processes with 
semiconductor manufacturing 
equipment including equipment 
for deposition, wafer handling, 
etching, semiconductor test and ion 
implantation.

READ ABOUT CULTURE 
ON PAGES 72 TO 73

OVERVIEW

NORTH AMERICA
The North American network consists of 
11 sales offices; an extensive engineering 
solutions function based in Northern 
California with production facilities in 
Massachusetts and New Jersey, and a 
design centre in Southern California.

This network allows XP Power to provide 
its major customers with local, face-to-
face support and rapid response times.

EUROPE
In Europe, the network consists of eight 
direct sales offices and a further nine 
distributor offices. In addition, XP Power 
has engineering solutions centres in 
Germany and in the UK.

With good coverage across Europe, we 
have the operational flexibility to provide 
good quality and timely service.

ASIA
We have five direct sales offices in Asia 
run from Singapore, where we also 
manage a network of seven distributors 
serving the region. We have engineering 
solutions capability in Singapore and 
South Korea to complement our offering 
to customers in the region.

REVENUE

REVENUE

REVENUE

58%

11 SALES OFFICES

32%

8 SALES OFFICES

10%

5 SALES OFFICES

DOWN

UP

UP

8%

2019 REVENUE US$147.5M

5%

2019 REVENUE £64.4M

29%

2019 REVENUE US$25.6M

POWER OF OUR GLOBAL REACH
Our global reach and target sectors help 
insulate us from market volatility.

Our customers are leading original 
equipment manufacturers (OEM) in their 
respective sectors. We do not have any 
direct exposure to consumer electronics or 
high-volume, low margin businesses seen 
in the computing, data centre and office 
equipment industries.  
The equipment our products power 
is often mission-critical so quality and 
reliability are paramount. 

Increasingly, the design and manufacturing 
processes of major international original 
equipment manufacturers take place 
across different continents, with these 
blue-chip companies demanding global 
support. In response, XP Power has 
established an international network 
of offices which offers the necessary 
customer support across technical 
sales, design engineering, logistics and 
operations.

 FOR MORE INFORMATION  
ON OUR MARKETPLACE  
PLEASE SEE PAGES 12 TO 15 

This network gives XP Power a strong 
competitive advantage over both its 
smaller competitors, who do not have the 
scale and geographic reach to serve global 
customers, and its larger competitors, who 
often lack the operational flexibility to 
provide the excellent service and speed 
that customers seek. We believe that this 
balance is key to our success in winning 
new contracts and offers XP Power the 
opportunity to further increase its market 
share.

XP Power Annual Report & Accounts for the year ended 31 December 2019

0505

OVERVIEWOUR PRODUCTS

Every piece of electronic equipment requires a power 
converter to operate. Numerous products in our daily 
lives contain our power conversion solutions. They are in 
factories and industrial units, hospitals and diagnostic 
laboratories, semiconductor manufacturing facilities, 
airports, motorways, satellite and cellular base 
stations, sports stadiums, musical  
events and many other locations.

SEMICONDUCTOR 
EQUIPMENT 
MANUFACTURING
•  Deposition 

•  Etch 

•  Wafer handling

•  Ion implantation 

•  Semiconductor test

TECHNOLOGY 
•  High end computing 

•  Broadcast 

•  Displays 

•  Communications

•  Security

0606

INDUSTRIAL 
ELECTRONICS
•  3D printing 

•  Process control 

•  Analytical instruments 

•  Smart grid 

•  Transport 

•  Renewal energy

Trends
•  Increased connectivity and communications 

between power converter and application (IIoT)

•  Higher power

•  Increased legislation

•  Programmable power converters

•  Higher engineering services (customisation) content 

HEALTHCARE
•  Imaging 

•  Patient monitoring 

•  Life science 

•  Robotic surgical tools 

•  Home healthcare 

•  Diagnostic equipment

VISIT US ONLINE AT:  
WWW.XPPOWERPLC.COM

XP Power Annual Report & Accounts for the year ended 31 December 2019

07

OVERVIEWCHAIRMAN’S STATEMENT

7%

DPS INCREASE

UP

136%

FREE CASH FLOW

OUR PROGRESS 
IN 2019

2019 was a challenging year 
and, despite growing both 
order intake and revenues over 
prior years, adjusted earnings 
per share declined for the 
first time since 2012. External 
factors including a cyclical 
decline in the Semiconductor 
Equipment Manufacturing 
sector and margin pressure, due 
to component price inflation 
and currency fluctuations, 
combined with the revenue 
impact, in our fourth quarter, 
of some short-term issues with 
the implementation of a new 
ERP system adversely impacted 
our earnings. Despite these 
headwinds we continued to win 
new designs and made good 
strategic progress. 

Our strong cash generation and 
confidence in the Group’s long-term 
prospects have enabled us to increase 
dividends consistently since listing in 
2000. We are proposing a final dividend 
of 36p (2018: 33p) which brings the 2019 
dividend per share to 91p, a 7% increase 
over 2018. The compound average growth 
rate of our dividend has been 8% over the 
last five years, demonstrating the Board’s 
commitment to its progressive dividend 
policy.

JAMES PETERS

Chairman

“We delivered a resilient 
performance in 2019 
despite facing a number of 
challenges. While growth in 
our Healthcare, Industrial 
Electronics and Technology 
markets remained robust, 
this was offset by a 
cyclical slowdown in the 
Semiconductor Equipment 
Manufacturing market and 
pressure on gross margins. 
Despite these headwinds 
we grew order intake and 
revenues over prior years, 
continued to win new 
designs and made good 
strategic progress.”

08

OVERVIEW

OUR PEOPLE AND  
OUR VALUES 
The success of any organisation is 
dependent on its culture and the people 
and talent within it. The Board worked 
closely with the Executive Leadership 
Team during 2019 to ensure the Group is 
identifying and developing its key people 
and bringing new talent and capabilities 
into the business to ensure that it can 
continue to grow and take market share. 
We have expanded our engineering 
capability significantly in the last two years 
and are taking steps to bring more talent 
into our Supply Chain team during 2020. 

In addition to our core values of Integrity, 
Knowledge, Flexibility, Speed and 
Customer Focus, commitment to Health 
and Safety remain an essential part of our 
DNA and underpin the value proposition 
we offer our customers. We have 
conducted annual employee engagement 
surveys since 2015 and I am pleased 
that we have shown strong scores each 
time, having taken action to address any 
issues arising from the results of the prior 
year. One of the main findings from these 
employee surveys is that our employees 
are proud to be part of our Company, 
highlighting the significant engagement 
we have between the business and our 
people. The survey score is one of our non-
financial key performance indicators. 

OUTLOOK 
We delivered a resilient performance 
in 2019 despite facing a number 
of challenges. While growth in our 
Healthcare, Industrial Electronics and 
Technology markets remained robust, this 
was offset by a cyclical slowdown in the 
Semiconductor Equipment Manufacturing 
market and pressure on gross margins, 
resulting from the increase in US trade 
tariffs on Chinese manufactured goods 
and changes in product mix. Despite these 
headwinds we grew order intake and 
revenues over prior years, continued to 
win new designs and made good strategic 
progress.

Trading conditions in the early months of 
2020 give grounds for optimism. Signs of a 
recovery in the Semiconductor Equipment 
Manufacturing sector are reflected in our 
strong order intake in the fourth quarter of 
2019 and are finding good opportunities 
for the products brought into the Group 
portfolio through the acquisitions of 
Comdel and Glassman. We also expect 
benefits from the transfer of production 
from Minden to Vietnam in the second 
half of 2020. However, we are affected by 
certain external events, such as the impact 
the outbreak of the COVID-19 virus had 
on our supply chain. This introduces some 
caution into our outlook, but we remain 
encouraged by our healthy order book.

READ ABOUT CULTURE 
ON PAGES 72 AND 73

JAMES PETERS

Chairman

SUSTAINABILITY 
We are committed to the long-term 
sustainable success of XP Power in all its 
aspects. We have helped lead the industry 
in developing “green” products which 
consume less energy while powering the 
application or in standby mode. These 
products reduce CO2 emissions year on 
year and are by far the biggest positive 
impact we can make on the environment. 

Sustainability also resonates with our 
employees. We have adopted energy 
and water saving practices throughout 
the Group and have a network of 
passionate environmental representatives 
who promote best practices and raise 
awareness of sustainability issues across 
our global workforce. 

READ ABOUT SUSTAINABILITY 
ON PAGES 48 AND 49

STRATEGY REVIEW 

The Group’s strategy has remained 
consistent for a significant period. It is built 
on the development of a market leading 
range of competitive products, either 
organically or by acquisition, to enable 
further penetration of existing target 
accounts where we still have relatively low 
market shares, combined with a drive to 
move our product portfolio up the power 
and voltage scale. We are one of a few 
companies in the world with a product 
portfolio across the power and voltage 
spectrum and can use our engineering 
services skills to combine these capabilities 
and provide customers with a complete 
power solution. 

During the year the Board completed its 
annual review of Group strategy. This 
determined that our strategy continued 
to work effectively to achieve long-term 
earnings growth, market share gains in 
our target sectors and customers, and 
our brand strength, as demonstrated by 
the consistent revenue growth generated 
in all sectors except Semiconductor 
Equipment Manufacturing, which was 
impacted in 2019 by cyclical weakness. 
We are confident we can continue to 
develop market leading products and 
encouraged by the potential of our product 
and sales pipeline to continue to deliver 
organic growth. Following a refinancing 
in 2019, we have sufficient committed 
funds to support targeted acquisitions. We 
continue to make improvements to our 
systems and processes, product life cycle 
management and supply chain to support 
the sales growth we are generating, as well 
as bringing new talent into the business to 
support our growth. 

READ ABOUT STRATEGY 
ON PAGES 22 AND 23

OUR BOARD 
Pauline Lafferty joined the Board on 3 
December 2019 as a Non-Executive 
Director. Pauline brings a wealth of 
international business experience to the 
Group and significant expertise in strategic 
human resources. She is already making a 
considerable contribution to the Board.

Mike Laver, Executive Director responsible 
for Corporate Development, retired from 
the Board at the Annual General Meeting 
on 16 April 2019. I would like to thank 
Mike for his significant contribution to 
the development of the Group over many 
years. 

XP Power Annual Report & Accounts for the year ended 31 December 2019

09

CONTENTS

Strategic Report
Our Marketplace 

Our Marketplace: Our Growth Drivers 

Our Business Model 

Our Competitive Advantages 

Our Strategy 

Our Strategy in Action 

Our Key Performance Indicators 

Performance: Operational Review 

Performance: Our Supply Chain 

Performance: Financial Review 

Managing our Risks 

Our Commitments to Sustainability  

Our Commitments to the SDGs 

Our Core Values 

Our Core Values in Action 

Our People and their Health and Safety 

Our Customers 

Our Suppliers 

Our Shareholders 

Our Communities 

The Environment 

Sustainability: 
Non Financial Disclosures Summary 

12
16
18
21
22
24
28
30
36
38
42
48
50
52
53
54
57
58
59
60
61

62

1010

 
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XP Power Annual Report & Accounts for the year ended 31 December 2019
XP Power Annual Report & Accounts for the year ended 31 December 2019

11

OUR MARKETPLACE 

OVERVIEW
We continue to expand our product 
portfolio to grow our addressable 
market and provide more products 
to our key customers where we are 
already an approved or preferred 
supplier of their critical systems.

MARKET SIZE AND OPPORTUNITY
We estimate that since expanding into the RF power and high voltage market XP Power 
has a 5% share of the available global market. Our overall share in the low voltage market 
is estimated at 7%.

NORTH AMERICA

TOTAL MARKET VALUE

North America is a significant market 
for power electronics with many 
large customers, particularly in 
healthcare and semifab.

$1,100

/MILLION US$

EUROPE

The European market is much more 
fragmented than North America 
or Asia. In particular it contains 
numerous smaller industrial 
companies as well as a number of 
larger healthcare companies.

TOTAL MARKET VALUE

$750 

/MILLION US$

HIGH VOLTAGE

TOTAL MARKET VALUE

High voltage high power is an 
attractive market where we are 
finding many new opportunities since 
acquiring this product range.

$500 

/MILLION US$

ASIA

TOTAL MARKET VALUE

Although Asia is a large market 
much of it is not available to XP 
Power as many customers value 
purely cost over service and support. 
Nevertheless, there are a number 
of significant niches where our 
proposition is compelling. 

$1,400

/MILLION US$

RF POWER

TOTAL MARKET VALUE

The RF Power market is significant. 
The semiconductor equipment 
manufacturers are significant users 
of this product, but it is also used in 
healthcare and applications involving 
dielectric and induction heating.

$1,200

/MILLION US$

THE MARKETS  
WE SERVE
We have a broad exposure to the 
Healthcare, Industrial Electronics, 
Semiconductor Equipment Manufacturing, 
and Technology markets. Our customers 
are manufacturers of capital equipment 
and their end markets all exhibit different 
degrees of cyclicality. Generally, the 
Semiconductor Equipment Manufacturing 
and Technology markets are most cyclical 
but it is clear that the long-term growth 
prospects for these sectors are robust. 
Healthcare is our least cyclical sector 
with Industrial Electronics lying between 
Technology and Healthcare.

We have a diverse customer base of over 
4,500 customers that we deal with directly 
and many more customers serviced 
through our distribution channels, which 
have been growing strongly in recent 
years. The diversity of our business is 
a significant strength with no single 
customer exceeding more than 10% 
of revenue. Further, there is no single 
dominant player in the markets we 
address due to the diversity of customer 
requirements. We have no direct exposure 
to consumer products.

12

11%

11%

3%

2%

1%

STRATEGIC REPORT

KEY TRENDS IN  
THESE MARKETS

01

MARKET TREND

Electronic devices are becoming ever more 
pervasive in our lives. 

IMPACT ON MARKETS

More demand for power conversion 
products across our target market sectors 
of healthcare, industrial electronics, semifab 
and technology.

02

MARKET TREND

Increased need for a complete power 
solution and connectivity to the customer’s 
application using firmware.

IMPACT ON MARKETS

Our engineering services groups can 
package these products together in one 
enclosure to provide a complete power 
solution that the customer can easily 
integrate into their tool. This includes 
communications and connectivity via 
firmware where required.

03

MARKET TREND

There have been significant medical 
advances. There is also an ageing world 
population and a growing market for home 
healthcare products. 

IMPACT ON MARKETS

Healthcare is a particularly attractive sector 
for us with good long-term growth trends.

04

MARKET TREND

More and more roles that are performed 
by people are rapidly being taken over 
by electronic machines and robotics as 
artificial intelligence advances.

IMPACT ON MARKETS

More and more demand for semiconductor 
devices and therefore the equipment to 
manufacture these devices. In particular 
we expect long-term growth opportunities 
in the semiconductor equipment 
manufacturing sector driven by the Internet 
of Things (IoT), big data and Artificial 
Intelligence. The customers who make the 
equipment that fabricates these silicon 
devices value the XP Power proposition. 
We are one of the few companies in the 
world that can offer them the complete 
range of power products they require in 
their tools from the low voltage converters 
that power the control and electronics, to 
the RF Power to produce the plasma used 
in their process technology, to the high 
voltage products used for ion implantation.

XP Power Annual Report & Accounts for the year ended 31 December 2019

13

OUR MARKETPLACE

CONTINUED

REVENUE TRENDS

The revenue trends for each sector are set out below:

INDUSTRIAL ELECTRONICS

£ millions

•  45% of revenue
•  Grew 7%  

(constant currency YoY)
•  Most diverse sector with 
high level of innovation

SEMICONDUCTOR 
EQUIPMENT 
MANUFACTURING

£ millions

•  19% of revenue
•  Contracted 21%  

(constant currency YoY)
•  RF (Radio Frequency) power 
and high voltage facilitate 
greater penetration

•  Attractive long-term growth 

drivers

•  Design win pipeline very 

strong

HEALTHCARE

£ millions

•  23% of revenue
•  Grew 6%  

(constant currency YoY)
•  Building a leading position, 
strong order performance
•  High efficiency products 
well received due to high 
reliability

•  Corporate approvals with 

all the major players

TECHNOLOGY

£ millions

•  13% of revenue
•  Grew 34%  

(constant currency YoY)

•  Generally larger 

programmes with short 
lifecycles so revenues 
fluctuate more than the 
other sectors

14

Revenue (£ million)

10

20

30

40

50

60

70

80

90

100

2019

2018

2017

2016

2015

CAGR

11.9%

89.2

78.1

78.1

70.2

56.8

Revenue (£ million)

10

20

30

40

50

60

70

80

90

100

37.4

47.4

29.7

2019

2018

2017

2016

2015

14.8

10

CAGR

39.1%

Revenue (£ million)

10

20

30

40

50

60

70

80

90

100

2019

2018

2017

2016

2015

45.9

43.6

41.8

30.7

28.4

CAGR

12.8%

Revenue (£ million)

10

20

30

40

50

60

70

80

90

100

2019

2018

2017

2016

2015

27.4

20.4

17.2

14.0

14.5

CAGR

17.2%

Revenue by geography is set out as follows expressed in US Dollars to highlight the underlying trends in 
North America and Asia, and Sterling in Europe.

NORTH 
AMERICA

EUROPE

ASIA

58 % of revenues

North America revenue was US$147.5 
million in 2019 (2018: US$159.5 million), 
a decrease of 8%. The decrease was 
12% after excluding US$14.8 million of 
revenue from the Glassman business 
(2018: US$8.8 million) which was 
acquired at the end of May 2018. 
North America represented 58% of 
overall revenue (2018: 61%).

North America was adversely affected by 
the cyclical decline in the Semiconductor 
Equipment Manufacturing sector which 
began in 2018 and persisted throughout 
the majority of 2019.

32% of revenues
Our European business grew revenue 
by 5% to £64.4 million (2018: £61.1 
million) despite weakness in continental 
Europe. Growth was driven by Industrial 
Electronics and Healthcare, with 
Technology revenue being in line year 
on year.

10% of revenues
Asia revenues were US$25.6 million 
in 2019 (2018: US$19.9 million), an 
increase of 29%, with the strongest 
growth in Industrial Electronics. Our 
Asia business is also benefitting from 
the RF and high-voltage high-power 
products brought into the product 
portfolio as a result of the Comdel and 
Glassman acquisitions.

READ ABOUT PERFORMANCE 
ON PAGE 32

READ ABOUT PERFORMANCE 
ON PAGE 32

2019

2018

2017

2016

2015

US$ MILLIONS

147.5

159.5

121.3

93.7

85.5

2019

2018

2017

2016

2015

£ MILLIONS

64.4

61.1

57.5

49.4

45.1

2019

2018

2017

2016

2015

US$ MILLIONS

25.6

19.9

19

16.1

13.7

XP Power Annual Report & Accounts for the year ended 31 December 2019

15

STRATEGIC REPORTOUR MARKETPLACE:  
OUR GROWTH DRIVERS

THE OPPORTUNITIES  
FOR XP POWER – 
EXPANDING OUR 
ADDRESSABLE MARKET

The acquisitions of Comdel 
in September 2017 and 
Glassman High Voltage in May 
2018 respectively bring Radio 
Frequency (RF) Power and high 
power/high voltage products to 
the Group. 

This expands our addressable market by 
an estimated US$1.7 billion. These new 
product ranges support can be sold to a 
number of our existing target customers in 
support of our strategy.

READ ABOUT PERFORMANCE 
ON PAGES 30 AND 40

ENERGY EFFICIENCY AND 
RELIABILITY
The requirement from customers and 
legislation for products to consume and 
waste less energy is driving demand for 
more efficient power converters. This 
goes hand in hand with reliability for 
critical applications as ultra-high efficiency 
products do not require relatively 
unreliable fans to cool them, and cooler 
systems mean key components such 
as electrolytic capacitors have longer 
lifetimes.

HOW WE’RE RESPONDING 

We have developed a portfolio of “Green” 
XP Power products with class-leading 
efficiencies, which can operate without 
fan cooling.

INNOVATION
Our customers possess a competitive 
need to launch new products offering 
increased productivity and functionality 
while reducing harmful environmental 
impacts. In addition, our customers are 
trying to differentiate their products from 
their competitors, which frequently results 
in different or new power conversion 
requirements.

HOW WE’RE RESPONDING 

With the acquisitions in RF Power in 2017, 
and high voltage power in 2018, we now 
have six design centres around the globe 
offering a diverse range of products.

HEALTHCARE
A global population that is both increasing 
and ageing, coupled with advances 
in diagnostic technology and surgical 
robotics, is driving the demand for 
more healthcare devices. This makes 
Healthcare an excellent sector for XP 
Power. The customers in this area demand 
the ultimate quality and reliability, and 
appreciate and value XP Power’s value 
proposition.

HOW WE’RE RESPONDING 

We have the broadest, most up-to-date 
range of medically approved power 
converters in our industry.

PROLIFERATION OF 
ELECTRONIC DEVICES
Electronic devices are becoming more 
and more pervasive in our lives as new 
technologies and innovation emerges. This 
trend is accelerating with the adoption 
of the Internet of Things (IoT), Artificial 
Intelligence (AI) and big data. These 
devices drive demand for semiconductor 
manufacturing equipment, which is a key 
focus area for XP Power.

HOW WE’RE RESPONDING 

We have the broadest range of standard 
products in our industry which are 
designed to be easy to modify to power 
the customers’ specific application. 
Many of our products are suitable to 
power semiconductor manufacturing 
equipment and these customers value our 
engineering services proposition.

LEGISLATION
Our industry continues to be the subject 
of an increasing raft of legislation from 
numerous countries and standard setters 
relating to areas such as environmental 
impacts, safety requirements and above 
all, energy efficiency. The compliance 
costs of keeping up with this legislation 
for a company the size of XP Power, 
where we are large enough to be able to 
devote resources to this, yet agile enough 
to respond quickly with new products or 
documentation as required.

HOW WE’RE RESPONDING 

We have dedicated resources devoted to 
power converter legislation, which our 
customers value.

16

CONNECTIVITY AND 
INDUSTRY 4.0
Customers’ applications are becoming 
ever more complicated and increasingly 
more connected enabling Industry 4.0.

HOW WE’RE RESPONDING 

Our engineering services groups are 
providing complete power solutions 
including connectivity to and from the 
customers’ application using firmware and, 
where required, to the internet.

PENETRATION
Our blue-chip customer base provides 
good opportunities to win additional 
new product programmes from multiple 
engineering teams across the globe. We 
have gained corporate approval at many 
blue-chip companies over the past few 
years. We are now capitalising on these 
approvals to win a larger share of the 
business that is available.

HOW WE’RE RESPONDING 

RF Power from the acquisition of Comdel, 
and high voltage from the acquisition of 
Glassman, increase our available market 
from US$3.1 billion to $4.8 billion.

EXPANSION OF “GREEN” 
PRODUCTS
Climate change and emission of 
greenhouse gases is becoming an 
increasingly significant issue as emerging 
countries develop and urbanise. XP 
Power has taken a leading role in 
developing ultra-efficient products, which 
consume and waste less energy and that 
are suitable for use in healthcare and 
industrial applications.

HOW WE’RE RESPONDING 

We have developed a portfolio of 
“Green” XP Power products with class- 
leading efficiencies and have the most 
environmentally friendly manufacturing 
facility in our industry.

CAPITAL EQUIPMENT
Our products are designed into and 
power capital equipment and as such 
are subject to the capital equipment 
cycles. We have found growth niches in 
new industrial technologies such as 3D 
printing, analytical instruments, smart 
grid and robotics. New capital investment 
generally leads to greater productivity. We 
consider that the medium and long-term 
opportunities remain positive for capital 
equipment. This is particularly the case in 
emerging markets as we see labour costs 
rising significantly.

HOW WE’RE RESPONDING 

We have the largest direct sales force 
in our industry together with the 
broadest product portfolio so we are 
well positioned to take advantage of any 
recovery in the capital equipment markets. 
We have also targeted newer and faster 
growth industrial sectors such as 3D 
printing, analytical instruments, robotics 
and smart grid infrastructure.

STRATEGIC REPORT

17

XP Power Annual Report & Accounts for the year ended 31 December 2019OUR BUSINESS MODEL

Our business model has evolved from that of a specialist distributor, to designer, to design manufacturer. 

KEY RESOURCES

KEY ACTIVITIES

Strong 
Relationships
with our suppliers, 
employees and 
shareholders.

Strong Leadership 
A strong Executive  
team with a clear 
strategic vision.

People
An experienced and 
committed workforce. 

Technology 
We are investing in 
our future through 
our investment in 
infrastructure and 
technology.

READ ABOUT PERFORMANCE 
ON PAGES 30 AND 40

READ ABOUT OUR 
SUSTAINABILITY  
ON PAGES 48 AND 49

Design
We have transitioned our business from 
a specialist distributor, to designer, to 
design manufacturer. This has enabled 
us to ascend the value chain to grow 
our revenues and margins. Through 
acquisition we have moved further up 
the power and voltage scale so we can 
fulfil more of the opportunities presented 
to us by our target customers. We have 
design engineering teams on three 
continents – this allows us to release a 
high number of innovative new products 
required by this highly diversified market. 
These products often have class-leading 
energy efficiency and small footprints to 
meet the ever-higher demands of our key 
customers. Additional engineering service 
teams in Germany, North America, 
Singapore and the UK are able to provide 
value-added services close to our key 
customers. We are able to provide 
modified product solutions which allow 
the customer to more easily integrate the 
power converter into their equipment, 
therefore delivering a cost saving.

Products
We have the broadest, most up-to-date 
product offering in the industry with over 
250 product families in our portfolio. Our 
products are specific to the requirements 
of the various industries and applications 
we target. Our philosophy is to provide 
highly flexible products that are easy to 
modify.

This saves our customers the cost, time 
and risk of pursuing a fully customised 
solution. Our product portfolio has been 
enhanced with high voltage modules 
following the acquisition of EMCO in 
November 2015, RF power from Comdel 
in September 2017 and high voltage/ 
high power products from Glassman in 
May 2018.

Manufacturing
We manufacture our own products and 
this provides us with the ability to ensure 
excellent quality, and an agile supply 
chain to meet customers’ lead time 
expectations.

Building And Managing 
Relationships With Customers 
Our customers are at the heart of what 
we do. Our model is to sell directly to 
our key customers where we can add 
genuine value, offering excellent service 
and support combined with class-leading 
products.

We have carved out a leading position 
in our industry. An up-to-date, high 
efficiency product offering, delivered to 
our customers by the largest and most 
technically competent sales engineering 
team in the industry, backed up by 
highly skilled power systems engineers, 
combined with the safety and reliability 
benefits of world-class manufacturing, 
provide a compelling value proposition to 
our customers.

Supply Chain Management
The management of our supply chain 
is critical to our success. Quality and 
reliability are paramount to our customers 
who often provide critical healthcare or 
industrial systems. For that reason, we 
need excellent suppliers with high-quality 
standards.

We have a rigorous approval process which 
looks at all aspects of a supplier before we 
engage with them. This not only includes 
a prospective suppliers’ quality systems 
and standards, but also their financial 
viability and, of course, their environmental 
performance and treatment of their people.

We are a full member of the Responsible 
Business Alliance (RBA) and have adopted 
the RBA Code of Conduct throughout 
our organisation. This not only deals 
with environmental standards but also 
treatment of people, health and safety and 
business ethics.

Our customers demand excellent quality 
and security of supply and strong 
corporate social responsibility standards. 

Quality
Our stringent quality standards ensure 
the ultimate in quality and reliability. 
This is vital to our customers. This starts 
from the design phase right through to 
production and after sales support.

18

SALES CYCLE

Our sales process is generally a technical 
sale, between XP Power sales engineers 
and customer design engineers. Our 
customers are typically experts in their 
field, whether it is robotic surgery, a state 
of the art semiconductor manufacturing 
tool or a high-end communications device 
operating in a harsh environment. They 

will approach a company such as ours to 
recommend and assist them to design a 
power converter into their end system to 
allow it to function.

Generally, with larger customers it is 
not possible to engage on a specific 
opportunity until we are on an approved 
or preferred vendor list. This will involve 
qualification by the customer’s technical, 
quality and purchasing teams and may 
often involve a physical audit of our 
quality systems and a factory audit.

01

A new design programme is identified at a 
customer where we are an approved or preferred 
vendor. This is typically quite late in the customer’s 
development cycle as they will not usually know 
the total power requirement of their system until 
they have a working prototype.

05

The customer commences production 
of their product and XP Power’s 

revenue stream starts.  

IDENTIFICATION

02

An XP Power sales person will work with the 
customer to understand the requirements 
including the power requirements at 

This is typically around 

seven years depending 
on the application and 
end market.

PRODUCTION

QUOTATION

different voltages, communication 
required between the power 
converter and end system, 
any specific safety agency 
requirements and the physical 
dimensions. XP Power will then 
advocate a solution and provide 
a quotation to the customer. This 
solution could be a modification of 
one of our standard products.

04

The power converter is approved 
for use in the customer system 
following the customer’s technical 

APPROVAL

SAMPLE

03

One or more samples are provided to 
the customer for them to evaluate in 
their system. This is a critical stage of 
the sale and we often find that the first 

evaluation and external safety 
agency approval. This is generally the 

longest part of the sales cycle as the technical and safety 
evaluation are very time consuming for the customer. 
XP Power will often add value by providing technical 
assistance during this stage and it is not unusual for us to 
have a technical power systems engineer working directly 
with the customer.

company providing a sample that works 

in the equipment will win the design slot. Speed is therefore 
critical. Our power systems engineers will often work closely 
with the customer at this stage to assist them with any issues 
they might experience such as dealing with electrical noise.

XP Power Annual Report & Accounts for the year ended 31 December 2019

19

XP Power Annual Report & Accounts for the year ended 31 December 2019STRATEGIC REPORT

REVENUE STREAMS

LONG-TERM VALUE FOR STAKEHOLDERS

•  We gain substantial revenue 

annuity over the life cycle of a 
product. The design in cycle is 
typically 18 to 24 months.

•  Revenue from our own designs 
were flat compared with 2018. 
Our own design product created 
£155.8m of revenue. Labelled 
product accounted for £39.4m 
of revenue and third party was 
£4.7m. 

WE ARE PART OF THE 
RESPONSIBLE BUSINESS 
ALLIANCE (RBA)

OUR EMPLOYEES CAN 
TAKE A DAY OF PAID TIME 
OFF TO SUPPORT LOCAL 
COMMUNITY ACTIVITIES

+7%

DIVIDEND PER SHARE

EMPLOYEE CULTURAL 
SURVEY SCORE OF 

75.0

32

ADDITIONAL PRODUCT   
FAMILIES TO OUR   
PORTFOLIO DURING 2019

2019

2018

2017

2016

2015

2014

2013

2012

2011

Our people
•  A diverse workforce

•  A safe and healthy working environment

•  Talent management

•  Engagement

Our customers
•  Quality and value

•  Innovation and expansion to further enhance value

•  High efficiency product offering

•  Excellent service and support

Our suppliers
•  Fair negotiation

•  Visibility on revenues

•  Dealing with a member of the responsible business alliance

•  Supply chain ethics and due diligence

Our communities and the environment
•  Community initiatives

•  Raising money for charities and volunteer work

•  A focus on reducing harmful emissions

•  Environmentally friendly design concepts moving forward

Our shareholders
•  Progressive dividend policy as shown below

•  Investing in a growing business with attractive margins and 

market opportunities

60

70

80

90

91

85

78

71

66

61

55 

50

45

20

TEN YEAR DIVIDEND HISTORY (PENCE PER SHARE)
50

40

10

20

30

OUR COMPETITIVE 
ADVANTAGES

THESE ENABLE US TO DIFFERENTIATE OURSELVES

1

2

3

OUR PRODUCTS
We have the broadest, most up-to-
date product offering in the industry 
with over 250 product families in our 
portfolio. Our products are specific 
to the requirements of the various 
industries and applications we target. 
Our philosophy is to provide highly 
flexible products which are easy to 
modify. This saves our customers the 
cost, time and risk of pursuing a fully 
customised solution. Our product 
portfolio has been enhanced through 
acquisitions in RF (Radio Frequency) 
power and high voltage.

OUR PEOPLE
As in any business the most important 
asset is our people. We have a large 
and highly technically trained sales 
force.

Our customers deal directly with a 
sales engineer that can solve their 
power conversion problems. We do 
not put our key customers through 
distribution channels. We also provide 
global support.

Our Executive Leadership Team, 
located on three different continents, 
is not only talented, but given a 
relatively young average age, has an 
impressive average length of service. 
The breadth and depth of experience 
and collective teamwork of our 
people deliver genuine value to our 
customers.

OUR DESIGN 
ENGINEERING
We have design engineering teams on 
three continents – this allows us to 
release a high number of innovative 
new products required by this highly 
diversified market. These products 
often have class-leading energy 
efficiency and small footprints to meet 
the ever-higher demands of our key 
customers. Additional engineering 
service teams in Germany, North 
America, Singapore and the UK are 
able to provide value added services 
close to our key customers.

We are able to provide modified 
product solutions which allow the 
customer to more easily integrate the 
power converter into their equipment, 
therefore delivering a cost saving.

4

5

6

OUR GREEN INNOVATION
Environmental considerations are 
becoming increasingly important to 
our customers. There is strong demand 
for products that consume less 
material, including harmful chemicals, 
and power converters that consume 
less energy.

Our product portfolio reflects this with 
many products having class-leading 
efficiencies and low stand-by power 
consumption.

OUR MANUFACTURING
Our Asian manufacturing bases in 
China and Vietnam are not only low 
cost but best-in-class. This capability 
is instrumental to winning new 
programmes with larger blue-chip 
customers that require the ultimate 
in quality and reliability. We also offer 
highly competitive lead times and 
flexible logistics arrangements.

OUR QUALITY
Our stringent quality standards ensure 
the ultimate in quality and reliability.

This is vital to our customers. This 
starts from the design phase right 
through to production and after sales 
support.

XP Power Annual Report & Accounts for the year ended 31 December 2019
XP Power Annual Report & Accounts for the year ended 31 December 2019

21
21

OUR STRATEGY

Our vision is to be the first choice power solutions provider delivering the ultimate experience for 
our people and our customers.

RATIONALE 

Develop a market leading range of 
competitive products

Target accounts where  
we can add value

Vertical penetration  
of focus accounts

We need a market-leading range 
of products to be attractive to 
our customers. The product 
range also needs to be broad 
due to the fragmented nature 
of the markets we serve which 
have a multitude of product 
requirements.

The broader and more up-to-
date our product range, the more 
chance we will have something 
that will work effectively in our 
target customers’ applications.

We pride ourselves in the level of 
service and support we offer to 
our customers, particularly during 
the design-in stage.

We have a compelling 
proposition where customers 
expect excellent quality and 
reliability to power their 
mission-critical equipment, but 
in particular where they face a 
power problem due to either 
heat dissipation or electrical 
noise. These are the type of 
customers that we target.

We still have a relatively small 
share of the available business 
in some of the accounts we 
call on. We are continuing to 
expand our product portfolio 
so we can address more of the 
opportunities that are available 
in these accounts to grow our 
revenues.

Build a global supply chain which  

balances high efficiency with market  

leading customer responsiveness

Lead our industry on 

environmental matters

Make selective acquisitions  

of complementary businesses to  

expand our offering

Since listing in 2000 we have built a 

Strong corporate social responsibility is 

Our strong balance sheet and cash 

strong brand in the power converter 

not only important to our key customers 

generative business model allow us the 

market. This, together with our product 

but also to our employees and the 

capacity to pursue business acquisitions. 

portfolio and excellent customer service, 

communities in which we operate. This 

This is another avenue to expand our 

has allowed us to consistently take 

incorporates not only environmental 

product offering and addressable market.

market share and grow significantly. 

performance but also health and safety, 

As the Company grows we need to 

treatment of our people and business 

upgrade our systems and processes and, 

ethics.

in particular, our supply chain processes 

in order to scale and run a much larger 

business as we continue to grow. 

TARGET/GOAL

To release sufficient products to 
achieve a best year revenue in 
excess of US$30 million.

PAST PERFORMANCE

Over the past few years we have 
been expanding our product 
portfolio and have developed 
a number of highly efficient, 
leading-edge products.

PLANNED FUTURE 
ACTIONS

Emphasis has now shifted 
towards products which still have 
leading efficiencies but which are 
more mainstream and attractive 
from a cost perspective.

Organic revenue growth in 
excess of 10%.

Organic revenue growth in 
excess of 10%.

Consistent improvement in lead time and 

Consistent reduction in our CO2 intensity.

Bolt-on acquisitions driving inorganic 

on time delivery.

revenue growth in excess of 5%.

We have targeted customers for 
which reliability is key or where 
their equipment may be located 
in harsh environments. These 
customers value the support and 
service that our highly trained 
sales force and power systems 
engineers deliver.

We are prioritising our resource 
on the customers that fit our 
value proposition. We are de-
emphasising customers that 
may have significant revenue 
potential but where cost is a 
more critical factor than quality 
and reliability or engineering 
support during the design phase.

We have spent the last few 
years gaining approved or 
preferred supplier status at the 
key customers in the Industrial 
Electronics, Healthcare, 
Semiconductor Equipment 
Manufacturing, and Technology 
sectors. We are focused on this 
existing customer base in order 
to grow our revenues.

As we expand our product 
offering through continued 
product development and 
acquisitions, we aim to address 
an increasing proportion of our 
customers’ requirements with our 
excellent service and support.

We have evolved from a distributor to a 

We are a full member of the Responsible 

Through our recent acquisitions we have 

manufacturer, now having manufacturing  

Business Alliance (RBA). The RBA Code of 

added both RF power and high power/

facilities in China, Vietnam and North 

Conduct to which we comply addresses 

high voltage to our product range. 

America. We have recruited supply chain 

all of these important ethical and 

talent to achieve this transformation.

environmental matters, which we strongly 

endorse.

As the business continues to grow and 

We will remain a committed member of 

We continue to look for acquisitions to 

become more complex we will continue 

the RBA.

expand our product offering and other 

to add talent to our supply chain 

operations in 2020.

We strive to lead our industry on 

environmental matters and have a 

capabilities.

In 2019 we have also upgraded our ERP 

committee dedicated to raising awareness 

system in our sales companies in Asia, 

of “Green” initiatives, however small.

Europe and North America.

LINK TO KPIS

•  New product families released

•  Revenue

•  Proportion of own-designed 

revenue

•  Revenue from top  

30 customers

•  Adjusted earnings per share

•  Lifetime CO2 emissions savings from 

•  New product families released

“Green” products

LINK TO RISKS

•  Competition from new 

•  Dependence on key 

•  Dependence on key 

market entrants and new 
technologies

customers

customers 

•  Product recall/quality 

•  Product recall/quality 

•  Loss of key personnel 

management

management

•  Loss of key personnel or failure to 

•  Risks relating to regulation, compliance  

•  Strategic risk association with valuing 

attract new personnel 

and taxation

or integrating new acquisitions

•  Cybersecurity/information systems 

•  Loss of key personnel or failure to 

failure

attract new personnel 

or failure to attract new 
personnel

22

XP Power has followed a clear and consistent dual track strategy of moving up the value chain through its internally developed products 
and adding complementary products through acquisitions to target key accounts where we can add genuine value.

Build a global supply chain which  
balances high efficiency with market  
leading customer responsiveness

Lead our industry on 
environmental matters

Since listing in 2000 we have built a 
strong brand in the power converter 
market. This, together with our product 
portfolio and excellent customer service, 
has allowed us to consistently take 
market share and grow significantly. 
As the Company grows we need to 
upgrade our systems and processes and, 
in particular, our supply chain processes 
in order to scale and run a much larger 
business as we continue to grow. 

Strong corporate social responsibility is 
not only important to our key customers 
but also to our employees and the 
communities in which we operate. This 
incorporates not only environmental 
performance but also health and safety, 
treatment of our people and business 
ethics.

Make selective acquisitions  
of complementary businesses to  
expand our offering

Our strong balance sheet and cash 
generative business model allow us the 
capacity to pursue business acquisitions. 
This is another avenue to expand our 
product offering and addressable market.

TARGET/GOAL

To release sufficient products to 

Organic revenue growth in 

Organic revenue growth in 

achieve a best year revenue in 

excess of 10%.

excess of 10%.

Consistent improvement in lead time and 
on time delivery.

Consistent reduction in our CO2 intensity.

Bolt-on acquisitions driving inorganic 
revenue growth in excess of 5%.

excess of US$30 million.

We have evolved from a distributor to a 
manufacturer, now having manufacturing  
facilities in China, Vietnam and North 
America. We have recruited supply chain 
talent to achieve this transformation.

We are a full member of the Responsible 
Business Alliance (RBA). The RBA Code of 
Conduct to which we comply addresses 
all of these important ethical and 
environmental matters, which we strongly 
endorse.

Through our recent acquisitions we have 
added both RF power and high power/
high voltage to our product range. 

As the business continues to grow and 
become more complex we will continue 
to add talent to our supply chain 
operations in 2020.

In 2019 we have also upgraded our ERP 
system in our sales companies in Asia, 
Europe and North America.

We will remain a committed member of 
the RBA.

We strive to lead our industry on 
environmental matters and have a 
committee dedicated to raising awareness 
of “Green” initiatives, however small.

We continue to look for acquisitions to 
expand our product offering and other 
capabilities.

LINK TO KPIS

•  New product families released

•  Revenue

•  Adjusted earnings per share

•  Lifetime CO2 emissions savings from 

•  New product families released

“Green” products

LINK TO RISKS

•  Competition from new 

•  Dependence on key 

•  Dependence on key 

market entrants and new 

customers

customers 

•  Loss of key personnel or failure to 

•  Risks relating to regulation, compliance  

•  Strategic risk association with valuing 

attract new personnel 

and taxation

or integrating new acquisitions

•  Product recall/quality 

•  Product recall/quality 

management

management

•  Cybersecurity/information systems 

•  Loss of key personnel or failure to 

failure

attract new personnel 

XP Power Annual Report & Accounts for the year ended 31 December 2019

23

Develop a market leading range of 

Target accounts where  

competitive products

we can add value

Vertical penetration  

of focus accounts

RATIONALE 

We need a market-leading range 

We pride ourselves in the level of 

We still have a relatively small 

of products to be attractive to 

service and support we offer to 

share of the available business 

our customers. The product 

our customers, particularly during 

in some of the accounts we 

range also needs to be broad 

the design-in stage.

due to the fragmented nature 

of the markets we serve which 

have a multitude of product 

requirements.

We have a compelling 

proposition where customers 

expect excellent quality and 

reliability to power their 

The broader and more up-to-

mission-critical equipment, but 

date our product range, the more 

in particular where they face a 

chance we will have something 

power problem due to either 

that will work effectively in our 

heat dissipation or electrical 

target customers’ applications.

noise. These are the type of 

customers that we target.

call on. We are continuing to 

expand our product portfolio 

so we can address more of the 

opportunities that are available 

in these accounts to grow our 

revenues.

PAST PERFORMANCE

Over the past few years we have 

We have targeted customers for 

We have spent the last few 

been expanding our product 

which reliability is key or where 

years gaining approved or 

portfolio and have developed 

their equipment may be located 

preferred supplier status at the 

a number of highly efficient, 

in harsh environments. These 

key customers in the Industrial 

leading-edge products.

customers value the support and 

Electronics, Healthcare, 

service that our highly trained 

Semiconductor Equipment 

sales force and power systems 

Manufacturing, and Technology 

engineers deliver.

sectors. We are focused on this 

existing customer base in order 

to grow our revenues.

PLANNED FUTURE 

Emphasis has now shifted 

We are prioritising our resource 

As we expand our product 

ACTIONS

towards products which still have 

on the customers that fit our 

offering through continued 

leading efficiencies but which are 

value proposition. We are de-

product development and 

more mainstream and attractive 

emphasising customers that 

acquisitions, we aim to address 

from a cost perspective.

may have significant revenue 

an increasing proportion of our 

potential but where cost is a 

customers’ requirements with our 

more critical factor than quality 

excellent service and support.

and reliability or engineering 

support during the design phase.

•  Revenue from top  

30 customers

•  Proportion of own-designed 

revenue

technologies

•  Loss of key personnel 

or failure to attract new 

personnel

STRATEGIC REPORTOUR STRATEGY IN ACTION: 
PRODUCT PORTFOLIO

Our product portfolio presents 
significant growth opportunities.

OUR PORTFOLIO:

•  Acquisitions in high voltage (EMCO 

and Glassman) and RF power (Comdel) 
expand our addressable market from 
$2.7 billion to $4.7 billion

•  Can use our engineering services 
capabilities to combine different 
products to give the customer a 
complete power solution

•  One of few companies in the world 

•  Presents significant long-term growth 

who can provide solutions right across 
the power and voltage spectrum

opportunity

High Power/High Voltage
Market size – $0.5Bn
XP Power – $15m

RF Power
Market size – $1.2Bn
XP Power – $16m

Low Voltage
Market size – $2.7Bn
XP Power – $210m

100KW+

50KW

10KW

5KW

3KW

1.5KW

500W

140W

75W

30W

10W

1W

Low Power/High Voltage
Market size – $250m
XP Power – $15m

5V

24V

60V

400V

800V

6KV

10KV

30KV

60KV

100KV+

LINK TO STRATEGY
•  Our acquisitions provide us with the 
opportunity to release further new 
product families

•  As we can create a larger product 
offering we can add value in 
accounts where we already have 
strong relationships

•  Expanding our product offering so 

that we can capture opportunities in 
target accounts

•  We can focus on “Green” products 

in the low voltage market to lead on 
environmental matters

LINK TO VALUES AND 
CULTURE
•  We aim to constantly improve our 
knowledge and therefore a wider 
product portfolio supports this

•  Our product ideas derive from our 

customer focus

•  We are flexible regarding our 

product offering so we can modify 
our products to solve our customers’ 
power problems

•  We ensure all opportunities for 

growth are qualified with integrity

LINK TO SUSTAINABILITY 
AND THE SDGS
•  As we develop our product portfolio 
and offering we are able to offer 
an increased range of “Green” 
products which consume and 
waste less energy so have lower 
carbon emissions. This improves 
the wellbeing of society, and in turn 
impacts climate action

•  As we grow we are increasingly able 
to further economic growth and 
development in the locations that 
we operate in

READ ABOUT STRATEGY ON 
PAGES 22 AND 23

READ ABOUT SUSTAINABILITY 
ON PAGES 48 AND 49

24

 
OUR STRATEGY IN ACTION: 
VIETNAM

We are creating more flexibility within our supply chain. There has 
been a 75% increase in manufacturing capacity as the construction of 
Vietnam II is now complete. Over 2,000 products are now approved 
for production in Vietnam enabling our customers to mitigate the 
economic impact of Section 301 Tariffs in the USA. In addition, 
the manufacture of our low power/high voltage DC modules 
is transferring from Minden, Nevada, to Vietnam to reduce our 
manufacturing costs.

LINK TO STRATEGY
•  This provides us with the 

opportunity to invest back into the 
business, which will support new 
product families being released, and 
improve design for manufacture

•  This supports our focus on building 
a global supply chain. It will provide 
us with increased efficiency and 
flexibility

•  Investment back into the business 
will support our vision of being the 
first choice power solutions provider 
delivering the ultimate experience 
to our customers and our people

READ ABOUT 
SUSTAINABILITY ON  
PAGES 48 AND 49

LINK TO VALUES AND 
CULTURE
•  We aim to constantly improve 
our knowledge and therefore 
investment in the business supports 
this

•  This demonstrates our focus on 

being flexible. Vietnam provides us 
with enhanced business continuity 
options

•  Throughout this process we have 

acted with speed and agility

•  We ensure all opportunities for 

growth are qualified with integrity

•  Our customer focus is evident from 
the decision to move products to 
Vietnam to allow them to mitigate 
the effects of tariffs

STRATEGIC REPORT

OUR RATIONALE
Our rationale for increasing supply 
chain flexibility in Vietnam:

•  Cost advantage over China and USA

•  Helps mitigate Section 301 Tariffs 

and provides a competitive advantage 
over competitors with Chinese-based 
manufacturing

•  Expect annualised cost savings of 

approximately £4 million with the shift 
from Nevada to Vietnam

•  This enables us to invest back £1-2 

million of the savings into the business 
to expand and strengthen our new 
product introduction team

Over 2,000 products 
are now approved for 
production in Vietnam

LINK TO SUSTAINABILITY 
AND THE SDGS
•  We are focused on supporting 

decent work and economic growth. 
Therefore we follow our Responsible 
Business Alliance (RBA) commitment 
in Vietnam

•  We ensure we act with integrity in 

Vietnam and encourage responsible 
consumption and production. 
Our Vietnam facility has excellent 
environmental credentials

XP Power Annual Report & Accounts for the year ended 31 December 2019

25

XP Power Annual Report & Accounts for the year ended 31 December 2019OUR STRATEGY IN ACTION: 
SOLVING OUR CUSTOMERS’ POWER PROBLEMS

THE APPLICATION
This application required a smart power 
conversion system for the robot docking 
station to charge the robot’s batteries. 
The robot is designed to be used in both 
warehouses and stores.

POWER REQUIREMENT
The customer required a high output 
power at a relatively uncommon voltage 
but also required power delivery at low 
line output enabling the robot to be used 
in many places in the world. Significantly 
they also wanted digital control of the 
power solution and custom firmware to 
allow them to:

•  Monitor and control the docking station 

from a remote user location

•  Control the sequence and timing of the 
battery charges to optimise the facility’s 
power consumption meaning greener 
power consumption and lower energy 
costs

•  Report fault conditions transmitted via 
serial interface while also giving LED 
visual indicators on the docking station 
itself

WHY WE WON
•  The customer’s requirements could 
not be implemented with a standard 
off the shelf solution due to the 
communication required between the 
power solution and the customer’s 
application 

•  Our engineering services team got to 
work and rapidly designed a complete 
power solution for the customer using 
a modified standard building block. XP 
Power was not only able to provide 
the power conversion hardware but 
could also provide the firmware control 
solution allowing communication 
between the power supply and 
customer’s application. This was not an 
offering the competition could provide

•  Our solution also had superior 

conducted and radiated emissions 
and therefore presented less electrical 
noise issues that the customer had 
to contend with. This allowed the 
customer’s engineering team to focus 
on the robot solution and not worry 
about the complexity of the power 
solution and associated firmware

XP Power partnered with a 
leader in inventory management 
robotics with self-learning 
Artificial Intelligence to scan 
supermarket shelves and 
report inventory status and 
re-order items as needed. 
These intelligent robots help 
the world’s largest retailers 
to predict demand and 
manage their inventories 
with confidence. This allows 
employees to be freed from 
mundane tasks to interact with 
customers or focus on other 
initiatives as retailers push to 
meet customers’ demands to 
order online.

The robots have sensors and 
cameras that scan the shelves 
and communicate to the 
inventory control system how 
much is currently in stock. 
Employees then re-stock items 
as needed.

26

STRATEGIC REPORT

COMMERCIAL
The customer ended up with a base solution that met all their unique requirments, 
received higher value in getting to market faster and did not have to commit their own 
precious engineering resource into developing firmware. This is a classic example of XP 
Power providing power expertise to deliver genuine value and help our customer be 
successful.

LINK TO STRATEGY
•  Targeting customers where we can 

add genuine value

•  Our broad up-to-date product 

offering meant we had a suitable 
product we could adapt for the 
complex solution

LINK TO VALUES AND 
CULTURE
•  Speed – we were fast to solve the 

customer’s power problems and get 
them to market quickly

•  Knowledge – we had the capability 
to provide the complete power 
solution including custom firmware

•  Flexibility – our solution was tailored 
to the customer’s needs meeting 
their unique requirements

•  Customer focus – the customer’s 
needs remain at the centre of 
everything we do

READ ABOUT STRATEGY ON 
PAGES 22 AND 23

READ ABOUT SUSTAINABILITY 
ON PAGES 48 AND 49

We provided power 
expertise to deliver 
genuine value and 
contribute to our 
customer’s success

LINK TO SUSTAINABILITY 
AND THE SDGS
•  Industrial Electronics innovation  

and infrastructure

•  Decent work and economic growth

27

XP Power Annual Report & Accounts for the year ended 31 December 2019OUR KEY PERFORMANCE 
INDICATORS

We have defined a number of Key Performance Indicators (KPIs), both financial and non-financial,  
which are closely aligned with our strategy and core values. 
Our performance over the years demonstrates significant and consistent progress.

their revenue potential. In assessing 

for similar sized international 

“Green” XP Power products by at 

new product opportunities, we 

companies. In 2020 we changed 

least 5% per annum.

consider the potential revenue from 

providers to Work Buzz to use a 

a new product family as well as the 

more modern survey with enhanced 

absolute number of new product 

online reporting tools and a 

introductions. We target 30 new 

different question set.

releases per annum.

objectives.

•  Yes

environmental objectives

FINANCIAL

Revenue growth

Revenue from 
top 30 customers (%)

Free cash flow

Adjusted diluted Earnings  

per share (“EPS”) growth (%)

New product families released

Cultural survey score 

(index out of 100)

Lifetime CO2 emission savings 

from “green” products (tonnes)

2019

2018

2017

2016

2015

199.9

195.1

166.8

129.8

109.7

2019

2018

2017

2016

2015

49

52

50

44

44

2019

2018

2017

2016

26.2

10.9

19.7

21.0

2015

7.4

DEFINITION

We target revenue growth of 10% per 
annum. Whether we achieve this or not can 
depend on market cyclicality and exchange 
rates.

We expect revenue from our top 30 
customers to increase as we pursue our 
strategy.

We target free cash flow growth of 
10% per annum. 

We target to grow this metric by a 

Not all products are equal in terms 

We target to improve this score and 

We have set a target to increase the 

double digit percentage each year.

of their complexity to develop or 

be at least above the benchmark 

lifetime CO2 emissions savings from 

WHY DO WE 
MEASURE THIS?

Provides an indicator of business growth 
between reporting periods. 

Used to assess how effectively we are 
targeting top customers. 

Provides an indicator of value 
created for shareholders. 

Used to assess the adjusted 

Used to assess the expansion of the 

Used to assess the Group’s 

Used to assess the Group’s 

earnings performance of the Group

Group’s product portfolio.

performance against its People 

performance against its 

TARGET ACHIEVED 
(AND COMMENTARY)

•  No

•  Yes

Yes 

•  No

•  Yes

•  No

OUR PROGRESS 
IN 2019

•  Leveraged off the new products gained 
through acquisition, expanding sales in 
other regions

•  Expanded our distribution channels

•  This metric decreased due to 
the cyclical downturn in the 
semiconductor equipment 
manufacturing industry

•  Excluding the cyclical impact noted 
above we continue to grow share of 
our large customers

• 

• 

Improved our working capital 
management, specifically related 
to inventory

Improved cash flow forecasting 
to make better use of available 
cash, either through debt 
repayment or short term deposits

•  Earnings negatively impacted by 

•  We released 32 new product 

•  We continue to undertake an 

•  Of the 32 new product families 

US/China tariffs

families in 2019 (2018: 27)

annual employee engagement 

launched in 2018, 25 were 

•  25 (2018: 20) of these new 

product families can be 

classified as “Green” XP Power 

products

survey to identify areas our 

people tell us where we can 

improve to deliver the ultimate 

employee experience

• 

In 2019 we changed providers to 

“Green”

•  Our revenues from “Green” XP 

Power products increased by 3% 

to £43.2 million in 2019

Work Buzz to use a more modern 

•  CO2 emission savings declined in 

2019 due to product mix

survey with enhanced online 

reporting tools and a different 

question set.

OUR PLANS  
FOR 2020

•  Continue to utilise our broad product 
offering through all sales regions

•  Provide increasing support to our 

customers through our engineering 
solutions group

•  Continue to grow our share of 

customers’ business where we are 
preferred or approved suppliers

•  Expansion of our product portfolio to 

increase our addressable market in our 
existing customer base

LINK TO STRATEGY

•  Target accounts where we can add 

value

•  Vertical penetration  
of focus accounts

•  Continue to seek opportunities 
to maximise working capital

•  Leverage strong order intake end 

•  We will no longer report this 

•  While employee engagement 

•  We will continue to release 

to 2019 to grow EPS

metric as a KPI

is pleasing the results of the 

survey indicate that we need 

to work to improve recognition 

programmes

products with class-leading 

efficiency

•  Build a global supply chain 

which balances high efficiency 
with market leading customer 
responsiveness

•  Achieve operational excellence

•  Develop a broad range of 

•  Achieve operational excellence

•  Leading our industry on 

competitive products

environmental matters

LINK TO CORE VALUES

LINK TO RISK

1

2

3

4

5

6

7

8

9

10 11

1

2

3

4

5

LINK TO 
REMUNERATION

Revenue growth drives the annual growth 
of our adjusted profit before tax which is a 
target in our Group bonus plan

Placing emphasis on revenue from our top 
30 customers aligns with our strategy and 
long term earnings growth, a key measure 
in our share incentive schemes

Free cash flow is a metric in our 
Group bonus plan

•  EPS is a performance condition 

in our share incentive scheme

28

Revenue growth

Revenue from 

top 30 customers (%)

Free cash flow

Adjusted diluted Earnings  
per share (“EPS”) growth (%)

New product families released

Cultural survey score 
(index out of 100)

Lifetime CO2 emission savings 
from “green” products (tonnes)

FOR MORE 
INFORMATION ON 
OUR STRATEGY SEE 
PAGES 22 AND 23

 FOR MORE 
INFORMATION ON 
RISKS SEE  
PAGES 42 TO 47

 FOR MORE 
INFORMATION ON 
OUR CORE VALUES  
SEE PAGES 52 AND 53

FOR MORE 
INFORMATION ON 
SUSTAINABILITY 
SEE PAGES 48 AND 49

NON-FINANCIAL

2019

2018

2017

2016

2015

145.5

172.8

147.0

115.3

104.3

2019

2018

2017

2016

2015

32

27

27

47

22

2019

2018

2017

2016

2015

75

2019

63.4

62.0

63.0

62.9

2018

2017

2016

158,000

2015

133,000

236,157

236,000

291 ,000

DEFINITION

We target revenue growth of 10% per 

We expect revenue from our top 30 

We target free cash flow growth of 

annum. Whether we achieve this or not can 

customers to increase as we pursue our 

10% per annum. 

We target to grow this metric by a 
double digit percentage each year.

depend on market cyclicality and exchange 

strategy.

rates.

Not all products are equal in terms 
of their complexity to develop or 
their revenue potential. In assessing 
new product opportunities, we 
consider the potential revenue from 
a new product family as well as the 
absolute number of new product 
introductions. We target 30 new 
releases per annum.

We target to improve this score and 
be at least above the benchmark 
for similar sized international 
companies. In 2020 we changed 
providers to Work Buzz to use a 
more modern survey with enhanced 
online reporting tools and a 
different question set.

We have set a target to increase the 
lifetime CO2 emissions savings from 
“Green” XP Power products by at 
least 5% per annum.

WHY DO WE 

MEASURE THIS?

Provides an indicator of business growth 

Used to assess how effectively we are 

Provides an indicator of value 

between reporting periods. 

targeting top customers. 

created for shareholders. 

Used to assess the adjusted 
earnings performance of the Group

Used to assess the expansion of the 
Group’s product portfolio.

Used to assess the Group’s 
performance against its People 
objectives.

Used to assess the Group’s 
performance against its 
environmental objectives

TARGET ACHIEVED 

(AND COMMENTARY)

•  No

•  Yes

Yes 

•  No

•  Yes

•  Yes

•  No

OUR PROGRESS 

•  Leveraged off the new products gained 

•  This metric decreased due to 

• 

Improved our working capital 

IN 2019

through acquisition, expanding sales in 

the cyclical downturn in the 

management, specifically related 

•  Earnings negatively impacted by 

US/China tariffs

•  We released 32 new product 
families in 2019 (2018: 27)

other regions

semiconductor equipment 

manufacturing industry

to inventory

•  Expanded our distribution channels

• 

Improved cash flow forecasting 

•  Excluding the cyclical impact noted 

to make better use of available 

above we continue to grow share of 

cash, either through debt 

our large customers

repayment or short term deposits

•  25 (2018: 20) of these new 
product families can be 
classified as “Green” XP Power 
products

OUR PLANS  

FOR 2020

•  Continue to utilise our broad product 

•  Continue to grow our share of 

•  Continue to seek opportunities 

•  Leverage strong order intake end 

•  We will no longer report this 

offering through all sales regions

customers’ business where we are 

to maximise working capital

to 2019 to grow EPS

metric as a KPI

•  Provide increasing support to our 

preferred or approved suppliers

customers through our engineering 

•  Expansion of our product portfolio to 

solutions group

increase our addressable market in our 

existing customer base

•  We continue to undertake an 
annual employee engagement 
survey to identify areas our 
people tell us where we can 
improve to deliver the ultimate 
employee experience

• 

In 2019 we changed providers to 
Work Buzz to use a more modern 
survey with enhanced online 
reporting tools and a different 
question set.

•  Of the 32 new product families 
launched in 2018, 25 were 
“Green”

•  Our revenues from “Green” XP 

Power products increased by 3% 
to £43.2 million in 2019

•  CO2 emission savings declined in 

2019 due to product mix

•  While employee engagement 
is pleasing the results of the 
survey indicate that we need 
to work to improve recognition 
programmes

•  We will continue to release 
products with class-leading 
efficiency

LINK TO STRATEGY

•  Target accounts where we can add 

•  Vertical penetration  

•  Build a global supply chain 

•  Achieve operational excellence

value

of focus accounts

•  Develop a broad range of 
competitive products

•  Achieve operational excellence

•  Leading our industry on 
environmental matters

which balances high efficiency 

with market leading customer 

responsiveness

LINK TO CORE VALUES

LINK TO RISK

6

7

8

9

10 11

1

2

3

4

5

6

7

8

9

10

6

7

8

9

10 11

LINK TO 

REMUNERATION

Revenue growth drives the annual growth 

Placing emphasis on revenue from our top 

Free cash flow is a metric in our 

of our adjusted profit before tax which is a 

30 customers aligns with our strategy and 

Group bonus plan

•  EPS is a performance condition 
in our share incentive scheme

target in our Group bonus plan

long term earnings growth, a key measure 

in our share incentive schemes

29

STRATEGIC REPORTXP Power Annual Report & Accounts for the year ended 31 December 2019PERFORMANCE: 
OPERATIONAL REVIEW

REVIEW OF OUR YEAR

The 2019 financial year 
presented several challenges 
to our business. A combination 
of cyclical weakness in the 
Semiconductor Equipment 
Manufacturing sector, which 
had begun in 2018, the trade 
dispute between China and the 
USA, the knock-on impact of the 
component price inflation we 
experienced in 2018, fluctuating 
Sterling to US Dollar exchange 
rates and some destocking in our 
distribution channels, combined 
to produce tougher business 
conditions. 

Against this backdrop we continued to 
make good progress with the execution 
of our strategy, putting the business on 
a stronger footing to grow in the future 
by continuing to improve our product 
life cycle management procedures and 
upgrading our processes and systems in 
our sales organisations in Asia, Europe and 
North America. 

We exited 2019 having delivered an ERP 
implementation, with Section 301 tariffs 
now being recovered from customers and 
a strong order book as the Semiconductor 
Equipment Manufacturing sector showed 
signs of recovery in the fourth quarter. 
We are making significant progress, in line 
with our vision of being the first-choice 
power solutions provider, delivering the 
ultimate experience to our customers and 
our people. 

Our design wins were strong in 2019, 
boding well for future market share and 
revenue growth. We continued to move 
our product portfolio to higher power and 
technically more complex applications, and 
to expand the number of design wins with 
higher engineering solutions content. 

We are one of the few companies that 
can offer its customers a full range of 
solutions across the voltage and power 
spectrum and provide the engineering 
services to package these together to 
provide a complete power solution, 
including communication with the 
customers’ application through firmware. 
This is a powerful proposition which 
makes us an ideal partner for many of our 
target customers and greatly expands our 
addressable market.

MARKETPLACE
Demand and order intake in the Industrial 
Electronics, Healthcare and Technology 
sectors was robust throughout the 
year. In the Semiconductor Equipment 
Manufacturing sector, the cyclical 
weakness which had started in the second 
half of 2018 gathered pace in the first part 
of 2019, before starting to recover in the 
final quarter of the year. 

Group order intake was up 8% on a 
reported basis to £214.9 million (2018: 
£198.4 million). In constant currency order 
intake increased by 4% and on a like-for-
like basis, excluding Glassman, which was 
acquired at the end of May 2018, order 
intake growth was 2%. The resulting book-
to-bill ratio was 1.08.

Overall revenues grew by 2% to £199.9 
million (2018: £195.1 million) on a 
reported basis. Revenues were reduced 
by approximately £5 million due to the 
short-term issue with the implementation 
of a new ERP system in the fourth quarter 
of 2019, as discussed later in this review. 
In constant currency revenues reduced 
by 2% and by 4% on a like-for-like basis, 
excluding the acquisition of Glassman 
completed in May 2018. 

The average exchange rate for US Dollar 
to Sterling was 1.28 in 2019 versus 1.34 in 
2018, representing a 4% weakening. We 
discuss the impact of foreign exchange 
volatility in more detail in our Financial 
Review.

DUNCAN PENNY

Chief Executive Officer

30

STRATEGIC REPORT

EUROPE REPRESENTED 

32%  

OF OVERALL REVENUES  
(2018: 31%)

ASIA REPRESENTED 

10%  

% OF OVERALL 
REVENUES (2018: 8%).

MARKETPLACE: SECTOR 
DYNAMICS
Revenues from Industrial Electronics 
customers grew by 7% to £89.2 million 
(2018: £83.7 million) representing 
45% (2018: 43%) of overall revenues. 
Although Industrial Electronics is our 
largest sector, it is very diversified with 
few of these customers making it into 
our top 30 customer list. Applications 
in this sector vary significantly and are 
principally driven by new and emerging 
electronic technologies and high growth 
niches rather than traditional areas like 
industrial machinery, automotive or 
mining. Typical drivers for our revenues 
in this sector include renewable 
energy, analytical instruments, test 
and measurement equipment, displays, 
3D printing, smart grid and industrial 
printing. Our Distribution business, which 
represents 11% of our overall business 
and is exposed to a very diverse range of 
end markets, is also included within the 
Industrial Electronics sector.

The Semiconductor Equipment 
Manufacturing sector remains an 
important area for XP Power. Revenue 
from these customers reduced by 21% 
to £37.4 million (2018: £47.4 million) as 
a cyclical decline took hold in the latter 
part of 2018, before reaching a low point 
in the first half of 2019. We began to see 
signs of a recovery in this sector in our 
order intake in the fourth quarter of 2019. 
Revenue from Semiconductor Equipment 
Manufacturing sector customers 
represented 19% of overall revenue (2018: 
24%). Our expansion into high-voltage and 
high-power products, combined with our 
engineering services offering, has made 
us an attractive supplier to this market. 
The new higher power and higher voltage 
products we now have allow us to service 
considerably more of the opportunities we 
see in this sector, significantly expanding 
our addressable market. 

Despite the sector’s cyclicality this 
market remains highly attractive due to 
its robust fundamentals, which are being 
driven by the proliferation of applications 
involving the internet of things (IoT), 
artificial intelligence (AI), autonomous 
vehicles, big data and the roll out of 5G 
technology. The latest generations of 
semiconductor logic and memory devices 
are becoming more capital intensive to 
manufacture as they become multilayer, 
and as dimensions continue to shrink. This 
plays to XP Power’s strengths as one of 
few companies in the world that can offer 

the whole spectrum of power and voltage 
required for Semiconductor Equipment 
Manufacturing, making us a compelling 
partner to the manufacturers of these 
state-of-the-art tools. 

Revenue from Healthcare customers 
grew by 5% to £45.9 million (2018: £43.6 
million) representing 23% of overall 
revenues (2018: 22%). Healthcare remains 
another attractive market for XP Power 
given the breadth of our medical product 
range and high level of customer service. 
Healthcare customers are demanding in 
terms of quality and reliability, making 
our value proposition very attractive to 
them. We provide mission critical power 
solutions for numerous applications in the 
healthcare arena, from patient contact 
applications such as robotic surgery, to 
diagnostic equipment such as MRI and 
ultrasound, through to ventilators and 
laboratory equipment. We also understand 
the many special requirements and 
regulatory approvals that a medical power 
solution has to meet. Healthcare tends 
to be much less cyclical than the other 
sectors we address which adds resilience 
to our diversified business model.

Revenue from Technology customers 
grew 34% to £27.4 million (2018: £20.4 
million) representing 13% of overall 
revenues (2018: 11%). The strong growth 
achieved in 2019 was partly due to a large 
programme for test equipment in Asia 
which had been dormant for several years. 
Other typical applications in technology 
include areas such as broadcast, high-
end communications such as satellite 
and telecom base stations, and high-end 
computing. These programmes are often 
quite large but generally have much 
shorter lifetimes than the seven to eight 
years which are typical in the other market 
sectors we serve.

MARKETPLACE: NORTH 
AMERICA
North America revenue was US$147.5 
million in 2019 (2018: US$159.5 million), 
a decrease of 8%. The decrease was 
12% after excluding US$14.8 million of 
revenue from the Glassman business 
(2018: US$8.8 million) which was acquired 
at the end of May 2018. North America 
represented 58% of overall revenue (2018: 
61%).

North America was adversely affected by 
the cyclical decline in the Semiconductor 
Equipment Manufacturing sector which 
began in 2018 and persisted throughout 
the majority of 2019, as discussed above. 

XP Power Annual Report & Accounts for the year ended 31 December 2019

31

PERFORMANCE: 
OPERATIONAL REVIEW CONTINUED

We started to see signs of a recovery 
in the Semiconductor Equipment 
Manufacturing sector in the order 
intake in the last quarter of 2019, which 
appears to be predominately driven by 
increased demand for next generation 
technology tools and reduction in excess 
customer inventory. Notwithstanding 
the disappointing performance in the 
Semiconductor Equipment Manufacturing 
sector, the Industrial Electronics, 
Healthcare and Technology sectors all 
grew year on year.

Order intake in North America was 
US$161.7 million (2018: US$158.1 
million), an increase of 2% resulting in a 
book-to-bill ratio of 1.10. After excluding 
the order intake from the Glassman 
acquisition of US$14.0 million (2018: 
US$9.4 million), orders reduced by 1%. 

The Section 301 tariffs imposed by the 
US government on Chinese sourced 
products had an adverse impact on XP 
Power. From September 2018 a 10% 
tariff was imposed on power converters 
imported from China, where the Group 
has a manufacturing facility. In May 2019 
the tariff was increased to 25%. The 
introduction of these tariffs necessitated 
the implementation of a process to 
recover this from customers to avoid a 
severe impact on our margins in North 
America. We recovered more than 90% 
of the Section 301 tariffs from customers 
in 2019. Whilst this shortfall is almost 
neutral to our reported absolute gross 
margin, it does reduce our reported gross 
margin percentage by approximately 60 
basis points. 

Our manufacturing facility in Vietnam 
presented an opportunity for the Group 
to shift production away from China 
to a location where the new tariffs 
did not apply. We had already started 
shifting production of our lower power 
products from China to Vietnam and the 
introduction of the Section 301 tariffs 
has caused us to accelerate this process. 
We are now able to produce over 2,000 
different products in our Vietnam facility 
and the majority of these have been 
transferred from our China facility. Many 
customers have now qualified our Vietnam 
facility so they can begin to take product 
from Vietnam rather than China. We 
believe that our established production 
capabilities in Vietnam give us a significant 
advantage against competitors who 
primarily have a China only manufacturing 
footprint. 

32

MARKETPLACE: EUROPE
Our European business grew revenue 
by 5% to £64.4 million (2018: £61.1 
million) despite weakness in continental 
Europe. Growth was driven by Industrial 
Electronics and Healthcare, with 
Technology revenue being in line year on 
year. The European Industrial Electronics 
business remains highly fragmented, 
and comprises of many customers and 
numerous applications, but growth is 
being driven by areas such as analytical 
instruments, renewable energy, industrial 
printing and other niches rather than 
traditional industrial manufacturing 
equipment. Semiconductor Equipment 
Manufacturing was the only sector to 
decline but this makes up less than 
1% of our European business. Europe 
represented 32% of overall revenues 
(2018: 31%).

Order intake in Europe was £65.0 million 
(2018: £64.6 million), an increase of 0.6%, 
resulting in a book-to-bill ratio of 1.01.

MARKETPLACE: ASIA
Asia revenues were US$25.6 million in 
2019 (2018: US$19.9 million), an increase 
of 29%, with the strongest growth in 
Technology which benefited from a large 
customer programme for burn-in test 
equipment that was reinvigorated. Our 
Asia business is also benefitting from 
the RF and high-voltage high-power 
products brought into the product 
portfolio as a result of the Comdel and 
Glassman acquisitions. Prior to acquisition, 
these companies had minimal sales 
representation in Asia which presents 
a significant future opportunity for the 
Group. Asia represented 10% of overall 
revenues (2018: 8%).

Order intake in Asia was US$28.2 million 
(2018: US$21.4 million), an increase of 
32%, resulting in a book-to-bill ratio of 
1.10.

SUPPLY CHAIN
As previously announced, during the 
first half of 2018 we started to see a 
significant tightening of the supply chain 
for certain electronic components, which 
resulted in increased lead times, in some 
cases moving from 12 to 52 weeks, and 
component cost inflation. In response, 
we went into the market to increase our 
safety inventories of critical components, 
at prices beyond our standard costs, in 
order to ensure we could continue to meet 
our lead times to customers. The higher 
prices we had to pay for components were 
a drag on gross margins in the second half 
of 2018 and in 2019. As expected, we 
have seen an unwinding of this inventory 
position in 2019 which has resulted in a 
reduction in working capital in the period. 

We remain vigilant and are keeping supply 
chain dynamics under close review given 
the advent of the COVID-19 outbreak in 
China, as we are now entering a period 
where demand for the next generation of 
semiconductor manufacturing equipment 
appears to be rising. We have already 
started to see the first signs of lengthening 
lead times for certain components 
such as multi-layer ceramic capacitors, 
purportedly driven by the roll out of 5G 
technology. Power semiconductor devices 
have also continued to be on long lead 
times throughout 2018 and 2019. We 
will continue to proactively manage our 
inventory to ensure continuity of supply 
but expect the levels to reduce further in 
2020.

COVID-19 VIRUS
The situation regarding the COVID-19 
virus outbreak in Wuhan, China in mid-
December has been widely reported. 
We send our heartfelt thoughts to 
everyone affected by the virus outbreak, 
particularly our colleagues at our Kunshan 
manufacturing site, who we are providing 
with all necessary support. Our first 
priority is to ensure the safety of our 
people and we have taken epidemic 
prevention and control measures at both 
our Kunshan and Vietnam manufacturing 
facilities. 

The Chinese authorities extended the 
Chinese Lunar New Year holiday and 
imposed a number of travel restrictions 
and operational restrictions on companies. 
These measures caused a two-week delay 
to the recommencement of production 
at our Kunshan facility, which re-opened 
on 17 February 2020. The difficulties our 
people have experienced in travelling 
back to work and the self-quarantine 

requirements also mean that we have 
been operating at a reduced level 
of capacity and do not expect to be 
operating at full capacity until mid-March 
at the earliest. Our local supply chain 
has experienced similar issues and we 
now have a backlog of production orders 
to catch up. There will be an inevitable 
slippage of revenues from the first quarter 
of 2020, but it is too early to determine 
whether this will have a material effect 
on our first half performance and to what 
extent the worldwide economic conditions 
will be affected by this situation.

Our Vietnamese facility recommenced 
production following the Lunar New 
Year holiday as planned on 1 February 
2020 and is operating normally. We 
have been taking mitigating action by 
accelerating the transfer of more products 
and materials from China to Vietnam to 
maintain the supply of products to our 
customers.

ADAPTING TO THE MARKET 
AND THE COMPETITION
Over the last two decades XP Power has 
evolved from a specialist distributor of 
power conversion products to a designer, 
and then manufacturer, of power solutions 
for the Industrial Electronics, Healthcare, 
Semiconductor Equipment Manufacturing 
and Technology markets. Our product 
portfolio has moved up the power and 
voltage spectrum, and now also includes 
RF power conversion products. 

We continue to perform well against our 
traditional established competition. Our 
broad range of standard products, now 
augmented by recent acquisitions, and 
excellent customer service, delivered 
by the largest direct sales force in our 
industry, is an attractive customer 
proposition. We are now one of very few 
power solutions providers who can supply 
our target customers with a portfolio 
of products from low to high-power 
and low to high voltage, including RF 
power. This capability, when combined 
with our engineering services offering, 
which can take standard products and 
tailor them to provide complete plug and 
play power systems, often incorporating 
custom firmware communications, 
makes us a compelling business partner 
as the equipment we power gets more 
sophisticated and connected.

Our low-cost Asian competitors continue 
to be competitive for low-power/
low-complexity products without 
demanding or critical applications and 
it is straightforward for customers to 

STRATEGIC REPORT

33

XP Power Annual Report & Accounts for the year ended 31 December 2019PERFORMANCE: 
OPERATIONAL REVIEW CONTINUED

source low-cost/low-power products 
directly through this channel. However, 
this market is not growing, with revenue 
from these products remaining stable. 
By contrast, engineering solutions of 
the type provided by XP Power are not 
easily managed remotely and work most 
effectively when situated close to the 
customer, so design discussions and 
design reviews can take place face-to-
face. We continue to add significant 
value to our customers as we expand 
our engineering service groups across 
the globe and customers demand more 
connectivity and digital control of 
the power solutions that power their 
applications. These trends are driving our 
order and revenue growth.

We are building a broad and compelling 
product offering supported by an excellent 
engineering services capability which 
makes us an increasingly attractive partner 
for leading companies in the Industrial 
Electronics, Healthcare, Semiconductor 
Equipment Manufacturing and Technology 
sectors to choose to power their mission-
critical applications.

STRATEGIC PROGRESS
We have followed a consistent strategy 
which has enabled us to produce strong 
results over a sustained period of time. 
The fundamental essence of this strategy 
is targeting key accounts where we can 
add value and gain more of the available 
business in those accounts, combined 
with moving the product line up in power, 
voltage and complexity. Although this 
strategy continues to remain appropriate 
and effective, we constantly challenge and 
refine it, as we have done again in 2019.

Our strategy can be summarised as 
follows:

•  Develop a market leading range of 

competitive products, organically and 
through selective acquisitions;

•  Target accounts where we can add 

value;

•  Increase vertical penetration of target 

accounts;

•  Build a global end to end supply 

chain that balances high efficiency 
with market leading customer 
responsiveness; and

•  Lead our industry on environmental 

matters.

34

We continue to make significant 
progress against each of these strategic 
objectives. We believe we have the 
broadest, most up-to-date portfolio 
of products, many of which are class-
leading in terms of efficiency and low 
stand-by power. We continue to move 
our product portfolio up in power and 
voltage to expand our addressable market 
and protect our margins. We are also 
enhancing our proposition to our target 
customers by expanding our engineering 
services capabilities. This allows us to 
combine our products into one complete 
power solution to power a customer’s 
application.

The executive leadership team undertook 
an in-depth critical review of our strategy 
during 2019 which was presented 
and challenged by the Board. The key 
outcomes of this review were:

•  Upgrade key talent so we have the 
capabilities to profitably scale the 
business, particularly in developing an 
end to end global supply chain;

•  Ensure product development resources 
are focused on the appropriate product 
segments. This is resulting in more 
internal resources being focused on 
higher power products and away from 
the low-voltage/low-complexity market 
which we can address via third parties. 
As a result of this, we have closed our 
low-voltage design centre in Fyfield in 
the UK;

•  Enhance product life cycle management 
from capture of requirements, through 
concept and feasibility, development, 
production and eventually end of life; 
and

•  Upgrade systems and processes using 
our new ERP system as a platform for 
robust control and excellent customer 
service and responsiveness.

TASK FORCE FOR CLIMATE 
RELATED FINANCIAL 
DISCLOSURES
We are cognisant of the increasing 
concerns our people, customers, suppliers 
and shareholders have around climate 
change. We consider that we have taken 
a lead in our industry in developing and 
promoting high efficiency products which 
consume less energy and therefore help 
reduce carbon emissions over the lifetime 
of the equipment that our products 
power. The Task Force for Climate Related 
Financial Disclosures (“TCFD”) encourages 
us to provide financial guidance to 

investors regarding the risks and 
opportunities that climate change might 
have on our business.

In general, we regard the continuing 
emphasis and concern over climate 
change as a positive for our business as 
our customers have embraced our high 
efficiency “Green” XP Power products. 
These generated revenues of £43.2 million 
in 2019 (2018: £42.1 million) representing 
22% of total revenue. The Company is 
committed to leading the industry in this 
area. We believe that legislation regarding 
the efficiency requirements for power 
conversion will become more and more 
stringent and the standards currently 
in place for higher volume consumer 
applications, such as external power 
supplies, will spread to industrial and 
healthcare applications where we will be 
well positioned. Concerns over climate 
change should lead to an increasing 
emphasis by our customers of efficiency 
and more revenue opportunities to power 
renewable energy systems and controllers 
– smart grid being a prime example where 
we have already been successful.

Our geographic footprint is diverse, and 
we do not generally operate in locations 
that could be exposed to sea level rises 
or are particularly vulnerable to dramatic 
swings in weather patterns. We are 
continually reviewing the potential primary 
impacts on the business. The secondary 
effects of measures to combat climate 
change could also impact the Group. 
However, if more stringent legislation 
regarding power conversion efficiency 
were introduced, we believe we are well 
positioned to take advantage of such 
changes. 

NEW ERP SYSTEM
Efficient and robust systems are essential 
for us to manage an international 
business and supply chain with a highly 
diverse customer base. The Group had 
operated a global Customer Relationship 
Management system across its businesses, 
which allowed it to collaborate, share 
information and provide efficient and 
effective customer service. In our 2017 
Annual Report, we announced a project to 
implement the latest version of SAP’s ERP 
software across our entire global supply 
chain. Priority would be given to our sales 
companies in Asia, Europe and North 
America, which were already running an 
older version of SAP, with our China and 
Vietnam manufacturing facilities and our 
recent acquisitions to follow.

The implementation of the new system 
will have significant benefits in terms 
of factory planning and customer 
responsiveness, and it will give us 
significant operational advantages, with 
our factory systems running on the same 
platform as our sales companies. Further 
gains will be realised when we migrate the 
acquired Comdel and Glassman businesses 
to the new platform.

We transitioned to the new SAP ERP 
system in mid-October 2019. However, 
during the system migration and in the 
first few weeks of operation as the teams 
across the Group went up the learning 
curve with the new processes, we 
experienced some short-term disruption 
to the implementation which led to 
shipments temporarily falling behind 
expected run rates. This resulted in 
approximately £5 million of scheduled 
order backlog moving from the fourth 
quarter of 2019 into 2020. 

We are confident that the new SAP ERP 
system will deliver significant long-term 
benefits to the Group’s ability to run its 
global business and supply chain.

In 2019, the Group capitalised £3.4 million 
(2018: £1.1 million) of development costs 
and incurred £2.2 million (2018: £0.2 
million) of other project related costs in 
respect of this project. In 2020, we expect 
to capitalise a further £2.5-3.0 million and 
the other project related costs will be circa 
£1.0 million. 

MANUFACTURING
In October 2017, we commenced 
construction of a second manufacturing 
facility in Vietnam on our existing site 
near Ho Chi Minh City. Construction 
was completed in early 2019. Our 
existing manufacturing facility in China 
and our first Vietnam facility have an 
annual revenue capacity of US$170 
million. Vietnam II conservatively adds 
an additional US$130 million of capacity, 
bringing our total Asian manufacturing 
capacity up to US$300 million per annum. 

This additional capacity is necessary to 
accommodate our growth trajectory. It 
also gives us the opportunity to transfer 
production from China to Vietnam, 
thereby saving the costs of the Section 
301 Tariffs currently imposed on Chinese 
goods by the USA authorities. We have 
transferred over 2,000 different products 
to Vietnam from China and are also well 
advanced in transferring production of our 
high-voltage/low-power DC-DC modules 
from Minden, Nevada to Vietnam. We 

believe this will give us a cost advantage 
over many of our competitors with 
Chinese based manufacturing. 

competitors, who focus only on providing 
standard products with little additional 
value added. 

Our end objective is to have the flexibility 
to be able to build all products in either 
China or Vietnam to provide flexibility and 
robust business continuity planning. 

RESTRUCTURING OF LOW-
POWER, HIGH-VOLTAGE 
MANUFACTURING AND 
TRANSFER TO VIETNAM
In order to take advantage of our 
expanded Vietnam capacity, competitive 
labour rates and excellent quality, in 
August 2019 we announced that we 
would be transferring the manufacture of 
all our low-power, high-voltage DC-DC 
modules to our Vietnamese facility. Our 
manufacturing facility in Minden, Nevada 
will close by June 2020. We expect that 
this will result in annualised cost savings of 
approximately £4.0 million. Approximately 
£1-2 million of these cost savings will 
be reinvested back into the business to 
expand and strengthen our new product 
introduction team. The enlarged team 
will facilitate further transfers of existing 
engineering services production from 
our facility in Sunnyvale, California 
to Vietnam, as well as new standard 
products as they are introduced, resulting 
in additional future savings. We expect 
to incur approximately £1-2 million in 
costs associated with the full closure of 
the Minden site over the next 12 months 
which will be excluded from adjusted 
results.

ENGINEERING SOLUTIONS
As well as expanding our product offering, 
we have continued to expand our 
engineering solutions groups particularly 
in Asia and North America. As we 
continue to move our capabilities up to 
higher power and higher voltages, we 
are becoming an increasingly attractive 
partner for customers whose applications 
are becoming more and more demanding. 
These demands include not only power 
delivery and management, but also 
sophisticated connectivity involving 
software and firmware which enable the 
customer’s application to control the 
power solution and the power solution 
to communicate back to the application. 
As the world becomes more connected 
and the fourth industrial revolution gains 
traction, we expect this trend to gather 
pace. Customers place a high value on 
our engineering solutions capabilities 
which differentiate us from many of our 

Our engineering solutions groups work 
closely with the customer’s engineering 
teams to provide these customised 
solutions. Speed and proximity to the 
customer are critical as the power solution 
is often one of the last parts of the system 
to be designed, so is invariably one of the 
gating items to get the end product to 
market. This is an area where XP Power 
adds significant value to its customers, and 
we are seeing increasing demand for these 
services. 

RESEARCH AND 
DEVELOPMENT
We have continued to invest in research 
and development to further expand 
our portfolio of products and the size 
of our addressable market opportunity. 
We released 32 new product families in 
2019 (2018: 27) and 25 of these can be 
classified as “Green” XP Power products 
having ultra-high efficiency and/or low 
standby power (2018: 20).

We continue to move our product 
portfolio up in power and voltage range 
and away from our traditional low-power/
low-voltage offering, to protect our 
margins and expand our addressable 
market. As part of this process we took 
the decision to close our design centre in 
Fyfield, UK which was focused on low-
power, low-voltage product. RF power is 
a significant long-term opportunity and is 
a market which contains many interesting 
and significant niches. We have therefore 
directed more of our internal product 
development resources away from low-
power/low-voltage and are supplementing 
the low-power area with more third-party 
products designed to our specifications 
and quality standards while expanding the 
RF development resources. 

2019 STRATEGIC REPORT
Our Strategic Report on pages 12 to 62 
has been reviewed and approved by  
the Board.

DUNCAN PENNY
Chief Executive Officer

35

STRATEGIC REPORTXP Power Annual Report & Accounts for the year ended 31 December 2019PERFORMANCE: 
OUR SUPPLY CHAIN

“We will also continue to 
strengthen our systems and 
processes in order to build 
a global supply chain which 
balances high efficiency 
with market leading 
customer responsiveness.”

ADRIAN IRWIN

Executive Vice President Global 
Manufacturing & Operations

36

COMPONENT SUPPLY
During the first half of 2018 we started 
to see significant tightening of the supply 
chain for electronic components which 
resulted in dramatically increased lead 
times and component cost inflation. We 
went into the market to secure supplies 
of critical components at prices beyond 
our standard costs in order to meet 
our lead times to our customers and 
ensure we could continue to ship. Lead 
times for certain components increased 
dramatically, in some cases lead times 
moved from 12 to 52 weeks. The supply 
of many components such as multi-layer 
ceramic capacitors and chip type resistors 
started to improve early in 2019 but 
many of the active power semiconductor 
devices we use remain on long lead times 
necessitating high safety inventories to 
maintain competitive lead times.

CLOSURE OF MINDEN 
MANUFACTURING
In August 2019 we announced the closure 
of our facility in Minden, Nevada, which 
manufactures our high voltage low power 
DC-DC modules and the transfer of this 
production to Vietnam. The transfer is 
tracking to plan and we continue to expect 
to have the transfer completed by mid 
2020. The resultant annual savings are 
expected to be £4 million and £1-2 million 
of the savings will be reinvested back into 
the business to expand and strengthen our 
new product introduction team. 

REVIEW OF OUR YEAR
As our business has grown from a 
specialist distributor to designer/
manufacturer, our supply chain has 
naturally become more complex. We now 
have manufacturing facilities in China, 
Vietnam and the USA.

VIETNAM
The construction of the second 
manufacturing facility in Vietnam, which 
is adjacent to our existing Vietnam facility, 
was completed in the first half of 2019. 
This conservatively adds an additional 
$130 million of end revenue capacity, 
bringing the combined capacity of our Asia 
manufacturing footprint to $300 million.

We have aggressively been transferring 
product from China to Vietnam to allow 
our customers to mitigate the effects 
of Section 301 Tariffs in the USA which 
are imposed on Chinese manufactured 
products. The Vietnam facility is now 
capable of manufacturing over 2,000 
different AC-DC products which have 
largely been transferred from our China 
facility. Vietnam has proved a good 
location for the Group both operationally 
and strategically. The performance of 
Vietnam has been excellent and the 
additional capacity enables significant 
advantages to the manufacturing supply 
chain. Having two plants helps to mitigate 
the growing pressures from the tariffs 
imposed on Chinese manufacturing 
products into the USA. In addition to the 
increased capacity, strategic investment 
in new capital equipment significantly 
improves the robustness of the supply 
chain by improving our Business 
Continuity Planning.

Both facilities have very similar 
capabilities, therefore allowing 
capacities to be evenly distributed 
within Asia manufacturing. This has the 
added advantage of being able to flex 
capacity, maintain lead times and deliver 
performance during unpredictable demand 
spikes.

Despite the implications of USA tariffs, 
we will continue to operate in Kunshan, 
China, where we have been building 
the high power more complex products 
and products which are destined to our 
growing Chinese customers.

We have a strong technical workforce 
in that facility, many of whom have long 
service with the Group and extensive 
power converter knowledge.

 Manufacturing location 

 Warehouse

STRATEGIC REPORT

NORTH AMERICA

EUROPE

ASIA

MANUFACTURING 
LOCATIONS

WAREHOUSE 

MANUFACTURING 
LOCATIONS

WAREHOUSE 

MANUFACTURING 
LOCATIONS

WAREHOUSE 

4

1

0

2

2

1

SUPPLY CHAIN STRATEGY
Over the years we have built an enviable 
brand in the power solutions market.

Our product portfolio, excellent customer 
service and successful execution of our 
strategy has led to consistent growth in 
market share. In particular, growth in the 
past four years has been strong which has 
tested the agility of our supply chain and 
manufacturing operations. While they 
have been able to cope with this growth 
profile it became clear that we need to 
upgrade our systems and processes in 

order to be able to scale and run a much 
larger company. In 2018 we embarked 
on a project to make SAP S/4HANA our 
ERP system across the Group, replacing 
our existing manufacturing systems. This 
will bring great benefits to the Group and 
manufacturing operations in particular. 
SAP S/4 HANA was implemented in our 
sales and marketing companies in October 
2019 and we are now planning the roll out 
of the second phase of this project into 
our Asian manufacturing facilities which is 
expected to go live in 2021.

The recent strategic acquisitions have 
expanded our product offering. This also 
allows consolidation and leveraging of 
the supply chain. We are in a very strong 
position to leverage these supply chain 
synergies, improving operational flexibility, 
delivery, quality and cost objectives.

We will also continue to strengthen our 
systems and processes in order to build a 
global supply chain which balances high 
efficiency with market-leading customer 
responsiveness.

XP Power Annual Report & Accounts for the year ended 31 December 2019

37

PERFORMANCE: 
FINANCIAL REVIEW

REVIEW OF OUR YEAR

XP Power delivered a resilient 
performance in 2019. The 
business generated strong 
free cash flow due to good 
working capital management 
and continues to have a robust 
financial position. 

STATUTORY RESULTS 
On a statutory basis, revenue was 
£199.9 million (2018: £195.1 million), 
representing growth of 2%. Operating 
profit was £26.7 million (2018: £39.3 
million), a decrease of 32% over the prior 
year, with operating margin at 13.4% 
(2018: 20.1%). Net finance costs were 
£2.7 million (2018: £1.7 million) resulting 
in profit before tax of £24.0 million (2018: 
£37.6 million) and an income tax expense 
of £3.2 million (2018: £7.2 million), 
equivalent to an effective tax rate of 13% 
(2018: 19%). Basic earnings per share 
were 107.0 pence (2018: 157.8 pence), a 
decrease of 32%. 

ADJUSTED RESULTS 
Throughout this results announcement, 
adjusted and other alternative 
performance measures are used to 
describe the Group’s performance. These 
are not recognised under International 
Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS) or 
other generally accepted accounting 
principles (GAAP). 

When reviewing XP Power’s performance, 
the Board and management team focus in 
particular on adjusted results rather than 
statutory results. There are a number of 
items that are included in statutory results, 
but which are considered to be one-off in 
nature or not representative of the Group’s 
performance and which are excluded from 
adjusted results. The tables on page 132 
show the full list of adjustments between 
statutory operating profit and adjusted 
operating profit, between statutory profit 
before tax and adjusted profit before tax, 
as well as between statutory profit after 
tax and adjusted profit after tax at Group 
level for both 2019 and 2018. 

REVENUE PERFORMANCE 
The Group generated revenue growth of 
2% during the year on a reported basis. 
Revenues were reduced by approximately 
£5 million due to the short-term issue with 
the implementation of a new ERP system 
in the fourth quarter of 2019, as discussed 
elsewhere in this review. In constant 
currency revenues reduced by 2% and by 
4% on a like-for-like basis, excluding the 
acquisition of Glassman.

The Group’s revenue performance was 
impacted by the cyclical downturn in the 
Semiconductor Equipment Manufacturing 
sector, with revenue in this sector 
declining by 21% to £37.4 million (2018: 
£47.4 million). This was offset by growth 
all other sectors, with the Technology 
sector growing 34% to £27.4 million 
(2018: £20.4 million), the Industrial 
Electronics sector, increasing by 7% to 
£89.2 million (2018: £83.7 million) and 
the Healthcare sector, which grew 5% to 
£45.9 million (2018: £43.6 million).

Our North American region was impacted 
by the Semiconductor Equipment 
Manufacturing sector slowdown, which 
contributed to revenue declining by 8% to 
US$147.5 million from US$159.5 million. 
On a like-for-like basis, after excluding 
Glassman revenue of US$14.8 million 
North America decreased by 12%. Europe 
delivered growth of 5% to £64.4 million 
(2018: £61.1 million), driven by a good 
performance in the Nordics, up 22% and 
Central Europe, up 9%. Asia revenue 
grew by 29% to US$25.6 million (2018: 
US$19.9 million). 

Order intake was up 8% on a reported 
basis to £214.9 million (2018: £198.4 
million). Orders and revenue for 2019 
represent a full year, book-to-bill ratio of 
1.08 (2018: 1.02).

READ ABOUT OPERATIONAL 
PERFORMANCE ON  
PAGES 30 TO 35

READ ABOUT SUPPLY CHAIN 
PERFORMANCE ON  
PAGES 36 TO 37

GAVIN GRIGGS

Chief Financial Officer

“We continue to invest in 
our business and people, 
whilst still being able to 
deliver strong year-on-year 
profit growth.”

38

GROSS PROFITABILITY 
Gross margin decreased to 45.1% (2018: 
47.3%), largely due to the impact of the 
Section 301 tariffs imposed on Chinese 
goods imported into the USA, the knock-
on impact of the component price inflation 
experienced in 2018 and product mix. 

ADJUSTED OPERATING 
EXPENSES AND MARGINS 
The Group continued to invest in the 
business, which resulted in adjusted 
operating expenses increasing by 11% to 
£54.2 million (8% in constant currency and 
4% on an organic constant currency basis). 
Investing in our people remains a focus 
and resulted in payroll and staff costs 
increasing by 20%. Headcount, excluding 
factories, increased by 5% compared to 
2018 as we invested in our engineering 
and sales capabilities. Non-cash share-
based payment charges amounted to £0.7 
million (2018: £0.8 million) and related 
to a grant to senior management under 
the Long-Term Incentive Scheme during 
the year. Adjusted operating margin 
decreased to 18.0% (2018: 22.0%) due to 
the lower revenues and gross margin in 
2019 combined with the annualization of 
increased investments in 2018. 

FOREIGN EXCHANGE
The Group reports its results in Sterling, 
but the US Dollar continues to be 
our principal trading currency, with 
approximately 83% (2018: 84%) of our 
revenues denominated in US Dollars. The 
average Sterling to US Dollar exchange 
rate decreased by 4%, from 1.34 to 1.28. 
The Sterling to US Dollar exchange rate 
saw large movements during the year but 
ultimately the net impact on the Group’s 
2019 results was not significant. 

FINANCE COST 
Net finance cost increased to £2.7 million 
(2018: £1.7 million) due to increased 
average borrowings following the 
acquisition of Glassman in May 2018. 

Interest cover (EBITDA as a multiple of 
net interest expense as defined by our 
Revolving Credit Facility) was 17 times 
(2018: 32 times) which is well in excess of 
the four times minimum required in our 
banking covenants. Net debt to EBITDA 
at the year-end was comfortable at 0.92 
(2018: 1.07). The covenant level for net 
debt to EBITDA is a maximum of three 
times. 

The Company renewed its financing 
facilities with effect from 8 November 
2019, increasing the revolving credit 
facility by US$15m to US$120m, with a 
US$60m accordion option. The facility 
is provided by HSBC UK Bank PLC, J.P. 
Morgan Securities PLC and DBS Bank 
Ltd on similar terms to the previous 
arrangements, with a four-year term up to 
November 2023. 

ADJUSTED PROFIT  
BEFORE TAX 
The Group generated adjusted profit 
before tax and specific items of £33.2 
million, down 19% compared to last year, 
due to the higher direct costs incurred. 

SPECIFIC ITEMS
Specific items are excluded from 
management’s assessment of profit 
because by either their size, or their nature 
they are non-repetitive and therefore 
could distort the Group’s underlying 
earnings. 

In 2019, the Group incurred £9.2 million 
(2018: £3.6 million) of specific items, 
predominantly related to £3.2 million 
for amortisation of intangible assets due 
to business combination (2018: £2.8 
million), costs associated with acquisitions 
of £0.9 million (2018: £0.6 million) and 
ERP implementation costs of £2.2 million 
(2018: £0.2 million). In addition, the 
Group incurred legal costs of £1.9 million 
(2018: £Nil) related to a non-customer 
related legal dispute in North America 
and restructuring costs of £1.0 million 
(2018: £Nil) related to the transfer of 
the manufacturing of all our low-power, 
high-voltage DC-DC modules to our 
Vietnamese facility.

TAXATION 
The effective tax rate on adjusted profit 
before tax decreased by 790bps to 9.6% 
(2018: 17.5%). The lower effective tax rate 
was due to one-off credits related to prior 
year tax assessments in the United States. 

The effective tax rate on profit before tax 
decreased by 580 bps to 13.3% (2018: 
19.1%). Going forward, XP Power expects 
the effective tax rate to be approximately 
18-20% depending predominantly on the 
regional mix of profits. 

STRATEGIC REPORT

Revenue growth  
has translated into  
earnings growth

REVENUE

INCREASES

2%

CASH FROM 
OPERATIONS 
INCREASES

72%

NET DEPT 
DECREASES 

21%

39

XP Power Annual Report & Accounts for the year ended 31 December 2019PERFORMANCE: 
FINANCIAL REVIEW CONTINUED

ADJUSTED EARNINGS  
PER SHARE
Basic and diluted adjusted earnings per 
share from continuing operations before 
specific items both decreased by 16% to 
148.3 pence and 145.5 pence respectively 
(2018: 176.1 pence and 172.8 pence). 

CASH FLOW 
The Group generated £46.2 million net 
cash from operations compared with 
£26.7 million in the previous year. The 
higher level of operating cash flows was 
largely a result of improved working 
capital management, specifically related 
to a £12.4 million reduction in inventory 
levels. 

Free cash flow before acquisitions, 
dividends and repayment of borrowings 
was £26.2 million (2018: £10.9 million).

NET DEBT AND DIVIDENDS
We finished 2019 in a net debt position 
of £41.3 million (2018: £52.0 million), 
with the decrease due to improved 
cashflow generation and foreign exchange 
movements. The Group continued its 
progressive dividend policy which meant 
returning £16.7 million (2018: £15.3 
million) to shareholders in the form of 
dividends. 

The attractive cash flow generated by the 
XP Power business model has enabled the 
Company to pursue a progressive dividend 
policy over a sustained period of time. 

This year’s cash flow performance has 
enabled us to recommend a final dividend 
of 36 pence per share for the fourth 
quarter of 2019. This dividend will be 
payable to members on the register on 27 
March 2020 and will be paid on 28 April 
2020. When combined with the interim 
dividends for the previous three quarters, 
the total dividend for the year will be 91 
pence per share (2018: 85 pence), an 
increase of 7%.

The policy is to increase dividends 
progressively whilst maintaining an 
appropriate level of dividend cover. 
Dividend cover for the year was 1.2 times 
(2018: 1.9 times). We expect dividend 
cover to re-build based on strong long-
term prospects.

FIXED ASSETS 
We continue to invest in our business 
with the majority of the spend being 
on manufacturing and supporting our 
future sales growth. We plan to invest 
circa £8 million during the new financial 
year, in line with 2019. This investment is 
principally related to upgrading our ERP 
system. 

FINANCIAL INSTRUMENTS 
The Group’s financial instruments 
consist of cash, money market deposits, 
and various other items such as trade 
receivables and trade payables that arise 
directly from its business operations. 

The Group uses forward currency 
contracts to hedge highly probable 
forecast transactions. The instruments 
purchased are denominated in the 
currencies of the Group’s principal 
markets. The Group had no forward 
currency contracts outstanding at 31 
December 2019 (2018: £10.8 million). 

BREXIT 
In terms of the broader economic impacts 
of Brexit on our business, we do not 
consider that they will be material. Our 
products are made in Asia and are already 
imported into Europe where we have 
warehouses in both Germany and the 
United Kingdom and hence, we could ship 
our product destined for the European 
Union directly into Germany or another 
appropriate location. Plans are in place 
that will help minimise any logistical 
issues that may arise following the United 
Kingdom’s exit from the European Union. 

GAVIN GRIGGS

Chief Financial Officer

READ ABOUT MARKETPLACE 
ON PAGES 12 TO 15

READ ABOUT SUPPLY CHAIN 
PERFORMANCE ON  
PAGES 36 TO 37

40

 
 
STRATEGIC REPORT

XP Power Annual Report & Accounts for the year ended 31 December 2019

41

MANAGING OUR RISKS

The Group has well-established 
annual and ongoing risk 
management processes to 
identify and assess risks. 

OUR RISK ASSESSMENT
The key risks that have been identified 
and the mitigating actions are summarised 
on the following pages and classified 
according to:

Although the attributes assigned to the 
identified risks are judgemental and 
qualitative in nature, the Board regards the 
methodology as useful in determining the 
focus that should be given to each risk.

The Group’s principal risks have been 
mapped onto a detailed risk universe from 
which key areas for business focus can 
be identified. This helps facilitate further 
discussions on risk appetite and draws 
out the risks that require a greater level of 
attention in terms of audit or assessment.

•  The assessment of their level of impact 
to the viability of the business if they 
occurred – ranging from severe to 
minor;

•  The likelihood of a risk occurring – 

ranging from high to low; and

•  The direction in which they are trending 

– risks are classified according to 
whether they are assessed as becoming 
more likely to occur, less likely to occur 
or whether the risk of occurrence 
remains unchanged.

This is not an exhaustive list of risks that 
the Board has identified and considered 
but does include all risks which are 
assessed as having a severe or moderate 
impact to the business if they occurred.

RISK APPETITE
The Board determines the appropriate 
level of risk for operating the business 
and pursuing their vision and strategic 
objectives. A key focus for the Board 
is minimising the Group’s exposure to 
financial, operational, human, legislative 
and reputational risks.

OUR RISK MANAGEMENT FRAMEWORK

TOP DOWN
Identifying, assessing and 
mitigating risk at Group level. 
Setting the risk appetite for  
the Group

THE BOARD
A robust risk assessment has been carried out at Board level and where possible 
actions set to mitigate and/or reduce the identified risk. The Board acknowledges 
that it is responsible for the Group’s internal controls and for reviewing their 
effectiveness. XP Power has an ongoing process for identifying, evaluating and 
managing the significant risks faced by the Group; these identified risks and 
processes are documented, reviewed and updated at Board meetings.

AUDIT COMMITTEE AND INTERNAL AUDIT
The Audit Committee ensures that the Group is effectively managing risk and 
internal control procedures. This is achieved through:

•  The Audit Committee reviewing the effectiveness of internal controls.

•  An internal audit and risk assurance programme.

OPERATIONAL LEVEL
A key control procedure is the day-to-day supervision of the business; this is 
supported by managers within the Group’s companies. These include:

•  Authority matrices are in place to clearly define who is able to authorise 

particular transactions, transfer funds, commit Company resources and enter 
into particular agreements.

•  Monthly reporting of management accounts and key metrics to senior 

management with performance measured to budget and material variances 
reported to the Board.

•  Quality control checks throughout our manufacturing process, burn in, 

electrical testing to detect early failures, 100% functional testing, and quality 
inspection.

•  Disaster recovery and business continuity plans are in place at all facilities, 

documented and communicated to key personnel to help cope with 
unexpected events.

BOTTOM UP
Identifying, assessing  
and mitigating risk across  
functional areas

42

Key

No change to risk

Increase in risk

Decrease in risk

STRATEGIC REPORT

HEAT MAP OF THE IDENTIFIED RISKS INDICATING 
THE LIKELIHOOD AND LEVEL OF IMPACT

Impact

Severe

1

2

2

11

6

5

7

4

9

3

8

10

Minor

Low

High

Likelihood

An event that causes a disruption to 
one of our manufacturing facilities.

Product recall.

Competition from new market entrants  
and new technologies.

Fluctuations of revenues, expenses and  
operating results due to an economic shock.

Dependence on key customers

Cybersecurity/information systems 
failure.

Risks relating to regulation, compliance  
and taxation.

Strategic risk associated with valuing 
or integrating new acquisitions.

Loss of key personnel or failure to  
attract new personnel.

Exposure to exchange rate 
fluctuations.

Supply Chain

1

2

3

4

5

6

7

8

9

10

11

Risks that could have a severe impact on the Company’s business and possibly on the viability of the Company’s business

Explanation of risk

Potential impact

Mitigation

Assessed
trend

Risk

1

AN EVENT CAUSES 
A DISRUPTION 
TO OUR 
MANUFACTURING 
FACILITIES

An event that results 
in the temporary or 
permanent loss of a 
manufacturing facility 
would be a serious 
issue.

As the Group 
manufactures 80% of 
revenues, this would 
undoubtedly cause 
at least a short-term 
loss of revenues and 
profits and disruption 
to our customers and 
therefore damage to 
reputation.

A product recall due to 
a quality or safety issue

2

PRODUCT  
RECALL

This would have 
serious repercussions 
to the business in 
terms of potential 
cost and reputational 
damage as a supplier to 
critical systems.

•  We now have two facilities (China and 

Vietnam) where we are able to produce power 
supplies. However, not all power converter 
series can be produced in both facilities.

•  We have disaster recovery plans in place for 

both facilities.

•  We have undertaken a risk review with the 
manufacturing management to identify and 
assess risks which could cause a serious 
disruption to manufacturing, and then 
identified and implemented actions to reduce 
or mitigate these risks where possible.

•  We perform 100% functional testing on all 

own manufactured products and 100% hi-pot 
testing, which determines the adequacy of 
electrical insulation on own manufactured 
products. This ensures the integrity of the 
isolation barrier between the mains supply 
and the end user of the equipment. We also 
test all the medical products we manufacture 
to ensure the leakage current is within the 
medical specifications.

•  Where we have contracts with customers,  
we limit our contractual liability regarding 
recall costs.

•  No single customer project accounts for more 

than 4% of overall revenue.

XP Power Annual Report & Accounts for the year ended 31 December 2019

43

MANAGING OUR RISKS CONTINUED

Risks that could have a severe impact on the Company’s business and possibly on the viability of the Company’s business

Explanation of risk

Potential impact

Mitigation

Assessed
trend

The power supply 
market is diverse 
and competitive. The 
Directors believe that 
the development of 
new technologies could 
give rise to significant 
new competition to the 
Group, which may have 
a material effect on the 
business.

At the lower end of the 
Group’s target market, 
in terms of both power 
range and programme 
size, the barriers to 
entry are lower and 
there is, therefore, a 
risk that competition 
could quickly increase, 
particularly from 
emerging low cost 
manufacturers in Asia.

•  The Group reviews activities of its competition, 

in particular product releases, and stays 
up-to-date with new technological advances 
in our industry, especially those relating to 
new components and materials. The Group 
also tries to keep its cost base competitive 
by operating in low cost geographies where 
appropriate.

•  The general direction of our product roadmap 

is to move away from lower complexity 
products and to increase our engineering 
solutions capabilities as to reduce the inherent 
market competitiveness.

The revenues, 
expenses and 
operating results of 
the Group could vary 
significantly from 
period to period as 
a result of a variety 
of factors, some of 
which are outside its 
control. These factors 
include: general 
economic conditions; 
adverse movements 
in interest rates; 
conditions specific to 
the market; seasonal 
trends in revenues, 
capital expenditure and 
other costs; and the 
introduction of new 
products or services 
by the Group, or by its 
competitors. 

The Group is 
dependent on retaining 
its key customers.

In response to a 
changing competitive 
environment, the 
Group may elect from 
time to time to make 
certain pricing, service, 
marketing decisions 
or acquisitions that 
could have a short-
term material adverse 
effect on the Group’s 
revenues, results 
of operations and 
financial condition.

•  Although not immune from an economic shock 

or the cyclicality of the capital equipment 
markets, the Group’s diverse customer base, 
geographic spread and revenue annuities 
reduce exposure to this risk.

•  The Group’s business model is not capital 

intensive and the strong profit margins lead 
to healthy cash generation which also helps 
mitigate risks from these external factors.

•  The Group benefits from good order exposure 
12 months out allowing it to recognise market 
changes and mitigate the impact.

•  The Group mitigates this risk by providing 

excellent service. Customer complaints and 
non-conformances are reviewed monthly by 
members of the Executive Leadership team.

Should the Group 
lose a number of its 
key customers, this 
could have a material 
impact on the Group’s 
financial condition and 
results of operations. 
However, for the year 
ended 31 December 
2019, no single 
customer accounted 
for more than 10% of 
revenue.

Risk

3

COMPETITION 
FROM NEW 
MARKET 
ENTRANTS 
AND NEW 
TECHNOLOGIES

4

FLUCTUATIONS  
OF REVENUES, 
EXPENSES AND 
OPERATING  
RESULTS DUE TO  
AN ECONOMIC 
SHOCKS

5

DEPENDENCE ON 
KEY CUSTOMERS

44

Risks that could have a severe impact on the Company’s business and possibly on the viability of the Company’s business

Explanation of risk

Potential impact

Mitigation

Assessed
trend

Risk

6

CYBERSECURITY/ 
INFORMATION 
SYSTEMS FAILURE

The Group is reliant on 
information technology 
in multiple aspects 
of the business from 
communications to 
data storage. Assets 
accessible online are 
potentially vulnerable 
to theft and customer 
channels are vulnerable 
to disruption.

Any failure or 
downtime of these 
systems or any data 
theft could have a 
significant adverse 
impact on the Group’s 
reputation or on the 
results of operations.

7

RISKS RELATING  
TO REGULATION, 
COMPLIANCE AND 
TAXATION

The Group operates in 
multiple jurisdictions 
with applicable trade 
and tax regulations 
that vary. 

8

STRATEGIC RISK 
ASSOCIATED  
WITH VALUING  
OR INTEGRATING 
NEW  
ACQUISITIONS

The Group may elect 
from time to time 
to make strategic 
acquisitions. A degree 
of uncertainty exists 
in valuation and in 
particular in evaluating 
potential synergies.

Failing to comply with 
local regulations or a 
change in legislation 
could impact the 
profits of the Group. 
In addition, the 
effective tax rate of 
the Group is affected 
by where its profits 
fall geographically. The 
Group’s effective tax 
rate could therefore 
fluctuate over time 
and have an impact 
on earnings and 
potentially its share 
price.

Post-acquisition risks 
arise in the form of 
change of control and 
integration challenges. 
Any of these could 
have an effect on the 
Group’s revenues, 
results of operations 
and financial condition.

•  The Group has a defined Business Impact 
Assessment which identifies the key 
information assets; replication of data 
on different systems or in the Cloud; an 
established backup process in place as well as 
a robust anti-malware solution  
on our networks.

• 

Internally produced training materials are used 
to educate users regarding good IT security 
practice and to promote the Group’s IT policy.

•  A cyber assessment carried out by the 
outsourced internal auditor resulted in 
recommendations that are being implemented 
to further mitigate cyber risk and safeguard 
the Group’s assets.

•  An outsourced internal audit function provides 
risk assurance in targeted areas of the business 
and recommendations for improvement. The 
scope of these reviews includes behaviour, 
culture and ethics.

•  The Group hires employees with relevant skills 
and uses external advisers to keep up-to-date 
with changes in regulations and to remain 
compliant.

•  Preparation of robust business plans and cash 
projections with sensitivity analysis and the 
help of professional advisers if appropriate.

•  Post-acquisition reviews are performed to 

extract “lessons learned”.

45

STRATEGIC REPORTXP Power Annual Report & Accounts for the year ended 31 December 2019MANAGING OUR RISKS CONTINUED

Risks that could have a severe impact on the Company’s business and possibly on the viability of the Company’s business

Explanation of risk

Potential impact

Mitigation

Assessed
trend

The future success 
of the Group 
is substantially 
dependent on the 
continued services 
and continuing 
contributions of its 
Directors, senior 
management and other 
key personnel.

The Group deals in 
many currencies for 
both its purchases 
and sales including 
US Dollars, Euros and 
its reporting currency 
Pounds Sterling. In 
particular, North 
America represents an 
important geographic 
market for the Group 
where virtually all 
the revenues are 
denominated in US 
Dollars. The Group also 
sources components 
in US Dollars and the 
Chinese Yuan.

The Group is 
dependent on retaining 
its key suppliers and 
on their ability to meet 
their obligations to the 
Group. Supply Chain 
may also be affected by 
external events, such 
as the impact on our 
Chinese supply chain 
with the outbreak of 
the COVID-19 virus. 

The loss of the services 
of key employees could 
have a material adverse 
effect on the Group’s 
business.

•  The Group undertakes performance 

evaluations and reviews to help it stay close to 
its key personnel as well as annual employee 
engagement surveys. Where considered 
appropriate, the Group also makes use of 
financial retention tools such as  
equity awards.

The Group therefore 
has an exposure to 
foreign currency 
fluctuations. This 
could lead to material 
adverse movements in 
reported earnings.

•  The Group reviews balance sheet and cash 

flow currency exposures and where considered 
appropriate, uses forward exchange contracts 
to hedge these exposures. Any forward 
contract requires the approval of both the 
Chief Executive Officer and Chief Financial 
Officer.

•  The Group does not hedge any translation of 

its subsidiaries’ results to Sterling for reporting 
purposes.

•  We conduct regular audits of our key suppliers 
and in addition keep large amounts of safety 
inventory of key components, which we also 
regularly review. We also dual source our 
components where possible to minimise 
dependency on any single supplier. 

As the proportion of 
our own-manufactured 
products has increased, 
the reliance on 
suppliers for third 
party product has 
been mitigated 
proportionally. There 
has been a shift from a 
finished goods risk to a 
raw materials risk.

Risk

9

LOSS OF KEY 
PERSONNEL 
OR FAILURE TO 
ATTRACT NEW 
PERSONNEL

10

EXPOSURE TO 
EXCHANGE RATE 
FLUCTUATIONS

11

RISK ASSOCIATED 
WITH SUPPLY 
CHAIN

46

STRATEGIC REPORT

Scenarios were also prepared to model 
the unlikely event of more than one risk 
occurring at the same time. A combination 
of a temporary or permanent disruption 
at one of our facilities together with 
a serious and prolonged economic 
shock and a combination of tax and 
regulations compliance failure together 
with a serious and prolonged economic 
shock was modelled. In neither of these 
two scenarios did the Group breach its 
theoretical borrowing capacity. Based on 
this assessment, the Directors confirm that 
they have a reasonable expectation that 
the Company is viable for at least a period 
of three years to 31 December 2022.

VIABILITY STATEMENT
In accordance with provision 31 of the 
2018 revision of the UK Corporate 
Governance Code, the Directors are 
required to assess the prospects of the 
Company over a period longer than the 12 
months required by the “Going Concern” 
provision.

In making the assessment, the Directors 
considered a three-year financial model 
including the Group Annual Plan for 2020 
and strategic financial plan for the years 
beyond this. The Directors assessed the 
viability of the Company over a three-year 
period as this timeframe is within the 
Group’s strategic financial planning period 
used to evaluate performance and liquidity 
and aligns with the design-in cycle for 
which the Group has visibility.

In determining the viability term, the 
Board assessed the deliberately austere 
scenarios against the controls in place to 
prevent or mitigate the risks occurring.

It also considered them against the 
Group’s current banking facilities, a 
revolving credit facility of US$120 million 
which expires in November 2023. 

The Company has a business model 
where its products are designed into 
numerous applications, with numerous 
customers, in numerous geographies. The 
Company’s products are all designed into 
capital equipment which is generally in 
production for a number of consecutive 
years, resulting in a revenue annuity. This 
diversity and revenue annuity are both 
deemed important factors in mitigating 
many of the risks that could affect 
the long-term viability of the Group. 
Nevertheless, the Directors’ obligation 
is to assess the Company’s viability in 
conjunction with the principal risks that 
could cause a severe but plausible threat. 
The major risks set out on pages 42 to 
46 were each modelled in a hypothetical 
and deliberately austere scenario to help 
determine the potential effect, primarily to 
cash flow.

The financial model was stress-tested 
with scenarios which considered the 
principal risks identified in the Group’s 
annual risk assessment process. Certain 
subjective assumptions and judgments 
were made to achieve this. Given the cash 
generative nature of the business, each 
risk scenario occurring in isolation did not 
breach the Group’s theoretical borrowing 
facility headroom. The most severe threats 
occurring in isolation were found to be 
a serious and prolonged systems failure, 
such as to our ERP or CRM systems, or 
a significant and permanent economic 
collapse/significant competition scenario.

XP Power Annual Report & Accounts for the year ended 31 December 2019

47

OUR COMMITMENTS  
TO SUSTAINABILITY

OUR COMMITMENT

The past ten years we have 
been a member of the RBA. 
This has helped us establish a 
base foundation from which we 
continue to further expand on 
our sustainability program.
With our stakeholders we 
further promote a culture and 
clear understanding of our 
commitment to lead our industry 
on Environmental, Social and 
Governance matters.

A global Environmental Committee has 
been established which helps us achieve 
our vision of leading our industry on 
environmental matters. This group meets 
quarterly to collaborate and share ideas 
for engagement and key initiatives. This 
further encourages getting involved and 
giving back to our local communities. 
Members from all of our core locations 
are represented and set up activities 
within the community, promoting new 
environmental initiatives and encouraging 
more awareness of our programme.

OUR IMPACTS
We continuously review the impact 
that we as an organisation have on the 
environment. The review is consistent 
with our past conclusions that the greatest 
environmental impact we can have is the 
efficiency of the total power solution 
we provide to our customers. As part of 
our design and development process we 
have further expanded on our ultra-high 
efficiency products within our product 
portfolio. These “Green” XP Power 
products require less energy, are void of 
hazardous substances and consume less 
material. We continue to promote the use 
of these products to our customers, and 
the benefit of using “Green” XP Power 
products. These types of products help 
maximise energy savings during the entire 
lifetime of the customers’ end application. 
In addition, we also continue to ensure 
we are adopting the best practices in all 
of our facilities and continually promoting 
awareness of environmental issues among 
our people.

OUR SUSTAINABILITY 
STRATEGY
XP Power’s strategy is to further product 
development of those power converters 
with industry-leading efficiency. This helps 
reduce the amount of wastage and heat 
loss during operation within a customers’ 
end application. The solutions we are able 
to develop can achieve efficiency of up to 
95%. This provides a significant reduction 
in CO2 emissions over the lifetime of the 
customers’ equipment.

As we have demonstrated in the past, 
the example below helps convey the 
significance of this delta in efficiency 
rating:

•  XP Power supplies 95% efficient 
products to power 100 watt load. 
105 watts of input power is required 
to deliver 100 watts at this level of 
efficiency.

•  Competitor supplies an 80% efficient, 
products to power 100 watt load. 
125 watts of input power is required 
to deliver 100 watts at this level of 
efficiency.

•  Moving from 80% efficiency to 95% 
is actually a five-fold saving in waste 
energy.

The waste heat as highlighted above is 
calculated in watts. There is a significant 
difference considering there is a five-
fold improvement in energy wastage and 
the overall potential for savings will be 
throughout the entire lifetime of electronic 
equipment. To achieve these efficiency 
gains requires a greater number of higher 
cost components and more complex 
circuits.

The return on investment of a higher 
efficiency product can be captured in 
terms of consumption of electricity. The 
full payback on electricity costs is usually 
within the first year of use. Therefore, we 
continue to promote and encourage the 
use of these high efficiency products.

We anticipate that the trend in the market 
through both demand and legislation for 
higher efficiency products is expected to 
continue in the electronics industry. These 
legislative requirements are projected 
to extend across various industries from 
consumer equipment to the healthcare 
and industrial markets that we serve.

SEAN ROSS

Environmental Committee Chairman and 
Vice President of Quality Assurance

“This past year represented 
a significant milestone for 
our sustainability program. 
We surpassed over 500,000 
tonnes of CO2 savings of 
“Green” XP Power products 
that have been shipped 
and in use since 2010. 
This further demonstrates 
the strategy of introducing 
green products to market 
has the most significant 
impact on the environment 
and aligns with the interests 
of our stakeholders.”

48

SUSTAINABILITY INITIATIVE – 
CELEBRATING THE EARTH
As in previous years we used 22 April, 
Earth Day, as a platform to launch an 
entire week of environmental awareness. 
Some activities across our global locations 
included community refuse clean up, 
e-waste collection, reduction of plastic 
drink materials and planting of vegetation.

ECONOMIC SUSTAINABILITY
As well as responsible environmental and 
social responsibility practices we consider 
the sustainability of our business model 
and business practices. Our Code of 
Conduct sets high standards in terms of 
how we treat people, health and safety, 
integrity and business ethics, as well as 
the environment and how we support 
the communities in which we operate. 
We consider that this not only makes XP 
Power a great place to work and to do 
business with, but also ensures that we 
have a sustainable economic business 
model. Our movement up the value from 
specialist distributor through to design 
manufacturer has strengthened and 
supported our economic sustainability.

OUR PLANS FOR THE  
YEAR AHEAD
As products we bring to market have the 
most significant impact, we will continue 
to introduce “Green” XP Power products.

OUR KEY ACHIEVEMENTS  
IN 2019
There were three key significant 
environmental initiatives within the 
business:

1.  Surpassing 500,000 tonnes of CO2 
savings from “Green” XP Power 
products.

2.  Further integration of past acquisitions 

into the XP Power sustainability 
programme.

3.  Introduction of additional “Green” XP 

Power products.

The revenue growth of our “Green” XP 
Power products continues to increase. 
In 2019 we shipped £43.2 million of our 
green products, which was an increase of 
3% from 2018.

Of the 32 product families that we 
launched in 2019, 25 were “Green” XP 
Power products having high efficiency 
and/or low standby power.

The calculated annual savings in CO2 from 
these products compared to a standard 
80% efficient converter are significant.

Based on our calculations, we estimate 
that the annual CO2 emissions savings 
from the “Green” XP Power converters we 
sold in 2019 is 33,736 tonnes, which is a 
slight increase from 2018.

The annual savings will recur each year 
for the lifetime of the product, which we 
estimate conservatively as seven years.

This would result in lifetime savings of 
236,157 tonnes of CO2 for products 
shipped in 2019. This past year 
represented a significant milestone for 
our sustainability program. We surpassed 
over 500,000 tonnes of CO2 savings of 
“Green” XP Power products that have 
been shipped and in use since 2010. 
This further demonstrates the strategy 
of introducing green products to market 
has the most significant impact on the 
environment and aligns with the interests 
of our stakeholders.

25

NEW XP POWER GREEN 
PRODUCTS LAUNCHED

STRATEGIC REPORT

49

XP Power Annual Report & Accounts for the year ended 31 December 2019READ ABOUT CULTURE 
ON PAGES 72 AND 73

OUR COMMITMENT 
TO THE SDGS

XP POWER IS COMMITTED TO 
CREATING LONG-TERM SUSTAINABLE 
VALUE FOR OUR STAKEHOLDERS

To achieve this goal, we have aligned our operations with 
the Sustainable Development Goals, providing us with a 
framework to map against. 

In our last report we began to outline our commitment to 
the SDGs. Within this report we will discuss our continued 
progress against the goals.

OUR SUSTAINABILITY FRAMEWORK

The Sustainable Development Goals, created by the UN, are 
the blueprint to achieve a better and more sustainable future 
for all. They address the global challenges we face, including 
those related to poverty, inequality, poor sanitation and 
diseases.

We have utilised this framework as it is committed to solving 
global issues. As a transnational organisation, this is vitally 
important to us.

Through the application of the SDGs, the wider business 
environment and markets will be strengthened. Organisations 
can harness the 17 Sustainable Development Goals to drive 
growth, address risk, attract capital and focus on purpose 
(https://www.ey.com/en_gl/assurance/why-sustainable-
development-goals-should-be-in-your-business-plan).

50
50

HOW XP POWER MEASURE AGAINST THE SDGS

We have outlined below the key SDGs that we believe we can impact the most.

03 GOOD HEALTH AND WELL-BEING

XP Power focuses on the wellbeing of our 
employees. We also work within the healthcare 
sector, supporting good health. Through our 
commitment to a more environmentally friendly 
society, we support the eradication of hazardous 
chemicals in the environment.

04 QUALITY EDUCATION

As an organisation, XP Power are committed 
to continually improving their training and 
development. Our core value of knowledge 
supports this SDGs. We promote quality 
education and ensure opportunities are available. 
We have worked with schools in our communities 
to promote science and electronics in particular.

05 GENDER EQUALITY

We support the movement to end all forms of 
discrimination of women and girls by enabling 
their full participation at XP Power. We promote 
workforce diversity and ensure all women can 
participate in all levels of the business.

07 AFFORDABLE AND CLEAN ENERGY

Our expansion into “Green” products supports 
our strategic aim of leading our industry on 
environmental matters. These green products 
require less energy, are void of hazardous 
substances and consume less material. We believe 
we are leading our industry in this area.

08 DECENT WORK AND ECONOMIC 
GROWTH

We promote decent work for all women and men, 
including for young people and persons with
disabilities, and equal pay for work of equal value. 
We also take action to eradicate modern slavery 
through our modern slavery statement business 
practices.

STRATEGIC REPORT

09 INDUSTRY, INNOVATION AND 
INFRASTRUCTURE

Our core value of knowledge demonstrates our 
desire to constantly innovate. This is exemplified 
by our green products. We support our customers’ 
innovation through the power solutions we 
provide to power their leading applications. Our 
power converters enable infrastructure.

10 REDUCED INEQUALITIES

At XP Power, we are committed to empowering 
and promoting the inclusion of all. We ensure 
equal opportunities and adopt policies to ensure 
this. We recognise the benefits of a diverse 
and talented workforce and consider this a 
competitive advantage.

12 RESPONSIBLE CONSUMPTION AND 
PRODUCTION

We aim to achieve the sustainable management 
and efficient use of natural resources. We 
integrate sustainable practices into our 
operations. We also raise awareness around 
sustainable development and desire to be a leader 
in our industry on environmental matters.

13 CLIMATE ACTION

Through our green products and focus on 
reducing CO2 emissions we are supporting
the reduction in greenhouse gases. We are 
integrating climate change measures into the 
business through monitoring emissions and 
carbon disclosures.

16 PEACE, JUSTICE AND STRONG 
INSTITUTIONS

Our modern slavery statement and participation 
in the Responsible Business Alliance demonstrate 
our allegiance to this goal. We work towards 
ensuring our supply chain partners have the same 
approach towards ethical business practices as 
XP Power.

XP Power Annual Report & Accounts for the year ended 31 December 2019

51

OUR CORE VALUES

Our progression from 
a specialist distributor, 
to designer, to design 
manufacturer demonstrate 
our core values in action. 
This shift demonstrates a 
clear customer focus and 
commitment to supporting 
their needs. We have 
strengthened our knowledge, 
acted with speed and 
flexibility whilst maintaining 
integrity.

52

  Honest in all our interactions with our colleagues, customers 
and suppliers

 Always doing the right thing

INTEGRITY

  Taking care of our people ensuring XP Power is a great place 
to work where we trust the people we work with, have pride 
in what we do and gain enjoyment from our work

  Delivering genuine value to our customers through our 
knowledge and experience

KNOWLEDGE

  Continually developing our skills and capabilities as 
individuals and as an organisation

FLEXIBILITY

  Receptive to the needs of our customers to provide 
outstanding customer service 

  Willing to challenge the way we do things and adapt to 
constantly improve and innovate

  Collaborating with our colleagues and customers for 
better results

  Responding to our customers and colleagues with 
impressive speed 

SPEED

  Constantly looking at faster and more efficient ways of 
delivering value in everything we do

  Always considering our customers' experience in 
everything we do 

CUSTOMER FOCUS

  Never forgetting that without our customer we do not 
have a business

LINK TO THE SDGS
Our core values are fundamental to our 
organisational activities. They underpin 
how we operate and our business 
decisions.

We act with integrity through our 
commitment to reducing inequalities 
and ensuring responsible consumption 
and production. We understand the 
issues around greenhouse gas emissions 
and therefore support environmentally 
friendly options. In addition, we treat our 
employees with integrity and support their 
wellbeing. We ensure the reduction of 
corruption and are committed to ending 
abuse and exploitation of children.

Through our commitment to increased 
knowledge we ensure a quality education 
as well as decent work and economic 
growth.

We are flexible through our desire to 
constantly innovate, aligned with the 
goal around industry, innovation and 
infrastructure.

The importance of speed and responding 
to customers furthers our ability to 
support economic growth. It also supports 
the development of industry.

Our customer focus helps us to support 
local infrastructure and industries through 
our innovative approach.

OUR CORE VALUES IN ACTION

HEATHER MURDOCK

Head of Global Human Resources

“Our core values support 
our vision, shape our 
culture and underpin our 
strategy. In an environment 
of constant change, they 
are a unifying force that 
enable us to work toward a 
common purpose.”

OUR CULTURE, VISION AND 
CORE VALUES

With the increasing emphasis 
and focus on culture driving 
organisational performance 
and behaviour, our executive 
leadership team embarked on an 
in-depth review of our culture 
in September 2019. The review 
included surveying our people, 
reviewing latest thinking on the 
subject and a number of offsite 
workshops. The output of this 
work was shared and discussed 
with the Board of Directors.

We determined that our vision to be the 
first choice power solutions provider 
delivering the ultimate experience for 
our customers and our people was still 
appropriate. We also considered that the 
core values around which we unite of 
Integrity, Knowledge, Speed, Flexibility 
and Customer Focus were still extremely 
relevant and helpful in driving and 
managing the business, however they 
do need to be reinforced where we see 
deviations. We also identified a number of 
behaviours and attributes around which 
we could unite as a leadership team to 
further develop the performance of the 
business which were considered helpful. 
Amongst was having a unified approach 
to processes and deeper collaboration 
between functions.

One of our people strategies is to continue 
to embed our Company core values into 
everything we do as they support our 
vision, shape our culture and underpin our 
strategy. In an environment of constant 
change they help us to work toward a 
common purpose.

2019 has seen some significant change 
and harmonisation in the way we operate. 
In October 2019 we implemented SAP 
S/4 HANA in our sales companies in Asia, 
Europe and North America. This was a 
significant change management initiative 
which brings uniform best practices across 
our sales companies. The second phase of 
this project, due to go live in 2021, rolls 
this out into our manufacturing facilities 
to give us an excellent system platform on 
which to manage our end-to-end supply 
chain. In addition, we have made great 
progress to enhance and harmonise our 
product lifecycle management processes 

across the globe producing increased 
efficiencies together with consistent and 
enhanced customer experience. 

We believe that engaging our employees 
in our vision and core values is critical to 
our success and we constantly reinforce 
this through our global communication 
meetings and our performance 
management process. 

Last year we continued to develop our 
culture and our people. We focused long-
term priorities to ensure we were aimed at 
the right objectives and targets.

We continued to build capabilities and 
systems that will enable our people and 
business to scale and continue to grow 
and succeed.

During 2020 we will leverage the work 
we did in 2019 to provide the ultimate 
experience for our people so they will 
deliver the ultimate experience to our 
customers.

OUR CULTURAL SURVEY
We track our culture and values through 
our employee surveys and through our 
performance appraisal system to ensure 
we are adhering to them and evolving 
the culture that we believe has made the 
business successful as it continues to grow 
and develop.

In 2019 we worked with a new external 
adviser to renew and enhance our 
cultural survey. The new survey provides 
significantly enhanced online reporting 
and control of results as well as a more 
up to date question set. The new provider 
also allows us to benchmark ourselves 
against similar companies. I am pleased to 
report that we achieved an engagement 
score of 75 which was 3 points about 
the benchmark. This is pleasing as this 
score was achieved during a time when 
the business was undergoing significant 
process and system changes.

Other areas of the survey which achieved 
strong results were collaboration, 
leadership and importantly diversity. In 
terms of the lower scoring areas was 
recognition which we will be working on 
during 2020. 

Although we cannot make a direct 
comparison to the overall score for 2019 
some questions were the same or similar 
and “I would recommend XP Power as 
a great place to work” and “I am proud 
to work for XP Power” scored highly 
contributing to our overall engagement 
score of 75.

53

STRATEGIC REPORTXP Power Annual Report & Accounts for the year ended 31 December 2019OUR PEOPLE AND THEIR 
HEALTH AND SAFETY

Our people are our most 
important asset and we 
make great efforts to ensure 
we have policies in place 
to provide a safe working 
environment to protect our 
employees. As an organisation, 
it is important that XP Power 
promotes workforce diversity, 
integrity and a safe and 
healthy work environment.

INTEGRITY
It is imperative that all of our employees 
are ethical. Integrity is one of our 
corporate core values and is regularly 
communicated throughout the 
organisation.

We live and breathe our core values. 
We address them in our communication 
meetings, performance appraisals and 
prominently post them throughout our 
facilities as a reminder of the importance 
of these values throughout our day-to-day 
activities. We have a comprehensive Code 
of Conduct that all our employees receive 
and sign up to. Integrity means, to us, that 
we are:

•  Honest in all our interactions with our 
colleagues, customers and suppliers

•  Always doing the right thing

•  Taking care of our people to ensure XP 
Power is a great place to work where 
we trust the people we work with, 
have pride in what we do and gain 
enjoyment from our work

TRAINING AND 
DEVELOPMENT
We focus on improving our training and 
development, ensuring we maintain an 
innovative and dynamic business that is 
focused on providing the best solutions for 
customers and an exciting and engaging 
work environment for our people. In 
particular, we believe our sales team is 
the best trained and most technical in our 
industry. This enables them to provide 
genuine value to our customers.

RECRUITMENT AND 
RETENTION
We focus on recruiting the right people 
into the business who are passionate 
about solutions that power the world’s 
critical systems and who align with 
our culture and values. Retaining the 
knowledge and expertise is fundamental 
to the sustainable success of XP Power. In 
our annual cultural survey, questions such 
as “I am proud to be part of XP Power” 
and “I would recommend XP Power as 
a great place to work” have consistently 
scored in the top five.

HEALTH AND SAFETY
As an organisation, XP Power seriously 
considers the suitability of our Health and 
Safety programme. The programme we 
have in place focuses on preventive action 
to ensure that we are being proactive and 
therefore reducing the risk of incidents 
from occurring. In addition to meeting the 
requirements set out in the Responsible 
Business Alliance Code of Conduct, we 
ensure that we comply with and keep 
abreast of particular local requirements. 
There are Committee members at each 
of our key sites that ensure any accidents 
are reported, acted upon and analysed 
for management review. The Health and 
Safety metrics are reported to the Board 
of Directors to ensure visibility throughout 
all levels of the organisation.

No. of Incidents  

(including near misses)

2

4

6

8

10

Asia

7

Europe

3

North
America

54

11

MALE

KEY

50 XP Power Employees

FEMALE

KEY

50 XP Power Employees

STRATEGIC REPORT

924

MALE

ASI A

EURO PE

NO RTH
AM ERICA

Total Male

B
o
a
r
d

N
o
n
-
E
x
e
c
u
t
i
v
e

0

2

0

2

E
x
e
c
u
t
i
v
e

3

9

4

16

M
a
n
a
g
e
m
e
n
t

25

21

43

89

T
o
t
a

l

A

l
l

O
t
h
e
r

969

FEMALE

489

517

A SI A

90

122

238

285

EU ROPE

NORTH 
A ME RIC A

817

924

Total Female

B
o
a
r
d

N
o
n
-
E
x
e
c
u
t
i
v
e

0

2

0

2

E
x
e
c
u
t
i
v
e

0

1

1

2

T
o
t
a

l

A

l
l

O
t
h
e
r

M
a
n
a
g
e
m
e
n
t

15

739

754

9

12

36

44

56

146

159

929

969

DIVERSITY
We operate in a global market and recognise the benefits 
of a diverse and talented workforce and consider this a key 
competitive advantage. Our business success is a reflection of 
the quality and skill of our people and the Group is committed 
to seeking out and retaining the finest talent.

XP Power believes in treating all people with respect and 
dignity. We strive to create and foster a supportive and 
understanding environment in which all individuals realise their 
maximum potential within the Company regardless of their 
differences.

We believe our diversity benefits all our stakeholders and our 
Company as a whole. We recognise that each employee brings 
their own unique capabilities, experiences and characteristics 
to their work and we value diversity at all levels of the 
Company.

SUSTAINABILITY TARGETS

•  Average hours of training per year per employee, 

with breakdown by employment category.

•  Ratio of basic salary and remuneration of women to 
men by employee category, by significant locations 
of operation

•  Composition of governance bodies and breakdown 
of employees per employee category according to 
gender, age group, minority group membership, and 
other indicators of diversity

•  Ratio of basic salary and remuneration of women to 
men by employee category, by significant locations 
of operation

55

XP Power Annual Report & Accounts for the year ended 31 December 2019 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
OUR PEOPLE AND THEIR 
HEALTH AND SAFETY CONTINUED

MODERN SLAVERY  
ACT 2015
The United Kingdom has enacted 
legislation to address abhorrent abuse of 
human rights.

XP Power does not engage in any slavery 
or human trafficking activities and is 
strongly against any offences of slavery, 
servitude forced labour and/or human 
trafficking. XP Power has also adopted 
a corporate policy which has been 
communicated to all employees.

MODERN SLAVERY POLICY 
XP Power is committed to a work 
environment that is free from modern 
slavery. 

This is achieved by:

•  Communicating that as an organisation 
we do not engage and are strongly 
against any offences of slavery, 
servitude/forced labour and/or  
human trafficking

•  Performing due diligence on our 

supply chain. We would immediately 
disengage with any supplier that does 
not have the same vision on forced 
labour as  
XP Power

•  Complying with all relevant legislation 
including the Modern Slavery Act 2015

•  Adopting this policy within our 

Corporate Sustainability and Code  
of Ethics programme

LINK TO SUSTAINABLE 
DEVELOPMENT GOALS
Our approach to business links directly 
to many of the Sustainable Development 
Goals of the United Nations Development 
Programme to end poverty, protect the 
planet and ensure that all people enjoy 
peace and prosperity.

Through our health and safety programme, 
we promote healthy investment and 
wellbeing of all our employees.

We promote quality education 
through our training and development 
opportunities at XP Power. We also ensure 
our opportunities are equally accessible 
for both men and women.

XP Power are committed to gender 
equality within the workplace, therefore 
ensuring women are able to effectively 
participate in all levels of the business.

We promote decent work for all women 
and men, including for young people and 
persons with disabilities, and equal pay for 
work of equal value. We also take action 
to eradicate modern slavery through our 
modern slavery statement.

56

OUR CUSTOMERS

STRATEGIC REPORT

KEY ACHIEVEMENTS
We have added 32 additional product 
families to our portfolio during 2019. Of 
these 32 families, 25 were high efficiency 
and/or incorporated low standby power. 
can communicate directly with the 
customers’ system.

OUR PLANS AHEAD
Our plan is to continue to invest in 
products we can bring to market that 
provide the most benefit to customers 
in terms of the efficiency and ease of 
integration into their applications. We 
will continue to expand our engineering 
services and support to provide complete 
power solutions which are capable of 
connecting and communicating with our 
customers’ applications.

LINK TO SUSTAINABLE 
DEVELOPMENT GOALS

We provide solutions for our clients that 
incorporate technological advancement 
and innovation.

We produce high efficiency products which 
reduce CO2 emissions year after year.

More of our products are moving up 
the power and complexity level, which 
incorporate digital interfaces to vary 
voltages and control the power solution 
remotely.

CUSTOMER FOCUS
Customers have helped drive our growth 
with our “Green” XP Power offering.

This is demonstrated by the increase in 
revenues year over year since 2010 of 
these product offerings. This aligns with 
one of our organisation’s core values, 
Customer Focus. Customers are now 
driving demand for connectivity and 
digital control so the power solution can 
communicate with their application which 
we are addressing with our engineering 
services offering.

CUSTOMERS
Our customers clearly see the benefit of 
ultra-high efficiency power converters and 
this has allowed us to be more focused 
on delivering these products to meet the 
customer expectations.

The feedback we have also received 
is that customers are willing to pay a 
premium for these “Green” products due 
to their higher performance. One of the 
underlying benefits of a high efficiency 
product is that the product is inherently 
more reliable. Once the power converter 
gets to a level of efficiency that we are 
achieving, there is very little waste energy 
as heat, and there is no longer a need for 
a mechanical fan for cooling (which also 
consumes power).

If the system engineer can design-in a 
power converter without a mechanical 
fan they have now removed the most 
unreliable part of the power system.

Furthermore, as the power converter runs 
cooler, the electronic components which 
are sensitive to heat, such as electrolytic 
capacitors, have longer lifetimes. The 
result is that not only is the power system 
consuming and wasting less energy it has 
also become significantly more reliable. 
This is of particular benefit when we 
consider that many of our products are 
designed into critical applications in 
the healthcare and high-end industrial 
sectors where product failure and 
downtime are not acceptable. It is with 
this understanding of the customers’ 
expectation for an ultra-high efficiency, 
extremely reliable power supply that we 
have been able to focus on providing 
the best solution for the customers’ 
requirements.

57

XP Power Annual Report & Accounts for the year ended 31 December 2019OUR SUPPLIERS

RESPONSIBLE BUSINESS 
ALLIANCE (RBA)

The United Kingdom has enacted 
legislation to address abhorrent 
abuse of human rights.

XP Power does not engage in any slavery 
or human trafficking activities and is 
strongly against any offences of slavery, 
servitude/forced labour and/or human 
trafficking.

XP Power has also adopted a corporate 
policy which has been communicated to 
all employees.

SUPPLY CHAIN ETHICS
One of the key elements of XP Power’s 
core values is Integrity. We work towards 
ensuring our supply chain partners have 
the same approach towards ethical 
business practices as XP Power. This is 
done by a stringent on-site qualification 
process of potential new suppliers. 
It includes an assessment regarding 
environmental performance, treatment 
of labour, health and safety and business 
ethics standards. As the suppliers we 
engage with are considered long-term 
partners it is imperative that these 
suppliers share our vision.

The XP Power ethics policy is included 
within our Code of Conduct and includes 
the following requirements as it relates to 
suppliers:

•  We will uphold high levels of business 
ethics in dealing with our suppliers; and

•  We will not at any time take or give 

bribes or other means of inducement to 
obtain improper advantage.

try and eliminate using those sources 
that have originated from those countries 
in question. We have adopted the 
reporting template issued by the Global 
e-Sustainability Initiative (GeSI) and 
Responsible Business Alliance which we 
provide to our customers so they gain 
the necessary assurance we are not using 
conflict minerals in our products.

OUR PLANS FOR THE YEAR 
AHEAD
The supply chain programme we have 
in place has been extremely effective in 
promoting industry-leading sustainable 
programmes with our suppliers.

We will continue to expand this 
programme as we determine additional 
ethical requirements that are in alignment 
with our core values.

LINK TO SUSTAINABLE 
DEVELOPMENT GOALS
Our approach to business links directly 
to many of the Sustainable Development 
Goals of the United Nations Development 
Programme to end poverty, protect the 
planet and ensure that all people enjoy 
peace and prosperity.

We work with suppliers that are ethical 
and thereby achieve full and productive 
employment for all genders, ethnicities 
and persons with disabilities.

These requirements have been actively 
communicated to our people and our 
supply chain partners.

We source from responsible suppliers and 
ensure that our facilities have minimal 
impact on the environment.

Through the RBA we support increased 
transparency and accountability for 
suppliers.

SUPPLY CHAIN DUE 
DILIGENCE
As part of our due diligence process 
within our supply chain, we have updated 
our qualification process to include an 
evaluation to ensure our suppliers do not 
engage in or support any slavery, human 
trafficking, servitude or forced labour. We 
disengage with suppliers that fail to meet 
our vision on ethical standards.

In 2010 the US Dodd-Frank Wall Street 
Reform and Consumer Protection Action 
was passed concerning “conflict minerals” 
originating from the Democratic Republic 
of the Congo or adjoining countries. XP 
Power has worked with our suppliers to 

58

OUR SHAREHOLDERS

STRATEGIC REPORT

COMMUNICATING WITH 
ALL OUR SHAREHOLDERS
Communicating what a power converter 
actually does and how we deliver genuine 
value to our customers can be challenging, 
especially to individual investors who do 
not have the advantage of face-to-face 
meetings with management. We make use 
of videos which we post to our investor 
relations website which explain:
•  what a power converter is;
•  the markets we serve;
•  our strategy;
•  our business model;
•  our fundamental growth drivers; and
•  our investment proposition.

We also have videos which shows the 
types of applications we power and 
how power converters are all around 
us but hidden from view. In providing 
this information we are attempting to 
reach out to our current and prospective 
shareholders to give them the best 
information we can. We also publish a 
video presentation of our results the 
morning of our interim and annual 
earnings release. Investors are able to 
register for our investor alert service 
via a website so they can receive 
timely notifications of all our regulatory 
announcements.

Our Non-Executives also make 
themselves available and consult our 
major shareholders on key issues such as 
corporate governance and remuneration 
policies.

CREATING VALUE FOR 
SHAREHOLDERS 
We are conscious that some of the 
markets we operate in are cyclical which 
is true of semiconductor manufacturing 
equipment and to industrial electronics; 
our healthcare business is much less 
cyclical. Combined with our high gross 
margins and high operational gearing this 
naturally causes significant movement 
in our earnings through the cycles. Our 
business model is highly cash generative 
and this combined with our consistent 
profitability allows us to maintain a 
progressive dividend policy throughout 
the cycles. Since listing in 2000 our 
dividend has never declined and has 
grown at an average compound rate in 
excess of 15% over the last 10 years. We 
are proud of our consistent delivery of 
value to our shareholders.

SUSTAINABILITY 
TARGETS

•  Number of board meetings and 

attendance rate

•  Existence of audit committee, 

number of meetings and 
attendance rate

59

XP Power Annual Report & Accounts for the year ended 31 December 2019OUR COMMUNITIES

LINK TO SUSTAINABLE 
DEVELOPMENT GOALS
Our approach to business links directly 
to many of the Sustainable Development 
Goals of the United Nations Development 
Programme to end poverty, protect the 
planet and ensure that all people enjoy 
peace and prosperity.

We aim to promote and empower all at XP 
Power, irrespective of age, sex, disability, 
origin or religion. We ensure this is outlined 
in policies and appropriate legislation.

SUSTAINABILITY 
TARGETS
•  Competences relating to 

economic, environmental and 
social impacts

•  Stakeholder representation

COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT
In 2019 the XP Power team reached out 
and supported more local community 
initiatives than in any prior year. 

We believe that we should give back to 
the communities in which we work as they 
make up an integral part of our lives. 

Some of the key programmes that took 
place in 2019 included:

•  Members of our Singapore office, in 

collaboration with the local food bank, 
distributed food bundles by going door 
to door to underprivileged households. 
There were 42 volunteers and we 
were able to make deliveries to over 
200 households 

•  Our Minden, Nevada, team helped 
collect refuse in local fields and 
roadways. The total amount of refuse 
collected during this day exceeded 
100 kg 

•  Helping to sort, distribute and prepare 
food for residents of the local Rescue 
Mission Centre. We have developed a 
good relationship over the past 3 years 
with this organisation that is local to our 
Southern California location 

•  Food drives and collections at some of 
our other locations that are donated to 
local food banks. This has been done 
during the non-holiday season as this is 
when donations are most in need

BREAST CANCER 
AWARENESS
One of the most successful campaigns in 
2019 was the Breast Cancer Awareness 
Initiative. XP locations across the globe 
participated during this month-long event. 
Many activities were held to promote 
awareness of this disease, whilst also 
generating employee donations. In total 
there was over $10,000 collected and 
distributed to eight different local charities 
associated with Breast Cancer.

OUR PLANS FOR THE YEAR 
AHEAD
The local representatives that coordinate 
activities continue to be fully engaged 
within the community. There have already 
been discussions within the team for the 
year ahead and the team is planning those 
key initiatives for 2020 to see how we can 
make a difference within the communities 
in which we operate.

60

THE ENVIRONMENT

STRATEGIC REPORT

CO2 EMISSIONS
XP Power has been tracking and 
monitoring our CO2 emissions for the 
past 10 years. In 2009 we set ourselves a 
target of reducing CO2 emissions per unit 
of revenue by 5% per annum. This aligned 
with the Chinese Government’s target of 
reducing carbon emissions per unit of GDP 
by 40% to 45% between 2005 and 2020.

We measure our CO2 emissions in 
accordance with the internationally 
recognised Green House Gas (GHG) 
Protocol and our metrics include scope 1 
and scope 2 emissions. The CO2 emissions 
data shows the three-month moving 
average of CO2 emissions per unit of 
revenue at our Kunshan and Vietnam 
facilities. Our total Green House Gas 
emissions for these locations in 2019 were 
4,560 tonnes of CO2 compared to 4,307 
tonnes in 2018. CO2 emissions per unit of 
revenue deteriorated in China due to lower 
overall revenue from this factory in 2019. 

In 2019 overall CO2 emissions for recent 
acquisitions and other remote locations 
were 6,303 tonnes of CO2 emissions. 
This data is comprised of 11 XP global 
locations, including recent acquisition of 
XP Glassman and XP Comdel divisions. 

WATER
We have determined that our operations 
are considered as low water usage. Water 
is not used in the design, manufacturing or 
services of our products. We are cognisant 
of the fact that there is some level of 
water usage at our facilities and try to 
limit the use and employ best practices. 
Nevertheless, we have taken action to 
reduce water usage in our sites including 
rainwater capture and reuse in our 
Vietnam facility.

Our water usage is tracked and monitored 
as one of our key environmental metrics 
across the business. The necessary actions 
are taken to reduce usage as needed and 
consistent with our corporate water policy. 
The reduction in water consumed in 2019 
was the result of not requiring extra shifts 
of production at our China facility.

CARBON DISCLOSURE 
PROJECT
We continue to collaborate annually 
with the Carbon Disclosure Project. The 
data is on our environment performance 
and is publicly accessible through the 
Carbon Disclosure Project website at 
www.cdproject.net.

AHEAD
•  Continue to develop and expand on our 

green product portfolio

•  Reduction in our overall CO2 

impact with the consolidation of 
our high voltage product line being 
manufactured in our Vietnam facility 

Further assessment of our operations 
in which additional changes can be 
implemented for improved environmental 
performance. 

LINK TO SUSTAINABLE 
DEVELOPMENT GOALS
Our approach to business links directly 
to many of the Sustainable Development 
Goals of the United Nations Development 
Programme to end poverty, protect the 
planet and ensure that all people enjoy 
peace and prosperity.

We are integrating climate change 
measures into the business through 
monitoring emissions and carbon 
disclosures.

We are developing our focus towards 
promoting resource and energy efficiency. 

HARMFUL SUBSTANCES
In 2005 new legislation was introduced in 
Europe which limited the levels of certain 
hazardous substances. The European 
legislation, Restriction of Hazardous 
Substances (RoHS) has been implemented 
in the design and manufacture of XP 
Power products.

XP Power took the initiative to be 
compliant with this legislation, not just for 
our European customer base, but for our 
customers in Asia and North America.

A new Directive has now been published 
to add to the list of controlled substances. 
This Directive is 2015/EC and is titled 
Commission Delegated Directive (EU) 
2015/863 of 31 March 2015 amending 
Annex II to Directive 2011/65/EU of the 
European Parliament and of the Council 
as regards the list of restricted substances. 
The amending Directive came into force 
from 22nd July 2019. We are pleased to 
report that except for our legacy radio 
frequency products, we are compliant with 
the latest RoHS directive.

THIRD PARTY VERIFICATION
For 2019 we engaged with Intertek to 
advise us on our how we should capture 
and report our environmental data. The 
accuracy of our energy, water, paper, solar 
power, green power and CO2 emissions 
data disclosed in this report have been 
independently reviewed by Intertek.

OUR PLANS FOR THE YEAR 

CO2 Emissions Data

CO2 emissions (tonnes) –  
China and Vietnam facility

2019

2018

2017

2016

2015

4,560

4,307

3,906

 3,581

3,361

CO2 emissions per unit of factory revenue 
(kg/$1,000) – China facility

CO2 emissions per unit of factory revenue 
(kg/$1,000) – Vietnam facility

Water Data

Average number of employees

Water consumed (thousand litres)

Water consumed per employee  
(thousand litres)

77

54

113

2019

107

2018

54

81

56

82

2017

2016

47 

141

2015

1,859

1,953
1,448
30,478 39,605 39,480 32,582 32,220

1,506

1,972

16.4

20.1

20.2

21.6

22.3

SUSTAINABILITY TARGETS

•  Company climate change 

opportunities – Identification 
of company’s climate change 
opportunities w/potential to generate 
a substantive change in business 
operations, revenue or expenditure

•  Company targets – Company’s active 
emissions reduction initiatives within 
the reporting year

•  Company targets – Company’s 
intensity target + whether a 
science-based target

XP Power Annual Report & Accounts for the year ended 31 December 2019

61

 
SUSTAINABILITY: NON FINANCIAL 
DISCLOSURES SUMMARY

The new EU Corporate Social Responsibility Directive (2014/95/EC) requires additional disclosure 
of non-financial impacts. XP Power welcomes this development and the table below summarises the 
requirements of the new reporting expectation, pointing to where additional information can be found.

Non-financial 
disclosure

Score from 
annual Employee 
Engagement 
Survey

2019

2018

75

21

17

Health and 
safety incidents 
(including near 
misses)

Relevant group 
principal risk

Loss of key 
personnel or 
failure to attract 
new personnel

An event 
that causes 
a disruption 
to one of our 
manufacturing 
facilities

Proportion of 
revenue from top 
30 customers (%)

49

52

Dependence on 
key customers

Action taken

Due diligence

A third-party survey is used to 
ensure anonymity or results and 
ensure best practice

Benchmarking health and safety 
incidents with industry norms. 
We have also engaged with a 
health and safety consultant to 
review our health and safety 
processes to drive continuous 
improvement

Review of sector splits and 
design wins and management 
review of product road map

Results of our survey are 
reviewed by management and 
discussed in team meetings 
where employees are 
encouraged to come up with 
their own ideas of how  
to address areas of weakness

Regional health and safety 
committees review our health 
and safety metrics to drive 
continuous improvement. We 
also undertake periodic risk 
assessments and include health 
and safety with our employee 
culture surveys

Although our strategy is to gain 
a higher share of business in our 
top accounts we also recognise 
the value of a balanced portfolio. 
Our product roadmap considers 
the benefit of products that 
can be sold into numerous 
applications and sectors

Number of new 
product families 
released

32

27

Dependence on 
key customers

Expansion of products taken 
from third parties to expand 
product portfolio

All third-party products have 
a full design and specification 
verification test to ensure they 
meet XP Power standards

Number of 
supplier audits

42

34

Dependence on 
key suppliers

Suppliers are required to 
implement corrective actions  
if any deficiencies are identified 
as a result of audits

Suppliers are ranked according 
to how critical they are and 
audit frequency is determined 
accordingly

8

7

Number of XP 
Power events 
benefitting local 
communities

Loss of key 
personnel or 
failure to attract 
new personnel

CO2 emissions 
intensity metric 
(kg/$’000 
revenue)

30.2

27.9

Risks relating 
to regulation or 
compliance

Water usage 
per employee 
(thousand litres)

15.9

20.1

Risks relating 
to regulation or 
compliance

XP Power employees are granted 
an additional day’s leave to 
participate in activities which 
are charitable and benefit the 
local communities in which we 
operate

We are continuing to work 
on ways to reduce our CO2 
intensity by reducing burn in 
times for products and recycling 
the power used for burn in 
within our production facilities. 
Vietnam also has a solar panel 
array to provide power to the 
administration building

Although we do not use water 
within our production processes 
our Vietnam facility has rain 
water capture which is used to 
water plants and provide water 
for toilets and showers

Activities are approved by 
the local environmental and 
communities committee

We measure our CO2 emissions 
in accordance with the 
internationally recognised Green 
House Gas (GHG) Protocol and 
our metrics include scope 1 and 
scope 2 emissions

Our metrics are independently 
verified by a third party

Our water usage metrics are 
verified by a third party

PEOPLE

CUSTOMERS

SUPPLIERS

OUR 
COMMUNITIES

ENVIRONMENT

62

 
STRATEGIC REPORT

XP Power Annual Report & Accounts for the year ended 31 December 2019

63

CONTENTS

Governance
Chairman’s Introduction to Governance 

Governance: 

Board Calendar and Activities 

Directors and Officers 

Corporate Governance Report 

Audit Committee Report 

Remuneration Committee Report 

Remuneration Policy 

Remuneration Report – Annual Report 

Other Governance and Statutory Disclosures 

Statement by Directors 

66

67

68

70

82

86

89

95

104

105

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O
V
E
R
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XP Power Annual Report & Accounts for the year ended 31 December 2019

6565

CHAIRMAN’S INTRODUCTION
TO GOVERNANCE

The Board of Directors’ primary 
remit is to provide direction 
to help shape the strategy of 
the Group and ensure that this 
is being executed effectively 
within a structure that is well 
controlled, mitigates risk and 
is compliant with corporate 
and social responsibility. Good 
corporate governance emanates 
from the top which is why 
the Board gives continued 
prominence to this area.

The Financial Reporting Council has 
updated The UK Corporate Governance 
Code and this new update comes into 
effect for accounting periods beginning 
after 1 January 2019 (the “new Code”). 
There are a number of areas where the 
new Code has ramifications to the Group, 
as follows, and we intend to be compliant 
with this new Code by the end of 2019.

We have tried to clearly lay out how we 
meet the five principles of the existing 
Code, namely: leadership, effectiveness, 
accountability, remuneration and relations 
with Shareholders. For the benefit of 
Shareholders who are not familiar with the 
existing Code we have set out the main 
principles of the existing Code in detail 
and have stated how we have addressed 
them in this report. We will adopt a similar 
approach in our 2019 Annual Report to 
demonstrate how we have addressed 
the new Code. In addition, we have 
supplemented our corporate governance 
report to explain how we address some of 
the key principles of the new Code.

In the following pages we set out our 
approach to corporate governance. Under 
the Singapore Companies Act, Chapter 50, 
the Company is not required to follow the 
Singapore Corporate Governance Code. 
The Company has voluntarily agreed to 
the principles of corporate governance 
contained in the UK Corporate 
Governance Code (the “Code”) as required 
under the Listing Rules of the Financial 
Services Authority of the United Kingdom.

CORPORATE CULTURE
Given the emphasis being placed on the 
importance of culture, the executive 
management dedicated time to critically 
review the Group’s culture in September 
2019. The Board reviewed this work in 
October 2019 and gave feedback to the 
executive which has been communicated 
to the organisation. The main feedback 
was that our core values of integrity, 
knowledge, flexibility, speed and customer 
focus are still appropriate for our strategy 
and direction of travel but need to be 
reinforced where we see behaviours 
which are inconsistent with these values. 
I am confident we have the appropriate 
culture to support our strategy and growth 
aspirations.

JAMES PETERS
Non-Executive Chairman

READ ABOUT CULTURE 
ON PAGES 72 AND 73

JAMES PETERS

Non-Executive Chairman

“The Board of Directors’ 
primary remit is to provide 
direction to help shape 
the strategy of the Group 
and ensure that this is 
being executed effectively 
within a structure that is 
well controlled, mitigates 
risk and is compliant 
with corporate and social 
responsibility.”

66

GOVERNANCE: BOARD 
AND ACTIVITIES

The Board continually reviews key areas of focus for the business and this impacts upon the key 
activities of the Board over the year.

The main focus areas are outlined below:

Board focus

Overview

Activity in year

BOARD STRUCTURE

Overview effectiveness of the Board and 
its committees

•  Terms of reference review of the Board and its committees

•  Annual work plan for the Board

STRATEGY

Review and evaluation of the business 
strategy and the performance against the 
strategy

BUSINESS 
PERFORMANCE

Review and monitoring of business 
performance against forecasts and plans

•  Performance evaluation by anonymous online questionnaires

•  Succession planning

•  Review of the Group’s strategy and refinement of that strategy

•  Regular business updates, including reviews of Key Performance 

Indicators

•  Reviews of financial performance  

against budget

•  Reviews of tax and treasury, including foreign exchange and hedging

•  Review of the Group’s strategy

COMPLIANCE

Review of compliance

•  Review of results of internal audits and resulting recommendations

•  Review of any whistleblowing reports (two events in 2019)

•  Review of health and safety incidents

RISK MANAGEMENT

Review of risk management

•  Review of the risks facing the Group and actions to be put 

in place to mitigate those risks

•  Review of insurance arrangements

•  Setting the risk appetite of the Group in relation to risks identified

•  Reviewing cybersecurity arrangements

•  Pre and post implementation review for new ERP system

REMUNERATION

With the assistance of the Remuneration 
Committee, approval of remuneration 
policies across the Group

•  Setting the new 2020 remuneration policy and remuneration 

arrangements for the Executive Directors

•  Approving remuneration arrangements for senior management

•  Review of staff pay

FINANCIAL 
STATEMENTS

Final approval of annual financial 
statements and accounting policies

•  Review and approval of interim and final results

SUSTAINABILITY

Ensuring the Group is following a 
sustainable business model

CULTURE AND VALUES

Ensuring that the corporate culture and 
values are being represented effectively 
across all nations and operations.

•  Review and refinement of the Group’s environmental and water policy

•  Review and approval of the Group’s Code  

of Conduct

•  Evaluation of performance of the Group’s Environmental Social 

Governance key performance indicators, including health and safety, 
CO2 emissions and water usage.

•  Board visit and review of key Asian facilities, including China, Singapore 

and Vietnam

•  Review and challenge of the executive management’s review of culture

•  Review of the results and actions from the annual Employee 

Engagement Survey

•  Review and approval of diversity policy

67

XP Power Annual Report & Accounts for the year ended 31 December 2019GOVERNANCEDIRECTORS AND OFFICERS 

JAMES  
PETERS 

TERRY  
TWIGGER

POLLY  
WILLIAMS

PAULINE  
LAFFERTY

NON-EXECUTIVE CHAIRMAN

Appointed  
30 June 2014

SENIOR NON-EXECUTIVE 
DIRECTOR

Appointed  
1 January 2015

NON-EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR

NON-EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR

Appointed  
1 January 2016

Appointed  
3 December 2019

COMMITTEES
•  Nomination (Chair) 

XP POWER

James has over 40 years’ 
experience in the power  
converter industry.

SKILLS AND BUSINESS  
EXPERIENCE

•  James founded XP Power in 

November 1988. 

•  Appointed European 

Managing Director in April 
2000, responsible for the 
development of the Group’s 
European business.

•  Became Deputy Chairman 
in February 2003 and 
moved to a non-executive 
role in May 2012, before 
his appointment as Non-
Executive Chairman in June 
2014.

COMMITTEES
•  Audit (Chair)

•  Nomination

•  Remuneration 

SKILLS AND BUSINESS  
EXPERIENCE

•  Between July 1993 and May 
2013, Terry spent 20 years 
with Meggitt PLC, the FTSE 
100 global engineering 
group

•  For the last 12 years at 

Meggitt, Terry was Chief 
Executive Officer and 
grew its revenues from 
£0.4 billion to £1.6 billion 
through a combination 
of organic growth and 
numerous successful 
acquisitions.

COMMITTEES
•  Remuneration (Chair)

•  Audit 

•  Nomination 

SKILLS AND BUSINESS  
EXPERIENCE

•  Polly is a chartered 

accountant and a former 
Partner at KPMG LLP. 
She resigned from her 
partnership in 2003 and 
has held a number of non-
executive directorship roles. 

•  She is currently a Non-
Executive Director at: 

 − Jupiter Fund 

Management plc; 

 − TSB Group plc; and 

 − Royal Bank of Canada 

Europe Ltd. 

 − She is also a Trustee of 
the Guide Dogs for the 
Blind Association.

COMMITTEES
•  Remuneration

•  Nomination

•  Audit

SKILLS AND BUSINESS  
EXPERIENCE

•  Former Chief People 

Officer at The Weir Group 
plc, a position she held 
between 2011 and 2017. 
Prior to that, she worked in 
executive search from 1998 
to 2011, as a partner with 
The Miles Partnership and, 
previously, as an Executive 
Director at Russell Reynolds 
Associates. 

•  She holds non-executive 
positions at Centurion 
Group, a leader in the supply 
of critical rental equipment, 
infrastructure and support 
services to the energy 
industry and Scottish Event 
Campus Limited (SEC) where 
she is also Chair of the 
Remuneration Committee. 

68

DUNCAN  
PENNY

GAVIN  
GRIGGS

ANDY  
SNG

GOVERNANCE

CHIEF EXECUTIVE OFFICER

CHIEF FINANCIAL OFFICER

Appointed  
3 February 2003

Appointed  
31 October 2017

EXECUTIVE VICE 
PRESIDENT, ASIA

Appointed 
April 2007

XP POWER

XP POWER

XP POWER

Duncan joined as Group 
Finance Director, a position he 
held between April 2000 and 
February 2003 before being 
promoted to Chief Executive 
Officer.

SKILLS AND BUSINESS  
EXPERIENCE

•  Extensive experience of 

corporate finance matters.

•  Worked for LSI Logic 
Corporation for eight 
years where he held senior 
financial positions in both 
Europe and Silicon Valley.

•  Controller for the European, 
Middle Eastern and African 
regions of Dell Computer 
Corporation between 1998 
and 2000.

•  Duncan is also a non-

executive director of The 
Vitec Group plc.

Gavin joined XP Power on 
31 October 2017 as Chief 
Financial Officer.

SKILLS AND BUSINESS  
EXPERIENCE

•  CIMA qualified accountant 
who has worked in a range 
of acquisitive businesses 
with an international 
footprint.

•  Held senior finance roles at 
Logica, Sodexo, PepsiCo and 
SABMiller.

•  Served as CFO of Alternative 

Networks plc, a listed 
Information Technology 
and Telecommunications 
provider, prior to its 
acquisition by Daisy in 
December 2016 when he 
became Group Finance 
Director for Daisy Group.

Andy joined the Group in July 
2005 as General Manager 
for Asia where he started up 
the Shanghai operation. He 
currently oversees the sales and 
marketing for Singapore, China, 
Japan, South Korea and India.

SKILLS AND BUSINESS  
EXPERIENCE

•  Over 15 years in the power 

converter industry.

•  Graduated from Nanyang 
Technological University 
with a degree in Electrical 
and Electronic Engineering 
and an MBA from 
Manchester Business 
School.

•  Prior to joining the Group, 
he held technical and 
commercial roles with 
companies such as Silicon 
Systems (Singapore)  
and Advanced Micro  
Devices (Singapore).

READ ABOUT THE 
COMMITTEES ON 
PAGE 70

69
69

XP Power Annual Report & Accounts for the year ended 31 December 2019CORPORATE GOVERNANCE REPORT

TOP DOWN: 
Oversight, governance, 
strategic direction, risk 
appetite at corporate 
level

THE BOARD OF DIRECTORS
Non-Executive Chairman: James Peters

AUDIT COMMITTEE

REMUNERATION 
COMMITTEE

NOMINATION 
COMMITTEE

SUSTAINABILITY 
COMMITTEE

CHAIR: TERRY TWIGGER

CHAIR: POLLY WILLIAMS

CHAIR: JAMES PETERS

CHAIR: SEAN ROSS

•  Financial reporting
•  Compliance
•  External audit
• 

Internal controls

•  Directors’ fixed and 

variable pay

•  Share Incentive Plans
•  Key employee 
retention

•  Board composition
•  Board appointments

•  Corporate social 
responsibility
•  Sustainability 
initiatives

INTERNAL AUDIT

EXECUTIVE LEADERSHIP TEAM

BOTTOM UP:
Execution of strategy, 
compliance, control 
environment, assessment 
and mitigation of risk 
across functional areas

•  Risk framework
• 
•  Process 

Internal audits

improvements

•  Continuous 

improvement

•  Executing the Board’s strategy

•  Assessment and mitigation of risk

•  Managing the control environment

•  Promoting the culture, core values and ethics

BOARD LEADERSHIP AND 
COMPANY PURPOSE

A successful company is 
led by an effective and 
entrepreneurial board, whose 
role is to promote the long-
term sustainable success of the 
company, generating value for 
shareholders and contributing to 
wider society.

The Directors have considered the 
composition and structure of the Board 
and have concluded that it is appropriate 
for a company of the size and complexity 
of XP Power. Following the retirement of 
Peter Bucher as a Non-Executive Director 
on 31 December 2018 Pauline Lafferty 
was appointed as a Non-Executive 
Director on 3 December 2019. Pauline 
brings a wealth of international business 
experience to the Board including 
expertise in strategic human resources. 

Despite not being considered independent 
by the Corporate Governance guidelines, 
the involvement of James Peters (Non-
Executive Chairman) as a founder with 
a substantial shareholding is considered 
of benefit to Shareholders, aligning the 
interests of Shareholders with the Board. 
The Senior Non-Executive Director is an 
independent Director.

7070

How our Board is 
entrepreneurial and effective
As well as reviews of the business 
performance, issues, challenges and 
opportunities at each board meeting, 
the Board also engages with executive 
management on in-depth strategy reviews 
and visits various operating units to 
engage with employees from all areas 
of the business. Polly Williams acted as 
the designated director for employee 
engagement and visited several sites to 
engage with employees from all levels 
of the business. Our Board has diverse 
talents and experiences which it is able to 
effectively deploy to ensure the Board is 
suitably entrepreneurial and effective.

The Directors consider that the Board and 
Committees have the appropriate balance 
of skills, experience, independence and 
knowledge to discharge their duties 
effectively.

The Board commissioned Learnership 
to conduct an independent external 
evaluation of the Board which included 
anonymous surveys, one-to-one 
interviews with each board member and 
a report and presentation to the Board 
regarding the results of the evaluation. 
The key points that came out of the 
evaluation were more focused on medium 
to long-range strategy development, 
development of the Company’s culture 
to support leadership capability and 
operating excellence, and further work 
on succession planning and talent 
management. Overall, the evaluation 
concluded that the Board was functioning 
effectively.

The Board considers Pauline Lafferty, 
Terry Twigger and Polly Williams to be 
independent.

READ ABOUT THE 
BOARD ON PAGES 68 
AND 69

READ ABOUT OUR 
PURPOSE AND VALUES 
ON PAGES 52 AND 53

READ ABOUT OUR 
STRATEGY ON PAGES 
22 AND 23

GOVERNANCE

EFFECTIVENESS OF THE BOARD

STAGE 1

STAGE 2

STAGE 3

STAGE 4

The Directors answer 
an in-depth anonymous 
questionnaire completed 
by all Directors

One-to-one interviews 
were conducted 
between the external 
facilitators and each of 
the Directors

Collation of results and 
a report which is shared 
and presented to the 
Board

The Board decides how 
to improve effectiveness 

The board should establish 
the company’s purpose, values 
and strategy, and satisfy itself 
that these and its culture are 
aligned. All directors must act 
with integrity, lead by example 
and promote the desired 
culture.

HOW THESE LINK TO OUR 
STRATEGY
Our strategy is very customer focused. 
We know that to win we not only 
have to have the right power solution, 
but we have to be first to provide the 
customer with a working solution in their 
prototype system. Not only is speed and 
responsiveness of the essence but our 
sales, applications and systems engineers 
have to be extremely knowledgeable 
to guide the customer’s engineering 
team through the challenges that power 
conversion presents to their system. 
Flexibility quickly comes into play – we will 
happily modify our products to make them 
easier for the customer to integrate the 
power solution into their system. Our sales 
mantra of knowledge, flexibility and speed 
is a winning formula and hence forms the 
core of our values. No customer, supplier 
or employee wants to deal with a partner 
they do not trust and so integrity is at the 
heart of everything we do. We live and 
breathe our core values and they underpin 
the ongoing success of XP Power.

OUR PURPOSE
Our purpose is to provide our customers 
in the industrial electronics, healthcare, 
semiconductor equipment manufacturing 
and technology sectors with solutions 
to power their critical systems and get 
their products to market in the shortest 
possible time to provide genuine value.

OUR VISION 
Our vision is to be the first-choice power 
solutions provider delivering the ultimate 
experience for our customers and our 
people.

OUR VALUES
Our core values are:

•  Integrity

•  Knowledge

•  Flexibility

•  Speed

•  Customer focus

These values are an intrinsic part of 
our DNA and guide our people to 
deliver genuine value to our customers. 
We reinforce these values at every 
opportunity. They are embedded into our 
performance management system and 
evaluated through our annual employee 
engagement survey.

CULTURE

VALUES

INTEGRITY

KNOWLEDGE

FLEXIBILITY

SPEED

CUSTOMER FOCUS

STRATEGY

PURPOSE

CULTURE

XP Power Annual Report & Accounts for the year ended 31 December 2019

71
71

CORPORATE GOVERNANCE REPORT CONTINUED

CULTURE
OUR CULTURE JOURNEY
Attention and importance of culture is 
becoming more and more prevalent. There 
is a widely held view that a company’s 
culture is more important that its strategy 
in that a good strategy with poor culture 
will not succeed. In 2015 our executive 
management team worked to identify 

the key elements of XP Power’s culture 
that made it successful. This resulted in 
our core values of integrity, knowledge, 
flexibility, speed and customer focus 
which we have embedded into everything 
we do, including our performance 
management system. 

During 2019 the executive management 
team dedicated time to re-evaluate the 
Company’s culture and critically assess 

both the positive and negative aspects. 
This work was reviewed with the Board 
of Directors and reported back to the 
organisation. The conclusion was that 
the core values were still relevant and 
appropriate but more work was required 
to impart them as the organisation grew 
and that all leaders need to call out 
behaviours that did not align with our 
culture and core values in order to coach 
the organisation to greater heights.

2018

2019

JANUARY –
Anonymous online cultural survey conducted 

JANUARY – 
Anonymous online cultural survey conducted

APRIL – 
Board visited and engaged with employees in Boston, 
Silicon Valley and Orange County

MAY – 
Board visited and engaged with employees in China, 
Vietnam and Singapore

MAY –
Glassman acquisition – core values training and roll-out 
of XP Power performance management system

SEPTEMBER – 
Leaders surveyed on culture – Executive Management 
Team workshop to critically evaluate XP Power culture

OCTOBER – 
Executive Management Team presents the results of the 
workshop on culture to the Board – feedback provided 
to the organisation

How culture underpins our 
values, purpose and strategy
Our cultural journey started from the 
work we did on core values in 2015. We 
recognised the importance of distilling 
out the values that had contributed to 
the success of the business in order to 
keep these alive as the organisation grew. 
Our values are embedded into everything 
we do, including our performance 
management system. They underpin a 
strategy which is very customer focused 
that we have consistently executed over 
a long period of time. Our culture is 
central to allow us to achieve our vision 
of becoming the first-choice power 
solutions provider delivering the ultimate 
experience for our customers and our 
people.

The Board should ensure that the 
necessary resources are in place for the 
Company to meet its objectives and 
measure performance against them. The 
Board should also establish a framework 
of prudent and effective controls, which 
enable risk to be assessed and managed.

The Board acknowledges that it is 
responsible for the Group’s internal 
controls and for reviewing their 
effectiveness. The Group’s internal 
controls are designed to manage rather 
than eliminate the risk of failure to meet 
business objectives, and can only provide 
reasonable not, absolute, assurance 
against material misstatement or loss.

An ongoing process for identifying, 
evaluating and managing the significant 
risks faced by the Group was in place 
during the entire financial year and has 
remained in place up to the approval 
date of the Annual Report and Financial 
Statements. The identified risks and the 
processes by which these are addressed 
are documented, reviewed and updated 
at Board meetings. The Directors confirm 
that an assessment of the principal 
risks facing the Group was reviewed, 
further details of which are included in 
the Managing Our Risks and Viability 
Statement sections within the Strategic 
Report on pages 42 to 47. The Directors 
also considered the Company’s appetite of 
risk against each of the risks identified to 
aid in determining mitigating actions.

72

As might be expected in a group of 
this size, a key control procedure is the 
day-to-day supervision of the business 
by the Executive Directors supported by 
managers within the Group companies. 
Examples of key controls with respect to 
ongoing processes include:

•  Authority matrices are in place to 

clearly define who is able to authorise 
particular transactions, transfer funds, 
commit Company resources and enter 
into particular agreements.

•  Monthly reporting of management 
accounts and key metrics to senior 
management with performance 
measured to budget and material 
variances reported to the Board.

Interested parties are also able to register 
for the Group’s email alert service on this 
website to receive timely announcements 
and other information published from time 
to time.

The Chairman and Senior Independent 
Director are available to meet 
Shareholders if required. The Board 
members receive any feedback prepared 
by brokers or our financial PR company 
following meetings with Shareholders in 
order to keep in touch with Shareholders’ 
opinions.

The Remuneration Committee consulted 
with major Shareholders in respect 
of significant decisions on Executive 
remuneration.

•  Quality control checks throughout 
our manufacturing process, burn- 
in, electrical testing to detect early 
failures, 100% functional testing, and 
quality inspection.

The Board members receive any feedback 
prepared by brokers or our financial 
PR company following meetings with 
Shareholders in order to keep in touch 
with Shareholders’ opinions.

The Remuneration Committee consulted 
with major Shareholders in respect 
of significant decisions on Executive 
remuneration.

CONSTRUCTIVE USE OF THE 
ANNUAL GENERAL MEETING 
MAIN PRINCIPLE:

Certain Directors are available at the 
Annual General Meeting to answer any 
questions from Shareholders.

However, given that we have a 
Singaporean parent company we recognise 
it is not generally convenient for our UK-
based investors to attend this meeting. 
The Chief Executive Officer and Chief 
Financial Officer do, however, make 
themselves readily available throughout 
the year to answer questions from 
Shareholders.

•  Disaster recovery and business 

continuity plans are in place at all 
our key facilities, documented and 
communicated to key personnel to help 
cope with unexpected events.

•  An internal audit and risk assurance 

programme is operating.

•  The Audit Committee reviews the 
effectiveness of internal controls.

In order for the Company to meet its 
responsibilities to Shareholders and 
stakeholders, the Board should ensure 
effective engagement with, and encourage 
participation from, these parties.

The Group engages in two-way 
communication with both its institutional 
and private investors and responds quickly 
to all queries received. The Group uses 
its website www.xppowerplc.com to 
give private investors access to the same 
information that institutional investors 
receive in terms of investor presentations. 
This includes video interviews with 
the Chief Executive Officer and Chief 
Financial Officer available on the morning 
of the day that the interim and annual 
results are published. The Company also 
makes available a number of informational 
videos on its investor relations website 
which cover products, markets, strategy, 
business model, growth drivers and its 
investment proposition.

GOVERNANCE

READ ABOUT OUR 
PURPOSE AND VALUES 
ON PAGES 52 AND 53

READ ABOUT OUR 
STRATEGY ON PAGES 
22 AND 23

READ ABOUT RISKS 
ON PAGES 42 TO 47

READ ABOUT OUR 
BUSINESS MODEL ON 
PAGES 18 TO 20

READ ABOUT 
STAKEHOLDER 
ENGAGEMENT ON 
PAGE 74

7373

XP Power Annual Report & Accounts for the year ended 31 December 2019CORPORATE GOVERNANCE REPORT CONTINUED

HOW WE ENGAGED WITH SHAREHOLDERS THIS YEAR

FORMAL INVESTOR MEETINGS

ANNUAL REPORT  
AND ACCOUNTS

CONSULTATIONS

The Group engages in two-way 
communication with both its institutional 
and private investors and responds quickly 
to all queries received. The Chairman and 
Senior Independent Director are available 
to meet Shareholders if required.

Through our Annual Report and Accounts 
we provide key information on the 
previous year’s performance. This 
enables stakeholders to understand our 
marketplace, business model, strategy and 
performance in more detail.

The Remuneration Committee consulted 
with major Shareholders in respect 
of significant decisions on Executive 
remuneration, including development of 
the new 2020 remuneration policy. 

CORPORATE WEBSITE

The Group uses its website www.xppowerplc.com to give private investors access to the same 
information that institutional investors receive in terms of investor presentations. This includes 
video interviews with the Chief Executive Officer and Chief Financial Officer available on 
the morning of the day that the interim and annual results are published. The Company also 
makes available a number of informational videos on its investor relations website which cover 
products, markets, strategy, business model, growth drivers and its investment proposition. 
Interested parties are also able to register for the Group’s email alert service on this website to 
receive timely announcements and other information published from time to time.

FEEDBACK FROM BROKERS AND 
FINANCIAL PUBLIC RELATIONS

The Board members receive any feedback 
prepared by brokers or our financial Public 
Relations company following meetings with 
Shareholders in order to keep in touch with 
Shareholders’ opinions.

KEY THEMES DISCUSSED WITH SHAREHOLDERS

The key themes discussed with Shareholders in 2019 include the 
following:

•  Sustainability of margins as the Company grows

•  Working capital management and the unwind of inventory put in 

place due to component shortages

•  Effects of Section 301 trade tariffs in the USA

•  Cyclicality of the semiconductor equipment manufacturing sector

•  Opportunities in Radio Frequency (RF) Power and high power/high 
voltage products from the acquisitions of Comdel and Glassman 
respectively

STAKEHOLDER ENGAGEMENT
As stated within the new UK corporate governance code, the Board should ensure effective engagement with and encourage 
participation with Shareholders and stakeholders (section 1, principle D). Outlined below are how XP Power engages with stakeholders.

EMPLOYEES

CUSTOMERS

SUPPLIERS

We hold a minimum of three live global 
communications meetings where 
employees are encouraged to ask 
questions of management. We undertake 
an annual anonymous employee 
engagement survey and report the results 
to the workforce.

We receive feedback from our customers 
and use this to inform future strategic 
decisions. The CEO meets with key 
customers to provide feedback on the 
service we provide.

We are committed to a focus on supply 
chain ethics. In order to achieve this we 
visit, audit and evaluate suppliers.

COMMUNITIES

THE ENVIRONMENT

In order to engage with the local 
communities in which we operate, we 
have committed paid time off to support 
local initiatives. This is an ongoing agenda 
as part of our local environmental team’s 
periodic meeting on how XP Power can 
make a difference.

Our sustainability committee focuses on 
our commitment to the environment, 
promoting awareness and best practice 
throughout our Company. This is then 
reported within our Annual Report.

74

The Board should ensure that workforce 
policies and practices are consistent 
with the Company’s values and support 
its long-term sustainable success. The 
workforce should be able to raise any 
matters of concern.

Polly Williams is the designated Non-
Executive Director for workforce 
engagement. During 2019 Polly has 
met with groups of employees in China, 
Vietnam, Singapore, Pangbourne, Fyfield 
and Bremen to discuss culture and 
workforce matters.

Management runs a number of live 
communications meetings where 
employees have the opportunity to 
ask questions. An anonymous annual 
employee engagement survey, which 
has free text space so employees can 
feedback any matter to management, 
is conducted annually and the results 
evaluated by management. The Company 
also has a whistleblowing facility which 
goes directly to the senior Non-Executive 
Director should they have any issue they 
are uncomfortable raising with executive 
management.

DIVISION OF 
RESPONSIBILITIES
The Chair leads the Board and is 
responsible for its overall effectiveness in 
directing the Company.

They should demonstrate objective 
judgement throughout their tenure 
and promote a culture of openness and 
debate. In addition, the Chair facilitates 
constructive Board relations and the 
effective contribution of all Non-Executive 
Directors, and ensures that Directors 
receive accurate, timely and clear 
information.

The roles of Non-Executive Chairman 
(James Peters) and Chief Executive Officer 
(Duncan Penny) are separate and clearly 
defined. The Chairman is responsible for 
the running of Board meetings as well 
as taking the lead on strategy. The Chief 
Executive Officer is responsible for the 
day-to-day running of the Company and 
the execution of the strategy.

In order to ensure the Board is effective 
we review and monitor the skill set of 
the Directors. We also ensure there is a 
clear division of responsibilities. These 
principles are demonstrated through the 
skills matrix on the following page.

The Chairman
The Chairman sets the calendar and 
agenda of the Board and facilitates the 
discussions. The Chairman also initiates 
and coordinates the processes defined 
below which evaluate the effectiveness of 
the Board and of the individual Directors.

How our Chairman promotes a 
culture of openness
The Chairman conducts Board meetings 
in a manner that the views of all Board 
members are sought and welcomed. Open 
discussion is encouraged. An evaluation 
of Board effectiveness is conducted 
each year. In 2019 a full evaluation by an 
independent party was commissioned.

Non-Executive Directors
Other than their normal attendance and 
participation in discussions at Board 
meetings the Non-Executive Directors 
actively participate in the review and 
determination of the Company’s strategy.

Terry Twigger is the Senior Independent 
Non-Executive Director.

The following matters are specifically 
reserved for the Board’s decision:

•  Opinion of the Group’s viability and 

going concern.

•  Approval of strategic plans, financial 
plans and budgets and any material 
changes to them.

•  Oversight of the Group’s operations, 
ensuring competent and prudent 
management, sound planning, an 
adequate system of internal control and 
adequate accounting and other records.

•  Changes to the structure, size and 

composition of the Board.

•  Consideration of the independence of 

Non-Executive Directors.

•  Review of management structure and 
senior management responsibilities.

•  With the assistance of the 

Remuneration Committee, approval 
of remuneration policies across the 
Group.

•  Final approval of annual financial 

statements and accounting policies.

•  Approval of the dividend policy.

•  Approval of the acquisition or disposal 
of subsidiaries and major investments 
and capital projects.

•  Delegation of the Board’s powers and 
authorities, including the division of 
responsibilities between the Chairman, 
Chief Executive Officer and the other 
Executive Directors.

The Board should include an appropriate 
combination of Executive and Non-
Executive (and, in particular, independent 
Non-Executive) Directors, such that no 
one individual or small group of individuals 
dominates the Board’s decision-making. 
There should be a clear division of 
responsibilities between the leadership of 
the Board and the executive leadership of 
the Company’s business.

The Board now consists of four non-
executives including the Chairman and 
three executives. Of the non-executive, 
three are considered independent. There 
is clear division of responsibilities between 
the executives and non-executives.

Non-Executive Directors have sufficient 
time to meet their Board responsibilities 
and they provide constructive challenge, 
strategic guidance and hold management 
to account.

READ ABOUT SUSTAINABILITY 
ON PAGES 48 AND 49

READ ABOUT OUR BUSINESS 
MODEL ON PAGES 18 TO 20

READ ABOUT OUR 
GOVERNANCE STRUCTURE 
ON PAGES 70 AND 71

75

XP Power Annual Report & Accounts for the year ended 31 December 2019GOVERNANCECORPORATE GOVERNANCE REPORT CONTINUED

All Directors should be able to allocate 
sufficient time to the Company to 
discharge their responsibilities effectively.

There were five Board meetings during 
the year and all Directors attended each 
meeting.

Date

1 March 2019 

10 May 2019

31 July 2019

4 October 2019

3 December 2019

Attendees

All

All

All

All

All

COMPOSITION, 
SUCCESSION AND 
EVALUATION
Appointments to the Board should 
be subject to a formal, rigorous and 
transparent procedure, and an effective 
succession plan should be maintained 
for Board and senior management. Both 
appointments and succession plans should 
be based on merit and objective criteria 
and, within this context, should promote 
diversity of gender, social and ethnic 
backgrounds, cognitive and personal 
strengths.

Pauline Lafferty joined the Board on 
3 December 2019. In determining the 
candidate profile the Board considered 
the Company strategy and how a new 
non-executive could contribute to the 
development of the business and existing 
capabilities on the Board. 

STAGE 1

Overview of the current Board and 
their skills

STAGE 2

Outlining which key skills are 
needed. The Board considers these 
to be:

•  Relevant business experience

•  Managing growth

•  Organisational development

•  Acquisitions

•  Public company experience

STAGE 3

A draft of a role description is 
drawn up. This provides a clear 
understanding of what is required in 
terms of succession planning

7676

GOVERNANCE

XP Power Annual Report & Accounts for the year ended 31 December 2019

7777

CORPORATE GOVERNANCE REPORT CONTINUED

The Board and its Committees 
should have a combination 
of skills, experience and 
knowledge. Consideration 
should be given to the length 
of service of the Board as a 
whole and membership regularly 
refreshed.

SKILLS MATRIX
The Directors consider that the Board and 
Committees have the appropriate balance 
of skills, experience, independence and 
knowledge to discharge their duties 
effectively.

In line with the new UK corporate 
governance code of 2018, we include an 
appropriate combination of executives and 
non-executives (principle G); the figures 
are outlined below.

As Section 3, principle K proposes, there 
is a combination of skills, experience and 
knowledge. XP Power also considers the 
length of service in order to ensure the 
Board is effective in its role.

Through the above skills matrix, XP Power 
has proven Board strength and diversity, 
enabling the Board to make effective 
decisions which should in turn ensure 
long-term sustainability.

3

Board
Experience

4

Power electronics experience

Public company experience

3 Power electronics industry 
experience/4 public company, financial, 
acquisitions and corporate governance 
experience

3

Tenure

3

1

0-3 Years

4-6 Years

7+   Years

4/7 appointed to their current position in 
the last five years

2

3

1

4
3

Exec/non-
Exec Split

Non-Executive
Executive

The balance of the make-up of the Board 
between non-executive and executive, 
excluding the Chairman, has been 
addressed in 2019 with the appointment 
of Pauline Lafferty and retirement of 
Mike Laver

RE-ELECTION
All Directors voluntarily offer themselves 
for re-election annually. This is in spite 
of the Company’s Articles of Association 
which require Directors to retire and offer 
themselves for re-election on a rotation at 
least every three years.

Annual evaluation of the Board should 
consider its composition, diversity 
and how effectively members work 
together to achieve objectives. Individual 
evaluation should demonstrate whether 
each Director continues to contribute 
effectively.

BOARD EVALUATION
In Section 4, principle L, the new UK 
corporate governance code discusses 
the need to evaluate the Board. This 
evaluation should cover the Board’s 
composition and diversity, and how 
effectively members work together to 
achieve objectives.

The Board’s evaluation of its own 
performance and that of its Committees is 
conducted annually using an online Board 
effectiveness questionnaire conducted by 
a third party. The questionnaire covered 
all aspects of effectiveness: capabilities 
and communication; culture and practice; 
process and organisation; as well as 
meeting rigour and relationships. With 
respect to continually improving Board 
effectiveness, the questionnaire also asked 
Directors to comment on what it should 
stop doing, start doing and continue doing.

In 2019 the Board extended the 
evaluation process and commissioned 
an independent third party. As well 
as the questionnaires, each Board 
member was interviewed regarding the 
Board effectiveness and a report and 
presentation was then made to the Board 
on the findings.

There were no significant issues or 
concerns raised in the report.

DIVERSITY
We operate in a global market and 
recognise the benefits of a diverse and 
talented workforce and consider this a 
key competitive advantage. A diverse 
workforce drives innovation and brings 
a broader range of perspectives which 
allows us to better support our customers 
and their success. 

78

GOVERNANCE

There were no significant issues or 
concerns raised in the report but the 
following items were identified:

•  More focus on medium to long-range 

strategy development

•  Development of the Company’s culture 
to support leadership capability and 
operating excellence

•  Further work on succession planning 

and talent management 

STAGE 1

Directors complete an online 
questionnaire. This utilises 
questions such as whether 
the Directors operate with 
independent judgement

STAGE 2

The results of the questionnaire are 
collated by an external consultant. 
The consultant interviews 
each Director regarding the 
effectiveness of the Board.

STAGE 3

Results of the evaluation are 
summarised by the consultant and 
a report produced for the Board. 
The report is presented to the 
Board and the Board and actions 
for improvement are decided

The Board plays a key role in setting the 
tone of diversity and inclusion and the 
Nomination Committee aims to apply the 
principals of the Group’s diversity policy 
when considering Board appointments. 
The policy states that:

•  The Group is committed to equality of 
opportunity in all of our employment 
practices, procedures and policies; and

•  When we hire or promote someone, 

we choose the best candidate in a non-
discriminative manner.

During FY19, the Committee appointed 
Pauline Lafferty to the Board. Her 
inclusion on the Board diversifies and 
strengthens the Board’s overall skills and 
experience.

Further information on gender diversity, 
including in our broader executive team, 
may be found on page 55.

APPOINTMENTS TO 
THE BOARD 
NOMINATION COMMITTEE

The Nomination Committee consists 
of James Peters (Chair), Terry Twigger, 
Pauline Lafferty and Polly Williams. The 
Committee reviews and considers the 
appointment of new Directors. All Non-
Executive Directors are involved in the 
appointment of proposed candidates. Any 
appointment of a new Director is voted on 
by the whole Board.

The Nomination Committee met twice 
during the year. The attendees were as 
follows:

Date

Attendees

31 July 2019 

4 October 2019

All and Duncan Penny 
(guest)

All and Duncan Penny 
(guest)

The Terms of Reference of the Nomination 
Committee are available in the Corporate 
Governance section of the Company’s 
website www. xppowerplc.com

XP Power Annual Report & Accounts for the year ended 31 December 2019

79
79

CORPORATE GOVERNANCE REPORT CONTINUED

2019 TRAINING
As well as the site visits described above 
and the presentations received by the 
functional leaders of those sites, the Board 
also had a presentation from the head of 
engineering and head of the European 
sales business. Non-Executive Directors 
were able to update and refresh their 
knowledge of the business first-hand 
and interacted with the management 
team and employees helping them gain 
a deeper understanding of the business 
and allowing them to contribute ideas. 
for expanding the Vietnam manufacturing 
facility, respectively.

The Board intends to visit the high voltage 
facility in Highbridge, New Jersey and 
Silicon Valley sales and engineering site 
in 2020.

BOARD INDUCTION  
AND TRAINING
Training and development
Directors receive a full induction on 
joining the Board. The programme is 
tailored to the individual needs of each 
Director.

The Board visited three of the Group’s 
Asian facilities in 2019 and the Bremen 
sales office. This included our Singapore 
design centre and manufacturing 
facilities in China and Vietnam. This visit 
included a number of presentations by 
the function heads of those facilities 
and other functions within the Group. 
Non-Executive Directors were able to 
update and refresh their knowledge of the 
business first-hand and interacted with 
the management team and employees 
helping them gain a deeper understanding 
of the business and allowing them to 
contribute ideas.

All Directors receive a thorough induction 
on joining the Board and are able to 
regularly update and refresh their 
knowledge and skills. An example of a 
Board induction process is outlined below.

8080

STAGE 1

Understanding the business

This will include an overview of the 
structure, history, strategy, Board 
procedures, listing requirements and 
governance

STAGE 2

Meeting the team

Meeting members of the leadership/ 
management team and Executive 
teams.

Meeting external brokers and 
advisers as required

STAGE 3

Visiting sites

Visiting sites to understand the 
operations of the business and 
specific functional areas

STAGE 4

•  Understanding what knowledge 
would be beneficial to enable 
the Board to function more 
effectively

STAGE 5

•  Determining how best to train or 
impart the knowledge required

STAGE 6

•  Implementation by way of 

training or specific site visits with 
presentations from the functional 
areas

GOVERNANCE

FAIR, BALANCED AND UNDERSTANDABLE
In order to ensure our financial and business reporting is fair, balanced and 
understandable, we have followed the process outlined below.

STAGE 1: FAIR

Is the report fair?

Is the whole story presented?

Are the key messages in the narrative reflected in the financial reporting?

STAGE 2: BALANCED

Is there a good level of consistency between the narrative reporting in the 
front and the financial reporting in the back of the report?

Are the statutory and adjusted measures explained clearly with appropriate 

prominence?

STAGE 3: UNDERSTANDABLE

Is there a clear and understandable framework to the report?

Are the important messages highlighted appropriately throughout the 
document?

CONCLUSION

Following its review, XP Power is of the opinion that the 2019 Annual Report 
and Accounts are representative of the year and provide a fair, balanced and 
understandable view

XP Power Annual Report & Accounts for the year ended 31 December 2019

81
81

AUDIT COMMITTEE REPORT

I believe that the Audit Committee has 
the necessary experience, expertise and 
financial understanding, supported by 
the internal and external auditors, to 
fulfil its responsibilities and to continue 
to monitor and contribute to the various 
improvement initiatives. I am delighted 
to welcome Pauline Lafferty to the 
Committee from 3 December 2019.

The Audit Committee is satisfied that 
the Company has maintained adequate 
risk management and internal controls 
throughout the year, and that the internal 
audit programme has been planned and 
sufficiently resourced to confirm this. 

The Audit Committee is pleased to be 
able to confirm that, as requested by the 
Board, it advised the Board that, taken as 
a whole, the Annual Report for 2019 is 
fair, balanced and understandable.

It is anticipated that the external audit 
will be retendered in 2021 after the 
completion of the upgrade of the 
Group’s ERP system. As a result, the 
Audit Committee has recommended to 
the Board that the re-appointment of 
PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP should 
be proposed at the forthcoming Annual 
General Meeting, and I hope that you will 
support me in this resolution.

TERRY TWIGGER
Audit Committee Chair 

3 March 2020

READ ABOUT RISKS ON PAGES 
42 TO 47

DEAR SHAREHOLDER

As Chairman of the XP 
Power Audit Committee, I am 
pleased to present the 2019 
Audit Committee Report to 
Shareholders. I trust that this 
report will provide you with 
an insight into our work, the 
matters handled and the focus 
of the Audit Committee’s 
deliberations during 2019. 

It has been a year of significant change 
and the focus has been on maintaining 
and improving our internal controls, 
embedding the controls into our new 
ERP and Group consolidation system 
and further development of our risk 
management environment. Our internal 
audit programme was focused on 
reviewing the financial and HR controls 
in certain regions, reviewing the 
improvements to the Group’s export 
control procedures and performing a 
post-acquisition assessment of Comdel 
and Glassman. These reviews continue 
to provide insightful perspectives, which 
have led to improvements in processes 
and controls and inform future reviews.

The report aims to provide the following 
information:

•  The Audit Committee’s principal 

responsibilities and its governance.

•  The key activities which were reviewed 
by the Audit Committee, including 
those items of regular annual review 
and other current areas of focus.

•  The discussions and actions 

undertaken, in conjunction with the 
external auditor and internal auditors 
on any significant judgements and/or 
issues.

•  Details of the ongoing review of the 
external auditor and the amount of 
non-audit work undertaken.

TERRY TWIGGER

Audit Committee Chair 

“The focus has been on 
maintaining and improving 
the Group’s internal 
controls and embedding 
the control framework into 
our new ERP and financial 
consolidation software”

82

Deloitte LLP. Other management staff 
were also invited to attend as appropriate. 

The Committee also discussed matters 
with both the external Auditor and internal 
Auditor without the Group’s management 
being present. 

The Audit Committee supports the 
Board and reports to it on a regular basis, 
certainly no less frequently than at every 
Board meeting following a meeting of the 
Audit Committee.

There is an annual cycle of items that are 
considered by the Audit Committee.

The timetable of these items is scheduled 
in accordance with the requirement of 
the annual audit cycle and any other 
requirements of the Audit Committee.

RESPONSIBILITIES OF THE 
AUDIT COMMITTEE
The Committee is responsible for, amongst 
other things:

•  Ensuring that the financial performance 
of the Group is properly reported and 
monitored;

•  Advising the Board on whether it 
believes the Annual Report and 
Accounts, taken as a whole, is fair, 
balanced and understandable;

•  Compliance with legal requirements;

•  Adoption and correct implementation 

of accounting standards;

•  Meeting the requirements of the UK 

Listing Authority;

•  Assessing the Group’s internal control 
processes and assurance framework;

•  Reviewing any instances of fraud or 

whistleblowing;

•  Supervising the relationship and 
performance of the external and 
internal Auditors; and

•  Reviewing the nature and extent of 

audit and non-audit services provided 
to the Group by the external Auditors

The Terms of Reference of the Audit 
Committee are available in the Corporate 
Governance section of the Company’s 
Investor website www.xppowerplc.com.

MEMBERS OF THE AUDIT 
COMMITTEE
Terry Twigger (Chair), Independent Non-
Executive Director

Pauline Lafferty, Independent Non-
Executive Director (appointed 3 December 
2019)

Polly Williams, Independent Non-
Executive Director

GOVERNANCE
The current Audit Committee members 
are all independent Non-Executive 
Directors and have financial and/or related 
business experience gained in senior 
positions in other diverse organisations. 
Terry Twigger has been the Audit 
Committee Chair since 2015 and the 
Board is satisfied that Terry has recent and 
relevant financial experience.

PERFORMANCE 
EVALUATION OF THE AUDIT 
COMMITTEE
During the year, the Audit Committee 
reviewed its performance facilitated by 
an independent third party as part of the 
Board’s updated evaluation process.

The Committee considered it had 
adequate qualifications and skills to 
perform its responsibilities, particularly 
through Terry Twigger’s financial and 
management background and Polly 
Williams’ financial and audit experience, 
although it noted the small size of the 
Committee. This latter point has been 
addressed by the appointment of Pauline 
Lafferty.

MEETINGS OF THE AUDIT 
COMMITTEE
The Audit Committee met five times 
during 2019 with attendance on the dates 
as follows:

Date

14 January 2019

26 February 2019

9 May 2019

29 July 2019

17 December 2019 

Attendees

All 

All

All

All

All

Although not members of the Audit 
Committee, the Chief Executive Officer, 
the Chief Financial Officer and Group 
Financial Controller were involved at 
each of the meetings as were the external 
Auditor, PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP, and 
the outsourced internal audit firm,

ACTIVITIES OF THE AUDIT 
COMMITTEE
In 2019 the Audit Committee’s activities 
included:

•  Examining the 31 December 2018 

Annual Report and the 30 June 2019 
Half Year Report and discussing them 
with management and the external 
Auditor to assess whether the 
reports, taken as a whole, were fair, 
balanced and understandable prior to 
recommending these to the Board for 
approval.

•  Reviewing and challenging areas of 
significant risk and judgement and 
the level of disclosure. Some of these 
are described in “Significant risks and 
judgements in the financial reporting” 
below.

•  Challenging the assumptions and 

analysis produced by management in 
relation to the Group’s going concern 
basis of preparation, the long-term 
viability statement and associated 
risk assumptions, the accounting 
policies and disclosures, the financial 
reporting issues and the assumptions 
and adjustments made, including those 
related to goodwill and capitalised 
product development.

•  Continuing to evolve the Group’s risk 
and compliance framework by guiding 
the outsourced internal Auditor, 
Deloitte LLP, and reviewing the work 
scopes of the target areas within the 
total audit universe.

•  Ongoing review of the development 

and implementation of the Company’s 
new ERP system.

•  Reviewing the findings of the internal 
audit work and the follow-ups of 
reviews done in the previous year.

•  Reviewing the effectiveness of 

the Group’s internal controls and 
disclosures made in the Annual Report 
and Financial Statements.

•  Reviewing the results of the finance 

functions’ peer-to-peer balance sheet 
reviews.

•  Assessing the accounting principles to 
be adopted in the preparation of the 
2019 accounts.

•  Reviewing any material issues of fraud, 

whistleblowing and litigation.

The Audit Committee is satisfied that the 
Company has maintained appropriate 
risk management and internal controls 
throughout the year.

83

XP Power Annual Report & Accounts for the year ended 31 December 2019GOVERNANCEAUDIT COMMITTEE REPORT CONTINUED

SIGNIFICANT RISKS AND 
JUDGEMENTS IN THE 
FINANCIAL REPORTING
In relation to the 31 December 2019 
Annual Financial Statements included 
in this report on pages 113 to 153, the 
Audit Committee considered the following 
topics. It considered these areas to be 
significant, taking into account the level of 
materiality and the degree of judgement 
exercised by management. The Audit 
Committee questioned and challenged the 
judgements and estimates made on each 
of the significant issues detailed below 
and resolved that they were appropriate 
and acceptable.

GOODWILL
The carrying value of goodwill is a 
significant item within the Group’s balance 
sheet and is prone to further increase 
while the Group remains acquisitive. 
Impairment assessments, performed 
annually, require judgements in relation to 
discount rates and future growth forecasts 
to generate discounted cash flows for the 
cash generating units. The Committee 
challenges the appropriateness of 
judgements and forecasts used including 
discount rates and growth rates used by 
management in the Company’s impairment 
calculations. In addition the Committee 
reviews the calculation to ensure that 
sensitivity analysis is performed by 
management which reflects reasonable 
downside scenarios. It also assesses 
the carrying value in the context of the 
Group’s wider net asset value and market 
capitalisation. Given that the impairment 
calculations indicated that there remains 
significant headroom between the value in 
use and the carrying value, the Committee 
was satisfied that there was no indication 
of impairment.

CAPITALISED PRODUCT 
DEVELOPMENT
The Group’s product development activity 
leads to direct costs associated with new 
products being capitalised and amortised 
over the useful life of the products. The 
carrying value of the product development 
costs is rising in line with increased 
product development as the business has 
grown and looks to increase its product 
portfolio. The future success and the 
useful lives of these products require a 
degree of judgement. The Committee 
regularly assesses the revenue streams 
of capitalised products that have been 
released for sale against their carrying 
value. The Committee also reviews a 

84

projection of the estimated future carrying 
values. The Committee was satisfied with 
the judgements used.

DEFERRED TAX ON 
UNREMITTED EARNINGS
The Group does not currently record 
deferred tax on the unremitted earnings 
held in Group subsidiaries. The Committee 
recognises that, where there is no 
intention to repatriate these earnings to 
the parent Company, deferred tax should 
not be provided.

The Committee receives periodic updates 
on the unremitted earnings position, 
including forward projections. The 
Committee determined that there is no 
specific requirement to move earnings 
currently held in subsidiaries.

INVENTORY
The carrying value of the Group’s 
inventory has been a focus for the 
Committee, particularly with the increase 
in Group inventory in 2018 as result of 
the prevailing market conditions. The 
high product mix focus on customer 
fulfilment and the effect of certain 
service level agreements with customers 
are recognised factors in the inventory 
levels. Although Inventory has reduced 
in 2019 as component lead times have 
shortened, exposure to the risk of 
inventory obsolescence remains an area 
of ongoing review and wall-to-wall stock 
counts, witnessed by the external Auditor, 
were performed at all key sites across the 
Group during the year with sample counts 
at the year end and appropriate provisions 
for loss and delinquency were made. 
The Company’s peer-to-peer balance 
sheet reviews and reviews by the Group 
Financial Controller, which are reviewed 
by the Committee, includes testing of the 
provision. The Committee was satisfied 
with the provision.

INTERNAL CONTROL
The Board is ultimately responsible for the 
Group’s system of internal controls and 
the ongoing assessment of these, further 
details of which are included in our Risk 
Management Framework of the Strategic 
Report section on page 42.

INTERNAL AUDIT
As the Group continues to expand in 
scale and complexity, the remit of the 
independent internal audit process by 
Deloitte LLP has also increased. The 
Committee reviewed the risk framework 
to ensure it remains appropriate in 

combination with the Board’s risk 
monitoring process and used it to 
identify areas for risk assurance work 
and internal audits to be carried out. 
In 2019 these included a review of the 
IT General Controls and those around 
the new systems, an assessment of the 
Controls in the Comdel and Glassman 
acquisitions following the integration of 
these businesses, reviews of the financial 
controls in one region and the Human 
Resource controls in another region. 
These reviews indicated a number of areas 
requiring improvements, which are being 
addressed by management. The Group has 
implemented a Controls Self-Assessment 
programme and this was reviewed by 
the Internal Audit team in conjunction 
with one of the regional reviews. The 
recommendations made by the internal 
Auditor are assessed by management and 
addressed within an agreed timeline.

The recommendations and control 
observations from the reviews are rated 
and presented to the Committee for 
comment or further action.

The internal Auditor regularly follows up 
on these actions and keeps the Committee 
informed of progress against the agreed 
timeline.

EXTERNAL AUDIT
The current external Auditor, 
PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP, was 
appointed in 2007. During 2019, the 
audit partner rotated off, having served 
a maximum term of five years. His 
successor, after a period of shadowing his 
predecessor, took over the engagement 
in 2019. 

In line with best practice, as recommended 
by the Financial Reporting Guideline, 
the external audit is anticipated to be 
retendered no later than 2021. This has 
been delayed from previous expected 
timing as the Group is upgrading and 
significantly increasing the scope of its 
ERP system during 2019 and 2020, which 
will improve the embedded controls and 
change the approach to the audit.

The Committee has reported to the 
Board that the re-appointment of 
PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP should 
be proposed at the forthcoming Annual 
General Meeting.

The Audit Committee keeps under 
review the role and independence of 
the external Auditor. A formal statement 
of independence is received each year 
together with a report on the safeguards 
that are in place to maintain their 
independence and the internal measures 
to ensure their objectivity. The Committee 
also discusses with the external Auditor 
areas where they have challenged 
management and how any disagreements 
have been resolved.

The Committee is satisfied that this 
independence has been maintained.

The Committee has formalised its policy 
and approved a set of procedures in 
relation to the appointment of external 
Auditors to undertake audit and non-audit 
work. Under this policy:

•  The award of audit-related services to 
the Auditor in excess of £50,000 must 
first be approved by the Chairman 
of the Audit Committee, who, in his 
decision to approve, will take into 
account the aggregate of audit-
related revenue already earned by 
the Auditor in that year. Audit-related 
services include formalities relating 
to borrowing, Shareholder and other 
circulars, regulatory reports, work 
relating to disposals and acquisitions, 
tax assurance work and advice on 
accounting policies; 

•  The award of tax consulting services 
to the Auditor in excess of £50,000, 
subject to compliance with the EU 
member state restrictions, must first be 
approved by the Chairman of the Audit 
Committee; and

•  The award of other non-audit related 
services to the Auditor in excess of 
£20,000 must first be approved by the 
Chairman of the Audit Committee.

During the year, non-audit fees of £0.1 
million (2018: nil) were paid to the 
Auditor for forensic services following a 
whistleblowing incident in Asia. 

GOVERNANCE

EXTERNAL AUDIT PROCESS 
REVIEW

STAGE 1

An assessment of the lead Audit 
partner and the Audit team

STAGE 2

A review of the Audit approach, 
scale, determination of significant 
risk areas and materiality

STAGE 3

The Execution of the Audit

STAGE 4

Interaction with management and 
the Committee

STAGE 5

The quality of any recommendation 
points

STAGE 6

A review of independence, 
objectivity and scepticism

85

XP Power Annual Report & Accounts for the year ended 31 December 2019REMUNERATION  
COMMITTEE REPORT

(the Regulations) and is split into 
two areas: the Remuneration 
Policy and the Annual Report on 
Remuneration. 

The current Remuneration policy was 
approved by a binding Shareholder vote 
at the 2017 Annual General Meeting and 
the policy took effect from the date on 
which that resolution was passed. The 
policy section is not subject to audit. Our 
proposed policy will be put to Shareholders 
at the 2020 Annual General Meeting in 
accordance with the normal triennial cycle. 
The objectives of the Remuneration Policy 
are set out in the policy section below. 

The Annual Report on Remuneration 
provides details on remuneration in the 
period together with other information 
required by the Regulations. It will be 
subject to an advisory Shareholder vote 
at the 2020 Annual General Meeting. 
The Auditor has reviewed certain parts of 
the Directors’ Remuneration Report and 
is required to report if the information is 
materially inconsistent with the financial 
statements. 

As well as reviewing the Directors’ 
remuneration, the Remuneration 
Committee also keeps under review 
the fixed and variable elements of 
remuneration of the key management 
personnel within the Group to ensure they 
comprise sufficient reward to motivate and 
retain. 

PERFORMANCE AND 
DECISIONS ON 
REMUNERATION TAKEN  
IN 2019
During the year, the Remuneration 
Committee managed executive 
remuneration in line with the current 
policy. 

After three strong years performance by 
the Group in 2016, 2017 and 2018, when 
adjusted pre-tax profits increased by 11%, 
26% and 14%, respectively, the adjusted 
pre-tax profits declined 19% from £41.2 
million in 2018 to £33.2 million in 2019 
which was disappointing. This was largely 
as a result of a cyclical decline in the 
semiconductor manufacturing equipment 
sector and deferral of revenues in North 
America from the fourth quarter of 2019 
into 2020. This deferral was as a result of 
issues related to the implementation of a 
new enterprise resource planning (ERP) 
system in the regional sales companies in 
Asia, Europe and North America during the 
fourth quarter of 2019. The new system is 

now operating satisfactorily, and shipment 
capacity is at normal levels. 

Bonus criteria were set in respect of 
adjusted profit before tax and adjusted 
free cash flow for 2019. The adjusted 
profit before tax threshold was set at £41.2 
million, the amount achieved in 2018. 
On the basis of the profit performance in 
2019, no bonuses were paid to our CEO 
and CFO in respect of adjusted profit 
before tax. However, adjusted free cash 
flow generation was strong in 2019 and 
the Group achieved its adjusted free 
cash flow bonus targets which resulted 
in a bonus of 10.7% of salary payable to 
Executive Directors serving at the end of 
2019. Andy Sng has a bonus metric based 
on the adjusted operating profit achieved 
by the Asia sales organisation. Due to 
the strong performance in Asia, where 
adjusted operating profit increased 30% in 
2019 compared to 2018, Andy received a 
bonus equal to 77.4% of his salary on this 
metric, in addition to the bonus of 10.7% 
based on free cash flow generation. Half of 
any bonus is paid in cash with half paid in 
shares deferred for two years. 

The first tranche of share option awards 
granted in February 2016 vested in respect 
of 79% of that tranche in February 2019. 
No long-term incentive awards were due 
to vest in 2019.

In accordance with the 2017 plan, LTIP 
awards were made during the year to 
Executive Directors and key management. 
Following consultation with Shareholders, 
the Committee increased the threshold 
and maximum earnings per share targets 
in respect of the 2018 and 2019 LTIPs to 
6% and 12% compound annual growth, 
respectively. 

SHAREHOLDER 
CONSULTATION
As detailed in our 2018 annual report, 
following the 2018 AGM at which our 
Remuneration Report was approved by 
90.6% of votes cast, we consulted with 
our larger shareholders in early 2019. This 
resulted in us making some changes in 
respect of the workings of annual bonus 
and increasing the earnings per share 
targets. At our 2019 AGM, the resolution 
to approve the Remuneration Report was 
approved by 97.8% of votes cast. 

NEW PROPOSED 
REMUNERATION POLICY
Our objective is that remuneration 
effectively and fairly supports and 
rewards the successful delivery of strategy 
and reflects shareholder interests and 
concerns. The new policy needs to be 

POLLY WILLIAMS

Remuneration Committee Chair

“Our objective is that 
remuneration effectively 
and fairly supports and 
rewards the successful 
delivery of strategy and 
reflects shareholder 
interests and concerns.”

DEAR SHAREHOLDER

As Chair of the XP Power 
Remuneration Committee, I am 
pleased to present the 2019 
Remuneration Committee 
Report on behalf of the 
Board. It sets out our new 
proposed Remuneration Policy 
for the next three years and 
remuneration details for the 
Executive and Non-Executive 
Directors of the Company in 
respect of 2019. It has been 
prepared in accordance with the 
requirements of The Large and 
Medium-sized Companies and 
Groups (Accounts and Reports) 
(Amendment) Regulations 2013 

86

robust, effective and flexible to cover the 
period up to Spring 2023.

We started considering changes to the 
policy in mid-2019. Our process included 
dialogue with the Executive Directors. 
The Remuneration Committee also 
commissioned a benchmarking report so 
that it could consider XP’s remuneration 
in the light of the levels and structures 
applied by peer UK-quoted companies. 
Whilst we recognise the weaknesses 
of benchmarking in itself, and the 
perception of some shareholders that it is a 
mechanism for salary inflation, it is relevant 
information for the Committee to consider 
in the light of competitive pressures the 
company faces.

We considered how the structure and 
workings of remuneration could be 
aligned to support XP’s business. A 
feature of XP’s business is cyclicality as 
reflected in its financial results in the years 
2016 to 2019. This has and will lead to 
substantial variance in annual bonus and 
LTIP outcomes. Whilst it is intended and 
appropriate that executive remuneration 
be strongly aligned with financial 
performance, having outcomes which are 
so immediately and strongly impacted by 
cyclicality (both positively and negatively) 
could have negative commercial and 
strategic consequences in attracting, 
retaining and motivating executives. 

In the light of data of peer companies, it 
is clear that our executive remuneration 
has been significantly behind that of peer 
companies in terms of salaries, annual 
bonus limits and normal annual long-term 
incentive award levels. 

The Committee also considered the 
significant changes in governance 
guidelines which have been made since 
2017, principally those reflected in the 
Investment Association Principles of 
Remuneration 2019 and the FRC UK 
Corporate Governance Code 2018. 
Reflecting all of these things, we are 
proposing to make a number of changes.

The changes we propose impact the levels 
of remuneration, the type and workings of 
performance conditions attached to both 
annual bonus and long-term incentives, the 
structure of long-term incentives and bring 
the policy into compliance with the latest 
guidelines referred to above.

In taking decisions, we always consider 
the overall position and particularly the 
impact under different economic scenarios. 
For clarity we have separated those 
policy matters which require shareholder 
approval and other changes which we have 
implemented in respect of 2020. 

We consulted on all the proposed changes 
with 16 shareholders representing 61% by 
value of the shareholders and took account 
of feedback received. Further commentary 
on the changes is set out below.

Policy changes
The Company proposes the following 
changes intended to address the issues 
referred to above: 

•  Increase the maximum annual bonus 

opportunity of the CEO from 100% to 
125% of salary (the actual maximum 
bonus opportunity for the CEO will 
remain at 100% of salary for 2020);

•  Increase the normal maximum long-
term incentive award for Executive 
Directors from 100% of salary to 150% 
of salary;

•  As part of the long-term incentive 

award, introduce the ability to make 
awards of restricted shares, without 
performance conditions, to Executive 
Directors up to a maximum annual 
value of 15% of salary.

The Company proposes to introduce the 
following policy changes reflecting current 
governance guidelines:

•  A two-year holding period post vesting 
date for future long-term incentive 
awards made to Executive Directors;

•  Ensure robust malus and clawback 

conditions apply to annual bonus and 
long-term incentives;

•  Ensure that the Committee has 
authority and discretion where 
necessary to override formulae and 
workings to reduce pay outs and 
vesting levels for annual bonus and 
long-term incentives. Thus, ensuring 
pay-outs fully and properly reflect 
overall performance and shareholder 
experience;

•  A post-employment shareholding 

requirement as detailed in the policy 
table below. The key feature is that post 
cessation, Executive Directors must 
hold shares worth 200% of salary for 
first year and 100% for second year. If 
their shareholding is lower than these 
thresholds, they must hold the entire 
value for the two-year period;

•  Align Executive Directors’ pension 

contributions with those offered to all 
XP power employees in their respective 
countries of employment. Unlike many 
other companies, XP Power’s existing 
policy regarding pension contributors 
for Executive Directors has been 
significantly below those offered to our 
other UK employees.

Salary changes
Reflecting on the market data from peer 
companies and taking account of feedback 
from shareholders, the Committee intends 
to increase the salaries of the CEO and 
CFO to the median level over a two-
year period. In line with this intention, 
the salaries of our CEO and CFO will be 
increased from £401,700 to £450,000 and 
from £288,400 to £323,000, respectively, 
effective 1 April 2020. With this increase, 
they remain below the current median 
based on peer data. The Committee 
intends to make another increase in 2021 
to bring the CEO and CFO to the median 
level.

Annual bonus performance 
conditions
The current and proposed new policies 
provide that specific annual bonus targets 
and weightings may vary from year to year 
according to strategic priorities and this 
will continue under the new policy. 

For 2020, 50% of annual bonus will be 
based on adjusted profit before tax, 25% 
on adjusted operating cash flow as a 
percentage of adjusted operating profit 
with 25% based on strategic objectives. 
The introduction of strategic targets in the 
annual bonus ensures focus also remains 
on the big picture, rather than only near-
term financial performance. This reflects 
points made by shareholders in relation to 
meeting strategic objectives.

Half of the annual bonus will be deferred 
for two years and settled in shares, subject 
to continued employment or good leaver 
status. Deferred bonus shares are granted 
at the closing share price prevailing two 
working days following the Company’s 
annual results announcement.

Long-term incentive 
performance conditions and 
award structure

The current and proposed new policies 
provide that specific performance share 
award targets and weightings may vary 
from year to year according to strategic 
priorities and this will continue under the 
new policy. 

For 2020, it is intended that an award of 
performance shares will be made at 100% 
of salary with 67% subject to a cumulative 
EPS target and 33% subject to a relative 
Total Shareholder Return (“TSR”) target.

Subject to shareholder approval, for 2020 
an award of restricted shares will be made 
at 12.5% of salary to each Executive 
Director. 

87

XP Power Annual Report & Accounts for the year ended 31 December 2019GOVERNANCEREMUNERATION  
COMMITTEE REPORT CONTINUED

The significant change to the previous 
year’s performance share award is the 
application of a cumulative three-year EPS 
target, setting a target for total adjusted 
EPS to be earned over a three-year period, 
rather than a simple three-year EPS target. 
This captures total EPS over three years, 
mitigating the short-term impact of the 
cycle, and reduces the influence on the 
target performance of the prior year EPS. 

The award of restricted shares will provide 
long-term alignment with shareholders, 
without the complexities of performance 
conditions. The Committee is conscious 
that having even a small portion of 
restricted shares is unusual but sees it is 
a small but significant mitigation of the 
impact of cyclicality. In the consultation, 
some shareholders expressed strong 
support for restricted shares whilst others 
expressed concerns and indicated they 
were supportive of the overall proposals 
on the basis that the restricted share 
award was set at a modest level. In 
calculating values against the LTIP limit, 
the value of restricted share awards will 
be multiplied by two to reflect that they 
do not have performance conditions 
attached.

Further comments
The Committee is conscious of investor 
concerns about increases in salary 
and other elements of remuneration 
and that taken together the increases 
outlined above represent a significant 
increase in maximum potential executive 
remuneration. The Committee intends 
to take the steps because as it stands, 
executive remuneration is low compared 
to peer companies and it believes 
that failing to take steps in this area 
could restrict the company’s ability to 
retain, motivate and attract high quality 
executives over the period to 2023.

Chairman’s remuneration
The company’s Non-Executive Chairman, 
James Peters, is a former Non-Executive 
and has a material shareholding from 
which he receives a significant dividend. 
The Chairman’s fee, which is currently 
£50,000, has not changed since July 2014. 
The benchmarking work we carried out 
indicated a range of £75,000 to £190,000 
with a median at £145,000. 

The Remuneration Committee determined 
to increase the Chairman’s fee to 
£150,000. Mr Peters has indicated he will 
only take a total fee of £60,000 in line 
with the proposed total fee of the current 
Senior Independent Director (SID) who 
is also Chair of the Audit Committee (see 
details below).

88

Non-Executive remuneration
Non-Executive director remuneration 
is not a matter for the Remuneration 
Committee. However, we have set out 
the changes which were recommended 
by the Chairman and CEO and discussed 
with shareholders. In the light of the peer 
review work carried out, the Chairman 
and CEO proposed that the base Non-
Executive director fee be increased from 
£40,000 to £50,000 with additional fees 
for the roles of SID and chair of the Audit 
and Remuneration committees of £5,000 
per role. Previously, only the SID received 
an additional fee of £5,000. It would 
not be expected that Non-Executive 
remuneration would increase ahead of 
inflation or the UK company-wide salary 
increase during the period of the new 
policy. 

To effect the changes to Chairman 
and Non-Executive remuneration, the 
company is proposing to increase the 
current limit on the total amount of Non-
Executive Director’s fees from £300,000 
to £600,000.

Regulatory changes
In carrying out the remuneration review 
the Committee has considered the various 
changes to the regulatory environment 
and in particular the revised UK Corporate 
Governance Code and the legislation 
requiring companies to make additional 
pay disclosures. The Committee has 
sought to align practice and disclosures to 
the new requirements. This includes:

•  Retaining the existing discretion 

contained in our bonus plans to permit 
the Committee to override formulaic 
outcomes.

•  Clarification of our policy on the 

treatment of vested and unvested 
awards in the event of cessation of 
employment and the introduction of a 
post cessation shareholding policy.

•  A review of the recovery and 

withholding provisions in our incentive 
plans to reflect best practice in this 
area.

We are satisfied that in respect of 
2019 the remuneration policy operated 
as intended in terms of company 
performance and quantum.

In addition, the Committee has ensured 
that the new policy and practices are 
consistent with the six factors set out in 
Provision 40 of the Code:

•  Clarity – the policy is transparent and 

clearly articulated in this report.

•  Simplicity – The Committee believes 
the remuneration structure is market 
standard, simple and well understood. 
We have purposefully avoided any 
complex structures which have 
the potential to deliver unintended 
outcomes.

•  Risk – our Policy and approach to 
target setting seek to discourage 
any inappropriate risk-taking. We 
consider a blend of Shareholder return, 
financial and non-financial objectives 
with stretching targets together with 
strategic goals. The policy contains 
appropriate Remuneration Committee 
discretion to mitigate potential risks. 

•  Predictability – Executives’ incentives 
are subject to individual participation 
caps. An indication of the range of 
outcomes in the packages is provided 
on pages 89 to 91. Deferred bonus and 
LTIP awards provide alignment with the 
share price and their values will depend 
on share price at the time of vesting.

•  Proportionality – there is a clear 
link between individual awards, 
delivery of strategy and our long-term 
performance. The policy contains 
appropriate Remuneration Committee 
discretion to mitigate the risk of 
rewarding poor performance.

•  Alignment of culture – pay and policies 
cascade down the organisation and are 
fully aligned with XP Power culture.

As mentioned above, we have 
undertaken a comprehensive review of 
our Remuneration Policy and hope you 
will support the binding and advisory 
remuneration votes and the resolution to 
approve the new share plan. I would like to 
thank all Shareholders that participated in 
the Shareholder consultation exercise and 
the helpful feedback that has contributed 
to the new policy.

We look forward to your support for the 
Annual Report on Remuneration and 
our proposed Remuneration Policy, the 
Remuneration Committee welcomes any 
further comments from Shareholders with 
respect to our approach to remuneration.

POLLY WILLIAMS
Remuneration Committee Chair

REMUNERATION POLICY

The information in this section of the Directors’ Remuneration Report is not subject to audit.

The objectives of the Remuneration Policy are as follows:

•  To reward employees and Executives appropriately for the work they do (base salary);

•  To provide market competitive remuneration packages to enable retention or recruitment (base salary plus benefits);

•  To incentivise the employees and Executives to perform at their best consistently (bonus/Long-Term Incentive Plan/Restricted 

Share Plan);

•  To align Shareholders’ and senior management’s interests (bonus in shares, Long-Term Incentive Plan/Restricted Share Plan and 

shareholding guidelines); and 

•  To retain key staff (long-term structures with delayed vesting).

The following table provides a summary of the key components of the remuneration package and changes to the prior policy are 
indicated in the table for:

EXECUTIVE DIRECTORS

Component

Purpose

Operation

Opportunity

BASE SALARY

To help recruit, 
retain and 
motivate high 
performing 
Executives.

Reflects the 
individual 
experience, role 
and importance 
of the Executive 
Director to the 
business.

BENEFITS

To help recruit, 
retain and 
motivate high 
performing 
Executives.

To provide market 
competitive 
benefits.

Base salaries are set 
by the Remuneration 
Committee and reviewed 
annually, and increases 
are effective from 1 April, 
although increases may 
be awarded at other 
times if the Remuneration 
Committee considers it 
appropriate.

A market benchmarking 
exercise will be 
undertaken periodically 
as determined by the 
Remuneration Committee 
to ensure that base 
salary remains around 
the median of the 
market level for roles of 
a similar nature and to 
reflect the individual’s 
skills, experience and 
performance.

Base salaries are 
reviewed annually. 
Increases will not 
normally exceed the 
range of increases 
awarded to other 
employees within the 
Group.

The Remuneration 
Committee may also 
increase a Director’s 
salary should there be 
a change in the scope 
of their role, the scale 
or complexity of the 
business or if significant 
changes to market 
practice arise, which the 
Remuneration Committee 
believes justifies a further 
increase in base salary.

Benefits are set by the 
Remuneration Committee 
and reviewed annually.

Benefits currently 
received by the Directors 
include:

The Company provides 
a range of market-
benchmarked benefits. 
The costs of these 
benefits may change 
year-on-year due to 
external costs.

•  Paid holidays

•  Life insurance

•  Private medical cover

•  Housing allowance

•  Car allowance

The Remuneration 
Committee has flexibility 
to provide benefits which 
would typically have been 
available to an Executive 
Director in an overseas 
jurisdiction when 
recruiting from outside of 
the UK.

Applicable performance 
measures

n/a

Recovery

n/a

n/a

n/a

89

XP Power Annual Report & Accounts for the year ended 31 December 2019GOVERNANCEREMUNERATION POLICY CONTINUED

Component

Purpose

Operation

Opportunity

ANNUAL  
BONUSES

Align interests 
of Executive 
Directors and 
Shareholders in 
the short- and 
medium-terms.

Up to 125% of base 
salary for CEO and up to 
100% for CFO (previous 
policy was 100% for both)

The annual bonus 
scheme participation 
levels (including 
maximum opportunities) 
are determined by the 
Remuneration Committee 
following the end of 
the year, based on 
performance achieved 
against the performance 
metrics set. Awards are 
split equally between 
(i) cash and (ii) shares 
vesting after two years, 
subject to continued 
employment or good 
leaver status.

Applicable performance 
measures

Recovery

Specific targets and weightings may vary 
according to strategic priorities and may 
include:

•  Financial performance

•  Attainment of personal and 

strategic objectives

Weighting will focus on Group financial 
performance

The Remuneration 
Committee has the power 
to reduce unpaid annual 
bonuses and clawback 
bonuses already paid on a 
net basis in circumstances 
set out below this table.

SHARE OPTION 
PLAN

Align the 
interests of 
Executive 
Directors and 
Shareholders in 
the long-term.

Incentives 
long-term value 
creation.

Prior to the adoption of 
the XP Power Long-Term 
Incentive Plan, market 
value share options were 
granted with 50% options 
vesting after three years 
from date of grant and 
50% options vesting after 
four years.

No further options are 
intended to be granted to 
Executive Directors.

Vesting of outstanding options is based 
on total Shareholders’ return relative to 
the FTSE 350 Electronic and Electrical 
Equipment Sector. Top 20th percentile: 
100% vest. Between median and top 
20th percentile: vest on a straight-line 
basis between 25% and 100%. Below 
median: zero vest.

PENSIONS

Provide a basic 
pension benefit 
that would be 
expected for the 
position.

Percentage of base 
salary paid into a defined 
contribution scheme.

n/a

In line with pension 
benefits offered to the 
XP Power workforce in 
the relevant geography 
which is currently 8% in 
the UK. (Previous policy 
was 2-3% depending on 
geography).

The Remuneration 
Committee has the 
discretion to claw back 
unvested options or 
require the return of 
the net value of vested 
options in circumstances 
of material financial 
misstatement, a major 
environmental event or a 
breach of the Company’s 
code of ethics or a 
serious health and safety 
issue.

There are no provisions 
for recovery of pension 
payments contributions.

SHAREHOLDING 
(MINIMUM)

Align the 
interests of 
Executive 
Directors and 
Shareholders in 
the long-term.

To build a minimum 
shareholding equivalent 
to two years’ salary. 
Directors have a period 
of five years to achieve 
this.

n/a

n/a

n/a

90

Component

Purpose

Operation

Opportunity

Applicable performance 
measures

Recovery

LONG-TERM 
INCENTIVE 
PLAN (LTIP)

Align the 
interests of 
Executive 
Directors and 
Shareholders in 
the long-term.

Incentivises 
long-term value 
creation.

The normal maximum 
award level under the 
LTIP is 150% (previous 
policy was 100%) of 
base salary or such 
higher amount as the 
Remuneration Committee 
in its absolute discretion 
may determine, up 
to a maximum of 
200% of base salary. 
The 200% cap is 
restricted to exceptional 
circumstances only.

The XP Power Long-Term 
Incentive Plan was 
approved at the 2017 
Annual General Meeting. 
This replaced the 
Company’s share option 
scheme for awards to 
Executive Directors.

LTIP awards may be made 
in the form of conditional 
share awards, nil or 
nominal cost. The LTIP 
also provides for awards 
to be structured as stock 
appreciation or phantom 
rights, which may be 
suitable for awards 
granted in overseas 
jurisdictions.

Performance is typically 
measured over three 
financial years starting 
with the year of 
date of grant, or any 
longer period as the 
Remuneration Committee 
may decide.

An award will be 
distributed two years 
after vesting. (Previous 
policy was 50% after 
measurement of 
performance vesting, 
with the remaining  
50% distributed after a 
period of one year).

Amounts equivalent 
to any dividends or 
Shareholder distributions 
made in respect of 
awards at vesting, are 
paid at the discretion 
of the Remuneration 
Committee. 

RESTRICTED 
SHARE PLAN 
2020 (RSP)

Align the 
interests of 
Executive 
Directors and 
Shareholders in 
the long-term.

Awards may be granted 
as restricted shares 
without performance 
conditions under the 
2020 Restricted Share 
Plan.

Incentivises 
long-term value 
creation.

Restricted share awards 
normally vest five years 
from the date of award.

Up to a maximum of 
15% of base salary 
may be granted as 
restricted shares without 
performance conditions.

In calculating value 
against 150% of salary 
LTIP limit, the value of 
restricted share awards 
will be multiplied by two 
to reflect that they do 
not have performance 
conditions attached.

In respect of performance shares, it is the 
Remuneration Committee’s intention to 
set relative TSR targets for 33% of the 
award and absolute EPS growth targets 
for 67%. (previous intention 50%: 50%) 
Restricted shares will not have perfor-
mance conditions (previous policy did 
not include restricted shares) although 
the Remuneration Committee will set 
appropriate performance conditions and 
weightings each year prior to awards 
being made.

On a change of control of the Company 
during the performance measurement 
period the Remuneration Committee 
has the discretion to determine the 
number of shares vesting by assessing 
the achievement of the performance 
conditions and apply a pro-rata reduction 
based on the proportion of the perfor-
mance period elapsed at the time of the 
event, unless it determines a pro-rata 
reduction is not appropriate and applies a 
higher amount.

Early vesting of performance awards 
may occur where a participant ceases 
employment for good leaver reasons. The 
Remuneration Committee has the discre-
tion to determine the number of shares 
vesting by assessing the achievement of 
the performance conditions and applying 
a pro-rata reduction to the number of 
shares vesting based on the proportion 
of the performance period the participant 
was employed, unless the Remuneration 
Committee determines the reduction is 
not appropriate. Shares will vest at the 
end of the two-year holding period or 
such earlier date as the Remuneration 
Committee determines. Participants who 
leave after the measurement of perfor-
mance shall be entitled to receive their 
vested shares at the end of the two-year 
holding period, or such earlier date as the 
Remuneration Committee determines. 

Restricted shares will not have  perfor-
mance conditions (previous policy did 
not include restricted shares). Where a 
participant ceases to be an employee for 
good leaver reasons during the first three 
years of the restricted share period, the 
number of shares vesting will be subject 
to a pro-rata reduction by reference 
to period of time elapsed between the 
award date and the date of cessation. 
The Remuneration Committee has the 
discretion to permit acceleration of 
vesting and to disapply pro-rating. Where 
participants cease employment after the 
first three years of the restricted period 
no pro-rating will apply, but awards will 
vest on the fifth anniversary of the grant 
of the award unless the Remuneration 
Committee exercises its discretion to 
permit earlier vesting.

On a change of control of the Company 
the Remuneration Committee shall 
determine the number of restricted 
shares vesting taking into account the 
time that has elapsed since the grant of 
the award and any factors it considers to 
be relevant.  

The Remuneration 
Committee has the 
discretion to claw back 
some or all of the awards 
granted under the LTIP 
by reducing unvested 
awards or requiring 
the return of the net 
value of vested awards 
to the Company in 
circumstances set out 
below this table.

The Remuneration 
Committee has the 
discretion to claw back 
some or all of the awards 
granted under the LTIP 
by reducing unvested 
awards or requiring 
the return of the net 
value of vested awards 
to the Company in 
circumstances set out 
below this table.

91

XP Power Annual Report & Accounts for the year ended 31 December 2019GOVERNANCEREMUNERATION POLICY CONTINUED

Recovery

n/a

Component

Purpose

Operation

Opportunity

Applicable performance 
measures

n/a

n/a

POST 
EMPLOYMENT 
SHAREHOLDING

Align the 
interests of 
Executive 
Directors and 
Shareholders in 
the long-term.

Post cessation executives 
must hold shares 200% 
of salary for the first 
year and 100% of salary 
for the second year or, 
if their holding is lower 
than this at cessation, the 
value of their holding at 
the point of cessation.

Shares which have been 
or are in future purchased 
by executives will not be 
subject to restrictions 
on sale.

Deferred bonus shares in 
their deferral period and 
vested LTIP awards which 
are still in their holding 
period will be counted 
against the percentage 
requirement on a net of 
tax basis

The performance targets above were chosen as they are considered suitable for aligning the interests of the Executives with those of 
Shareholders.

MALUS AND CLAWBACK
Annual bonus documentation, the 
LTIP and RSP, subject to shareholder 
approval, will contain provisions to give 
the Committee the ability to apply malus 
and clawback provisions. These allow the 
Committee to determine, in its absolute 
discretion, that an unvested award or 
bonus award (or part of an award) may not 
be permitted to vest or that the level of 
vesting is reduced in certain circumstances 
or payment back of some or all of an 
award is required after vesting. 

Where the Committee acting fairly and 
reasonably determines within a period 
not exceeding three years from the 
determination of an award that:

•  a serious breach of the Company’s 

code of ethics has arisen; or

•  a serious health and safety issue has 

occurred; or

•  the award holder has participated in 

or was responsible for conduct which 
has resulted in significant losses to the 
Group; or

•  the award holder has failed to meet 
appropriate standards of fitness 
and propriety resulting in a material 
negative effect on the Group; or

•  the award holder has committed 

material wrongdoing or has breached 
the terms of their employment contract 
in such manner as would result in a 
potentially fair reason for dismissal; or

•  there was a material error in 

determining whether an award should 
be made, in determining the size or 
nature of the award or the extent to 
which it has vested, it may require any 
unvested awards held by the award 
holder to lapse in whole or in part 
immediately, and/or may require the 
award holder to repay to the Company 
the after-tax value of some or all of 
the vested awards received during 
that period, in such form as they may 
determine.

Malus and clawback will continue to apply 
to any awards held by leavers and those 
vesting in connection with corporate 
events/changes in control.

The Committee has the right to apply 
the ‘malus’ provision to an individual or 
on a collective basis. It shall also (acting 
reasonably and in good faith) determine 
the amount or award subject to clawback.

USE OF DISCRETION
The Company’s incentive plans including 
the annual bonus scheme, share option 
scheme, LTIP and RSP will be operated 
within the rules of the relevant scheme, 
together with all applicable laws and 
regulations. The Remuneration Committee 
may operate the discretion contained in 
the relevant plan in order to facilitate its 
administration and operation. Discretion 
includes (but is not limited to) who is 
invited to participate or receive awards, 
the size and timing of awards or payments, 
the setting of appropriate performance 
measures and targets for annual bonuses 
and incentive schemes from year to year 
and any adjustment of these to take 
account of market conditions, the annual 
review of performance against targets 
for the determination of bonuses and 
awards, the determination of vesting and 
performance periods and the treatment of 
leavers, and discretion when dealing with 
adjustments in respect of corporate events 
(such as changes in control, rights issues, 
de-mergers, acquisitions etc).

Annual bonus documentation and the 
LTIP, subject to shareholder approval, will 
contain provisions to give the Committee 
the ability to apply discretion to adjust 
any formulae and workings to reduce 
vesting levels to ensure pay-outs fully and 
properly reflect overall performance and 
shareholder experience and in response to 
exceptional negative events.

92

NON-EXECUTIVE DIRECTORS

Component

Purpose

Operation

Opportunity

FEES

Fees are set at a level 
which is sufficient to 
attract, motivate and 
retain quality Non-
Executive Directors.

The total amount 
of Non-Executive 
Directors’ fees shall 
not exceed £600,000. 
(Previous policy was 
£300,000). 

Fees are reviewed 
periodically. The Board 
(excluding the Non-
Executive Directors) is 
responsible for setting 
Non-Executive Directors’ 
fees.

Non-Executive Directors 
are not entitled to 
participate in the Group’s 
incentive plans.

APPROACH TO EXECUTIVE 
RECRUITMENT
In the event of the recruitment of a new 
Executive Director, the Remuneration 
Committee would take into consideration 
the structure and levels of the 
remuneration for existing Directors 
and prevailing market together with 
the skills and value it believed the new 
Director would bring to the Company. It is 
therefore expected that a new Director’s 
package would include the same elements 
as existing Directors and the maximum 
level of variable remuneration for annual 
bonus and LTIP would also be capped as it 
is for existing Executive Directors. 

In addition, the Remuneration Committee 
will have discretion to make payments or 
awards to buy out incentive arrangements 
forfeited on leaving a previous employer, 
i.e. over and above the approach outlined 
in the table above, and may exercise the 
discretion available under Listing Rule 
9.4.2R if necessary to do so. In doing so, 
the Remuneration Committee will seek, 
to the best possible extent, to do no more 
than match the fair value of the awards 
forfeited, taking account of the applicable 
performance conditions, the likelihood 
of those conditions being met and the 
proportion of the applicable vesting period 
remaining. 

Where an Executive Director appointment 
is an internal candidate, the Remuneration 
Committee will honour any pre-existing 
remuneration obligations or outstanding 
variable pay arrangements that relate to 
the individual’s previous role.

The Remuneration Committee retains 
the discretion to offer appropriate 
remuneration outside the standard policy 
where an interim appointment is made 
to fill an Executive role on a short-term 
basis or where exceptional circumstances 
require that the Chairman or a Non-
Executive Director takes on an Executive 
function.

EXECUTIVE DIRECTORS’ 
CONTRACTS
The Executive Directors’ contracts run for 
an indefinite period, with the Company 
being able to terminate the contracts 
without cause giving 12 months’ notice. 
When a Director is terminated without 
cause, the Director is entitled to a 
termination payment of 12 months of 
basic pay. Directors’ service contracts 
are available for inspection at the Annual 
General Meeting of the Company. 
Directors are able to terminate the 
contracts giving 12 months’ notice.

Applicable 
performance 
measures

n/a

Recovery

n/a

NON-EXECUTIVE 
DIRECTORS’ CONTRACTS
The Non-Executive Directors’ contracts 
run for an indefinite period, with the 
Company being able to terminate the 
contracts without cause giving 12 
months’ notice. If the Shareholders do 
not re-elect a Non-Executive Director, 
or they are retired from office under the 
Articles, their appointment terminates 
automatically, with immediate effect and 
without compensation. In accordance with 
the Code Non-Executive Directors will 
not serve more than nine years. Non-
Executive Directors are not entitled to 
share option awards, long-term incentive 
plans or pensions.

SHAREHOLDER 
CONSULTATION
The Remuneration Committee’s policy 
is to consult with major Shareholders 
in respect of significant decisions on 
Executive remuneration. 

STATEMENT OF 
CONSIDERATION OF 
EMPLOYMENT CONDITIONS 
ELSEWHERE IN THE 
COMPANY 
Pay and conditions throughout the Group 
are taken into consideration when setting 
remuneration policy. The Remuneration 
Committee does not consult other 
employees when setting Executive 
Director remuneration.

93

XP Power Annual Report & Accounts for the year ended 31 December 2019GOVERNANCEREMUNERATION POLICY CONTINUED

ILLUSTRATION OF THE APPLICATION OF THE REMUNERATION POLICY
The charts below give an indication of the level of remuneration that would be received by each Executive Director in accordance with 
the new proposed Directors’ remuneration policy (excluding share price movement).

CHIEF EXECUTIVE OFFICER  
Duncan Penny

,

6
5
9
8
8
4
£

,

0
5
2
6
5
£

CHIEF FINANCIAL OFFICER 
Gavin Griggs

,

8
9
7
0
7
3
£

,

5
7
3
0
4
£

Minimum

Minimum

Minimum

90%

10%

,

6
5
9
8
8
4
£

0
5
2
6
5
£

,

,

0
0
0
5
2
2
£

,

0
0
0
5
2
2
£

90%

10%

,

8
9
7
0
7
3
£

5
7
3
0
4
£

,

,

0
0
5
1
6
1
£

,

0
0
5
1
6
1
£

EXECUTIVE VICE PRESIDENT, ASIA 
Andy Sng

,

5
7
4
9
9
1
£

92%

,

5
7
4
9
9
1
£

,

8
1
4
8
1
£

8%

,

8
1
4
8
1
£

,

4
7
6
3
7
£

,

0
0
0
0
5
£

On target

On target

On target

49%

5%

23%

23%

51%

5%

22%

22%

58%

5%

22%

15%

,

6
5
9
8
8
4
£

0
5
2
6
5
£

,

,

0
0
0
0
5
4
£

,

0
0
0
0
5
4
£

,

8
9
7
0
7
3
£

5
7
3
0
4
£

,

,

0
0
0
3
2
3
£

,

0
0
0
3
2
3
£

,

5
7
4
9
9
1
£

,

8
1
4
8
1
£

,

7
4
3
7
4
1
£

,

0
0
0
0
0
1
£

Maximum

Maximum

Maximum

34%

4%

31%

31%

35%

3%

31%

31%

43%

4%

32%

21%

,

6
5
9
8
8
4
£

5
7
3
4
8
£

,

,

0
0
0
0
5
4
£

,

0
0
0
5
7
6
£

,

8
9
7
0
7
3
£

3
6
5
0
6
£

,

,

0
0
0
3
2
3
£

,

0
0
5
4
8
4
£

,

5
7
4
9
9
1
£

8
2
6
7
2
£

,

,

7
4
3
7
4
1
£

,

0
0
0
0
5
1
£

Maximum
(with 50% 
LTIP appr)

Maximum
(with 50% 
LTIP appr)

Maximum
(with 50% 
LTIP appr)

29%

5%

26%

40%

30%

5%

26%

39%

38%

5%

28%

29%

Fixed (£)

RSU

Annual variable (£) 

LTIP

The charts provide estimates of the 
potential future reward opportunities for 
each Executive Director, and the potential 
split between the different elements 
of remuneration under three different 
performance scenarios: “Minimum”; “On 
target”; and “Maximum”.

The “On target” scenario has been 
calculated based on the 2020 approved 
budget and threshold vesting of normal 
LTIP/RSP awards.

The “Maximum” scenario has been 
calculated assuming that the Directors 
achieve the maximum allowed variable 
bonus which for 2020 is capped at 
100% of their respective base salaries 
and maximum vesting of normal LTIP/
RSP awards under the plan. In order for 
Directors to achieve the maximum bonus, 
adjusted profit before tax would have to 
reach the maximum target which will be 
set out in the 2020 Annual Report.

The fixed element of remuneration 
includes base salary, benefits-in-kind 
and pension contributions. The benefits-
in-kind are measured according to their 
taxable value as follows:

Position

Chief Executive Officer

Chief Financial Officer 

Name

Duncan Penny

Gavin Griggs

Executive Vice President, Asia

Andy Sng

Base salary

£450,000

£323,000

S$265,225

Benefits

£2,956

£21,958

S$76,663

Pension

Total fixed pay

£36,000

£25,840

£488,956

£370,798

S$17,167

S$359,055

94

 
 
REMUNERATION REPORT
ANNUAL REPORT

GOVERNANCE

RESPONSIBILITIES OF 
THE REMUNERATION 
COMMITTEE
Executive remuneration packages are 
prudently designed to attract, motivate 
and retain Directors of the high calibre 
needed to maintain the Group’s position 
and to reward them for enhancing 
Shareholder value. It is the responsibility 
of the Remuneration Committee to 
consider the experience and value the 
individual Directors contribute to the 
Group; measure the performance of the 
Executive Directors and key members of 
senior management and determine their 
annual remuneration package.

MEMBERS OF THE 
REMUNERATION 
COMMITTEE
Polly Williams (Chair), Independent Non-
Executive Director

Pauline Lafferty, Independent Non-
Executive Director (appointed 3 December 
2019)

Terry Twigger, Independent Non-Executive 
Director

MEETINGS OF THE 
REMUNERATION 
COMMITTEE
The Remuneration Committee met four 
times during 2019 with attendance on the 
dates as follows:

Date

14 January 2019

1 March 2019

31 July 2019

2 December 2019

Attendees

All

All

All

All

PERFORMANCE 
EVALUATION OF THE 
REMUNERATION 
COMMITTEE
During the year, the Remuneration 
Committee reviewed its performance as 
part of the Board’s evaluation process. The 
Remuneration Committee considered it had 
adequate skills and experience to perform 
its responsibilities and, where considered 
appropriate, employs the services of 
outside remuneration consultants. The 
Remuneration Committee used advisory 
services as outlined on page 102. 

REMUNERATION FOR THE 
EXECUTIVE DIRECTORS
There are five main elements of the 
remuneration package for Executive 
Directors and senior management:

•  Basic annual salary;

•  Benefits-in-kind;

•  Pension arrangements;

•  Annual bonus; and

•  Long-term share incentives.

The Company’s policy is that a significant 
proportion of the remuneration of 
the Executive Directors should be 
performance related. As described below, 
Executive Directors may earn an annual 
bonus together with the long-term 
benefits of participation in share award 
schemes.

The Remuneration Committee makes 
recommendations to the Board. No 
Director plays a part in any discussion 
regarding his or her own remuneration.

BASIC SALARY
Directors’ basic salaries are reviewed by 
the Remuneration Committee each year 
and when an individual changes position 
or responsibility.

The basic salaries of our CEO and CFO 
from 1 April 2019 were £401,700 and 
£288,400 respectively.

BENEFITS-IN-KIND
The Executive Directors receive certain 
benefits-in-kind, principally life assurance 
and private medical insurance. In addition, 
Gavin Griggs receives a car allowance and 
Andy Sng receives a housing allowance 
relating to his relocation to Shanghai 
where he spends approximately half his 
time.

PENSION ARRANGEMENTS
In the UK, the Group operates a 
“Stakeholder Pension Scheme” and 
contributes 4% of base salary into this 
scheme on behalf of the participants 
including Executive Directors. 

In Singapore, the Group contributes to the 
Central Provident Fund “CPF” in line with 
local statutory requirements. The Group 
matches the participants’ contribution to 
this plan, including Executive Directors, up 
to 6% of the Director’s salary and bonus.

95

XP Power Annual Report & Accounts for the year ended 31 December 2019In line with the Remuneration Policy, 50% 
of annual bonuses will be paid in cash 
and the remaining 50% will be awarded 
in shares vesting over two years from 
31 December 2019. The details of each 
Executive Director are shown in the 
table on page 99. Deferred bonus shares 
are granted at the closing share price 
prevailing two working days following the 
Company’s annual results announcement.

LONG-TERM SHARE 
INCENTIVES
Details of all outstanding long-term 
incentive awards and deferred bonus 
awards held by Executive Directors are 
laid out later in this report. Details of the 
terms and performance conditions applied 
to each round of awards are set out below.

LONG-TERM INCENTIVE 
PLAN (LTIP)
LTIP awards may be made in the form of 
conditional share awards, nil or nominal 
cost or deferred cash. The LTIP will also 
provide for awards to be structured as 
stock appreciation or phantom rights, 
which may be suitable for awards granted 
in overseas jurisdictions.

The vesting of these awards depends on 
two separate performance conditions over 
a three-year period as outlined below. 
50% of the award will vest three years 
after the grant date with the remaining 
50% vesting 12 months later. Vesting at 
threshold performance levels is 25% of 
the maximum.

Fifty percent of 2017 and 2018 awards 
and two thirds of 2019 award will vest 
dependent upon compound annual growth 
rates of adjusted Earnings Per Share (EPS) 
over a three-year period.

REMUNERATION REPORT
ANNUAL REPORT CONTINUED

ANNUAL BONUSES
The Remuneration Committee establishes the profit thresholds that must be met for 
each financial year before a cash or share bonus is to be paid. Account is also taken of the 
relative success of the different parts of the business for which the Executive Directors 
are responsible.

2019 performance targets for Executive Directors other than Andy Sng

Target

Weighting

Threshold 

Target Stretch/max

Adjusted profit before tax

Adjusted Free cash flow*

80%

20%

£41.2m

£25.9m

£42.9m

£28.0m

£44.7m

£30.0m

Actual

£33.2m

£28.1m

Percentage of salary for Executive Directors at different levels of performance
Executive Director

Duncan Penny

Gavin Griggs 

£401,700

£288,400

Mike Laver (retired from 
the Board 16 April 2019) US$339,900

25%

25%

20%

50%

50%

40%

100%

100%

10.7%

10.7%

75%

3%

* Adjusted for £1.9 million of legal fees included in specific items.

80% of the 2019 annual bonus for Duncan Penny, Gavin Griggs and Mike Laver was 
based on the Group’s adjusted profit before tax. The threshold for bonuses to start was 
£41.2 million, which was the adjusted profit before tax achieved in 2018. On-target 
performance set at £42.9 million, 4% ahead of adjusted profit before tax achieved in 
2018. The bonus was structured on a linear pro rata basis.

The threshold adjusted profit before tax was not met in 2019 so no bonuses were paid 
based in respect of this part of the bonus plan.

20% of the 2019 annual bonus for Duncan Penny, Gavin Griggs and Mike Laver was 
on the free cash flow. The threshold for bonuses to start was £25.9 million. On-target 
performance was set at £28.0 million. The bonus was structured on a linear pro rata 
basis.

Adjusted free cash flow of £28.1 million was achieved which resulted in a bonus of 
10.7%. The bonus in respect of Mike Laver has been pro-rated basis on the period he 
served on the Board.

2019 performance target for Andy Sng – Executive Vice President, Asia

Target

Weighting

Threshold 

Target Stretch/max

Actual

Asia adjusted operating 
profit

Adjusted Free cash flow*

80%

20%

US$6.5m

US$7.5m

US$8.5m

US$8.4m

£25.9m

£28.0m

£30.0m

£28.1m

Percentage of salary paid for Andy Sng at different levels of performance
Andy Sng

£147,838

50%

25%

100%

88.1%

* Adjusted for £1.9 million of legal fees included in specific items.

80% of the 2019 annual bonus for Andy Sng was based on the Asia adjusted profit before 
tax. The threshold for the bonus to start was US$6.5 million, which was the Asia adjusted 
profit before tax achieved in 2018. On-target performance set at US$7.5 million, 15% 
ahead of adjusted profit before tax achieved in 2018. The bonus was structured on a 
linear pro rata basis.

The Asia adjusted profit before tax grew 30% over that achieved in 2018 and therefore 
Andy Sng achieved a bonus based on Asia adjusted operating profit of 77.4%. 

20% of the 2019 annual bonus for Andy Sng was based on adjusted free cash flow. The 
threshold for bonuses to start was £25.9 million. On-target performance was set at £28.0 
million. The bonus was structured on a linear pro rata basis.

Adjusted free cash flow of £28.1 million was achieved which resulted in a bonus of 10.7%.

96

Adjusted EPS performance  
2017 award
10% compound annual growth
5% compound annual growth
Below 5% compound  
annual growth

Adjusted EPS performance  
2018 and 2019 awards
12% compound annual growth
6% compound annual growth
Below 6% compound  
annual growth

Vesting
100%
25%
No vesting

Vesting between the adjusted EPS targets will be measured on a straight-line basis.

Fifty percent of 2017 and 2018 awards and a third of 2019 award will vest dependent 
upon the achievement of the Company’s Total Shareholder Return (“TSR”) measured 
against that of the FTSE 250 over the same three-year period.

TSR performance

75th percentile (2017 and 2018 award) / 80th percentile (2019 award)

Median (50th percentile)

Below the median

Vesting

100%

25%

No vesting

Vesting between the median and the 80th percentile will be measured on a straight-line 
basis.

On 8 March 2019, 123,747 nominal-priced options were awarded under this plan and 
with the performance condition specified above, including to Executive Directors. The 
performance period for the EPS and TSR condition is measured from 1 January 2019 to 
31 December 2021.

SHARE OPTION PLANS
The Group operated The XP Power Share Option Plan (the “Plan”) as approved by the 
Shareholders on 2 April 2012. This Plan allowed the Company to grant options up to 
1,924,229 shares, representing 10% of the issued share capital at the time the Plan was 
set up.

The first 50% of the share options granted 
in February 2016 under this plan were 
due to vest in February 2019 with the 
remaining 50% tranche due to vest in 
February 2020. Vesting of these options 
is based on TSR relative to the FTSE 
350 Electronic and Electrical Equipment 
Sector.

Based on the achievement of the 
performance condition to February 
2019, 79% of this tranche of the award 
vested corresponding to 19,900 shares 
for Duncan Penny, 9,950 shares for Mike 
Laver and 3,980 shares for Andy Sng.

Following approval of the 2017 LTIP, no 
further options are intended to be granted 
to Executive Directors under this Plan.

The detail of historic Share Option Plan 
awards by Executive Director is shown in 
the table on page 100.

The chart below shows the total 
shareholder return for XP Power rebased 
against that of the FTSE250 over the 
performance period of the 2017 LTIP.

r
e
w
o
P
P
X
o
t
d
e
s
a
b
e
r
n
r
u
t
e
R

l

a
t
o
T

230.00

210.00

190.00

170.00

150.00

130.00

110.00

90.00

70.00

50.00

December-16

June-17

December-17

June-18

December-18

June-19

December-19

XP Power

FTSE 250 

97

XP Power Annual Report & Accounts for the year ended 31 December 2019GOVERNANCE 
 
 
 
 
REMUNERATION REPORT
ANNUAL REPORT CONTINUED

CHIEF EXECUTIVE OFFICER REMUNERATION
The table below sets out the details of the Director undertaking the role of Chief Executive Officer.

£ Thousands

Base salary

Pension

Benefits

Annual bonus 

Total CEO remuneration

2013

2014

2015

2016

2017

2018

2019

260

260

260

260

260

390

399

8

8

8

8

8

14

15

3

3

3

3

3

4

4

-

-

39

71

260

276

43

271

271

310

342

531

684

461

The table below shows the percentage change in remuneration of the Director undertaking the role of Chief Executive Officer and the 
Company’s employees as a whole in 2019.

Percentage increase in remuneration in 2019 
compared with 2018

Base salary

All taxable benefits

Annual bonus

Total

CEO

2%

6%

(84%)

(33%)

Chosen employee group Note 1

4%

10%

(64%)

6%

Note 1 - The chosen employee group for this comparison excludes Chinese and Vietnamese employees where there has been significant salary inflation.

The ratio of remuneration of the Chief Executive Officer to the average employee of the entire Group (excluding China and Vietnam) 
over the last five years was as follows:

Chief Executive remuneration (£‘000)

Average employee remuneration (£‘000)

Ratio

2015

310

52

6:1

2016

342

64

5:1

2017

531

66

8:1

2018

684

69

10:1

2019

461

73

6:1

The UK government has now introduced legislation requiring companies to publish the ratio of their Chief Executive to that of the 
median, 25th and 75th percentile total remuneration of full-time equivalent employees. The table below shows the ratio of the pay of 
the Chief Executive Officer to that of the UK lower quartile, median and upper quartile employees in 2019.

Year

2019

25th percentile pay ratio

Median pay ratio

75th percentile pay ratio

16:1

10:1

6:1

All Non-Executive Directors have specific terms of engagement and their remuneration is determined by the Board within the limits set 
by the Articles of Association. The annual fee for each Non-Executive Director is set out below:

Non-Executive

James Peters

Pauline Lafferty  
(appointed 3 December 2019)

Terry Twigger

Polly Williams

Fee

£50,000

£40,000

£45,000

£40,000

Date of last review

Effective date of last change

25 November 2016

25 July 2014

3 December 2019

25 November 2016

25 November 2016

3 December 2019

1 March 2016

1 January 2016

James Peters is the Chairman of the Board. Terry Twigger is the Senior Independent Non-Executive Director.

AGGREGATE DIRECTORS’ REMUNERATION

The total amounts for Directors’ remuneration were as follows:

£

Basic salaries 
Benefits-in-kind 
Annual bonus
Money purchase pension contributions 
Non-Executive Director fees
Total remuneration 

98

2019

907,549

80,656

212,368

40,266

140,757

2018

1,053,893

113,665

655,632

39,662

177,595

1,381,596

2,040,447

DIRECTORS’ REMUNERATION FOR 2019

Name of Director

£

Executive
Duncan Penny

Gavin Griggs

Mike Laver (retired from the Board 16 April 2019)

Andy Sng

Non-Executive

James Peters

Terry Twigger

Polly Williams

Pauline Lafferty (appointed 3 December 2019)

Salary and fees 

Annual bonus

Value of vested 
share awards

Pension

Benefits

2019 Total

398,775

286,300

75,713

146,761

50,000

45,000

40,000

3,333

43,109

30,950

8,015

130,295

–

–

–

–

15,600

11,683

3,028

9,955

3,717

23,007

11,856

42,075

461,201

351,941

98,612

329,084

–

–

–

–

–

–

–

–

2,424

52,424

–

–

–

45,000

40,000

3,333

DIRECTORS’ REMUNERATION FOR 2018

Name of Director

£

Executive
Duncan Penny

Gavin Griggs

Mike Laver (retired from the Board 16 April 2019)

Andy Sng

Non-Executive

James Peters

Terry Twigger

Polly Williams

Peter Bucher (resigned on 31 December 2018)

Salary and fees 

Annual bonus

Value of vested 
share awards

Pension

Benefits

2018 Total 

390,000

280,000

245,618

138,275

50,000

45,000

40,000

40,000

276,237

198,324

117,700

63,371

–

–

–

–

13,650

10,801

6,140

9,071

4,189

23,180

33,167

53,129

684,076

512,305

402,625

263,846

-

-

-

-

-

-

-

-

2,595

52,595

-

-

-

45,000

40,000

40,000

In the year under review, the base salary of the CEO, Duncan Penny, the CFO, Gavin Griggs and Andy Sng, Executive Vice President, 
Asia were increased as described on page 101. For all other staff (excluding Chinese and Vietnamese manufacturing staff) the average 
increase was approximately 3%.

DIRECTORS’ INTERESTS IN ORDINARY SHARES OF XP POWER LIMITED
The Directors’ interests shown below do not include deferred bonus shares.

Executive 
Duncan Penny
Andy Sng

Non-Executive 
James Peters

At 
31 December 
2019

At 
1 January 
2019

206,990

24,000

206,990

24,000

 1,529,279

1,529,279

Executive Directors have a period of five years from 1 April 2016 (the date of approval) or from when they join the Board to build a 
minimum shareholding equivalent to two years’ salary. Restricted shares awarded under the annual bonus plan can be included in this 
measure.

99

XP Power Annual Report & Accounts for the year ended 31 December 2019GOVERNANCEREMUNERATION REPORT
ANNUAL REPORT CONTINUED

In addition to the Directors’ interests in the ordinary shares of the Company, the following Directors have interests in share options, 
nominal priced options and deferred bonus shares:

Executive

Duncan Penny

Type of shares

Date of grant Exercise price Expiry date of option

2012 Share Options

10 October 2012

£9.46

10 October 2022

2012 Share Options 23 February 2016

£15.425 23 February 2026

2016 Deferred Bonus

17 March 2017

–

–

2017 LTIP

30 May 2017

£0.010

30 May 2022

2017 Deferred Bonus

02 March 2018

–

–

2018 LTIP

16 May 2018

£0.010

16 May 2023

2018 Deferred Bonus

06 March 2019

–

–

2019 LTIP

08 March 2019

£0.010

08 March 2024

Gavin Griggs

2017 LTIP 01 November 2017

£0.010 01 November 2022

2017 Deferred Bonus

02 March 2018

2018 Deferred Bonus

06 March 2019

–

–

–

–

2019 LTIP

08 March 2019

£0.010

08 March 2024

Mike Laver
(retired from the Board 16 April 

2019) 

2012 Share Options

10 October 2012

£9.46

10 October 2022

2012 Share Options 23 February 2016

£15.425 23 February 2026

2016 Deferred Bonus

17 March 2017

–

–

2017 LTIP

30 May 2017

£0.010

30 May 2022

2017 Deferred Bonus

02 March 2018

–

–

2018 LTIP

16 May 2018

£0.010

16 May 2023

2018 Deferred Bonus

06 March 2019

–

–

2019 LTIP

08 March 2019

£0.010

08 March 2024

At 31 December 
2019
No. of shares

At 1 January 
2019
No. of shares

60,750

39,800

–

6,000

3,975

11,200

6,057

19,024

8,000

515

4,349

13,659

30,000

25,000

1,191

3,000

2,130

3,000

2,581

4,878

60,750

50,000

1,776

6,000

3,975

11,200

–

–

8,000

515

–

–

30,000

25,000

1,191

3,000

2,130

3,000

–

–

Andy Sng

2012 Share Options 23 February 2016

£15.425 23 February 2026

10,000

10,000

2016 Deferred Bonus

17 March 2017

–

–

2017 LTIP

30 May 2017

£0.010

30 May 2022

2017 Deferred Bonus

02 March 2018

–

–

2018 LTIP

16 May 2018

£0.010

16 May 2023

2018 Deferred Bonus

06 March 2019

–

–

2019 LTIP

08 March 2019

£0.010

08 March 2024

–

2,000

420

2,857

1,389

4,878

514

2,000

420

2,857

–

–

100

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
The share options granted on 10 October 2012 vested four years after the award date.

The share options granted on 23 February 2016 vest 50% after three years and 50% 
after four years and are subject to the performance criteria outlined in the Remuneration 
Policy on page 91.

The awards granted on 17 March 2017 relate to 50% of the bonus earned in the financial 
year 2016 and are deferred for two years after 31 December 2016. These awards have 
now vested.

The awards granted on 16 May 2018 relate to 50% of the bonus earned in the financial 
year 2017 and are deferred for two years after 31 December 2017. These awards have 
now vested.

The awards granted on 6 March 2019 relate to 50% of the bonus earned in the financial 
year 2018 and are deferred for two years after 31 December 2018.

The nominal-priced options awarded on 30 May 2017, 1 November 2017, 16 May 2018 
and 8 March 2019 vest 50% after three years and 50% after four years and are subject to 
the performance criteria outlined in the Remuneration Policy on page 90.

The highest and lowest closing mid-market prices of the shares of XP Power Limited 
during 2019 were £31.10 and £19.65 per share respectively. The closing mid-market 
price on 31 December 2018 was £31.00 per share.

RELATIVE IMPORTANCE OF SPEND ON PAY

£ Millions

Distribution to Shareholders 
Dividends1
Group employment costs2

2019 

2018

Change %

16.7

59.7

15.3

55.2

9%

8%

1  Refer to Financial Statements – Note 9 for more details.
2  Group employment costs includes Directors’ remunerations. Refer to Financial Statements – Note 5 for 

more details.

REMUNERATION IN 2020 SALARY
Basic salaries for all Directors were reviewed against a benchmarking study that had been 
commissioned by the Remuneration Committee at the end of 2019. The companies used 
in the study were assessed for their suitability and relevance to the Company. The CEO 
and CFO will receive a basic pay increase of 12% with effect from 1 April 2020 and the 
Executive Vice President of Asia will receive a 3% increase. After these increases the base 
pay will still be below the median levels determined in the benchmarking study.

Executive

Duncan Penny

Gavin Griggs

Andy Sng

Base salary

Date of last review

£450,000

28 February 2020

£323,000

28 February 2020

S$265,225

28 February 2020

Effective date  
of last increase

1 April 2019 

1 April 2019

1 April 2019

Executive Directors’ contracts of service, which include details of remuneration, will be 

available for inspection at the Annual 
General Meeting.

ANNUAL BONUS 2020
For 2020, the maximum bonus 
opportunity of the Executive Directors 
will be capped at 100% of salary with on 
target pay outs of 50%. Bonuses will be 
based 50% on adjusted profit before tax, 
25% on adjusted operating cash flow as a 
percentage of adjusted operating income, 
and 25% based on strategic objectives. 
Adjusted operating cash flow will be 
measured over each quarter and the 
average of the four quarters will be used. 

The introduction of strategic targets in the 
annual bonus ensures focus also remains 
on the big picture, rather than only near-
term financial performance.

The Remuneration Committee is of 
the opinion that given the commercial 
sensitivity arising in relation to the targets 
used for the annual bonus, disclosing 
precise targets for the bonus plan in 
advance would not be in Shareholders’ 
interests. Actual targets, performance 
achieved and awards made will be 
published at the end of the performance 
periods so Shareholders can fully assess 
the basis of any pay-outs.

GOVERNANCE

101

XP Power Annual Report & Accounts for the year ended 31 December 2019REVIEW OF POLICY
The policy will be next be put to 
Shareholders at the 2023 Annual General 
Meeting in accordance with the normal 
triennial cycle. The Committee will 
continue to follow its normal practice 
of consulting with the Company’s major 
shareholders inviting them to express any 
views.

ADVICE ON 
REMUNERATION
During the year, h2glenfern Remuneration 
Advisory provided advice to the 
Company with respect to the Executive 
Directors’ remuneration. Fees were 
charged pursuant to an annual retainer 
and on a cost incurred basis in relation 
to advice and support on the proposed 
new remuneration policy and totalled 
£47,000 in the year to 31 December 
2019. h2glenfern Remuneration Advisory 
had previously provided advice to the 
Company on remuneration and has no 
other connection with the Company.

h2glenfern Remuneration Advisory 
has confirmed that it has operated in 
accordance with the Code of Conduct 
of the Remuneration Consultants’ Group 
in relation to Executive remuneration 
consulting in the United Kingdom. The 
Remuneration Committee has therefore 
satisfied itself that all advice provided 
by h2glenfern was objective and 
independent.

REMUNERATION REPORT
ANNUAL REPORT CONTINUED

The Committee regards the targets it has set as stretching, however, it should be noted 
that the targets set do not incorporate any potentially negative financial effects due to 
the COVID-19 virus. The targets have also been set at a US Dollar to Pound Sterling 
exchange rate of 1.30. 

LONG-TERM INCENTIVE AWARDS 2020
The Remuneration Committee expects to make further awards to Executive Directors 
under the 2017 LTIP during 2020. The Remuneration Committee currently intends to 
make performance share awards to each of the CEO and the CFO at 100% of salary in 
line with the Company’s remuneration policy and within the exceptional maximum of 
200% of salary. 

The vesting of performance based LTIP awards made in 2020 will depend on two 
separate performance conditions over a three-year period as set out below. The award 
will be distributed two years after the vesting date. Vesting at threshold performance 
levels is 25% of the maximum.

Up to two thirds of the total Shares subject to the Award will vest depending upon the 
total diluted adjusted EPS over the three-year period 2020, 2021 and 2022 as set out in 
the table below.

Total adjusted EPS performance 2020, 2021 and 2022

581.1 pence per share

523.4 pence per share

Below 523.4 pence per share

Vesting

100%

25%

No vesting

Vesting between the diluted adjusted EPS targets will be measured on a straight-line 
basis. The above diluted adjusted EPS targets were derived by taking the average 
adjusted earnings per share for 2017, 2018 and 2019 which is 155.1 pence per share 
(which is 6.6% ahead of actual 2019 diluted adjusted EPS) to account for the inherent 
cyclicality in the business and applying a 6% or 12% annual compound growth rate. 

Up to a third of the total Shares subject to the Award will vest dependent upon the 
achievement of the Company’s TSR measured against that of the FTSE 250 over the 
same three-year period.

TSR performance

80th percentile

Median (50th percentile)

Below the median

Vesting

100%

25%

No vesting

Vesting between the median and the 80th percentile will be measured on a straight-line 
basis.

In addition, the Remuneration Committee currently intends to make restricted share 
awards to each of the CEO and CFO at 12.5% of salary without performance conditions 
under the new 2020 remuneration policy if approved by shareholders at the 2020 Annual 
General Meeting. 

NON-EXECUTIVE REMUNERATION
Fees for the Chairman and Non-Executive Directors have been benchmarked versus 
companies of similar size and complexity. As a result of the benchmarking, it is proposed 
that fees for Non-Executive Directors be changed from 1 April 2020 as follows:

Base fee

Additional fee for chairing a committee

Additional fee for acting as Senior Non-Executive Director

Existing fees

Proposed fees

£40,000

-

£5,000

£50,000

£5,000

£5,000

Benchmarking of the Chairman’s fee suggested a range from £75,000 to £190,000. 
However, due the current Chairman’s shareholding he has agreed to take the same fee 
as the senior non-executive director which would be £60,000. This is an increase of 
£10,000 from the existing fee. 

102

STATEMENT OF VOTING AT THE 
ANNUAL GENERAL MEETING
The following table sets out actual voting in respect of the approval of the 2017 
Remuneration Policy and the 2018 Remuneration Report:

Number of 
votes cast 
in favour

Percentage  
of votes 
 cast for

Number 
of votes 
cast against

Percentage 
of votes cast 
against

Number 
of votes 
withheld

Approval of 
remuneration 
policy

Approval of 
remuneration 
report

13,470,788

96.2%

561,028

3.8%

2,266

12,844,145

97.8%

294,660

2.2%

24,891

As reflected earlier in this report, the Group is committed to ongoing Shareholders 
dialogue and takes an active interest in voting outcomes.

Where there are substantial votes against resolutions in relation to Directors’ 
remuneration, the reasons for any such vote will be sought, and any actions in response 
will be detailed.

STATEMENT OF CONSIDERATION OF EMPLOYMENT 
CONDITIONS ELSEWHERE IN THE COMPANY
The Remuneration Committee takes account of the pay and employment conditions 
of employees elsewhere in the Company when setting the remuneration of Executive 
Directors. However, it does not consult other employees when setting Executive 
Directors’ remuneration.

STATEMENT OF SHAREHOLDER VIEWS
The Company has received views from Shareholders that James Peters was not 
considered independent by virtue of him previously holding an executive position within 
the Company. James Peters is a major Shareholder and the Board considers that his 
interests would therefore be strongly aligned with all Shareholders.

APPROVAL
This report was approved by the Board of Directors on 3 March 2020.

GOVERNANCE

103

XP Power Annual Report & Accounts for the year ended 31 December 2019OTHER GOVERNANCE AND 
STATUTORY DISCLOSURES

DIRECTORS
The Directors of the Company in office at the date of this report are as follows:

Gavin Griggs 
James Peters 
Terry Twigger 
Pauline Lafferty (appointed on 3 
December 2019)

Polly Williams
Duncan Penny
Andy Sng

All Directors will retire and, being eligible, offer themselves for re-election at the 
forthcoming Annual General Meeting on 21 April 2020.

DIRECTORS’ INTERESTS IN SHARES OR  
SHARE OPTIONS
The present membership of the Board and the interests of the Directors in the shares of 
XP Power Limited are set out in the Directors’ Remuneration Report.

SUBSTANTIAL INTERESTS
Other than the Directors’ interests, as at 31 December 2019 the Company was aware 
of the following interests in 3% or more of the issued ordinary share capital of the 
Company:

AUDIT COMMITTEE
The members of the Audit Committee 
at the end of the financial year were as 
follows:

Terry Twigger (Chair)
Polly Williams
Pauline Lafferty

All members of the Audit Committee were 
Non-Executive Directors.

The Audit Committee carried out its 
functions in accordance with Section 
201B(5) of the Singapore Companies Act. 
In performing those functions, the Audit 
Committee reviewed:

•  The audit plan of the Company’s 

independent Auditor and its report on 
internal accounting controls arising 
from the statutory audit;

Number of shares 

Percentage of shares in issue

•  The assistance given by the Company’s 

Standard Life Aberdeen

Mawer Investment Mgt

Kempen Capital Mgt

Canaccord Genuity Group Inc

Janus Henderson Group plc

Montanaro Investment 
Managers

Chelverton Asset Mgt

The Capital Group 
Companies, Inc

2,358,124

1,311,437

975,000

969,764

818,250

775,000

680,000

583,458

12.26

6.82

5.07

5.04

4.25

4.03

3.54

3.03

During the period between 31 December 2019 and 3 March 2020, the Company 
had received notice, under the Financial Conduct Authority’s Disclosure Guidance & 
Transparency Rules, in respect of the following holdings of shares:

Montanaro Investment Managers

3 February 2020

760,100

3.95%

Date of 

notification Number of shares 

Percentage of 
shares in issue

DIVIDENDS
Interim dividends were paid and are proposed as follows:

Period

First Quarter

Second Quarter

Third Quarter

Fourth Quarter (proposed)

Total

Payment date

Amount

11 July 2019

17.0 pence

10 October 2019

18.0 pence

13 January 2020

28 April 2020

20.0 pence

36.0 pence

91.0 pence

2018 
Comparative

16.0 pence

17.0 pence

19.0 pence

33.0 pence

85.0 pence

We are proposing a final dividend of 36.0 pence per share which would be payable to 
members on the register on 27 March 2020 and will be paid on 28 April 2020. This would 
make the total dividend for the year 91.0 pence (2018: 85.0 pence) which is an increase 
of 7%.

management to the independent 
Auditor; and

•  The balance sheet of the Company and 
the consolidated financial statements 
of the Group for the financial year 
ended 31 December 2019 before 
their submission to the Board of 
Directors, as well as the independent 
Auditor’s report on the balance sheet 
of the Company and the consolidated 
financial statements of the Group.

The Audit Committee has recommended 
to the Board that the independent 
Auditor, PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP, 
be nominated for reappointment at the 
forthcoming Annual General Meeting of 
the Company.

INDEPENDENT AUDITOR
The independent Auditor, 
PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP, has 
expressed its willingness to accept 
reappointment.

104

INCORPORATION BY REFERENCE 
Certain laws and regulations require that specific information should be included in the Directors’ report. The table below shows the 
items which are incorporated into this Directors’ report by reference:

Information incorporated into the Directors’ report by reference

Location and page

Statement of the amount of interest capitalised by the Group 
during the year with an indication of the amount and treatment of 
any related tax relief

Note 6 to the Group’s consolidated financial statements  
(page 133)

Related tax relief is insignificant

Details of long-term incentive plans

Remuneration committee report (page 90)

Details of any arrangements under which a director of the 
Company has waived or agreed to waive any emoluments from 
the Company or any subsidiary undertaking

Details of any arrangements under which a director of the 
Company has agreed to waive future emoluments, details of such 
waiver together with those relating to emoluments which were 
waived during the period under review.

Remuneration committee report (page 88)

Details of allotments for cash of ordinary shares made during the 
period under review

Nothing to disclose

Contracts of significance to which the Company is a party and in 
which a director is materially interested

Nothing to disclose

Contracts of significance between the Company and a controlling 
shareholder

Nothing to disclose

Contracts for the provision of services to the Company by a 
controlling shareholder

Nothing to disclose

Details of any arrangement under which a shareholder has waived 
or agreed to waive dividends

Nothing to disclose

Agreements related to controlling shareholder requirements under 
LR 9.2.2ARD(1)

Nothing to disclose

STATEMENT BY DIRECTORS

IN THE OPINION OF THE DIRECTORS,
a. the balance sheet of the Company and the consolidated financial statements of the Group as set out on pages 113 to 167 are drawn 
up so as to give a true and fair view of the state of affairs of the Company and of the Group as at 31 December 2019 and of the results 
of the business, changes in equity and cash flows of the Group for the financial year then ended; and 

b. at the date of this statement, there are reasonable grounds to believe that the Company will be able to pay its debts as and when they 
fall due.

On behalf of the Directors
JAMES PETERS
Non-Executive Chairman

DUNCAN PENNY
Chief Executive Officer

3 March 2020

105

XP Power Annual Report & Accounts for the year ended 31 December 2019GOVERNANCECONTENTS

Financials
Independent Auditor’s Report 

108

Consolidated Statement 
of Comprehensive Income 

113
114
Consolidated Balance Sheet 
Consolidated Statement of Changes in Equity  115
116

Consolidated Statement of Cash Flows 

Notes to the Consolidated 
Financial Statements 

Company Balance Sheet 

Notes to the Company Balance Sheet 

Five Year Review Consolidated Information 

Advisers 

117
154
155
168
169

106

 
  
F
I

N
A
N
C

I

A
L
S

XP Power Annual Report & Accounts for the year ended 31 December 2019

107

INDEPENDENT AUDITOR’S REPORT

TO THE MEMBERS OF XP POWER LIMITED

The basis for our opinion
We conducted our audit in accordance with International 
Standards on Auditing (“ISAs”). Our responsibilities under those 
standards are further described in the What are we responsible 
for section of our report.

We believe that the audit evidence we have obtained is sufficient 
and appropriate to provide a basis for our opinion.

Independence
We are independent of the Group in accordance with the 
Accounting and Corporate Regulatory Authority’s Code of 
Professional Conduct and Ethics for Public Accountants and 
Accounting Entities (“ACRA Code”) together with the ethical 
requirements that are relevant to our audit of the consolidated 
financial statements in Singapore, and we have fulfilled our other 
ethical responsibilities in accordance with these requirements and 
the ACRA Code. 

REPORT ON THE FINANCIAL STATEMENTS
Our Opinion
In our opinion, the accompanying consolidated financial 
statements of XP Power Limited (the “Company”) and its 
subsidiary corporations (the “Group”) and the balance sheet 
of the Company are properly drawn up in accordance with the 
provisions of the Singapore Companies Act, Chapter 50 (the 
“Act”) and International Financial Reporting Standards (“IFRS”) 
as adopted by the European Union, so as to give a true and fair 
view of the consolidated financial position of the Group and the 
financial position of the Company as at 31 December 2019, and of 
the consolidated financial performance, consolidated changes in 
equity and consolidated cash flows of the Group for the financial 
year ended on that date. 

What we have audited
The financial statements of the Company and the Group comprise:

•  the consolidated statement of comprehensive income of the 

Group for the year ended 31 December 2019;

•  the consolidated balance sheet of the Group as at 

31 December 2019;

•  the balance sheet of the Company as at 31 December 2019;

•  the consolidated statement of changes in equity of the Group 

for the year then ended;

•  the consolidated statement of cash flows of the Group for the 

year then ended; and

•  the notes to the financial statements, including a summary of 

significant policies.

Our audit approach – overview

MATERIALITY

Materiality

The overall materiality which we have used to plan our work for the Group amounted to £1.44 
million, which represented 6.0% of profit before taxation. The overall materiality applied to the 
audit of the Company balance sheet amounted to £0.85 million.

Audit Scope

Key 
Audit
Matters

AUDIT SCOPE

We performed an audit of the complete financial information and of significant financial 
statement line items for significant reporting units which included operations based in North 
America, Europe and Asia. This accounted for approximately 91% of Group revenues and 95% of 
Group assets.

KEY AUDIT MATTERS

We identified the following key audit matters: 

•  Goodwill; and

•  Capitalised product development 

108

 
 
   
We designed our audit of the Group by determining materiality 
and assessing the risks of material misstatement in the financial 
statements. In particular, we looked at where management made 
subjective judgements, for example in respect of significant 
accounting estimates, that involved making assumptions and 
considering future events that are inherently uncertain. As in all of 
our audits, we also addressed the risk of management override of 
internal controls, including evaluating whether there was evidence 
of bias by the management that represented a risk of material 
misstatement due to fraud. 

We tailored the scope of our audit to ensure that we performed 
sufficient work to be able to give an opinion on the financial 
statements as a whole, taking into account the geographic 
structure of the Group, the accounting processes and controls, 
and the industry in which the Group operates. 

How we determined materiality
The scope of our audit was influenced by our application of 
materiality. We set certain quantitative thresholds for materiality. 
These, together with qualitative considerations, helped us to 
determine the scope of our audit and the nature, timing and 
extent of our audit procedures on the financial statement 
line items and disclosures and in evaluating the effect of 
misstatements, both individually and in aggregate on the financial 
statements as a whole. 

For each component in the scope of our Group audit, we allocated 
a materiality that is less than our overall Group materiality. The 
range of materiality allocated across components was £0.35 
million to £1.43 million. Certain components were audited to a 
local statutory audit materiality that was also less than our overall 
Group materiality.

Based on our professional judgement, we determined that the 
benchmark of profit before taxation is appropriate as it reflects 
the Group’s growth and investment plans. We believe this is a key 
measure used by shareholders in assessing the performance of the 
Group.

We agreed with the Audit Committee that we would report to 
them misstatements identified during our audit above £144,000 
as well as misstatements below that amount that, in our view, 
warranted reporting for qualitative reasons. 

How we tailored the audit scope
The Group operates across North America, Europe and Asia. 
In establishing the overall approach to the Group audit, we 
determined the type of work that needed to be performed at 
the local operations by us, as the Group engagement team, or 
component auditors from other PwC network firms operating 
under our instruction. Where the work was performed by 
component auditors, we determined the level of involvement 
we needed to have in the audit work at those local operations 
to be able to conclude whether sufficient appropriate audit 
evidence had been obtained as a basis for our opinion on the 
Group financial statements as a whole. In the current year, the 
Group engagement team visited the Group’s operations in North 
America.

109

XP Power Annual Report & Accounts for the year ended 31 December 2019FINANCIALSINDEPENDENT AUDITOR’S REPORT CONTINUED

TO THE MEMBERS OF XP POWER LIMITED

What are the key audit matters
Key audit matters are those matters that, in the auditor’s professional judgement, were of most significance in the audit of the financial 
statements of the current period. Key audit matters include the most significant assessed risks of material misstatement (whether or 
not due to fraud) identified by the auditors, including those which had the greatest effect on: the overall audit strategy; the allocation 
of resources in the audit; and the directing of the efforts of the engagement team. These matters, and any comments we make on the 
results of our procedures thereon, were addressed in the context of our audit of the financial statements as a whole, and in forming 
our opinion thereon, and we do not provide a separate opinion on these matters. This is not a complete list of all risks identified by 
our audit.

Key audit matters

Goodwill

Refer to page 84 (Report from the Chair of the Audit Committee), page 
129 (Critical accounting judgements and key sources of estimation 
uncertainty – Impairment of Goodwill) and page 136 (Note 11 – 
Goodwill).

The Group has goodwill of £53.2 million at 31 December 2019 
contained within three cash-generating units (“CGUs”) defined by 
its geographical split – North America, Europe and Asia. 

We focused on this area due to the relative size of the carrying 
amount of goodwill, which represented 23% of total assets, and 
because management’s assessment of the ‘value-in-use’ of the 
Group’s CGUs involves significant judgements and assumptions 
about the future results of the business and the discount rates 
applied to future cash flow forecasts. 

Key judgements and assumptions about the future results of 
the business include: revenue and profit growth rates, expected 
changes to overhead costs as well as risks specific to the three 
CGUs.

Capitalised product development

Refer to page 84 (Report from the Chair of the Audit Committee), 
page 129 (Critical accounting judgements and key sources of 
estimation uncertainty – Recoverability and useful lives of Capitalised 
development costs) and page 137 (Note 12 – Intangible assets).

Part of the Group’s strategy is to invest in research and 
development to create new products. As at 31 December 2019, 
the carrying value of product development costs capitalised as 
an intangible asset is £23.4 million, of which £8.0 million was 
capitalised in the current financial year. 

We focused on the appropriateness of capitalisation of product 
development costs due to the relative size of the carrying amount 
of this intangible asset, which represented 10% of total assets, and 
because significant judgement is involved in determining whether 
the criteria to capitalise such product development costs, as set 
out in IAS 38 Intangible Assets, have been fulfilled and that the 
capitalised amounts are recoverable. 

We also identified the useful lives of the capitalised product 
development costs as an area involving significant judgement. The 
carrying value of the capitalised product development costs is 
heavily dependent on the useful lives of the developed products. 
Management determined the useful lives of the developed 
products based on the expected life cycle of these products, 
taking into consideration expected customer demand and 
technological innovation. 

How did our audit address these

We evaluated the suitability and appropriateness of the 
impairment model as prepared by management and noted no 
significant exceptions. 

We assessed the reasonableness of the inputs used to derive the 
discount rates. We also focused on understanding and challenging 
management’s plans for future growth for each of the three CGUs. 
Forecasted growth in revenue and profits are driven by constant 
innovation in the development of new product families as well 
as the broadening of the customer base in the three CGUs. We 
benchmarked key market-related assumptions in management’s 
forecasts such as revenue and profit growth rates and changes in 
the overhead costs with relevant economic, industry indicators 
and historical trends for revenue growth and considered that 
such targets as set by management were achievable. Sensitivity 
analyses were also performed on the discount rates and growth 
rates. We agreed with management that no impairment was 
required. 

We assessed the appropriateness of capitalisation of product 
development costs by ensuring compliance with the criteria to 
capitalise product development costs as set out in IAS 38, and 
challenged management through discussions and qualitative 
reviews of the products’ feasibility. We also tested the accuracy 
and allocation of capitalised material costs and labour costs. 
Management was able to support the capitalisation of product 
development costs.

For selected samples of developed products, we reviewed 
the actual sales during the year along with projected sales to 
ensure that the capitalised development costs are supported by 
demand and are recoverable. For selected samples of products 
in development, we reviewed the project business case, 
forecasted demand, and other supporting analysis to support the 
recoverability of these products. 

In the assessment of the useful lives of the capitalised product 
development costs, we performed a benchmarking exercise to 
compare the useful lives of the capitalised product development 
costs against other companies within the same industry. The 
useful lives as determined by management are in line with that 
of the industry and consistent with our understanding of the life 
cycle of the products. 

110

INFORMATION OTHER THAN THE 
FINANCIAL STATEMENTS AND AUDITOR’S 
REPORT THEREON
Going concern
Under the UK Listing Rules (“Listing Rules”) we are required to 
review the Directors’ statement, set out on page 105, in relation 
to going concern. We have nothing to report having performed 
our review. 

The Directors’ assessment of the prospects of the 
Group 
Under the Listing Rules we are required to review the Directors’ 
statement that they have carried out a robust assessment of the 
principal risks facing the Group and the Directors’ statement in 
relation to the longer-term viability of the Group, set out on page 
47. Our review was substantially less in scope than an audit and 
only consisted of making enquiries and considering the Directors’ 
process supporting their statements; checking that the statements 
are in alignment with the relevant provisions of the UK Corporate 
Governance Code; and considering whether the statements 
are consistent with the knowledge acquired by us in the course 
of performing our audit. We have nothing to report having 
performed our review. 

Corporate governance statement
Under the Listing Rules, we are required to review the part of the 
Corporate Governance Statement relating to Provisions 6 and 24 
to 29 of the UK Corporate Governance Code. We have nothing to 
report having performed our review. 

Other information
Management is responsible for the other information. The 
other information comprises the “Overview” section set out on 
pages 1 to 9, “Strategic Report” section set out on pages 10 to 
63, “Governance” section set out on pages 64 to 105, and the 
“Financials” section on page 168 of the Annual Report. Other 
information, as defined in this section, does not include matters 
that we are required to review and report on under the Listing 
Rules, as described above. 

RESPONSIBILITIES FOR THE FINANCIAL 
STATEMENTS AND THE AUDIT
What are Management and Directors 
responsible for
Management is responsible for the preparation of financial 
statements that give a true and fair view in accordance with the 
provisions of the Act and IFRS as adopted by the European Union, 
and for devising and maintaining a system of internal accounting 
controls sufficient to provide a reasonable assurance that assets 
are safeguarded against loss from unauthorised use or disposition; 
and transactions are properly authorised and that they are 
recorded as necessary to permit the preparation of true and fair 
financial statements and to maintain accountability of assets.

In preparing the financial statements, management is responsible 
for assessing the Group’s ability to continue as a going concern, 
disclosing, as applicable, matters related to going concern and 
using the going concern basis of accounting unless management 
either intends to liquidate the Group or to cease operations, or 
has no realistic alternative but to do so. 

The Directors are responsible for overseeing the Group’s financial 
reporting process. 

THE DIRECTORS ARE RESPONSIBLE FOR 
OVERSEEING THE GROUP’S FINANCIAL 
REPORTING PROCESS. 
What are we responsible for
Our objectives are to obtain reasonable assurance about whether 
the financial statements as a whole are free from material 
misstatement, whether due to fraud or error, and to issue an 
auditor’s report that includes our opinion. Reasonable assurance 
is a high level of assurance, but is not a guarantee that an audit 
conducted in accordance with ISAs will always detect a material 
misstatement when it exists. Misstatements can arise from fraud 
or error and are considered material if, individually or in the 
aggregate, they could reasonably be expected to influence the 
economic decisions of users taken on the basis of these financial 
statements. 

Our opinion on the financial statements does not cover the other 
information and we do not and will not express any form of 
assurance conclusion thereon. 

As part of an audit in accordance with ISAs, we exercise 
professional judgement and maintain professional scepticism 
throughout the audit. We also: 

In connection with our audit of the financial statements, our 
responsibility is to read the other information and, in doing so, 
consider whether the other information is materially inconsistent 
with the financial statements or our knowledge obtained in the 
audit or otherwise appears to be materially misstated. 

If, based on the work we have performed, we conclude that 
there is a material misstatement of this other information, we are 
required to report that fact. We have nothing to report in this 
regard. 

•  Identify and assess the risks of material misstatement of the 
consolidated financial statements, whether due to fraud or 
error, design and perform audit procedures responsive to 
those risks, and obtain audit evidence that is sufficient and 
appropriate to provide a basis for our opinion. The risk of 
not detecting a material misstatement resulting from fraud is 
higher than for one resulting from error, as fraud may involve 
collusion, forgery, intentional omissions, misrepresentations, or 
the override of internal control. 

•  Obtain an understanding of internal control relevant to the 

audit in order to design audit procedures that are appropriate 
in the circumstances, but not for the purpose of expressing an 
opinion on the effectiveness of the Group’s internal control. 

111

XP Power Annual Report & Accounts for the year ended 31 December 2019FINANCIALSINDEPENDENT AUDITOR’S REPORT CONTINUED

TO THE MEMBERS OF XP POWER LIMITED

REPORT ON OTHER LEGAL AND 
REGULATORY REQUIREMENTS
In our opinion, the accounting and other records required by 
the Act to be kept by the Company and by those subsidiaries 
incorporated in Singapore of which we are the auditors, have been 
properly kept in accordance with the provisions of the Act. 

The engagement partner on the audit resulting in this 
independent auditor’s report is Greg Unsworth. 

PRICEWATERHOUSECOOPERS LLP
Public Accountants and Chartered Accountants
Singapore

3 March 2020

•  Evaluate the appropriateness of accounting policies used 
and the reasonableness of accounting estimates and 
related disclosures made by management. Conclude on the 
appropriateness of management’s use of the going concern 
basis of accounting and based on the audit evidence obtained, 
whether a material uncertainty exists related to events or 
conditions that may cast significant doubt on the Group’s 
ability to continue as a going concern. If we conclude that a 
material uncertainty exists, we are required to draw attention 
in our auditor’s report to the related disclosures in the 
consolidated financial statements or, if such disclosures are 
inadequate, to modify our opinion. Our conclusions are based 
on the audit evidence obtained up to the date of our auditor’s 
report. However, future events or conditions may cause the 
Group to cease to continue as a going concern. 

•  Evaluate the overall presentation, structure and content of the 
consolidated financial statements, including the disclosures, 
and whether the consolidated financial statements represent 
the underlying transactions and events in a manner that 
achieves fair presentation. 

•  Obtain sufficient appropriate audit evidence regarding the 
financial information of the entities or business activities 
within the Group to express an opinion on the consolidated 
financial statements. We are responsible for the direction, 
supervision and performance of the Group audit. We remain 
solely responsible for our audit opinion. 

We communicate with the Audit Committee regarding, among 
other matters, the planned scope and timing of the audit and 
significant audit findings, including any significant deficiencies in 
internal control that we identify during our audit. 

We also provide the Audit Committee with a statement that 
we have complied with relevant ethical requirements regarding 
independence, and to communicate with them all relationships 
and other matters that may reasonably be thought to bear on our 
independence, and where applicable, related safeguards. 

From the matters communicated with the Audit Committee, we 
determine those matters that were of most significance in the 
audit of the consolidated financial statements of the current 
year and are therefore the key audit matters. We describe these 
matters in our auditor’s report, unless law or regulation precludes 
public disclosure about the matter or when, in extremely rare 
circumstances, we determine that a matter should not be 
communicated in our report because the adverse consequences 
of doing so would reasonably be expected to outweigh the public 
interest benefits of such communication.

112

CONSOLIDATED STATEMENT OF 
COMPREHENSIVE INCOME 

FOR THE FINANCIAL YEAR ENDED 31 DECEMBER 2019

£ Millions

Revenue

Cost of sales

Gross profit
Expenses

Distribution and marketing

Administrative

Research and development

Operating profit
Finance charge

Profit before tax
Income tax expense

Profit after tax

Other comprehensive income:

Items that may be reclassified subsequently to profit or loss:
Cash flow hedges

Exchange differences on translation of foreign operations

Items that will not be reclassified subsequently to profit or loss:
Currency translation differences arising from consolidation

Other comprehensive (loss)/income for the year, net of tax

Total comprehensive income for the year

Profit attributable to:
Equity holders of the Company

Non-controlling interests

Total comprehensive income attributable to:
Equity holders of the Company

Non-controlling interests

Note

4

7

7

7

7

6

8

2019

199.9

(109.8)

90.1

(43.2)

(7.2)

(13.0)

26.7

(2.7)

24.0

(3.2)

20.8

(0.1)

(4.2)

(4.3)

(0.1)

(4.4)

16.4

20.5

0.3

20.8

16.2

0.2

16.4

2018

195.1

(102.8)

92.3

(38.7)

(2.9)

(11.4)

39.3

(1.7)

37.6

(7.2)

30.4

0.3

4.4

4.7

0.2

4.9

35.3

30.2

0.2

30.4

34.9

0.4

35.3

Earnings per share attributable to equity holders of the Company (pence per share)
Basic earnings per share

Diluted earnings per share

The accompanying notes form an integral part of these financial statements.

10

10

107.0

105.0

157.8

154.9

113

XP Power Annual Report & Accounts for the year ended 31 December 2019FINANCIALSCONSOLIDATED BALANCE SHEET

AS AT 31 DECEMBER 2019

Note

 2019

 2018

16

17

18

19

23

11

12

13

14

24

20

23

22

21

21

22

24

22

25

25

25

25

25

25

25

25

2.0

11.2

44.1

34.8

3.3

0.6

96.0

53.2

46.4

29.3

6.6

1.8

0.1

137.4

233.4

3.1

25.2

–

1.6

0.5

30.4

1.2

52.5

5.5

0.1

4.8

64.1

94.5

138.9

27.2

0.2

3.9

(0.5)

–

(0.2)

(0.8)

108.4

138.2

0.7

138.9

0.8

11.5

56.5

33.0

3.3

*

105.1

54.1

43.6

30.7

–

0.6

0.2

129.2

234.3

4.2

22.4

0.2

–

–

26.8

1.4

63.5

4.7

0.5

–

70.1

96.9

137.4

27.2

0.2

2.1

(1.0)

0.1

4.0

(0.8)

104.6

136.4

1.0

137.4

£ Millions 

ASSETS

Current assets
Corporate tax recoverable

Cash and cash equivalents 

Inventories

Trade receivables

Other current assets

Derivative financial instruments 

Total current assets

Non-current assets
Goodwill

Intangible assets

Property, plant and equipment

Right-of-use assets

Deferred income tax assets

ESOP loan to employees

Total non-current assets

Total assets

LIABILITIES

Current liabilities
Current income tax liabilities

Trade and other payables

Derivative financial instruments

Lease liabilities

Accrued consideration

Total current liabilities

Non-current liabilities
Accrued consideration

Borrowings

Deferred income tax liabilities

Provisions

Lease liabilities

Total non-current liabilities

Total liabilities

NET ASSETS

EQUITY

Equity attributable to equity holders of the Company
Share capital

Merger reserve

Share option reserve

Treasury shares reserve

Hedging reserve

Translation reserve

Other reserve

Retained earnings 

Non-controlling interests

TOTAL EQUITY

* Balance is less than £100,000.

The accompanying notes form an integral part of these financial statements.

114

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
CONSOLIDATED STATEMENT  
OF CHANGES IN EQUITY

FOR THE FINANCIAL YEAR ENDED 31 DECEMBER 2019

£ Millions

Note

Share 
capital

Share 
option 
reserve

Treasury 
shares 
reserve

Merger 
reserve

Hedging 
reserve

Translation 
reserve

Other
reserve

Retained
earnings

Total

Non–
controlling 
interests

Total 
equity

Attributable to equity holders of the Company

Balance at 
1 January 2018

Sale of treasury 
shares

Employee share 
option plan 
expenses

Tax on employee 
share option plan 
expenses

Dividends paid

9

Exchange difference 
arising from 
translation of 
financial statements 
of foreign 
operations

Net change in cash 
flow hedges

Profit for the year

Total comprehensive 
income for the year

Balance at 
31 December 2018

Sale of treasury 
shares

Employee share 
option plan 
expenses

Tax on employee 
share option plan 
expenses

Dividends paid

9

Exchange difference 
arising from 
translation of 
financial statements 
of foreign 
operations

Net change in cash 
flow hedges

Profit for the year

Total comprehensive 
income for the year

Balance at 
31 December 2019

* Balances are less than £100,000.

27.2

2.2

(1.8)

0.2

(0.2)

(0.4)

(0.8)

90.0 116.4

0.9

117.3

–

–

–

–

–

–

–

–

–

0.8

0.8

(0.9)

–

–

–

–

–

–

–

–

–

–

–

–

–

–

–

–

–

–

–

–

27.2

2.1

(1.0)

0.2

–

–

–

–

–

–

–

–

–

0.5

0.7

1.1

*

*

–

–

*

–

–

–

–

–

–

–

–

–

–

–

–

–

–

–

–

–

–

–

–

0.3

–

0.3

0.1

–

–

–

–

–

(0.1)

–

(0.1)

–

–

–

–

4.4

–

–

4.4

–

–

–

–

–

–

–

–

(0.3)

0.5

–

0.8

–

(0.9)

–

–

–

0.5

0.8

(0.9)

(15.3)

(15.3)

(0.3)

(15.6)

–

–

4.4

0.3

30.2

30.2

0.2

4.6

–

0.2

0.3

30.4

30.2

34.9

0.4

35.3

4.0

(0.8)

104.6 136.4

1.0

137.4

–

–

–

–

(4.2)

–

–

(4.2)

–

–

–

–

–

–

–

–

*

–

–

0.5

0.7

1.1

–

–

–

0.5

0.7

1.1

(16.7)

(16.7)

(0.5)

(17.2)

*

–

(4.2)

(0.1)

(4.3)

(0.1)

20.5

20.5

–

0.3

(0.1)

20.8

20.5

16.2

0.2

16.4

27.2

3.9

(0.5)

0.2

–

(0.2)

(0.8)

108.4 138.2

0.7

138.9

The accompanying notes form an integral part of these financial statements.

115

XP Power Annual Report & Accounts for the year ended 31 December 2019FINANCIALSCONSOLIDATED STATEMENT 
OF CASH FLOWS

FOR THE FINANCIAL YEAR ENDED 31 DECEMBER 2019

£ Millions

Cash flows from operating activities
Profit after tax
Adjustments for:
 - Income tax expense
 - Amortisation and depreciation
 - Finance charge
 - Share option expense
 - Fair value (gain)/loss of derivative financial instruments
 - Unrealised currency translation loss
Change in working capital, net of effects from acquisitions:
 - Inventories
 - Trade and other receivables
 - Trade and other payables
 - Provision for liabilities and other charges

Cash generated from operations
Income tax paid, net of refund

Net cash provided by operating activities
Cash flows from investing activities
Acquisition of a business, net of cash acquired
Purchases and construction of property, plant and equipment
Additions of development costs
Additions of intangible software and software under development
Proceeds from disposal of property, plant and equipment
Proceeds from repayment of ESOP loans

Net cash used in investing activities
Cash flows from financing activities
Proceeds from borrowings 
Repayment of borrowings 
Principal payment of lease liabilities
Sale of treasury shares
Interest paid
Dividend paid to equity holders of the Company
Dividend paid to non-controlling interests

Net cash (used)/provided by financing activities
Net increase/(decrease) in cash and cash equivalents
Cash and cash equivalents at beginning of financial year
Effects of currency translation on cash and cash equivalents

Cash and cash equivalents at end of financial year

*Balances are less than £100,000.

The accompanying notes form an integral part of these financial statements.

Note

2019

2018

20.8

3.2

12.7

2.7

0.7

(0.9)

0.9

10.3

(3.7)

4.5

(0.5)

50.7

(4.5)

46.2

–

(4.7)

(8.0)

(3.6)

*

*

30.4

7.2

9.1

1.7

0.8

0.5

2.7

(16.4)

(5.6)

(0.1)

0.5

30.8

(4.1)

26.7

(35.5)

(7.9)

(6.2)

(0.9)

0.1

0.1

(16.3)

(50.3)

–

(8.8)

(1.5)

0.5

(2.7)

(16.7)

(0.5)

(29.7)

0.2

11.5

(0.5)

11.2

39.4

(3.4)

–

0.5

(1.5)

(15.3)

(0.3)

19.4

(4.2)

15.0

0.7

11.5

8

7

6

5

13

12

12

9

16

116

NOTES TO THE CONSOLIDATED  
FINANCIAL STATEMENTS

1. GENERAL INFORMATION
XP Power Limited (the “Company”) is listed on the London Stock Exchange and incorporated and domiciled in Singapore. The address of 
its registered office is 401 Commonwealth Drive, Lobby B, #02-02, Haw Par Technocentre, Singapore 149598.

The nature of XP Power Limited and its subsidiaries’ operations and its principal activities are set out in the Markets and Products 
sections of the Annual Report on pages 12 to 15.

2. SUMMARY OF SIGNIFICANT ACCOUNTING POLICIES
The principal accounting policies applied in the preparation of these consolidated financial statements are set out below. These policies 
have been consistently applied to all the years presented, unless otherwise stated.

2.1 Basis of preparation
The consolidated financial statements of XP Power Limited and its subsidiaries (the “Group”) have been prepared in accordance with 
International Financial Reporting Standards (“IFRS”) as adopted by the European Union (IFRS as adopted by the EU). 

The consolidated financial statements have been prepared on the historical cost convention except as disclosed in the accounting 
policies below. 

The preparation of financial statements in conformity with IFRS and International Financial Reporting Interpretations Committee 
(“IFRIC”) requires management to make judgements, estimates and assumptions that affect the application of these accounting policies 
and the reported amounts of assets, liabilities, income and expenses. The estimates and associated assumptions are based on historical 
experience and various other factors that are believed to be reasonable under the circumstances, the results of which forms the basis of 
making the judgements about carrying amounts of assets and liabilities that are not readily apparent from other sources. Areas involving 
a higher degree of judgement or complexity, or areas where assumptions and estimates are significant to the consolidated financial 
statements, are disclosed in Note 3.

a.  Going concern

After making enquiries, the Directors have a reasonable expectation that the Group has adequate resources to continue in operational 
existence for the foreseeable future. The Group therefore continues to adopt the going concern basis in preparing its consolidated 
financial statements.

b.  Changes in accounting policy and disclosures

i.  New and amended standards adopted by the Group

On 1 January 2019, the Group adopted the new or amended IFRS and IFRIC that are mandatory for application for the financial year. 
Changes to the Group’s accounting policies have been made as required, in accordance with the transitional provisions in the respective 
IFRS and IFRIC.

The adoption of these new or amended IFRS did not result in substantial changes to the Group’s accounting policies and had no material 
effect on the amounts reported for the current or previous financial years except for the adoption of IFRS 16 Leases:

Adoption of IFRS 16 Leases
WHEN THE GROUP IS THE LESSEE

Prior to the adoption of IFRS 16, non-cancellable operating lease payments were not recognised as liabilities in the balances sheet. 
These payments were recognised as rental expenses over the lease term on a straight-line basis.

The Group’s accounting policy on leases after the adoption of IFRS 16 is as disclosed in Note 2.15. 

117

XP Power Annual Report & Accounts for the year ended 31 December 2019FINANCIALSNOTES TO THE CONSOLIDATED  
FINANCIAL STATEMENTS CONTINUED

2. SUMMARY OF SIGNIFICANT ACCOUNTING POLICIES (CONTINUED)
2.1 Basis of preparation (continued)
b.  Changes in accounting policy and disclosures (continued)

i.  New and amended standards adopted by the Group (continued)

On initial application of IFRS 16, the Group has elected to apply the following practical expedients:

i.  For all contracts entered into before 1 January 2019 and that were previously identified as leases under IAS 17 Leases and IFRIC 4 

Determining whether an Agreement contains a Lease, the Group has not reassessed if such contracts contain leases under IFRS 16; and

ii.  On a lease-by-lease basis, the Group has:

a.  applied a single discount rate to a portfolio of leases with reasonably similar characteristics;

b.  accounted for operating leases with a remaining lease term of less than 12 months as at 1 January 2019 as short-term 

leases;

c.  excluded initial direct costs in measurement of the right-of-use (“ROU”) asset at the date of initial application; and

d.  used hindsight in determining the lease term where the contract contains options to extend or terminate the lease.

There were no onerous contracts as at 1 January 2019.

For leases previously classified as operating leases on 1 January 2019, the Group has applied the following transition provisions:

i.  On a lease-by-lease basis, the Group chose to measure ROU assets at an amount equal to the lease liability, adjusted by the amount 

of any prepaid or accrued lease payments relating to that lease recognised in the balance sheet immediately before the date of 
transition.

ii.  Recognised its lease liabilities by discounting the remaining lease payments as at 1 January 2019 using the incremental borrowing 
rate for each individual lease or, if applicable, the incremental borrowing rate for each portfolio of leases with reasonably similar 
characteristic.

The effects on adoption of IFRS 16 on the Group’s financial statements as at 1 January 2019 are as follows:

Property, plant and equipment

Right-of-use assets

Lease liabilities

Increase/(decrease)
£ Millions

(0.6)

7.0

6.4

An explanation of the differences between the operating lease commitments previously disclosed in the Group’s financial statements as 
at 31 December 2018 and the lease liabilities recognised in the balance sheet as at 1 January 2019 are as follows:

Operating lease commitment disclosed as at 31 December 2018

Less: Short-term leases

Less: Low-value leases

Less: Discounting effect using weighted average incremental borrowing rate of 5.3%

Add: Extension options which are reasonably certain to be exercised

Lease liabilities recognised as at 1 January 2019

£ Millions

7.8

(0.2)

(0.2)

(1.1)

0.1

6.4

118

2. SUMMARY OF SIGNIFICANT ACCOUNTING POLICIES (CONTINUED)
2.1 Basis of preparation (continued)
b.  Changes in accounting policy and disclosures (continued)

ii.  New standards and interpretations issued not yet adopted

A number of new standards are effective for annual periods beginning after 1 January 2019 and earlier application is permitted; 
however, the Group has not early adopted the new or amended standard in preparing these consolidated financial statements. 

The following amended standards and interpretations are not expected to have a significant impact on the Group’s consolidated 
financial statements.

•  Amendments to References to Conceptual Framework in IFRS Standards.

•  Definition of a Business (Amendments to IFRS 3).

•  Definition of Material (Amendments of IAS 1 and IAS 8).

•  IFRS 17 Insurance Contracts. 

iii.  Change in accounting estimates

Prior to 2019, the Group tested the product line for impairment based on previous and future demand forecast. With the migration to 
S4Hana in 2019, the Group is now able to capture the shelf life expiration date of stock items for finished goods. Shelf lives are added 
to the product according to the product hierarchies to compute the provision whereas the previous policy is based on previous and 
future demand forecast. The effect of the change in estimate is a £0.7 million reduction in the provision recognised.

2.2 Foreign currency translation
a.  Functional and presentation currency

Items included in the financial statements of each entity in the Group are measured using the currency of the primary economic 
environment in which the entity operates (“functional currency”). The consolidated financial statements are presented in Pounds 
Sterling, which is different from the Company’s functional currency. The Company’s functional currency is the United States Dollar.

The financial statements are presented in Pounds Sterling, as the majority of the Company’s Shareholders are based in the UK and the 
Company is listed on the London Stock Exchange. It is the currency that the Directors of the Group use when controlling and monitoring 
the performance and financial position of the Group.

During the year, the Company conducted a detailed review on the application of its accounting policy and identified that the accounting 
policy for foreign currency translation of balances was not correctly applied to investment in subsidiaries balances in the XP Power 
Limited company balance sheet. Accordingly, the 31 December 2017 and 31 December 2018 XP Power Limited company comparatives 
have been restated, increasing investment in subsidiaries by £14.5 million and £17.2 million at 1 January 2018 and 31 December 2018 
respectively. The XP Power Limited company balance sheet on page 154, Note 34: Investment in subsidiaries on page 156 and Note 47: 
Share capital and reserves on page 161 have been restated. Please refer to Note 49 for the effect of restatement. 

b.  Transactions and balances

Foreign currency transactions are translated into the functional currency at the exchange rates prevailing at the dates of the 
transactions or valuation where items are remeasured. Foreign exchange gains and losses resulting from the settlement of such 
transactions and from the translation at year-end exchange rates of monetary assets and liabilities denominated in foreign currencies 
are recognised in the statement of comprehensive income, except when deferred in other currency translation reserve as qualifying cash 
flow hedges. 

Non-monetary items measured at fair value in foreign currencies are translated using exchange rates at the date when the fair values are 
determined. Currency translation differences on these items are included in other comprehensive income.

119

XP Power Annual Report & Accounts for the year ended 31 December 2019FINANCIALSNOTES TO THE CONSOLIDATED  
FINANCIAL STATEMENTS CONTINUED

2. SUMMARY OF SIGNIFICANT ACCOUNTING POLICIES (CONTINUED)
2.2 Foreign currency translation (continued)
c.  Translation of Group entities’ financial statements

The results and financial position of all the Group entities that have a functional currency different from the presentation currency are 
translated into the presentation currency as follows:

i.  assets and liabilities of the Group’s foreign operations are translated at exchange rates prevailing on the balance sheet date; 

ii.  income and expense items are translated at the average exchange rates for the period unless exchange rates fluctuate significantly, 

and the average rate is not considered a reasonable approximation of the cumulative effect of the rates prevailing on the transaction 
dates in which case income and expenses are translated using the exchange rates at the dates of the transactions; 

iii.  exchange differences arising, if any, are recognised in other comprehensive income and accumulated in the currency translation 

reserve. These currency translation differences are reclassified to profit or loss on disposal or partial disposal of the entity giving rise 
to such reserve; and

iv.  goodwill and fair value adjustments arising on the acquisition of a foreign entity are treated as assets and liabilities of the foreign 
entity and translated at the closing rate at the date of the balance sheet. The Group has elected to treat goodwill and fair value 
adjustments arising on the acquisitions before the date of transition to IFRS as Pound Sterling denominated assets and liabilities 
converted using the exchange rates at the dates of acquisition. 

2.3 Revenue recognition
a.  Sales of goods

The Group manufactures and sells a range of power products. Sales are recognised when control of the products has transferred to 
its customer, being when the products are delivered to the buyer, the buyer has full discretion over the channel and price to sell the 
products, and there is no unfulfilled obligation that could affect the buyer’s acceptance of the products. Delivery occurs when the 
products have been shipped to the specific location, the risks of obsolescence and loss have been transferred to the buyer, and either 
the buyer has accepted the products in accordance with the sales contract, the acceptance provisions have lapsed, or the Group has 
objective evidence that all criteria for acceptance have been satisfied.

Power products are sometimes sold with volume discounts based on aggregate sales over a 12-month period or early payment 
discounts if the customers made early repayment. Revenue from these sales is recognised based on the price specified in the contract, 
net of the discounts. Accumulated experience is used to estimate and provide for the volume discounts, using the expected value 
method, and early payment discounts, using most likely approach. Revenue is only recognised to the extent that it is highly probable 
that a significant reversal will not occur. No element of financing is deemed present as the sales are made with a credit term of 30 days, 
which is consistent with market practice. The Group will usually issue a credit note for refund for faulty products.

A receivable (financial asset) is recognised when the goods are delivered as this is the point in time that the consideration is 
unconditional because only the passage of time is required before payment is due.

Volume rebates and early payment discounts are recognised when the goods are delivered and is presented as a reduction in trade and 
other receivables.

The Group has elected to apply the practical expedient not to adjust the transaction price for the existence of significant financing 
component when the period between the transfer of control of good or service to a customer and the payment date is one year or less.

b.  Interest income

Interest income is recognised using the effective interest method.

2.4 Group accounting 
a.  Subsidiaries

Subsidiaries are all entities (including special purpose entities) over which the Group has control. The Group controls an entity when 
the Group is exposed to, or has the rights to, variable returns from its involvement with the entity and has the ability to affect those 
returns through its power over the entity. The existence and effect of potential voting rights that are currently exercisable or convertible 
are considered when assessing whether the Group controls another entity. Subsidiaries are fully consolidated from the date on which 
control is transferred to the Group. They are deconsolidated from the date that control ceases.

The Group uses the acquisition method of accounting to account for business combinations. The consideration transferred for the 
acquisition of a subsidiary comprises the fair value of the assets transferred, the liabilities incurred, and the equity interests issued by 
the Group. The consideration transferred also includes the fair value of any asset or liability resulting from a contingent consideration 
arrangement and the fair value of any pre-existing equity interest in the subsidiary. Acquisition-related costs are expensed as incurred. 
Identifiable assets acquired, and liabilities and contingent liabilities assumed in a business combination are measured initially at their fair 
values at the acquisition date. On an acquisition-by-acquisition basis, the Group recognises any non-controlling interest in the acquiree 
either at fair value or at the non-controlling interest’s proportionate share of the acquiree’s net assets. 

120

2. SUMMARY OF SIGNIFICANT ACCOUNTING POLICIES (CONTINUED)
2.4 Group accounting (continued)
a.  Subsidiaries (continued)

The excess of the consideration transferred, the amount of any non-controlling interest in the acquiree and the acquisition-date fair 
value of any previously held equity interest in the acquiree over the fair value of the identifiable net assets acquired, is recorded as 
goodwill. If this is less than the fair value of the net assets of the subsidiary acquired in the case of a bargain purchase, the difference is 
recognised directly in the statement of comprehensive income.

Inter-company transactions, balances and unrealised gains on transactions between Group companies are eliminated. Unrealised losses 
are also eliminated. Accounting policies of subsidiaries have been changed where necessary to ensure consistency with the policies 
adopted by the Group.

Investments in subsidiaries are accounted for at cost less impairment in the separate financial statements. This cost of investment is 
subsequently adjusted to reflect changes in contingent consideration, if any. In the separate financial statements, cost of investment in 
subsidiaries also includes directly attributable acquisition costs.

b.  Transactions with non-controlling interests

Non-controlling interests comprise the portion of a subsidiary’s net results of operations and its net assets, which is attributable to the 
interests that are not owned directly or indirectly by the equity holders of the Company. They are shown separately in the consolidated 
statement of comprehensive income, statement of changes in equity, and balance sheet. 

Total comprehensive income is attributed to the non-controlling interests based on their respective interests in a subsidiary, even if this 
results in the non-controlling interests having a deficit balance.

The Group treats transactions with non-controlling interests as transactions with equity owners of the Group. For purchases of shares 
from non-controlling interests, the difference between any consideration paid and the relevant share acquired of the carrying value of 
net assets of the subsidiary, is recorded in equity. Gains or losses on disposals to non-controlling interests are also recorded in equity.

When the Group ceases to have control or significant influence, any retained interest in the entity is remeasured to its fair value, with 
the change in carrying amount recognised in the statement of comprehensive income. The fair value is the initial carrying amount 
for the purposes of subsequently accounting for the retained interest as an associate, joint venture or financial asset. In addition, any 
amounts previously recognised in other comprehensive income in respect of that entity are accounted for as if the Group had directly 
disposed of the related assets or liabilities. This may mean that amounts previously recognised in other comprehensive income are 
reclassified to the statement of comprehensive income.

2.5 Inventories
Inventories are stated at the lower of cost and net realisable value. The cost of finished goods and work-in-progress comprises raw 
materials, direct labour, other direct costs and related production overheads (based on normal operating capacity) but excludes 
borrowing costs.

Cost is calculated using the weighted average method. Net realisable value represents the estimated selling price less all estimated costs 
of completion and costs to be incurred in marketing, selling and distribution.

2.6 Property, plant and equipment 
Items of property, plant and equipment, including land and buildings, are stated at historical cost less accumulated depreciation and any 
recognised impairment losses.

The historical cost of an item of property, plant and equipment initially recognised includes its purchase price and any cost that is 
directly attributable to bringing the asset to the location and condition necessary for it to be capable of operating in the manner 
intended by management.

Subsequent costs are included in the asset’s carrying amount, as appropriate, only when it is probable that future economic benefits 
associated with the item will flow to the Group and the cost of the item can be measured reliably. All other repairs and maintenance are 
charged to the statement of comprehensive income during the financial period in which they are incurred.

121

XP Power Annual Report & Accounts for the year ended 31 December 2019FINANCIALSNOTES TO THE CONSOLIDATED  
FINANCIAL STATEMENTS CONTINUED

2. SUMMARY OF SIGNIFICANT ACCOUNTING POLICIES (CONTINUED)
2.6 Property, plant and equipment (continued)
Freehold land and property under development are not depreciated. Depreciation on other items of property, plant and equipment is 
calculated using the straight-line method to allocate their cost over their estimated useful lives as follows:

Plant and equipment
Motor vehicles
Building improvements
Buildings

–
–
–
–

10 - 33%
20 - 25%
10 - 33%
2 - 5%

The residual values, estimated useful lives and depreciation method of property, plant and equipment are reviewed, and adjusted as 
appropriate, at each balance sheet date. The effects of any revision are recognised in the statement of comprehensive income when the 
changes arise.

An asset’s carrying amount is written down immediately to its recoverable amount if the asset’s carrying amount is greater than its 
estimated recoverable amount.

Gains or losses arising on the disposal or retirement of an asset are determined as the difference between the sale proceeds less cost to 
sell and the carrying amount of the asset, and are recognised in the statement of comprehensive income.

2.7 Intangible assets
a.  Goodwill

The excess of the consideration transferred, the amount of non-controlling interest in the acquiree and the acquisition-date fair value 
of any previous equity interest in the acquiree over the fair value of the Group’s share of identifiable net assets acquired, is recorded as 
goodwill. 

Goodwill is tested annually for impairment and whenever there is an indication that the goodwill may be impaired. Goodwill is carried at 
cost less accumulated impairment losses. Impairment losses on goodwill are not reversed. Gains and losses on the disposal of an entity 
include the carrying amount of goodwill relating to the entity sold.

Goodwill is allocated to cash-generating units for the purpose of impairment testing. The allocation is made to those cash-generating 
units or groups of cash-generating units that are expected to benefit from the business combination in which the goodwill arose, 
identified according to operating segment.

b.  Internally generated intangible assets – research and development expenditure

The cost of an item of internally generated intangible assets initially recognised includes materials used, direct labour and other 
directly attributable costs to bringing the asset to the condition necessary for it to be capable of operating in the manner intended by 
management.

Expenditure on research activities is recognised as an expense as incurred.

An internally generated intangible asset arising from the Group’s product development is recognised only if all of the following criteria 
are met:

•  There is an ability to use or sell the asset;

•  Management intends to complete the asset and use or sell it;

•  It can be demonstrated the asset will generate probable future economic benefits;

•  It is technically feasible to complete the asset so that it will be available for use;

•  Adequate technical, financial and other resources to complete the development and to use or sell the asset are available; and

•  The expenditure attributable to the asset during its development can be reliably measured.

Internally generated intangible assets are amortised on a straight-line basis over their useful lives, which vary between three and seven 
years depending on the exact nature of the project undertaken. Amortisation commences when the product is ready and available for use.

122

2. SUMMARY OF SIGNIFICANT ACCOUNTING POLICIES (CONTINUED)
2.7 Intangible assets (continued)
c.  Acquired computer software licences

Acquired computer software licences are initially capitalised at cost which includes the purchase prices (net of any discounts and 
rebates) and other directly attributable costs of preparing the asset for its intended use. Direct expenditures including employee costs, 
which enhance or extend the performance of computer software beyond its specifications and which can be reliably measured, are 
added to the original cost of the software. Costs associated with maintaining the computer software are expensed off when incurred.

Computer software licences are subsequently carried at cost less accumulated amortisation and accumulated impairment losses. These 
costs are amortised to profit or loss using the straight-line method over their estimated useful lives of seven to ten years.

The amortisation period and amortisation method of intangible assets other than goodwill are reviewed at least at each balance sheet 
date. The effects of any revision are recognised in profit or loss when the changes arise.

d.  Other intangible assets

Other intangible assets that are acquired by the Group are initially recognised at cost. The cost of intangible assets acquired in a 
business combination is its fair value as at the date of acquisition. Following initial recognition, intangible assets are carried at cost less 
any accumulated amortisation. Amortisation is recognised in the statement of comprehensive income on a straight-line basis over the 
estimated useful lives as follows:

Brand
Technology 
Customer relationships 
Customer contracts 

–
–
–
–

 10% - 50%
 10% - 20%
 10% - 20%
 90% - 100%

2.8 Borrowing costs 
Borrowing costs are recognised in profit or loss using the effective interest method except for these costs that are directly attributable 
to the construction or development of properties and assets under construction. This includes those costs on borrowings acquired 
specifically for the construction or development of properties and assets under construction, as well as those in relation to general 
borrowings used to finance the construction or development of properties and assets under construction.
2.9 Impairment of non-financial assets
a.  Goodwill

Goodwill recognised separately as an intangible asset is tested for impairment annually and whenever there is indication that the 
goodwill may be impaired.

For the purpose of impairment testing of goodwill, goodwill is allocated to each of the Group’s cash-generating units (“CGU”) expected 
to benefit from synergies arising from the business combination.

An impairment loss is recognised when the carrying amount of a CGU, including the goodwill, exceeds the recoverable amount of the 
CGU. The recoverable amount of a CGU is the higher of the CGU’s fair value less cost to sell and value-in-use.

The total impairment loss of a CGU is allocated first to reduce the carrying amount of goodwill allocated to the CGU and then to the 
other assets of the CGU pro rata on the basis of the carrying amount of each asset in the CGU.

An impairment loss on goodwill is recognised as an expense and is not reversed in a subsequent period.

b.  Intangible assets 

Property, plant and equipment 
Investments in subsidiaries

Intangible assets, property, plant and equipment and investments in subsidiaries are reviewed for impairment whenever events or 
changes in circumstances indicate that the carrying amount may not be recoverable. An impairment loss is recognised for the amount 
by which the asset’s carrying amount exceeds its recoverable amount. The recoverable amount is the higher of an asset’s fair value 
less costs to sell and value-in-use. For the purposes of assessing impairment, assets are grouped at the lowest levels for which there 
are separately identifiable cash flows (cash-generating units). Non-financial assets other than goodwill that suffered impairment are 
reviewed for possible reversal of the impairment at each reporting date. 

123

XP Power Annual Report & Accounts for the year ended 31 December 2019FINANCIALSNOTES TO THE CONSOLIDATED  
FINANCIAL STATEMENTS CONTINUED

2. SUMMARY OF SIGNIFICANT ACCOUNTING POLICIES (CONTINUED)
2.10 Fair value estimation of financial assets and liabilities
The fair values of financial instruments traded in active markets (such as exchange-traded and over-the-counter securities and 
derivatives) are based on quoted market prices at the balance sheet date. The quoted market prices used for financial assets are the 
current bid prices; the appropriate quoted market prices used for financial liabilities are the current asking prices.

The fair values of currency forwards are determined using actively quoted forward exchange rates. 

The fair values of current financial assets and liabilities carried at amortised cost approximate their carrying amounts.

2.11 Financial assets
Beginning 1 January 2018, the Group classifies its financial assets in the following measurement categories:

•  those to be measured at amortised cost; and

•  those to be measured subsequently at fair value (either through other comprehensive income, or through profit or loss).

The classification depends on the Group’s business model for managing the financial assets as well as the contractual terms of the cash 
flows of the financial assets.

For assets measured at fair values, gains or losses will either be recorded in profit or loss or other comprehensive income.

At initial recognition, the Group measures a financial asset at its fair value plus, in the case of a financial asset not at fair value through 
profit or loss, transaction costs that are directly attributable to the acquisition of the financial asset. Transaction costs of financial assets 
carried at fair value through profit or loss are expensed in profit or loss.

AT SUBSEQUENT MEASUREMENT

Debt instruments

Debt instruments mainly comprise “trade receivables”, “other current assets (excluding prepayments, VAT receivables and rights to 
returned goods)”, “cash and cash equivalents” and “ESOP loans to employees” in the balance sheet.

There are three subsequent measurement categories, depending on the Group’s business model for managing the asset and the cash 
flow characteristics of the asset:

Amortised cost: Debt instruments that are held for collection of contractual cash flows where those cash flows represent solely 
payments of principal and interest are measured at amortised cost. A gain or loss on a debt instrument that is subsequently measured 
at amortised cost and is not part of a hedging relationship is recognised in profit or loss when the asset is derecognised or impaired. 
Interest income from these financial assets is included in finance income using the effective interest rate method. 

Fair value through other comprehensive income (“FVOCI”): Debt instruments that are held for collection of contractual cash flows and 
for sale, and where the assets’ cash flows represent solely payments of principal and interest, are classified as FVOCI. Movements in 
fair values are recognised in Other Comprehensive Income (“OCI”) and accumulated in fair value reserve, except for the recognition 
of impairment gains or losses, interest income and foreign exchange gains and losses, which are recognised in profit and loss. When 
the financial asset is derecognised, the cumulative gain or loss previously recognised in OCI is reclassified from equity to profit or loss 
and presented in “other gains/(losses)”. Interest income from these financial assets is recognised using the effective interest rate and 
presented in “interest income”.

Fair value through profit or loss (“FVTPL”): Debt instruments that are held for trading as well as those that do not meet the criteria for 
classification as amortised cost or FVOCI are classified as FVTPL. Movement in fair values and interest income that is not part of a 
hedging relationship is recognised in profit or loss in the period in which it arises and presented in “other gains/(losses)”.

The Group applies the simplified approach permitted by the IFRS 9 Financial Instruments, which requires expected lifetime losses to be 
recognised from initial recognition of the receivables. The Group uses a provision matrix to measure expected credit loss.

Expected credit loss is assessed separately for each of the Group’s key regions and is based on each region’s two-year historical credit 
loss experience.

Offsetting financial instruments

Financial assets and liabilities are offset and the net amount reported in the balance sheet when there is a legally enforceable right to 
offset and there is an intention to settle on a net basis or realise the asset and the liability simultaneously.

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2. SUMMARY OF SIGNIFICANT ACCOUNTING POLICIES (CONTINUED)
2.12 Trade and other payables
Trade payables are obligations to pay for goods and services that have been acquired in the ordinary course of business from suppliers. 
Accounts payable are classified as current liabilities if payment is due within one year or less (or in the normal operating cycle of the 
business if longer). If not, they are presented as non-current liabilities.

Trade and other payables are initially recognised at fair value, and subsequently carried at amortised cost using the effective interest 
method.

2.13 Provisions
Provisions are recognised when the Group has a present legal or constructive obligation as a result of past events, and it is more likely 
than not that an outflow of resources will be required to settle the obligation and the amount has been reliably estimated. 

Provisions are measured at the present value of the expenditure expected to be required to settle the obligation using a pre-tax 
discount rate that reflects the current market assessment of the time value of money and the risks specific to the obligation. The 
increase in the provision due to the passage of time is recognised as a finance expense. Changes in the estimated timing or amount of 
the expenditure or discount rate are recognised in the statement of comprehensive income when the changes arise.

2.14 Borrowings
Borrowings are recognised initially at fair value, net of transaction costs incurred. Borrowings are subsequently carried at amortised 
cost; any difference between the proceeds (net of transaction costs) and the redemption value is recognised in the statement of 
comprehensive income over the period of the borrowings using the effective interest method.

Fees paid on the establishment of loan facilities are recognised as transaction costs of the loan to the extent that it is probable that 
some or all of the facility will be drawn down. In this case, the fee is deferred until the drawdown occurs. To the extent there is no 
evidence that it is probable that some or all of the facility will be drawn down, the fee is capitalised as a prepayment for liquidity 
services and amortised over the period of the facility to which it relates.

Borrowings are presented as current liabilities unless the Group has an unconditional right to defer settlement for at least 12 months 
after the balance sheet date, in which case they are presented as non-current liabilities.

2.15 Leases
a.  The accounting policy for leases before 1 January 2019 are as follows:

When the Group is the lessee:

Leases in which a significant portion of the risks and rewards of ownership are retained by the lessors are classified as operating leases. 
Payments made under operating leases (net of any incentives received from the lessors) are charged to the statement of comprehensive 
income on a straight-line basis over the period of the lease.

b.  The accounting policy for leases from 1 January 2019 are as follows:

When the Group is the lessee:

At the inception of the contract, the Group assesses if the contract contains a lease. A contract contains a lease if the contract convey 
the right to control the use of an identified asset for a period of time in exchange for consideration. Reassessment is only required when 
the terms and conditions of the contract are changed.

•  Right-of-use assets

  The Group recognised a right-of-use asset and lease liability at the date which the underlying asset is available for use. Right-of-use 
assets are measured at cost which comprises the initial measurement of lease liabilities adjusted for any lease payments made at or 
before the commencement date and lease incentive received. Any initial direct costs that would not have been incurred if the lease 
had not been obtained are added to the carrying amount of the right-of-use assets.

  These right-of-use assets are subsequently depreciated using the straight-line method from the commencement date to the earlier 

of the end of the useful life of the right-of-use asset or the end of the lease term.

125

XP Power Annual Report & Accounts for the year ended 31 December 2019FINANCIALSNOTES TO THE CONSOLIDATED  
FINANCIAL STATEMENTS CONTINUED

2. SUMMARY OF SIGNIFICANT ACCOUNTING POLICIES (CONTINUED)
2.15 Leases (continued)
•  Lease liabilities  

The initial measurement of lease liability is measured at the present value of the lease payments discounted using the implicit rate 
in the lease, if the rate can be readily determined. If that rate cannot be readily determined, the Group shall use its incremental 
borrowing rate. 

Lease payments include the following:

 − Fixed payment (including in-substance fixed payments), less any lease incentives receivables;

 − Variable lease payment that are based on an index or rate, initially measured using the index or rate at the commencement date;

 − Amount expected to be payable under residual value guarantees;

 − The exercise price of a purchase option if is reasonably certain to exercise the option; and

 − Payment of penalties for terminating the lease, if the lease term reflects the Group exercising that option.

For contract that contain both lease and non-lease components, the Group allocates the consideration to each lease component on 
the basis of the relative stand-alone price of the lease and non-lease component. The Group has elected to not separate lease and 
non-lease component for property leases and account these as one single lease component.

Lease liability is measured at amortised cost using the effective interest method. Lease liability shall be remeasured when:

 − There is a change in future lease payments arising from changes in an index or rate;

 − There is a change in the Group’s assessment of whether it will exercise an extension option; or 

 − There is modification in the scope or the consideration of the lease that was not part of the original term.

Lease liability is remeasured with a corresponding adjustment to the right-of-use asset, or is recorded in profit or loss if the carrying 
amount of the right-of-use asset has been reduced to zero.

•  Short-term or low-value leases 

The Group has elected to not recognised right-of-use assets and lease liabilities for short-term leases that have lease terms of 
12 months or less and leases of low value leases, except for sublease arrangements. Lease payments relating to these leases are 
expensed to profit or loss on a straight-line basis over the lease term.

•  Variable lease payments 

Variable lease payments that are not based on an index or a rate are not included as part of the measurement and initial recognition 
of lease liability. The Group shall recognise those lease payments in profit or loss in the periods that triggered those lease payments.

2.16 Derivative financial instruments and hedging activities
Derivatives are initially recognised at fair value on the date the contract is entered into and are subsequently remeasured at their fair 
value. The method of recognising the resulting gain or loss depends on whether the derivative is designated as a hedging instrument, 
and if so, the nature of the item being hedged.

The Group designates certain derivatives as hedges of a particular risk associated with a recognised asset or liability or a highly probable 
forecast transaction (cash flow hedge).

Fair value changes on derivatives that are not designated or do not qualify for the hedge accounting are recognised in profit or loss 
when the changes arise.

The Group documents at the inception of the transaction the relationship between the hedging instruments and hedged items, as well 
as its risk management objective and strategies for undertaking various hedge transactions. The Group also documents its assessment, 
both at hedge inception and on an ongoing basis, on whether the derivatives designated as hedging instruments are highly effective in 
offsetting changes in fair value or cash flows of the hedged items.

The Group’s activities expose it primarily to the financial risks of changes in foreign currency exchange rates and interest rates. The 
Group periodically uses foreign exchange forward contracts to hedge the foreign currency exposures. 

126

 
 
 
 
2. SUMMARY OF SIGNIFICANT ACCOUNTING POLICIES (CONTINUED)
2.16 Derivative financial instruments and hedging activities (continued)
CASH FLOW HEDGES THAT QUALIFY FOR HEDGE ACCOUNTING

i.  Currency forwards

The effective portion of changes in the fair value of derivatives that are designated and qualify as cash flow hedges is recognised in 
the cash flow hedge reserve within equity. The gain or loss relating to the ineffective portion is recognised immediately in statement of 
comprehensive income.

When currency forwards are used to hedge forecast transactions, the Group generally designates only the change in fair value of the 
forward contract related to the spot component as the hedging instrument. Gains or losses relating to the effective portion of the 
change in the spot component of the forward contracts are recognised in the cash flow hedge reserve within equity. The change in the 
forward element of the contract that relates to the hedged item (‘aligned forward element’) is recognised within OCI in the hedging 
reserve within equity. In some cases, the Group may designate the full change in fair value of the forward contract (including forward 
points) as the hedging instruments. In such cases, the gains or losses relating to the effective portion of the change in fair value of the 
entire forward contract are recognised in the cash flow hedge reserve within equity.

When a hedging instrument expires, or is sold or terminated, or when a hedge no longer meets the criteria for hedge accounting, any 
cumulative deferred gain or loss and deferred costs of hedging in equity at that time remains in equity until the forecast transaction 
occurs, resulting in the recognition of a non-financial asset such as inventory. When the forecast transaction is no longer expected to 
occur, the cumulative gain or loss and deferred costs of hedging that were reported in equity are immediately reclassified to profit or 
loss.

Amounts accumulated in equity are reclassified to the statement of comprehensive income in the periods when the hedged item affects 
profit or loss.

The fair values of various derivative instruments used for hedging purposes are disclosed in Note 23. Movements on the hedging 
reserve in other comprehensive income are shown in the Consolidated Statement of Changes in Equity. The full fair value of a hedging 
derivative is classified as a non-current asset or liability when the remaining expected life/or maturity of the hedged item is more than 
12 months, and as a current asset or liability when the remaining maturity of the hedged item is less than 12 months. 

2.17 Current and deferred income tax
The tax expense represents the sum of the tax currently payable and deferred tax.

The tax currently payable is based on the taxable profit for the year. Taxable profit differs from net profit as reported in the statement 
of comprehensive income because it excludes items of income or expense that are taxable or deductible in other years and it further 
excludes items that are never taxable or deductible. The Group’s liability for current tax is calculated using tax rates that have been 
enacted or substantively enacted by the balance sheet date. Management periodically evaluates positions taken in tax returns with 
respect to situations in which applicable tax regulation is subject to interpretation. It establishes provisions, where appropriate, on the 
basis of amounts expected to be paid to the tax authorities. 

Deferred tax is the tax expected to be payable or recoverable on differences between the carrying amounts of assets and liabilities 
in the financial statements and the corresponding tax bases used in the computation of taxable profit, and is accounted for using the 
balance sheet liability method. 

Deferred tax liabilities are generally recognised for all taxable temporary differences and deferred tax assets are recognised to the 
extent that it is probable that taxable profits will be available against which deductible temporary differences can be utilised. Such 
assets and liabilities are not recognised if the temporary difference arises from goodwill or from the initial recognition (other than in a 
business combination) of other assets and liabilities in a transaction that affects neither the tax profit nor the accounting profit. 

Deferred tax liabilities are recognised for taxable temporary differences arising on investments in subsidiaries and associates, and 
interests in joint ventures, except where the Group is able to control the reversal of the temporary difference and it is probable that the 
temporary difference will not reverse in the foreseeable future.

Deferred tax is calculated at the tax rates that are expected to apply in the period when the liability is settled or the asset is realised. 
Deferred tax is charged or credited in the statement of comprehensive income, except when it relates to items charged or credited 
directly to equity in which case the deferred tax is also dealt with in equity.

Deferred tax assets and liabilities are offset when there is a legally enforceable right to set off current tax assets against current tax 
liabilities and when they relate to income taxes levied by the same taxation authority and the Group intends to settle its current tax 
assets and liabilities on a net basis.

As the timing of the tax deduction and the recognition of the employee share option expense differs, IAS 12 Income Taxes requires the 
recognition of the related deferred tax asset if the deferred tax asset recognition criteria are met. For an equity-settled share-based 
payment, if the cumulative amount of tax deduction exceeds the tax effect of the related cumulative remuneration expense at the 
reporting date, the excess of the associated deferred tax shall be recognised directly in equity. All taxes related to cash-settled share-
based payments shall be recognised in profit or loss.

127

XP Power Annual Report & Accounts for the year ended 31 December 2019FINANCIALSNOTES TO THE CONSOLIDATED  
FINANCIAL STATEMENTS CONTINUED

2. SUMMARY OF SIGNIFICANT ACCOUNTING POLICIES (CONTINUED)
2.18 Cash and cash equivalents
For the purpose of presentation in the consolidated cash flow statement, cash and cash equivalents include cash on hand and deposits 
with financial institutions.

2.19 Share-based payments
The Group issues equity-settled share-based payments to certain employees. Equity-settled share-based payments are measured at 
fair value at the date of grant. The fair value determined at the grant date of the equity-settled share-based payments is expensed on a 
straight-line basis over the vesting period, based on the Group’s estimate of shares that will eventually vest. The vesting conditions are 
service conditions and performance conditions only. At each balance sheet date, the Group revises its estimates of the number of shares 
under options that are expected to become exercisable on the vesting date and recognises the impact of the revision of the estimates 
in the statement of comprehensive income, with a corresponding adjustment to the share option reserve over the remaining vesting 
period. 

When the options are exercised, the proceeds received (net of transaction costs) and the related balance previously recognised in the 
share option reserve are credited to share capital account, when new ordinary shares are issued, or to the “treasury shares” account, 
when treasury shares are reissued to the employees.

2.20 Defined contribution plans
The Group operates several defined contribution plans. Defined contribution plans are post-employment benefit plans under which the 
Group pays fixed contributions into separate entities on a mandatory, contracted or voluntary basis. The Group has no further payment 
obligations once the contributions have been paid.

2.21 Employee leave entitlements
Employee entitlements to annual leave are recognised in the statement of comprehensive income when they accrue to employees. A 
provision is made for the estimated liability for leave as a result of services rendered by employees up to the balance sheet date.

2.22 Share capital and treasury shares
Ordinary shares are classified as equity. Incremental costs directly attributable to the issue of new ordinary shares are shown in equity, 
net of tax, from the proceeds.

When any entity within the Group purchases the Company’s ordinary shares (“treasury shares”), the consideration paid, including any 
directly attributable incremental cost (net of income taxes), is deducted from equity attributable to the Company’s equity holders, until 
they are cancelled, sold or reissued.

When treasury shares are subsequently cancelled, the cost of treasury shares are deducted against the share capital account if the 
shares are purchased out of capital of the Company, or against the retained earnings of the Company if the shares are purchased out of 
earnings of the Company.

When treasury shares are subsequently sold or reissued pursuant to the employee share option scheme, the cost of treasury shares 
is reversed from the treasury share reserve and the realised gain or loss on sale or reissue, net of any directly attributable incremental 
transaction costs and related income tax, is recognised in the retained earnings of the Company.

Other reserve comprises future transactions with the non-controlling interest. The amount that may become payable under the 
agreement is initially recognised at the present value of the redemption amount within liabilities with a corresponding charge directly 
to equity. The liability is subsequently accreted through equity up to the redemption amount that is payable at the date at which the 
agreement first becomes exercisable. 

2.23 Dividend distribution
Dividend distributions to the Company’s Shareholders are recognised when the dividends are approved for payment or, in the case of 
interim dividends, when paid.

2.24 Segment reporting
Operating segments are reported in a manner consistent with the internal reporting provided to the Chief Operating Decision Makers 
who are responsible for allocating resources and assessing performance of the operating segments. Segment reporting is disclosed in 
Note 4.

128

3.  CRITICAL ACCOUNTING JUDGEMENTS AND KEY SOURCES  

OF ESTIMATION UNCERTAINTY

In the process of applying the Group’s accounting policies, as described in Note 2, management has made the following judgements and 
estimations that have the most significant effect on the amounts recognised in the financial statements.

a.  Recoverability of Capitalised development costs

During the year £8.0 million (2018: £6.2 million) of development costs were capitalised, bringing the total carrying amount of 
development costs capitalised as intangible assets as at 31 December 2019 to £23.4 million (2018: £20.1 million), net of amortisation. 
Management has reviewed the balances by project, compared the carrying amount to expected future revenues and profits and 
is satisfied that no impairment exists and that the costs capitalised will be fully recovered as the products are launched to market. 
New product projects are monitored regularly and should the technical or market feasibility of a new product be in question, the 
project would be cancelled and capitalised costs to date will be removed from the balance sheet and charged to the statement of 
comprehensive income. Significant judgements are used by the Group to estimate future sales of products and expected future cash 
flows. In making these estimates, management has relied on past performance, its expectations of market developments, and industry 
trends.

b.  Useful lives of Capitalised development costs

The Group estimates the useful lives of capitalised development costs based on the period over which the assets are expected to be 
available for use by the Group. Significant judgements are used by the Group in determining the useful lives of capitalised development 
costs based on the expected life cycle of these products, taking into consideration expected customer demand and technological 
innovation.

c.  Impairment of Goodwill

The Group tests annually for impairment of goodwill, or more frequently if there are indications that goodwill might be impaired.

An impairment loss is recognised when the carrying amount of a CGU, including the goodwill, exceeds the recoverable amount of the 
CGU. The recoverable amount of a CGU is the higher of the CGU’s fair value less cost to sell and value-in-use.

The recoverable amount of the goodwill is determined from value-in-use calculations. The key assumptions and estimates for the value-
in-use calculations are those regarding the discount rates, growth rates and expected changes to sales and overheads during the period. 
Management estimates discount rates using pre-tax rates that reflect current market assessments of the time value of money and the 
risks specific to the cash-generating units.

The Group prepares cash flow forecasts derived from the most recent financial results and takes into account industry growth forecasts 
for the next five years and extrapolates cash flows for the following five years assuming no growth from that date. The carrying amount 
of goodwill as at 31 December 2019 was £53.2 million (2018: £54.1 million) with no impairment adjustment required for 2019.

Management assessed that there are no realistic foreseeable changes that will result in impairment loss on the goodwill allocated to the 
North America, Europe and Asia operating segments. 

4. SEGMENTED AND REVENUE INFORMATION
Management has determined the operating segments based on the reports reviewed by the Chief Operating Decision Makers (“CODM”) 
that are used to make strategic decisions. The CODM are the Executive Board of Directors who will review the operating results and 
forecasts to make decisions about resources to be allocated to the segments and assess their performance.

The Executive Board of Directors considers and manages the business on a geographic basis. Management manages and monitors the 
business based on the three primary geographic areas: North America, Europe and Asia. All geographic locations market the same class 
of products to their respective customer base.

The Executive Board of Directors assesses the performance of the operating segments based on net sales and operating income. 
Net sales for geographic segments are based on the location of the design win rather than where the end sale is made. The operating 
income for each segment includes net sales to third parties, related cost of sales, operating expenses directly attributable to the 
segment, and a portion of corporate expenses. Costs excluded from segment operating income include stock-based compensation 
expense, income taxes, various non-operating charges, and other separately managed general and administrative costs. 

Segment assets consist primarily of property, plant and equipment, goodwill, intangible assets, inventories, trade receivables, cash and 
cash equivalents, derivative financial instruments and exclude tax assets.

Segment liabilities comprise trade and other current liabilities, derivative financial instruments, borrowings, accrued contingent 
consideration and exclude tax liabilities.

129

XP Power Annual Report & Accounts for the year ended 31 December 2019FINANCIALSNOTES TO THE CONSOLIDATED  
FINANCIAL STATEMENTS CONTINUED

4. SEGMENTED AND REVENUE INFORMATION (CONTINUED)
i.  Revenue

The Group derives revenue from the transfer of goods at a point in time in the following major product lines and geographical regions.

The revenue by class of customer and location of the design win is as follows:

Year to 31 December 2019

Year to 31 December 2018

£ Millions

Semiconductor Manufacturing

Technology

Industrial Electronics

Healthcare

Total

Europe

0.4

6.2

45.8

12.0

64.4

North
America

36.6

14.4

33.3

31.2

115.5

Asia

0.4

6.8

10.1

2.7

20.0

Total

37.4

27.4

89.2

45.9

199.9

Europe

North
America

0.5

6.2

43.2

11.2

61.1

46.2

13.0

30.6

29.3

Asia

0.7

1.2

9.9

3.1

Total

47.4

20.4

83.7

43.6

119.1

14.9

195.1

Revenues of £20.5 million (2018: £27.9 million) are derived from a single external customer. These revenues are attributable to the 
semiconductor manufacturing sector. 

The revenue by region or country where sales are generated is as follows:

£ Millions

North America

United Kingdom

Singapore

Germany

Switzerland

France

Other countries

Total revenue

2019

107.5

31.8

29.1

13.9

2.7

3.7

11.2

199.9

 2018

110.0

28.3

24.9

14.9

2.6

3.7

10.7

195.1

The majority of North America’s revenue is generated from the United States of America.

ii.  Segment

As permitted under IFRS 15 Revenue from Contracts with Customers, the aggregated transaction price allocated to unsatisfied contracts 
of periods one year or less, or are billed based on time incurred, is not disclosed.

The segment information provided to the CODM for the reportable segments for the year ended 31 December 2019 and prior year 
comparatives is as follows:

Reconciliation of segment results to profit after tax:

£ Millions
Europe 

North America

Asia

Segment results
Research and development 

Manufacturing

Corporate cost from operating segment

Adjusted operating profit
Finance charge

Specific items

Profit before tax
Income tax expense

Profit after tax

130

2019

16.4

32.0

6.6

55.0

(8.4)

(3.8)

(6.9)

35.9

(2.7)

(9.2)

24.0

(3.2)

20.8

2018

15.9

40.8

4.9

61.6

(8.7)

(2.7)

(7.3)

42.9

(1.7)

(3.6)

37.6

(7.2)

30.4

 
 
4. SEGMENTED AND REVENUE INFORMATION (CONTINUED)
ii.  Segment (continued)

£ Millions

Other Information
Property, plant and equipment 
additions

Depreciation of property, plant 
and equipment

Right-of-use assets additions

Depreciation of right-of-use 
assets

Intangible assets additions

Amortisation

Balance sheet

Segment assets
Unallocated deferred income tax 
and current income tax

Consolidated total assets

Segment liabilities
Unallocated deferred and current 
income tax

Consolidated total liabilities

* Balance is less than £100,000.

Year to 31 December 2019+

Year to 31 December 2018

Europe

North
America

Asia

Total

Europe

North
America

Asia

Total

0.2

0.5

0.3

0.3

–

0.3

2.3

1.1

1.4

1.1

4.1

4.2

2.2

2.0

*

0.3

7.5

2.9

4.7

3.6

1.7

1.7

11.6

7.4

0.5

0.6

–

–

0.4

–

4.7

1.1

–

–

18.1

4.1

5.7

1.7

–

–

4.7

1.6

10.9

3.4

–

–

23.2

5.7

31.1

123.7

74.8

229.6

28.4

126.8

77.7

232.9

(5.3)

(66.2)

(14.4)

3.8

233.4

(85.9)

(8.6)

(94.5)

(3.7)

(71.0)

(13.3)

1.4

234.3

(88.0)

(8.9)

(96.9)

+  The Group initially applied IFRS 16 at 1 January 2019, which requires the recognition of right-of-use assets and lease liabilities for lease contacts that were 

previously classified as operating leases (see Note 2.1). As a result, the Group recognised £6.4 million of right-of-use assets and £6.4 million of liabilities from those 
lease contracts. The assets and liabilities are included in the Europe, North America and Asia segments as at 31 December 2019. The Group applied IFRS 16 using 
the modified retrospective approach, under which comparative information is not restated (see Note 2.1). 

NON-CURRENT ASSETS, OTHER THAN DEFERRED INCOME TAX ASSETS, BY COUNTRIES:

£ Millions

North America

United Kingdom

Singapore

Germany

Switzerland

France

Other countries

Total non-current assets

* Balance is less than £100,000.

RECONCILIATION OF ADJUSTED MEASURES

2019

84.3

13.1

23.1

0.5

0.1

*

14.5

135.6

2018

81.4

13.0

19.1

–

–

–

15.1

128.6

The Group presents adjusted operating profit and adjusted profit before tax by making adjustments for costs and profits which 
management believes to be significant by virtue of their size, nature or incidence or which have a distortive effect on current year 
earnings. Such items may include, but are not limited to, costs associated with business combinations, gains and losses on the disposal 
of businesses, fair value movements, restructuring charges, acquisition related costs and amortisation of intangible assets arising from 
business combinations. 

In addition, the Group presents an adjusted profit after tax measure by making adjustments for certain tax charges and credits which 
management believes to be significant by virtue of their size, nature or incidence or which have a distortive effect.

The Group uses these adjusted measures to evaluate performance and as a method to provide shareholders with clear and consistent 
reporting. See below for a reconciliation of operating profit to adjusted operating profit, a reconciliation of profit before tax to adjusted 
profit before tax and a reconciliation of profit after tax to adjusted profit after tax.

131

XP Power Annual Report & Accounts for the year ended 31 December 2019FINANCIALSNOTES TO THE CONSOLIDATED  
FINANCIAL STATEMENTS CONTINUED

4. SEGMENTED AND REVENUE INFORMATION (CONTINUED)
a. A reconciliation of operating profit to adjusted operating profit is as follows:

£ Millions

Operating profit

Adjusted for:

Acquisition costs

Costs related to ERP implementation

Amortisation of intangible assets due to business combination

Legal costs

Restructuring costs

Adjusted operating profit 

b. A reconciliation of profit before income tax to adjusted profit before tax is as follows:

£ Millions

Profit before tax (“PBT”)

Adjusted for:

Acquisition costs

Costs related to ERP implementation

Amortisation of intangible assets due to business combination

Legal costs

Restructuring costs

Adjusted PBT

c. A reconciliation of profit after tax to adjusted profit after tax is as follows: 

£ Millions

Profit after tax (“PAT”)

Adjusted for:

Acquisition costs

Costs related to ERP implementation

Amortisation of intangible assets due to business combination

Legal costs

Restructuring costs
Non-recurring tax benefits1

Adjusted PAT

2019

26.7

0.9

2.2

3.2

1.9

1.0

9.2

35.9

2019

24.0

0.9

2.2

3.2

1.9

1.0

9.2

33.2

2019

20.8

0.9

2.2

3.2

1.9

1.0

(1.3)

7.9

28.7

2018

39.3

0.6

0.2

2.8

–

–

3.6

42.9

2018

37.6

0.6

0.2

2.8

–

–

3.6

41.2

2018

30.4

0.6

0.2

2.8

–

–

(0.1)

3.5

33.9

1  Adjusted for tax on specific items relating to completed acquisitions of £0.2 million (2018: £0.1 million), costs related to ERP implementation of £0.4 million (2018: 

£Nil), legal costs of £0.5 million (2018: £Nil), and restructuring costs of £0.2 million (2018: £Nil).

5. EMPLOYEE COMPENSATION (INCLUDING DIRECTORS)

£ Millions

Wages and salaries

Employers’ contribution to defined contribution plans

Share option expense

Less: amount capitalised in intangible assets

Total

For further information regarding Directors’ remuneration, refer to the Directors’ Remuneration Report.

2019

51.4

7.6

0.7

59.7

(6.8)

52.9

2018

47.6

6.8

0.8

55.2

(6.7)

48.5

132

6. FINANCE CHARGE

£ Millions
Interest income

Interest expense on bank loans and overdrafts

- Bank borrowings

- Lease liabilities

Unwinding of discount for asset retirement obligation

Unwinding of discount for accrued consideration

Less: amount capitalised in intangible assets and property, plant and equipment

Amount recognised in profit or loss

* Balances are less than £100,000.

Finance expenses on general financing were capitalised at a rate of 4.0% per annum (2018: Nil per annum).

7. EXPENSES BY NATURE 

£ Millions

Profit after tax is after charging:
Amortisation of intangible assets 

Depreciation of property, plant and equipment 

Depreciation of right-of-use assets

Employee compensation (Note 5)

Foreign exchange (gain)/loss

Gain on foreign exchange forwards

Purchases of inventories

Changes in inventories

Fees payable to the Group’s Auditor for the audit of the Group’s accounts

Fees payable to the Group’s Auditor for non-audit services

Fees payable to other audit firm for audit related services

Tax fees payable to other firms for services provided to the Group

Lease expense (Note 14)

Finance charge (Note 6)

Consultancy fees

Travel and entertainment

Costs related to ERP implementation

Legal costs

Restructuring costs

Other charges

Total

* Balances are less than £100,000.

 2019

*

2.7

0.3

3.0

*

*

3.0

(0.3)

2.7

2018

*

1.7

–

1.7

–

*

1.7

–

1.7

2019

2018

7.4

3.6

1.7

52.9

(0.1)

(0.4)

78.6

12.4

0.5

0.1

*

0.1

0.4

2.7

3.0

2.4

2.2

1.9

1.0

5.5

175.9

5.7

3.4

–

48.5

0.4

(0.3)

102.4

(18.7)

0.5

–

–

*

1.6

1.7

1.0

2.9

0.2

*

–

8.1

157.5

133

XP Power Annual Report & Accounts for the year ended 31 December 2019FINANCIALS2019

2018

2.5

(0.2)

0.9

(1.0)

0.2

2.4

1.0

(0.2)

3.2

3.5

(0.2)

3.3

0.3

–

6.9

0.3

–

7.2

 2018

37.6

6.4

(0.5)

1.1

(0.2)

0.3

0.1

–

7.2

NOTES TO THE CONSOLIDATED  
FINANCIAL STATEMENTS CONTINUED

8. INCOME TAXES

£ Millions

Singapore corporation tax

- current year

- over-provision in prior financial year

Overseas corporation tax

- current year

- (over)/under-provision in prior financial years

Withholding tax

Current income tax

Deferred income tax
- current year

- over-provision in prior financial years

Income tax expense

Taxation for other jurisdictions is calculated at the rates prevailing in the respective jurisdictions at the balance sheet date.

In 2018, a tax credit of £1.7 million was refunded by the Singapore tax authority.

The differences between the total income tax expense shown above and the amount calculated by applying the standard rate of 
Singapore income tax rate to the profit before income tax are as follows:

 £ Millions

 Profit before tax
Tax on profit at standard Singapore tax rate of 17% (2018: 17%)

Tax incentives

Higher rates of overseas corporation tax

Deduction for employee share options

Non-deductible expenditure

(Over)/under-provision of tax in prior financial years

Withholding tax

Income tax expense 

* Balance is less than £100,000.

 2019

24.0

4.1

(0.5)

0.5

*

0.3

(1.4)

0.2

3.2

There is no (2018: £nil) tax (charge)/credit relating to components of other comprehensive income.

Aggregate deferred tax asset arising in the reporting period and not recognised in net profit or loss or other comprehensive income but 
directly (debited) or credited to equity:

£ Millions

Deferred tax asset – share option plan expenses

Total

 2019

1.1

1.1

 2018

(0.9)

(0.9)

134

9. DIVIDENDS
Amounts recognised as distributions to equity holders in the period: 

Prior year third quarter dividend paid

Prior year final dividend paid

First quarter dividend paid

Second quarter dividend paid

Total

* Dividends in respect of 2018 (85.0p).

^ Dividends in respect of 2019 (91.0p).

2019

Pence per
 share

£ Millions

2018

Pence per
share

19.0*

33.0*

17.0^

18.0^

87.0

3.6

6.3

3.3

3.5

16.7

18.0

29.0

16.0*

17.0*

80.0

£ Millions

3.4

5.5

3.1

3.3

15.3

The third quarter dividend of 20.0 pence per share was paid on 13 January 2020. The proposed final dividend of 36.0 pence per share 
for the year ended 31 December 2019 is subject to approval by Shareholders at the Annual General Meeting scheduled for 21 April 
2020 and has not been included as a liability in these financial statements. It is proposed that the final dividend be paid on 28 April 
2020 to members on the register as at 27 March 2020.

10. EARNINGS PER SHARE
The calculations of the basic and diluted earnings per share attributable to the ordinary equity holders of the Company are based on the 
following data:

 £ Millions

Earnings
Earnings for the purposes of basic and diluted earnings per share
(profit attributable to equity holders of the Company)

Earnings for earnings per share

Number of shares
Weighted average number of shares for the purposes of basic earnings per share (thousands)

Effect of potentially dilutive share options (thousands)

Weighted average number of shares for the purposes of dilutive earnings per share (thousands)

Earnings per share from operations

Basic

Basic adjusted*

Diluted

Diluted adjusted*

* Reconciliation to compute the diluted adjusted earnings from operations is as per below:

£ Millions
Earnings for the purposes of basic and diluted earnings per share

(profit attributable to equity holders of the Company)

Amortisation of intangible assets due to business combination

Acquisition costs

Non-recurring tax benefits

Costs related to ERP implementation

Legal costs

Restructuring costs

Adjusted earnings

2019

2018

20.5

20.5

19,154

368

19,522

107.0p

148.3p

105.0p

145.5p

20.5

3.2

0.9

(1.3)

2.2

1.9

1.0

28.4

30.2

30.2

19,134

366

19,500

157.8p

176.1p

154.9p

172.8p

30.2

2.8

0.6

(0.1)

0.2

–

–

33.7

135

XP Power Annual Report & Accounts for the year ended 31 December 2019FINANCIALS 
NOTES TO THE CONSOLIDATED  
FINANCIAL STATEMENTS CONTINUED

11. GOODWILL

£ Millions

Cost 
At 1 January 

Accrued consideration (Note 21)

Recognised on acquisition of business

Foreign currency translation

At 31 December

Accumulated impairment loss

At 31 December

Carrying amount

At 31 December

 2019

 2018

54.1

0.3

–

(1.2)

53.2

–

40.4

–

12.5

1.2

54.1

–

53.2

54.1

Goodwill arises on the consolidation of business/subsidiary undertakings. 

In 2018, the Group has recorded an estimated future payment related to the acquisition of the final 10.1% of Powersolve Electronics 
Limited. The Group will acquire the remaining 10.1% of Powersolve Electronics Limited in early 2022. When discounted to present 
value, the total of this payment is estimated at £0.9 million and that amount is reflected on the balance sheet. Since the final payment 
will be dependent on the actual financial performance of the business, an estimate is required to approximate future business 
conditions. 

For the purpose of impairment testing, goodwill has been allocated to the cash-generating units according to operating segments 
identified in Note 4.

The recoverable amount of the goodwill is determined from value-in-use calculations. 

Key assumptions used for value-in-use calculations:

North America

Europe

Asia

31 December 2019

31 December 2018

Growth 
rate1

8.4%

4.0%

8.8%

Discount 
rate2

Terminal 
growth rate

13.0%

12.7%

14.0%

2.0%

2.0%

2.0%

Growth 
rate1

5.0%

5.0%

5.0%

Discount 
rate2

Terminal 
growth rate

8.4%

12.2%

8.1%

0.0%

0.0%

0.0%

1 Compound annual growth rate of projected revenue over five years
2 Pre-tax discount rate applied to the pre-tax cash flow projections

The Group prepares cash flow forecasts derived from the most recent financial results and takes into account industry growth forecasts 
for five years and estimates cash flows based on these forecasts.

A sensitivity analysis was performed for each of the CGUs or group of CGUs and other than for the Europe CGU, management 
concluded that no reasonably possible change in any of the key assumptions would result in the carrying value of the CGU to exceed its 
recoverable amount.

The impairment test carried out as at 31 December 2019 for the Europe CGU, which includes 19% of the goodwill recognised on 
the balance sheet, has revealed that the recoverable amount of the CGU is £3.2 million or 14% higher than its carrying amount. A 
reasonably possible change of a 1.2% increase in the discount rate or a decrease in growth rate by 0.2% would result in the recoverable 
amount of the Europe CGU being equal to its carrying value.

136

 
12. INTANGIBLE ASSETS

£ Millions

Cost
At 1 January 2018

Additions

Reclassification from 
property, plant and 
equipment

Acquisition of business

Foreign currency 
translation

At 31 December 2018
Additions

Transfer

Reclassification from 
property, plant and 
equipment

Foreign currency 
translation

At 31 December 2019

Amortisation
At 1 January 2018

Charge for the year

Foreign currency 
translation

At 31 December 2018
Charge for the year

Transfer

Reclassification from 
property, plant and 
equipment

Foreign currency 
translation

At 31 December 2019

Carrying amount
At 31 December 2019
At 31 December 2018

Development

 costs Brand Trademarks Technology

Customer
relationships

Customer 
contracts

Intangible
 Software

Intangible 
Software 
under
 development

Total

29.0

6.2

–

–

1.2

36.4

8.0

–

–

(1.2)

43.2

13.0

2.9

0.4

16.3

3.9

–

–

(0.4)

19.8

23.4
20.1

0.1

–

–

0.8

0.1

1.0

–

*

–

*

1.0

–

0.1

–

0.1

0.1

*

–

*

0.2

0.8
0.9

1.0

–

–

–

–

1.0

*

*

–

*

1.0

0.9

–

–

0.9

–

–

–

–

0.9

0.1
0.1

2.3

–

–

2.6

0.3

5.2

–

*

–

(0.3)

4.9

0.2

0.5

0.1

0.8

0.6

*

–

*

1.4

3.5
4.4

5.5

–

–

12.1

1.0

18.6

–

–

–

(0.8)

17.8

0.5

1.8

0.1

2.4

2.5

–

–

(0.2)

4.7

13.1
16.2

0.4

–

–

0.2

–

0.6

–

–

–

*

0.6

0.2

0.4

–

0.6

–

–

–

*

0.6

–
–

–

0.2

–

–

–

0.2

0.2

4.9

2.3

(0.2)

7.4

–

*

–

*

0.3

–

1.6

*

1.9

5.5
0.2

–

1.1

38.3

7.5

0.5

–

0.1

1.7

3.4

(4.9)

0.5

15.7

2.7

64.7

11.6

–

–

2.3

(0.2)

(2.7)

–

–

–

–

–

–

–

–

–

–

75.9

14.8

5.7

0.6

21.1

7.4

–

1.6

(0.6)

29.5

–
1.7

46.4
43.6

* Balances are less than £100,000.

The amortisation period for development costs incurred on the Group’s products varies between three and seven years according to the 
expected useful life of the products being developed.

Amortisation commences when the product is ready and available for use.

The remaining amortisation period for customer relationships ranges from two to eight years.

The Group’s trademarks used to identify and distinguish the Group’s name and logo have a carrying amount of £0.1 million (2018: 
£0.1 million). The Group intends to renew the trademarks continuously and evidence supports its ability to do so, based on its past 
experience. An analysis of market and competitive trends provides evidence that the trademarks will generate net cash inflows for the 
Group for an indefinite period. Therefore, the trademarks are carried at cost without amortisation, but is tested for impairment on an 
annual basis.

137

XP Power Annual Report & Accounts for the year ended 31 December 2019FINANCIALSNOTES TO THE CONSOLIDATED  
FINANCIAL STATEMENTS CONTINUED

13. PROPERTY, PLANT AND EQUIPMENT

£ Millions

Cost
At 1 January 2018

Acquisition of business

Additions

Disposals

Transfer

Reclassification to intangible assets

Foreign currency translation

At 31 December 2018
Reclassification to right-of-use asset on 
initial application of IFRS 16

Adjusted balance at 1 January 2019
Additions

Disposals

Transfer

Reclassification to intangible assets

Foreign currency translation

At 31 December 2019

Depreciation
At 1 January 2018

Charge for the year

Disposals

Foreign currency translation

At 31 December 2018
Reclassification to right-of-use asset on 
initial application of IFRS 16

Adjusted balance at 1 January 2019
Charge for the year

Disposals

Transfer

Reclassification to intangible assets

Foreign currency translation

At 31 December 2019

Carrying amount
At 31 December 2019
At 31 December 2018

* Balances are less than £100,000.

Freehold 

land Buildings

Plant and 
equipment

Motor 
vehicles

Building 
improvements

Projects
 under 
development

0.6

0.9

–

–

–

–

0.1

1.6

–

1.6

–

–

–

–

*

1.6

–

–

–

–

–

–

–

–

–

–

–

–

–

1.6
1.6

12.4

2.1

0.1

–

–

–

0.6

15.2

(0.7)

14.5

–

–

3.5

–

(0.7)

17.3

2.6

0.4

–

–

3.0

(0.1)

2.9

0.3

–

–

–

(0.1)

3.1

14.2
12.2

22.7

–

2.2

(1.4)

2.0

(0.5)

1.1

26.1

–

26.1

2.1

(1.6)

1.0

(2.1)

(1.0)

24.5

13.9

2.4

(1.3)

0.7

15.7

–

15.7

2.7

(1.6)

*

(1.6)

(0.6)

14.6

9.9
10.4

0.6

–

0.1

(0.2)

–

–

–

0.5

–

0.5

0.1

(0.2)

–

–

*

0.4

0.3

0.1

(0.1)

–

0.3

–

0.3

0.1

(0.1)

–

–

*

0.3

0.1
0.2

4.9

–

0.7

(0.5)

–

–

0.2

5.3

–

5.3

1.2

*

*

(0.2)

(0.2)

6.1

2.1

0.5

(0.4)

–

2.2

–

2.2

0.5

(0.1)

*

–

*

2.6

3.5
3.1

0.2

–

4.8

–

(2.0)

–

0.2

3.2

–

3.2

1.3

–

(4.5)

*

*

–

–

–

–

–

–

–

–

–

–

–

–

–

–

–
3.2

Total

41.4

3.0

7.9

(2.1)

–

(0.5)

2.2

51.9

(0.7)

51.2

4.7

(1.8)

–

(2.3)

(1.9)

49.9

18.9

3.4

(1.8)

0.7

21.2

(0.1)

21.1

3.6

(1.8)

–

(1.6)

(0.7)

20.6

29.3
30.7

138

14. LEASES
a.  Right-of-use assets

Carrying amounts and depreciation charge during the year

£ Millions

Cost
At 1 January 2019

Additions

Disposals

Depreciation charge during the year

Foreign currency translation

At 31 December 2019

* Balances are less than £100,000.

There is no balance in 2018 as IFRS 16 Leases was adopted by the Group on 1 January 2019.

b.  Lease expense not capitalised in lease liabilities

£ Millions

Lease expense – short-term leases

Lease expense – low-value leases

Total (Note 7)

c.  Total cash outflow for all leases in 2019 was £2.2 million.

d.  Future cash outflows which are not capitalised in lease liabilities 

Extension options 

Leasehold 
land and 
buildings

Equipment 
and motor 
vehicles

6.9

1.4

*

(1.7)

(0.3)

6.3

0.1

0.3

–

*

(0.1)

0.3

Total

7.0

1.7

*

(1.7)

(0.4)

6.6

2019

0.3

0.1

0.4

The leases for certain office spaces contain extension periods, for which the related lease payments have not been included in lease 
liabilities as the Group is not reasonably certain to exercise these extension options. The Group negotiates extension options to 
optimise operational flexibility in terms of managing the assets used in the Group’s operations. All the extensions are exercisable by 
the Group and not by the lessor.

e.  Nature of the Group’s leasing activities

Leasehold land and buildings

  The Group has made an upfront payment to secure the right-of-use of two 50-year leasehold lands, which are used in the Group’s 

production operations. The Group also leases office space for the purpose of back office operations, sales activities, and warehousing 
activities.

  Equipment and motor vehicles

  The Group leases vehicles to render logistic services, and leases copier machines for back office use.

139

XP Power Annual Report & Accounts for the year ended 31 December 2019FINANCIALS 
 
 
NOTES TO THE CONSOLIDATED  
FINANCIAL STATEMENTS CONTINUED

15. SUBSIDIARIES
Details of principal subsidiaries as at 31 December 2019, all of which are consolidated, are as follows:

Proportion
of Ownership
2019

Proportion
of Ownership
2018

Name of Subsidiary
Held by the Company

XP Power Plc

Place of incorporation/
ownership (or 
registration)
and operation

UK

XP Power Singapore Holdings Pte 
Limited

Singapore

Held by the Group

XP PLC

XP Power Holdings Limited

UK

UK

XP Power AG

Switzerland

Powersolve Electronics Limited*

XP Power Srl

XP Power ApS

XP Power Sweden AB

XP Power BV

XP Power GmbH

XP Power SA

XP Power Norway AS

UK

Italy

Denmark

Sweden

Holland

Germany

France

Norway

XP Power International Limited

UK

Forx, Inc.

XP Power LLC

XP Power (Shanghai) Co., Limited

XP Power (Hong Kong) Limited

Delaware

USA

China

HK

XP Power (Vietnam) Co., Limited

Vietnam

XP Power Singapore Manufacturing 
Pte. Ltd.

XP Power (Israel) Ltd

XP Power Japan K.K.

Hanpower Co., Ltd

* Refer to Note 21.

Singapore

Israel

Japan

South Korea

16. CASH AND CASH EQUIVALENTS 

£ Millions

Cash at bank and on hand

Short-term bank deposits

Total 

(%)

100

100

100

100

100

89.9

100

100

100

100

100

100

100

100

100

100

100

100

100

100

100

100

51

(%)

100

100

100

100

100

89.9

100

100

100

100

100

100

100

100

100

100

100

100

100

100

100

100

51

Statutory Auditor of subsidiaries

PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP

PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP

PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP

PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP

Karpf Treuhand & Revisions AG

PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP

Exempted to be audited by local statutory law

Bierholm

Rodl & Partner Nordic AB

Exempted to be audited by local statutory law

Exempted to be audited by local statutory law

Deloitte 

BDO AS

Exempted to be audited by local statutory law

Exempted to be audited by local statutory law

Exempted to be audited by local statutory law

Shanghai Jahwa CPAs

PricewaterhouseCoopers Limited

PricewaterhouseCoopers (Vietnam) Limited

PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP

Ernst and Young Solutions LLP

Exempted to be audited by local statutory law

Exempted to be audited by local statutory law

 2019

11.1

0.1

11.2

 2018

10.9

0.6

11.5

For the purpose of presenting the consolidated cash flow statement, the consolidated cash and cash equivalents comprise the following:

£ Millions

Cash at bank balances (as above)

Cash and cash equivalents per consolidated cash flow statement

2019

11.2

11.2

2018

11.5

11.5

140

17. INVENTORIES

 £ Millions

 Goods for resale

 Raw materials

 Work-in-progress

 Total

2019

18.6

21.8

3.7

44.1

2018

25.2

27.2

4.1

56.5

The cost of inventories recognised as an expense and included in “cost of sales” amounts to £109.8 million (2018: £102.8 million). 

18. TRADE RECEIVABLES

£ Millions

Current assets
Trade receivables 

Loss allowance (Note 30 (d))

Total 

31 December

2019 

2018

1 January

2018

34.9

(0.1)

34.8

33.1

(0.1)

33.0

23.9

(0.1)

23.8

The average credit period taken on sales of goods is 64 days (2018: 62 days). No interest is charged on the outstanding receivables 
balance. The carrying amounts of trade receivables approximate their fair values.

19. OTHER CURRENT ASSETS

£ Millions

Prepayments

Deposits

VAT receivables

Rights to returned goods

Other receivables

Total 

Other current assets are not impaired as at 31 December 2019 and 31 December 2018.

20. TRADE AND OTHER PAYABLES

£ Millions

Trade payables

Other taxes

Other creditors and accruals

Refund liabilities

Total

2019

2018

2.1

0.3

0.4

0.2

0.3

3.3

2019

12.7

2.3

9.8

0.4

25.2

2.2

0.3

0.4

–

0.4

3.3

2018

11.5

1.4

9.5

–

22.4

Trade and other payables principally comprise amounts outstanding for trade purchases and ongoing costs. The carrying amounts of 
trade and other payables approximate their fair values.

The refund liabilities and rights to returned goods (Note 19) are recognised for products expected to be returned from customers.

141

XP Power Annual Report & Accounts for the year ended 31 December 2019FINANCIALS 
NOTES TO THE CONSOLIDATED  
FINANCIAL STATEMENTS CONTINUED

21. ACCRUED CONSIDERATION

£ Millions

At 1 January

Movement in provision during the year

Payment

At 31 December

£ Millions

Current portion

Non-current portion

At 31 December

2019

1.4

0.3

–

1.7

2019

0.5

1.2

1.7

2018

1.4

–

–

1.4

2018

–

1.4

1.4

The Group owns 89.9% (2018: 89.9%) of the shares of Powersolve Electronics Limited (“Powersolve”) and entered into an amended 
agreement on 29 October 2016 to purchase the remaining 10.1% of the shares in 2022. The Group owns 51% (2018: 51%) of the 
shares of Hanpower Co., Ltd (“Hanpower”) and entered into an agreement on 20 May 2015 to purchase an additional 15.0% of the 
shares in 2020 and another 15.0% of the shares in 2025.

The commitment to purchase the remaining ownership interests has been accounted for as accrued consideration and is calculated 
based on the expected future payment which will be based on a predefined multiple of the average earnings for three years.

The future payment is discounted to the present value, with the discount amortised to interest expense each period as the payment 
draws nearer. At each reporting period, the anticipated future payment is recalculated and an adjustment made accordingly, with 
a corresponding adjustment to goodwill for Powersolve. For Hanpower, the amount that is payable under the agreement is initially 
recognised at the present value of the redemption amount within liabilities with a corresponding charge directly to equity. The liability is 
subsequently accreted through equity up to the redemption amount that is payable in 2020 and 2025.

22. BORROWINGS AND LEASE LIABILITIES
a. Bank borrowings

The borrowings are repayable as follows:

£ Millions
On demand or within one year

In the second year

In the third year

In the fourth year

Total

The carrying amounts of the Group’s borrowings are denominated in the following currency:

£ Millions

Bank loans (in USD)

Total

UNDRAWN BORROWING FACILITIES 

£ Millions

Expiring beyond one year

Total

There is no drawdown on bank overdrafts (2018: £Nil) during the year. 

The fair value of the Group’s bank loans and overdrafts approximates their book value.

2019

–

–

–

52.5

52.5

2019

52.5

52.5

2019

37.1

37.1

2018

–

–

63.5

–

63.5

2018

63.5

63.5

2018

19.0

19.0

142

22. BORROWINGS AND LEASE LIABILITIES (CONTINUED)
The other principal features of the Group’s borrowings are as follows:

1.  On 27 September 2017, the Group entered into a revolving credit facility of US$40.0 million with a US$20.0 million additional 

accordion option. In May 2018, the Group increased the revolving credit facility to US$85.0 million with a US$20.0 million additional 
accordion option. In November 2018, the Group has fully exercised the US$20.0 million additional accordion option and the 
revolving credit facility has increased to US$105.0 million. In November 2019, the Group renewed its facility from US$105.0 million 
to US$120.0 million with a US$60.0 million accordion option with a four-year term up to November 2023. The facility has no fixed 
repayment terms until maturity. The revolving loan is priced at LIBOR plus a margin of 1.2% for the utilisation facility and a margin of 
0.4%-0.5% for the unutilised facility.

2.  Management assessed all loan covenants have been complied with as at 31 December 2019.

b. Lease liabilities

£ Millions
Current portion

Non-current portion

Total

2019

1.6

4.8

6.4

2018

–

–

–

There is no balance in 2018 as IFRS 16 Leases was adopted by the Group on 1 January 2019.

RECONCILIATION OF LIABILITIES ARISING FROM FINANCING ACTIVITIES

1 January 
2019

63.5

–

Proceeds 
from
 borrowings

Principal 
and interest 
payments

–

–

(11.2)

(1.8)

Adoption 
of IFRS 16

–

6.4

Addition 
during
 the year

–

1.6

Interest 
expense

2.7

0.3

Foreign 
exchange 
movement

(2.5)

(0.1)

31 December 
2019

52.5

6.4

Non-cash changes

1 January 
2018

24.0

Proceeds 
from 
borrowings

Principal 
and interest 
payments

39.4

(4.9)

Non-cash changes

Interest 
expense

1.5

Foreign 
exchange 
movement

3.5

31 December 
2018

63.5

£ Millions
Bank loans

Lease liabilities

£ Millions

Bank loans

23. DERIVATIVE FINANCIAL INSTRUMENTS
Forward foreign exchange contracts
The Group utilises currency derivatives to hedge highly probable forecast transactions. The instruments purchased are denominated in 
the currencies of the Group’s principal markets. 

a.  Instruments applying hedge accounting

In 2019, the total notional amount of outstanding currency forward contracts that the Group has committed is £Nil (2018: £10.8 
million). These contracts are to hedge against exchange rate movements on future sales and hedge accounting has been applied.

31 December 2019

£ Millions
Forward foreign exchange contracts

Current portion

Total

31 December 2018

£ Millions
Forward foreign exchange contracts

Current portion

Total

* Balances are less than £100,000.

Contract notional 
amount

Fair value asset

–

–

–

–

Contract notional 
amount

Fair value asset

10.8

10.8

*

*

143

XP Power Annual Report & Accounts for the year ended 31 December 2019FINANCIALSNOTES TO THE CONSOLIDATED  
FINANCIAL STATEMENTS CONTINUED

23. DERIVATIVE FINANCIAL INSTRUMENTS (CONTINUED)
b.  Instruments not applying hedge accounting

Certain currency forward contracts were taken up to protect against exchange rate movements on future purchases of goods. Hedge 
accounting has not been applied to these contracts.

The total notional amount and fair value asset/(liability) of these forward contracts are as follows:

December 2019

£ Millions
Forward foreign exchange contracts

Current portion

Total

December 2018

£ Millions
Forward foreign exchange contracts

Current portion

Total

Assets

Contract 
notional amount

Fair value 
asset

Contract 
notional amount

Fair value
 (liability)

Liabilities

11.3

11.3

Assets

0.6

0.6

–

–

Liabilities

–

–

Contract
notional amount

Fair value
asset

Contract
 notional amount

Fair value
 (liability)

–

–

–

–

15.0

15.0

(0.2)

(0.2)

24. DEFERRED INCOME TAXES
The movement in deferred income tax assets and liabilities during the financial year is as follows:

Deferred income tax assets

Share-
based
payment

1.4

0.1

(0.9)

0.6
0.1

1.1

1.8

Total

(4.2)

(0.4)

(0.1)

(4.7)

(0.9)

0.1

(5.5)

Accelerated
tax
depreciation

Intangible
assets
amortisation

Capitalised
development
costs

Other
temporary 
differences

(0.7)

–

0.1

(0.6)

(0.4)

–

(1.0)

(0.8)

–

(0.1)

(0.9)

(0.2)

–

(1.1)

(3.4)

(0.8)

(0.2)

(4.4)

(0.9)

0.2

(5.1)

0.7

0.4

0.1

1.2

0.6

(0.1)

1.7

£ Millions
At 1 January 2018

Credit to statement of comprehensive income

Charge to equity

At 31 December 2018
Credit to statement of comprehensive income

Credit to equity

At 31 December 2019

Deferred income tax liabilities

£ Millions
At 1 January 2018

(Charge)/credit to statement of comprehensive 
income

Foreign currency translation

At 31 December 2018
(Charge)/credit to statement of comprehensive 
income

Foreign currency translation

At 31 December 2019

144

 
 
 
 
 
 
25. SHARE CAPITAL AND RESERVES
CALLED UP SHARE CAPITAL 

£ Millions

Allotted and fully paid 19,242,296 ordinary shares (2018: 19,242,296)

RESERVE

The reserves of the Group comprise the following balances:

£ Millions
Merger reserve
Share option reserve
Treasury shares reserve
Hedging reserve
Translation reserve
Other reserve
Retained earnings

Balance at 31 December

2019

27.2

2018

27.2

2019

2018

0.2

3.9

(0.5)

–

(0.2)

(0.8)

108.4

111.0

0.2

2.1

(1.0)

0.1

4.0

(0.8)

104.6

109.2

Merger reserve represents the difference between the value of shares issued by the Company in exchange for the value of shares of 
subsidiaries acquired under common control.

Share option reserve represents the equity-settled share options granted to employees. The reserve is made up of the cumulative value 
of services received from employees recorded over the vesting period commencing from the grant date of equity-settled share options, 
and is reduced by the expiry or exercise of share options.

Treasury shares reserve represents the amount of treasury shares held by the Group. 33,650 (2018: 54,800) treasury shares were sold 
during the financial year. The cost of the treasury shares sold amounted to £0.8 million (2018: £0.5 million). As at 31 December 2019, 
the Group’s Employee Share Ownership Plan (ESOP) held 46,090 (2018: 79,740) shares carrying value of £475,561 (2018: £960,084) 
owned by the Trust. 

Hedging reserve comprises the effective portion of the cumulative net change in the fair value of cash flow hedging instruments.

Translation reserve represents exchange differences arising from the translation of financial statements of foreign operations whose 
functional currencies are different from that of the Group’s presentation currency.

Other reserves comprises future transactions with the non-controlling interest. The amount that may become payable under the 
agreement is initially recognised at the present value of the redemption amount within liabilities with a corresponding change directly to 
equity. The liability is subsequently accreted through finance charges up to the redemption amount that is payable at the date at which 
the agreement first becomes exercisable. The Group has an agreement with the non-controlling shareholders of its Hanpower Co. Ltd 
(“Hanpower”) subsidiary to purchase an additional 15.0% of the shares in 2020 and another 15.0% of the shares in 2025. 

26. OPERATING LEASES AND OTHER COMMITMENTS
As at 31 December 2018, the future minimum lease payments under non-cancellable operating leases contracted for but not recognised 
as liabilities, are as follows:

£ Millions
Within one year

In the second to fifth years inclusive

After five years

Total

2018

2.1

5.2

0.5

7.8

Operating lease payments represent rentals payable by the Group for certain of its office properties and warehouses.

The Group has remaining £Nil commitments (2018: £0.1 million) on the contract for the construction of a factory in Vietnam.

As disclosed in Note 2.1, the Group has adopted IFRS 16 on 1 January 2019. These lease payments have been recognised as ROU 
assets and lease liabilities on the balance sheet as at 31 December 2019, except short-term and low-value leases.

145

XP Power Annual Report & Accounts for the year ended 31 December 2019FINANCIALSNOTES TO THE CONSOLIDATED  
FINANCIAL STATEMENTS CONTINUED

27. DEFINED CONTRIBUTION PLANS
The total cost recognised is £7.6 million (2018: £6.8 million) for the Group. 

In the USA, the total cost charged to the statement of comprehensive income of £4.1 million (2018: £3.7 million) represents the Group’s 
defined contribution.

In the United Kingdom and Europe, the Group operates defined contribution pension schemes for its employees with contributions 
amounting to £2.1 million (2018: £1.8 million). 

In Asia, the Group contributes to the defined contribution plans regulated and managed by the governments of the countries in which 
the Group operates. The Group’s contribution to the defined contribution plans is charged to the statement of comprehensive income in 
the period to which the contributions relate. The total cost charged to the statement of comprehensive income was £1.4 million (2018: 
£1.3 million).

28. RELATED PARTY TRANSACTIONS
Transactions between the Company and its subsidiaries, which are related parties of the Company, have been eliminated on 
consolidation and are not disclosed in this note.

As at 31 December 2019, the Company’s Employee Share Ownership Plan provided nil (2018: nil) interest-free loans to Directors for 
the deferred payment share scheme. The detailed information is provided for in the Directors’ Remuneration Report on pages 86 to 
103.

The remuneration of the Directors of the Group who are considered to be key management is set out below for each of the categories 
specified in IAS 24 Related Party Disclosures. Further information about the remuneration of the individual Directors is provided in the 
Directors’ Remuneration Report on pages 86 to 103.

£ Millions

Short-term employee benefits

Post-employment benefits

Total Directors’ remuneration

* Balances are less than £100,000.

2019

1.4

*

1.4

2018

2.0

*

2.0

29. SHARE-BASED PAYMENTS
Share Option Plans
Options have been granted under the Company’s Approved Share Option Schemes. The number of shares outstanding, subscription 
prices and exercise periods are as follows: 

Number of shares

Exercise Price (pence)

Grant Date

Expiry Date 

 119,200

 266,383

 385,583

946

 1,543

10 October 2012* 

23 February 2016#

10 October 2022

23 February 2026

* 2012 Approved option scheme has been fully vested.

# 50% of 2016 Approved option scheme vested in 2019 and 50% will vest in 2020.

Outstanding at beginning of the year

Granted during the year

Forfeited during the year

Exercised during the year

Outstanding at the end of the year
Exercisable at the end of the year

2019

2018

Number of 
share options

Weighted 
average 
exercise price 
(pence)

Number of 
share options

Weighted 
average 
exercise price 
(pence)

510,750

1,391

568,550

1,350

–

(93,120)

(32,047)

385,583

252,392

–

–

1,346

1,358

1,261

–

(3,000)

(54,800)

510,750

129,750

–

–

957

1,391

946

The weighted average share price at the date of exercise for the share options exercised during the period was £25.37 (2018: £34.89). 
The options outstanding at 31 December 2019 had a weighted average exercise price of £13.58 (2018: £13.91), and a weighted 
average remaining contractual life of 5.1 years.

146

 
 
 
 
 
29. SHARE-BASED PAYMENTS (CONTINUED)
For options granted in 2016, the Group has taken a charge of £0.1 million (2018: £0.2 million). The fair value of options was determined 
using the Black-Scholes Model with a share price of £15.43 and a weighted average exercise price of £15.43, standard deviation of 
expected share returns of 0.292, and an annual risk free interest rate of 0.28%.

The volatility measured as the standard deviation of expected share price returns was based on statistical analysis of the Company’s 
share price over the last year.

Long-Term Incentive Plan (“LTIP”)
The Group has introduced a LTIP scheme to replace the Share Option Plan. Under the scheme, conditional awards of share options are 
made to the scheme participants at nil or nominal cost or deferred cash.

Number of shares

Exercise Price (pence)

39,400

2,250

8,000

54,199

800

123,747

228,396

1

1

1

1

1

1

Grant Date

30 May 2017

12 October 2017

1 November 2017

16 May 2018

4 September 2018

8 March 2019

Expiry Date 

30 May 2022

12 October 2022

1 November 2022

16 May 2023

4 September 2023

8 March 2024

At the vesting date, the share award will either vest, in full or in part, or lapse depending on the outcome of the performance conditions. 
The performance conditions of the awards are based on the growth in Earnings Per Share (“EPS”) and the Total Shareholder Return 
(“TSR”) of the Group measured against that of the FTSE 250 over the Performance Period. The Group has taken a charge of £0.3 million 
(2018: £0.4 million) for the LTIPs granted in 2017, 2018, and 2019. The fair value of the equity-settled LTIP options was calculated at 
the grant date using the Monte Carlo model and the Black-Scholes model based on the assumptions below.

Options granted

Fair value at grant date

Assumption used:

Share price

Exercise price

Expected volatility

Expected option life

Expected dividend yield

Risk free interest rate

2019

123,747

£13.94

£20.50

£0.01

29.44%

3 years

3.74%

1.21%

 LTIP

2018

54,999

£24.84

£35.50

£0.01

27.66%

3 years

2.59%

1.50%

2017

49,650

£17.13

£26.77

£0.01

27.69%

3 years

3.75%

0.99%

Volatility was estimated based on the historical volatility of the shares over a three-year period prior to grant date.

Outstanding at beginning of the year

Granted during the year

Forfeited during the year

Exercised during the year

Outstanding at the end of the year
Exercisable at the end of the year

2019

2018

Number of LTIP
options

Weighted average 
exercise price 
(pence)

Number of LTIP 
options

Weighted average 
exercise price 
(pence)

104,649

123,747

(4,630)

–

223,766

–

1

1

(1)

–

1

–

49,650

54,999

–

–

104,649

–

1

1

–

–

1

–

50% of the share awards will vest after the third year and the remaining 50% of the share awards will vest after the fourth year. Upon 
vesting, employees will receive one share for each vested share award.

147

XP Power Annual Report & Accounts for the year ended 31 December 2019FINANCIALS 
 
NOTES TO THE CONSOLIDATED  
FINANCIAL STATEMENTS CONTINUED

30. FINANCIAL RISK MANAGEMENT
The Group’s activities expose it to capital risk, currency risk (including both transactional and translational currency risk), interest rate 
risk, credit risk and liquidity risk. The Group seeks to minimise adverse effects from the unpredictability of financial markets on the 
Group’s financial performance. 

a.  Capital risk

The Group manages its capital to ensure that the entities in the Group will be able to continue as a going concern while maximising the 
return to Shareholders through the optimisation of the debt and equity.

The capital structure of the Group consists of debt, which includes the borrowings disclosed in Note 22, cash and equity attributable to 
equity holders of the parent, comprising issued capital, reserves and retained earnings as disclosed in Note 25.

The Board reviews the capital structure of the business and considers the cost of capital and risks associated with each class of capital. 
The Group aims to balance its overall capital structure through the payment of dividends, new share issues and share buyback as well 
as the issue of new debt or the redemption of existing debt.

b.  Currency risk

The Group operates in North America, Europe and Asia and its activities expose it to transactional risks resulting from changes in 
foreign currency exchange rates. The Group monitors and manages these transactional foreign exchange risks relating to the operations 
of the Group through internal reports analysing major currency exposures. Where possible, the Group seeks to offset exposures by 
matching monetary asset and liability exposures in like currencies against each other, often using its bank facilities to square off or 
reduce exposures. To manage the currency risk, the Group manages the overall currency exposure mainly through currency forwards. 

The Group’s risk management policy is to hedge 100% of highly probable forecast transactions for Europe sales in the next 12 months. 

The risk is measured through a forecast of highly probable EUR sales and tracking of firm commitment in EUR. The objective of the 
hedges is to minimise the volatility of the Group’s currency cost of highly probable transactions and firm commitment. In order to 
achieve these objectives, the Group entered into cash flow hedges for highly probable sale transactions. The foreign exchange forwards 
are denominated in the same currency as the highly probable sale transactions. Therefore, the hedge ratio is 1:1.

Hedge effectiveness

Hedge effectiveness is determined at the inception of the hedging relationship, and through periodic prospective effective assessments 
to ensure that an economic relationship exists between the hedged item and hedging instrument.

The Group enters into hedge relationships where the critical terms of the hedging instrument match exactly with the terms of the 
hedged item, and so a qualitative assessment of effectiveness is performed. If changes in circumstances affect the terms of the 
hedged item such that the critical terms no longer match exactly with the critical terms of the hedging instrument, the Group uses the 
hypothetical derivative method to assess effectiveness.

Hedge ineffectiveness may occur due to changes in the credit risk of the derivative counterparty or the Group. There was no 
ineffectiveness during 2019 in relation to the revenue hedge. 

In addition, the Group is exposed to translation risk when the results of its various operations are translated from their local functional 
currencies to Sterling, the Group’s reporting currency. In particular a significant proportion of the Group’s revenues and earnings are 
derived in US Dollars. The Group is therefore exposed to risk when these US Dollar revenue streams are translated into Sterling for 
Group reporting purposes. The Group regards this as a fundamental consequence of operating in markets which are dominated by US 
Dollar transactions. The Group does not hedge this translational risk as there is no underlying mismatch of foreign currencies as the 
translation is merely performed for reporting the Group’s results in Sterling.

148

30. FINANCIAL RISK MANAGEMENT (CONTINUED)
b.  Currency risk (continued)

The Group’s transactional currency exposure based on the information provided to key management is as follows:

£ Millions

At 31 December 2019

Financial assets
Cash and cash equivalents 

Trade receivables

Other current assets

ESOP loan to employees

Subtotal

Financial liabilities
Borrowings

Trade and other payables

Lease liabilities

Other financial liabilities

Subtotal

Net financial assets/(liabilities)
Add: Firm commitments and highly probable forecast 
transactions in foreign currency

Currency forwards 

Currency profile excluding non-financial 
assets and liabilities
Less: Financial assets/(liabilities) denominated in the respective 
entities’ functional currencies

Currency exposure of financial assets

£ Millions

At 31 December 2018

Financial assets
Cash and cash equivalents 

Trade receivables

Other current assets

ESOP loan to employees

Subtotal

Financial liabilities
Borrowings

Trade and other payables

Other financial liabilities

Subtotal

Net financial assets/(liabilities)
Add: Firm commitments and highly probable forecast 
transactions in foreign currency

Currency forwards

Currency profile excluding non-financial assets and liabilities
Less: Financial assets/(liabilities) denominated in the respective 
entities’ functional currencies

Currency exposure of financial assets

* Balance is less than £100,000.

GBP

EUR

USD

Others

Total

1.4

2.6

0.1

0.1

4.2

–

(2.9)

(0.6)

(1.0)

(4.5)

(0.3)

–

11.3

11.0

0.7

10.3

GBP

1.1

2.4

0.1

0.2

3.8

–

(2.3)

(0.6)

(2.9)

0.9

–

15.0

15.9

1.4

14.5

0.5

2.8

*

–

3.3

–

(0.7)

(0.5)

–

(1.2)

2.1

–

–

2.1

2.2

(0.1)

EUR

1.0

2.4

–

–

3.4

–

(0.6)

–

(0.6)

2.8

12.6

(10.8)

4.6

2.0

2.6

8.2

29.1

0.2

–

37.5

(52.5)

(17.5)

(4.8)

–

(74.8)

(37.3)

–

–

(37.3)

(44.3)

7.0

USD

6.9

27.8

0.5

–

35.2

(63.5)

(18.7)

–

(82.2)

(47.0)

–

–

(47.0)

(53.6)

6.6

1.1

0.3

0.3

–

1.7

–

(3.5)

(0.5)

(0.8)

(4.8)

(3.1)

–

–

(3.1)

(0.3)

(2.8)

Others

2.5

0.4

0.1

–

3.0

–

(0.5)

(0.8)

(1.3)

1.7

–

–

1.7

1.4

0.3

11.2

34.8

0.6

0.1

46.7

(52.5)

(24.6)

(6.4)

(1.8)

(85.3)

(38.6)

–

11.3

(27.3)

(41.7)

14.4

Total

11.5

33.0

0.7

0.2

45.4

(63.5)

(22.1)

(1.4)

(87.0)

(41.6)

12.6

4.2

(24.8)

(48.8)

24.0

149

XP Power Annual Report & Accounts for the year ended 31 December 2019FINANCIALS 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
NOTES TO THE CONSOLIDATED  
FINANCIAL STATEMENTS CONTINUED

30. FINANCIAL RISK MANAGEMENT (CONTINUED)
b.  Currency risk (continued)

If the US Dollar and Euro change against Sterling by 5% and 0.4% respectively (2018: US Dollar 5%, Euro 1%) with all other variables, 
including tax rates, being held constant, the effects arising from the net financial asset/(liability) position will be as follows: 

£ Millions

Group
EUR against GBP

 - strengthened

 - weakened

USD against GBP

 - strengthened

 - weakened

2019
Profit after tax

2018
Profit after tax

*

*

0.3

(0.3)

*

*

0.3

(0.3)

* Balances are less than £100,000.

The impact of the currency risk on the other comprehensive income is not significant.

c.  Interest rate risk

Cash flow interest rate risk is the risk that the future cash flows of a financial instrument will fluctuate because of changes in market 
interest rates. As the Group has no significant interest-bearing assets, the Group’s income is substantially independent of changes in the 
market interest rates.

All of the Group’s borrowings are at variable interest rates and are denominated in US Dollars. If the average interest rates on these 
borrowings increased/decreased by 0.5% (2018: 0.5%) with all other variables, including tax rates, being held constant, the profit before 
tax will be lower/higher by £262,000 (2018: £317,000) as a result of higher/lower interest expense on these borrowings.

d.  Credit risk

Credit risk refers to the risk that the counterparty will default on its contractual obligations resulting in a financial loss to the Group. For 
trade receivables the Group adopts a policy of only dealing with customers of appropriate credit history or rating. For other financial 
assets, the Group adopts the policy of only dealing with high credit quality counterparties.

The Group uses a provision matrix to measure the lifetime expected credit loss allowance for trade receivables. In measuring the 
expected credit loss, trade receivables are grouped based on shared credit risk characteristics and days past due.

In calculating the expected credit loss rates, the Group considers historical loss rates for each category of customers and adjusts to 
reflect current and forward macroeconomic factors affecting the ability of the customers to settle the receivables. The Group has 
identified gross domestic product (GDP) and the public policy of the countries in which it sells goods as the most relevant factors.

Trade receivables are written off when there is no reasonable expectation of recovery, such as a debtor failing to engage in a repayment 
plan with the Group. The Group considers a financial asset as in default if the counterparty fails to make contractual payments within 
90 days when they fall due and writes off the financial asset when a debtor is in significant financial difficulties and have defaulted 
on payment which is usually greater than 120 days past due. Where receivables are written off, the Company continues to engage in 
enforcement activity to attempt to recover the receivables due. Where recoveries are made, these are recognised in profit or loss.

150

 
 
 
 
 
30. FINANCIAL RISK MANAGEMENT (CONTINUED)
d.  Credit risk (continued)

The Group’s credit risk exposure in relation to trade receivables under IFRS 9 is set out in the provision matrix as follows:

£ Millions

At 31 December 2019

North America region
Expected loss rate

Trade receivables

Loss allowance

Europe region
Expected loss rate

Trade receivables

Loss allowance

Asia region
Expected loss rate

Trade receivables

Loss allowance

£ Millions

At 31 December 2018

North America region
Expected loss rate

Trade receivables

Loss allowance

Europe region
Expected loss rate

Trade receivables

Loss allowance

Asia region
Expected loss rate

Trade receivables

Loss allowance

* Balances are less than £100,000.

Current

1 – 30 days

31 – 60 days

61 – 90 days

91 – 120 days

> 120 days

Total

Past due

0.0%

12.7

–

0.0%

8.0

–

0.0%

4.2

–

0.1%

3.2

*

0.1%

2.1

*

0.0%

1.7

–

0.2%

0.3

*

0.2%

0.7

*

0.0%

0.3

–

0.2%

0.7

*

0.2%

0.3

*

0.0%

*

–

Past due

0.3%

0.2

*

0.3%

0.1

*

0.0%

*

–

31.1%

0.2

*

38.6%

0.2

*

0.0%

*

–

17.3

*

11.4

*

6.2

–

Current

1 – 30 days

31 – 60 days

61 – 90 days

91 – 120 days

> 120 days

Total

0.0%

13.6

–

0.0%

5.8

–

0.0%

2.8

–

0.1%

4.1

*

0.1%

1.5

*

0.0%

1.5

–

0.2%

2.1

*

0.2%

0.5

*

0.0%

0.2

–

0.2%

0.3

*

0.2%

0.3

*

0.0%

–

–

0.3%

0.1

*

0.3%

0.1

*

0.0%

–

–

21.8%

0.1

*

36.9%

*

*

0.0%

0.1

–

20.3

*

8.2

*

4.6

–

151

XP Power Annual Report & Accounts for the year ended 31 December 2019FINANCIALSNOTES TO THE CONSOLIDATED  
FINANCIAL STATEMENTS CONTINUED

30. FINANCIAL RISK MANAGEMENT (CONTINUED)
d.  Credit risk (continued)

The movement in the allowance for impairment of trade receivables is as follows: 

£ Millions

Beginning of financial year

Application of IFRS 9

Restated allowance for impairment under IFRS9

Loss allowance(a) recognised in profit or loss during the year on assets acquired/originated
Receivables written off as uncollectible

Foreign currency translation

End of the financial year

(a) Loss allowance measured at lifetime ECL.

* Balances are less than £100,000.

e.  Liquidity risk

2019

(0.1)

–

(0.1)

*

*

*

(0.1)

2018

(0.5)

0.4

(0.1)

(0.1)

0.1

–

(0.1)

Prudent liquidity risk management includes maintaining sufficient cash, the availability of funding through an adequate amount of 
committed credit facilities (Note 22) and the ability to close out market positions at a short notice. At the balance sheet date, assets 
held by the Group and the Company for managing liquidity risk included cash and short-term deposits as disclosed in Note 16.

The table below analyses the maturity profile of the Group’s non-derivative financial liabilities at the balance sheet date based on 
contractual undiscounted cash flows. Balances due within 12 months equal their carrying amounts as the impact of discounting is not 
significant.

£ Millions

Group

At 31 December 2019
Trade and other payables

Lease liabilities

Accrued consideration

Borrowings, including interest 

Total
At 31 December 2018

Trade and other payables

Accrued consideration

Borrowings, including interest 

Total

Less than 
1 year

Between 
1 and 2 years

Between 
2 and 5 years

Over 
5 years

25.2

1.9

0.5

1.9

29.5

22.4

–

2.8

25.2

–

2.0

1.0

1.8

4.7

–

0.5

2.6

3.1

–

2.4

0.2

55.7

58.4

–

0.6

65.5

66.1

–

0.9

–

–

1.0

–

0.3

–

0.3

Total

25.2

7.2

1.7

59.4

93.6

22.4

1.4

70.9

94.7

The Group manages the liquidity risk by maintaining sufficient cash and bank facilities to enable it to meet its normal operating 
commitments.

152

30. FINANCIAL RISK MANAGEMENT (CONTINUED)
f.  Fair value measurements

The table below analyses financial instruments carried at fair value, by valuation method. The different levels have been defined as 
follows: 

i.  Quoted prices (unadjusted) in active markets for identical assets or liabilities (Level 1);

ii.  Inputs other than quoted prices included within Level 1 that are observable for the asset or liability, either directly  

(i.e. as prices) or indirectly (i.e. derived from prices) (Level 2); and

iii.  Inputs for the asset or liability that are not based on observable market data (unobservable inputs) (Level 3).

The following table presents the assets and liabilities measured at fair value at 31 December 2019.

£ Millions

2019

Assets
Derivative financial instruments

Liabilities
Derivative financial instruments

2018

Assets
Derivative financial instruments

Liabilities
Derivative financial instruments

* Balance is less than £100,000.

 Level 1

Level 2

Level 3

Total

–

–

–

–

0.6

–

*

(0.2)

–

–

–

–

0.6

–

*

(0.2)

The fair value of financial instruments that are not traded in an active market (for example, over-the-counter derivatives) is determined 
by using valuation techniques. The Group uses a variety of methods and makes assumptions that are based on market conditions 
existing at each balance sheet date. The fair value of forward foreign exchange contracts is determined using quoted forward exchange 
rates at the balance sheet date. These derivative financial instruments are included in Level 2.

g.  Offsetting financial assets and financial liabilities

The Group has no financial instruments subject to enforceable master netting arrangements. 

31. OTHER INFORMATION
These financial statements were authorised for issue in accordance with a resolution of the Board of Directors of XP Power Limited on 3 
March 2020.

153

XP Power Annual Report & Accounts for the year ended 31 December 2019FINANCIALSCOMPANY BALANCE SHEET

AS AT 31 DECEMBER 2019

Note

2019

2018
 Restated 

2017
 Restated 

35

36

37

38

39

46

34

40

41

42

45

44

46

38

43

47

47

47

47

47

5,016

42,437

565

632

10,949

–

59,599

44,892

1,626

333

16,377

6,806

70,034

4,865

16,719

660

42

12,327

–

34,613

46,951

1,821

–

12,220

28,171

89,163

129,633

123,776

46,509

2,449

–

167

34,190

3,784

229

–

4,633

9,181

1,092

154

10,434

1,291

26,785

44,279

2,299

–

7,564

18,495

72,637

99,422

21,210

3,146

248

–

49,125

38,203

24,604

2,479

173

2,652

51,777

77,856

1,738

–

1,738

39,941

83,835

1,419

–

1,419

26,023

73,399

29,770

29,786

29,786

404

–

18,868

28,814

77,856

179

42

22,502

31,326

83,835

5

(239)

17,857

25,990

73,399

£’000

ASSETS

Current assets
Cash and cash equivalents

Trade and other receivables

Other current assets

Derivative financial instruments

Inventories

Corporation tax recoverable

Total current assets

Non-current assets
Investment in subsidiaries*

Property, plant and equipment

Right-of-use assets

Intangible assets

Long-term receivable

Total non-current assets

Total assets

LIABILITIES

Current liabilities
Trade and other payables

Current income tax liabilities

Derivative financial instruments

Lease liabilities

Total current liabilities

Non-current liabilities
Deferred income tax liabilities

Lease liabilities

Total non-current liabilities

Total liabilities

NET ASSETS

EQUITY
Share capital

Share option reserve

Hedging reserve

Translation reserve*

Retained earnings

TOTAL EQUITY

* Please refer to Note 49 for the effect of restatement.

154

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
NOTES TO THE COMPANY  
BALANCE SHEET

32. GENERAL INFORMATION
XP Power Limited (the “Company”) is listed on the London Stock Exchange and incorporated and domiciled in Singapore. The address of 
its registered office is 401 Commonwealth Drive, Lobby B, #02-02, Haw Par Technocentre, Singapore 149598.

The nature of the Company’s operations and its principal activities are providing power supply solutions and acting as an investment 
holding company.

33. BASIS OF ACCOUNTING POLICIES
The Company applies the same principal accounting policies as the Group as set out in Note 2 under the Group Consolidated Financial 
Statements.

On 1 January 2019, the Company adopted the new or amended IFRS and International Financial Reporting Interpretations Committee 
(“IFRIC”) that are mandatory for application for the financial year. Changes to the Company’s accounting policies have been made as 
required, in accordance with the transitional provisions in the respective IFRS and IFRIC.

The adoption of these new or amended IFRS and IFRIC did not result in substantial changes to the Company’s accounting policies and 
had no material effect on the amounts reported for the current or previous financial years except for the following:

Adoption of IFRS 16 Leases
The effects on adoption of IFRS 16 on the Company’s financial statements as at 1 January 2019 are as follows:

Right-of-use assets

Lease liabilities

Increase 
£’000

546

546

An explanation of the differences between the operating lease commitments previously disclosed in the Company’s financial statements 
as at 31 December 2018 and the lease liabilities recognised in the balance sheet as at 1 January 2019 are as follows:

Operating lease commitment disclosed as at 31 December 2018

Less: Low-value leases

Less: Discounting effect using weighted average incremental borrowing rate of 2.86%

Lease liabilities recognised as at 1 January 2019

£’000

688

(4)

(138)

546

Financial guarantees
The Company has issued corporate guarantees to banks for bank borrowings of its subsidiaries. These guarantees are financial 
guarantees as they require the Company to reimburse the banks if the subsidiaries fail to make principal or interest payments when due 
in accordance with the terms of their borrowings. Intra-Group transactions are eliminated on consolidation.

Financial guarantee contracts are initially measured at fair values plus transaction costs and subsequently measured at the higher of:

a.  premium received on initial recognition less the cumulative amount of income recognised in accordance with the principles of  

IFRS 15; and

b.  the amount of expected loss computed using the impairment methodology under IFRS 9.

155

XP Power Annual Report & Accounts for the year ended 31 December 2019FINANCIALSNOTES TO THE COMPANY  
BALANCE SHEET CONTINUED

34. INVESTMENT IN SUBSIDIARIES

£’000

Cost at carrying value
At 1 January 

Exchange differences on translation 

At 31 December 

Please refer to Note 49 for the effect of restatement.

Name of
Subsidiary

XP Power Plc

XP Power Singapore 
Holdings Pte Limited

 Place of
 incorporation/
 Ownership (or
 registration)
 and operation

 UK

 Singapore

2019

46,951

(2,059)

44,892

2018 
 Restated

44,279

2,672

46,951

Proportion of 
Ownership %
 2019

 100

 100

Proportion of 
Ownership %
 2018

 Auditor of 
 Subsidiaries

 100

PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP

 100

PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP

35. CASH AND CASH EQUIVALENTS

£’000

Cash at bank

Total 

The Company’s cash at bank is denominated in the following currencies:

2019

5,016

5,016

2018

4,865

4,865

At 31 December 2019
Cash at bank

At 31 December 2018

Cash at bank

GBP
£’000

USD
£’000

EUR
£’000

SGD
£ ‘000

JPY
£’000

SEK
£’000

DKK
£’000

TOTAL
£’000

197

4,548

6

264

1

–

–

5,016

GBP
£’000

USD
£’000

EUR
£’000

SGD
£ ‘000

JPY
£’000

SEK
£’000

DKK
£’000

TOTAL
£’000

17

3,495

352

946

4

1

50

4,865

36. TRADE AND OTHER RECEIVABLES

£’000

Trade receivables

Trade receivables from related parties

Other receivables from related parties

Loan receivables from a related party

Total 

31 December

1 January

2019

6,223

13,219

12,482

10,513

42,437

2018

4,236

12,168

258

57

16,719

2018

2,520

6,246

-

415

9,181

The average credit period taken on sales of goods is 78 days (2018: 59 days). No interest is charged on the outstanding receivables 
balance.

The Directors consider that the carrying amount of trade and other receivables approximates their fair value.

Loan from a related party is unsecured and bears interest at LIBOR plus 1.5% per annum.

156

 
 
 
 
 
 
37. OTHER CURRENT ASSETS

£’000

Deposit

Prepayments

VAT receivables

Total 

2019

65

408

92

565

2018

68

230

362

660

38. DERIVATIVE FINANCIAL INSTRUMENTS
The total notional amount of outstanding currency forward contracts that the Company has committed is £Nil (2018: £10.8 million). 
These contracts are to hedge against exchange movements on future sales and hedge accounting has been applied.

As at 31 December 2019, the fair value asset/(liability) of the currency forward contracts recognised under a hedging reserve is £Nil 
(2018: £42,000) (Note 47).

December 2019

£’000
Current portion

Total

December 2018

£’000
Current portion

Total

Contract 
notional 
amount

–

–

Fair value asset

–

–

Contract 
notional amount

Fair value asset

10,841

10,841

42

42

Certain currency forward contracts were taken up to protect against exchange movements on future sales. Hedge accounting has not 
been applied to these contracts.

December 2019

£’000

Current portion

Total

December 2018

£’000

Current portion

Total

39. INVENTORIES

£’000

Goods for resale

Assets

Liabilities

Contract 
notional 
amount

11,300

11,300

Assets

Contract 
notional 
amount

–

–

Fair 
Value
 asset

632

632

Fair 
Value
 asset

–

–

Contract 
notional 
amount 

–

–

Liabilities

Contract 
notional 
amount 

14,975

14,975

Fair 
Value
 (liability)

–

–

 Fair 
Value
 (liability)

(229)

(229)

2019

10,949

2018

12,327

157

XP Power Annual Report & Accounts for the year ended 31 December 2019FINANCIALSNOTES TO THE COMPANY  
BALANCE SHEET CONTINUED

40. PROPERTY, PLANT AND EQUIPMENT

Freehold land

Building

equipment Motor vehicles

Plant and 

Building 
improvements

Total

217

1,743

1,895

–

–

–

13

230
–

–

(10)

220

–

–

–

–

–
–

–

–

–

–

–

–

105

1,848
–

–

(81)

90

(458)

(30)

89

1,586
104

(43)

(72)

1,767

1,575

479

52

–

32

563
56

–

(27)

592

1,162

137

(30)

77

1,346
141

(42)

(62)

1,383

192
240

220
230

1,175
1,285

41

–

–

–

2

43
–

–

(2)

41

9

8

–

1

18
9

–

(1)

26

15
25

471

4,367

–

–

–

29

500
–

–

(22)

478

418

15

–

26

459
16

–

(21)

454

24
41

90

(458)

(30)

238

4,207
104

(43)

(187)

4,081

2,068

212

(30)

136

2,386
221

(42)

(110)

2,455

1,626
1,821

Leasehold land 
and buildings

546

(202)

(11)

333

£’000

Cost
At 1 January 2018

Additions

Reclassification to intangible assets (Note 42)

Disposals

Foreign currency translation

At 31 December 2018
Additions

Disposals

Foreign currency translation

At 31 December 2019
Depreciation

At 1 January 2018

Additions

Disposals

Foreign currency translation

At 31 December 2018
Additions

Disposals

Foreign currency translation

At 31 December 2019

Carrying amount
At 31 December 2019
At 31 December 2018

41. RIGHT-OF-USE ASSETS

£’000

Cost
At 1 January 2019

Depreciation charge during the year

Foreign currency translation

At 31 December 2019

158

 
42. INTANGIBLE ASSETS

£’000

Cost
At 1 January 2018

Additions

Reclassification from Property, plant and equipment (Note 40)

Foreign currency translation

At 31 December 2018
Additions

Transfer

Foreign currency translation

At 31 December 2019

Amortisation
At 1 January 2018

Charge for the year

Foreign currency translation

At 31 December 2018
Charge for the year

Foreign currency translation

At 31 December 2019

Carrying amount
At 31 December 2019
At 31 December 2018

* Balance is less than £1,000.

Development 
costs

Trademarks

Intangible 
software

Intangible 
software under 
development

11,769

3,806

–

949

16,524

4,006

(91)

(857)

19,582

4,205

1,656

358

6,219

2,439

(361)

8,297

11,285
10,305

–

–

–

–

–

*

91

(4)

87

–

–

–

–

–

–

–

87
–

–

239

–

15

254

65

4,949

(97)

5,171

–

36

2

38

133

(5)

166

–

1,141

458

100

1,699

3,392

(4,949)

(142)

–

–

–

–

–

–

–

–

Total

11,769

5,186

458

1,064

18,477

7,463

–

(1,100)

24,840

4,205

1,692

360

6,257

2,572

(366)

8,463

5,005
216

–
1,699

16,377
12,220

The amortisation period for development costs incurred varies between three and seven years according to the expected useful life of 
the products being developed. 

Amortisation commences when the products are ready for sale.

43. DEFERRED INCOME TAXES
The following are the major deferred tax assets/(liabilities) recognised by the Company and movements thereon during the current and 
prior reporting period.

£’000
At 1 January 2018

Charge to statement of comprehensive income

Exchange difference

At 31 December 2018
Charge to statement of comprehensive income

Exchange difference

At 31 December 2019

Accelerated
 tax
depreciation

Capitalised 
development 
costs

Intangible 
assets 
amortisation

Other
temporary
differences

(142)

226

6

90

(65)

(2)

23

(1,272)

(399)

(102)

(1,773)

(231)

86

(1,918)

–

–

–

–

(505)

18

(487)

(5)

(46)

(4)

(55)

(46)

4

(97)

Total

(1,419)

(219)

(100)

(1,738)

(847)

106

(2,479)

159

XP Power Annual Report & Accounts for the year ended 31 December 2019FINANCIALS 
NOTES TO THE COMPANY  
BALANCE SHEET CONTINUED

44. TRADE AND OTHER PAYABLES

£’000

Trade payables and other creditors

Amount payable to related parties

Total 

2019

5,056

41,453

46,509

2018

4,594

29,596

34,190

Trade and other payables principally comprise amounts outstanding for trade purchases and ongoing costs. Amount payable to related 
parties includes borrowings from related parties and trade and other payables to related parties. The Directors consider that the 
carrying amount approximates their fair value.

The Company borrows from subsidiaries at an interest rate of 1.5% - 2.0% above LIBOR. The borrowing is repayable upon demand.

45. LONG-TERM RECEIVABLE

£’000

Loans to related parties

Total 

2019

6,806

6,806

2018

28,171

28,171

Loans to related parties bear interest at LIBOR plus 1.5% - 2.0% per annum. The loans to related parties are unsecured. The Directors 
consider the carrying amount approximates their fair value.

46. CORPORATE TAX RECOVERABLE/CURRENT INCOME TAX LIABILITIES
Movement in corporate tax recoverable: 

£’000

At 1 January
Currency translation differences

Under-provision in prior financial year

Refund received

At 31 December

Movement in current income tax liabilities: 

£’000

At 1 January
Currency translation differences

Income tax paid (net of refund)

Current year tax expense

Over-provision in prior financial year

At 31 December

2019

–

–

–

–

–

2019

3,784

(231)

(3,233)

2,350

(221)

2,449

2018

1,291

53

(2)

(1,342)

–

2018

3,146

241

(2,828)

3,396

(171)

3,784

160

47. SHARE CAPITAL AND RESERVES

Share capital
£’000

Allotted and fully paid 19,242,296 ordinary shares

The movement in 2019 relates to transaction costs incurred in anticipation of an equity issuance.

Share option reserve
£’000

Balance at 1 January

Share option expense 

Exchange differences on translation 

Balance at 31 December

Hedging reserve
£’000

Foreign exchange risk
Balance at 1 January

Net change in cash flow hedges

Balance at 31 December

Translation reserve
£’000

Balance at 1 January

Exchange differences on translation

Balance at 31 December

Please refer to Note 49 for the effect of restatement.

Retained earnings
£’000

Balance at 1 January

Changes in accounting policy

Dividends paid

Profit for the year

Balance at 31 December 

2019

29,770

2018

29,786

2019

179

232

(7)

404

2018

5

174

–

 179

2019

2018

42

(42)

–

2019

22,502

(3,634)

18,868

2019

31,326

–

(16,675)

14,163

28,814

(239)

281

42

2018
 Restated

17,857

4,645

22,502

2018

25,990

9

(15,284)

20,611

31,326

161

XP Power Annual Report & Accounts for the year ended 31 December 2019FINANCIALSNOTES TO THE COMPANY  
BALANCE SHEET CONTINUED

48. FINANCIAL RISK MANAGEMENT
The Company’s activities expose it to capital risk, currency risk (including both transactional and translational currency risk), interest rate 
risk, credit risk and liquidity risk. The Company seeks to minimise adverse effects from the unpredictability of financial markets on the 
Company’s financial performance. 

a.  Capital risk

The Company manages its capital to ensure that it will be able to continue as a going concern while maximising the return to 
Shareholders through the optimisation of the debt and equity balance.

The capital structure of the Company consists of debt, cash and equity attributable to equity holders of the parent, comprising issued 
capital, reserves and retained earnings as disclosed in Note 47.

b.  Currency risk

The Company transacts in North America, Europe and Asia and its activities expose it to transactional risks resulting from changes 
in foreign currency exchange rates. The Company monitors and manages these transactional foreign exchange risks relating to the 
operations of the Company through internal reports analysing major currency exposures. Where possible the Company seeks to offset 
exposures by matching monetary asset and liability exposures in like currencies against each other often using its bank facilities to 
square off or reduce exposures. To manage the currency risk, the Company manages the overall currency exposure mainly through 
currency forwards. 

Company’s risk management policy is to hedge 100% of highly probable forecast transactions for Europe sales in the next 12 months. 

The risk is measured through a forecast of highly probable EUR sales and tracking of firm commitment in EUR. The objective of the 
hedges is to minimise the volatility of the Company’s currency cost of highly probable transactions and firm commitment. In order 
to achieve these objectives, the Company entered into cash flow hedges for highly probable sale transactions. The foreign exchange 
forwards are denominated in the same currency as the highly probable sale transactions, therefore the hedge ratio is 1:1.

Hedge effectiveness

Hedge effectiveness is determined at the inception of the hedging relationship, and through periodic prospective effective assessments 
to ensure that an economic relationship exists between the hedged item and hedging instrument.

The Company enters into hedge relationships where the critical terms of the hedging instrument match exactly with the terms of 
the hedged item, and so a qualitative assessment of effectiveness is performed. If changes in circumstances affect the terms of the 
hedged item such that the critical terms no longer match exactly with the critical terms of the hedging instrument, the Group uses the 
hypothetical derivative method to assess effectiveness.

Hedge ineffectiveness may occur due to changes in the credit risk of the derivative counterparty or the Company. There was no 
ineffectiveness during 2019 in relation to the revenue hedge.

In addition, the Company is exposed to translation risk when the results of its operations and balance sheet are converted from 
its functional currency to Sterling, the Group’s reporting currency. In particular a significant proportion of the Company’s revenues 
and earnings are derived in US Dollars. The Company regards this as a fundamental consequence of operating in markets which are 
dominated by US Dollar transactions. The Company does not hedge this translational risk as there is no underlying mismatch of foreign 
currencies as the translation is merely performed for reporting the Company’s results in Sterling.

162

48. FINANCIAL RISK MANAGEMENT (CONTINUED)
b.  Currency risk (continued)

The Company’s currency exposure based on the information provided to key management is as follows:

At 31 December 2019
£’000

Financial assets
Cash and cash equivalents 

Trade and other receivables

Other current assets

Long-term receivables

Subtotal

Financial liabilities
Trade and other payables

Lease liabilities

Subtotal

Net financial (liabilities)/assets
Currency forwards

Currency profile excluding non-financial assets and liabilities 
Less: Financial assets denominated in the entity’s functional 
currency

Currency exposure of financial assets 

At 31 December 2018
£’000

Financial assets
Cash and cash equivalents 

Trade and other receivables

Other current assets

Long-term receivables

Subtotal

Financial liabilities
Trade and other payables

Subtotal

Net financial (liabilities)/assets
Add: Firm commitments and highly probable forecast 
transactions in foreign currency

Currency forwards

Currency profile excluding non-financial assets and liabilities 
Less: Financial assets denominated in the entity’s functional 
currency

Currency exposure of financial assets

GBP

EUR

USD

Others

Total

197

3,973

–

–

6

1,778

–

–

4,170

1,784

(12,471)

–

(12,471)

(8,301)

11,300

2,999

–

2,999

(400)

–

(400)

1,384

–

1,384

–

1,384

4,549

35,953

–

6,806

47,308

(32,807)

–

(32,807)

14,501

–

14,501

14,501

–

264

733

65

–

1,062

(613)

(340)

(953)

109

–

109

–

109

5,016

42,437

65

6,806

54,324

(46,291)

(340)

(46,631)

7,693

11,300

18,993

14,182

4,492

GBP

EUR

USD

Others

Total

17

72

–

–

89

(6,014)

(6,014)

(5,925)

–

14,975

9,050

–

9,050

352

1,369

–

–

1,721

(196)

(196)

1,525

12,604

(10,841)

3,288

–

3,288

3,495

14,962

68

28,171

46,696

(27,849)

(27,849)

18,847

–

–

18,847

18,847

–

1,001

316

–

–

1,317

(131)

(131)

1,186

–

–

1,186

–

1,186

4,865

16,719

68

28,171

49,823

(34,190)

(34,190)

15,633

12,604

4,134

32,371

18,847

13,524

163

XP Power Annual Report & Accounts for the year ended 31 December 2019FINANCIALS 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
NOTES TO THE COMPANY 
BALANCE SHEET CONTINUED

48. FINANCIAL RISK MANAGEMENT (CONTINUED)
c.  Interest rate risk

Cash flow interest rate risk is the risk that the future cash flows of a financial instrument will fluctuate because of changes in market 
interest rates. As the Group has no significant interest-bearing assets, the Group’s income is substantially independent of changes in the 
market interest rates.

The Company borrows from subsidiaries at an interest rate of 1.5% - 2.0% above LIBOR. If the average interest rates on these 
borrowings increased/decreased by 0.76% (2018: 0.75%) with all other variables, including tax rates, being held constant, the profit 
before tax will be lower/higher by £152,738 (2018: £102,844) as a result of higher/lower interest expense on these borrowings.

d.  Credit risk

Credit risk refers to the risk that the counterparty will default on its contractual obligations resulting in a financial loss to the Company. 
For trade receivables the Company adopts a policy of only dealing with customers of appropriate credit history or rating. For other 
financial assets, the Company adopts the policy of only dealing with high credit quality counterparties.

The Company is not exposed to significant credit risk as a majority of the sales are made to the subsidiaries. Trade receivables are 
neither past due nor impaired are substantially companies with a good collection track record with the Company.

The Company does not hold any collateral and the maximum exposure to credit risk for each class of financial instruments is the 
carrying amount of that class of financial instruments on the balance sheet.

The Company applies the IFRS 9 simplified approach to measuring expected credit loss which uses a lifetime expected loss allowance 
for all trade receivables. To measure the expected credit losses, it is based on the Company’s two years historical credit loss experience 
and a provision matrix has been set up using the amount of bad debt incurred over the carrying value of the trade receivables per aging 
brackets at each financial year end.

The Company’s credit risk exposure in relation to trade receivables under IFRS 9 are set out in the provision matrix as follows:

£’000

At 31 December 2019
Expected loss rate

Trade receivables

Loss allowance

£’000

At 31 December 2018

Expected loss rate

Trade receivables

Loss allowance

Current

1 – 30 days

31 – 60 days

61 – 90 days

91 – 120 days

> 120 days

Total

Past due

0%

10,268

–

0%

5,907

–

0%

2,321

–

0%

74

–

Past due

0%

207

–

0%

665

–

19,442

–

Current

1 – 30 days

31 – 60 days

61 – 90 days

91 – 120 days

> 120 days

Total

0%

12,567

–

0%

3,072

–

0%

275

–

0%

56

–

0%

4

–

0%

430

–

16,404

–

The Company assessed the credit risk of each intercompany loan by considering the terms of the loans, whether the loan is past due, 
borrower’s cash position, revenue, profit before tax and net assets. Based on these, it was concluded that the credit risk is low and 
hence, the Company compute the expected credit loss on a 12-month basis instead of a lifetime approach.

164

48. FINANCIAL RISK MANAGEMENT (CONTINUED)
d.  Credit risk (continued)

FINANCIAL ASSETS AT AMORTISED COSTS

Category of internal 
credit rating

Definition of category

Performing

Under-performing

Non-performing

Write-off

Issuers have a low risk of 
default and a strong 
capacity to meet 
contractual cash flows

Issuers for which there is a 
significant increase in credit 
risk; as significant in credit 
risk is presumed if interest 
and/or principal repayment 
are 30 days past due

Interest and/or principal 
payments are 90 days past 
due

Interest and/or principal 
repayments are 120 days 
past due and there is no 
reasonable expectation of 
recovery

Basis of recognition of 
expected credit loss

12-month expected credit 
losses

Lifetime expected credit 
losses

Lifetime expected credit 
losses

Asset is written off

e.  Liquidity risk

The table below analyses the maturity profile of the Company’s financial liabilities at the balance sheet date based on contractual 
undiscounted cash flows. Balances due within 12 months equal their carrying amounts as the impact of discounting is not significant.

£’000

At 31 December 2019
Trade and other payables

Lease liabilities

Total

£’000
At 31 December 2018

Trade and other payables

Total

Less than 1 year

Between 1 and 
2 years

Between 2 and 
5 years

Over 5 years

Total

46,509

176

46,685

–

174

174

–

–

–

–

–

–

46,509

350

46,859

Less than 1 year

Between 1 and 
2 years

Between 2 and 
5 years

Over 5 years

Total

34,190

34,190

–

–

–

–

–

–

34,190

34,190

The Company manages the liquidity risk by maintaining sufficient cash and bank facilities to enable it to meet its normal operating 
commitments. 

The Company has issued a multilateral guarantee to HSBC and Fifth Third Bank for the revolving credit facility entered into by the 
Group. On 27 September 2017, the Group entered into a revolving credit facility amounting to US$40 million with a US$20 million 
additional accordion option and has a tenure of the four years from loan agreement date with potential of one year extension. In May 
2018, the Group increased the revolving credit facility to US$85 million with a US$20 million additional accordion option. In November 
2018, the Group has fully exercised the US$20 million additional accordion option and the revolving credit facility has increased to 
US$105 million. In November 2019, the Group renewed its facility by increasing its revolving credit facility by US$15.0 million with a 
US$20.0 million accordion option with a four-year term up to November 2023. The facility has no fixed repayment terms until maturity. 
The revolving loan is priced at LIBOR plus a margin of 1% for the utilisation facility and a margin of 0.4% to 5.0% for the unutilised 
facility.

165

XP Power Annual Report & Accounts for the year ended 31 December 2019FINANCIALSNOTES TO THE COMPANY  
BALANCE SHEET CONTINUED

48. FINANCIAL RISK MANAGEMENT (CONTINUED)
f.  Fair value measurements

The table below analyses financial instruments carried at fair value, by valuation method. The different levels have been defined as 
follows: 

i.  Quoted prices (unadjusted) in active markets for identical assets or liabilities (Level 1);

ii.  Inputs other than quoted prices included within Level 1 that are observable for the asset or liability, either directly (i.e. as prices) or 

indirectly (i.e. derived from prices) (Level 2); and

iii.  Inputs for the asset or liability that are not based on observable market data (unobservable inputs) (Level 3).

The following table presents the assets measured at fair value at 31 December 2019:

£’000

2019

Assets
Derivative financial instruments

Liabilities
Derivative financial instruments

2018

Assets
Derivative financial instruments

Liabilities
Derivative financial instruments

 Level 1

Level 2

Level 3

Total

–

 –

–

 –

632

–

42

(229)

–

–

–

–

632

–

42

(229)

g.  Offsetting financial assets and financial liabilities

i.  Financial assets

The Company has the following financial instruments subject to enforceable master netting arrangements or similar agreements as 
follows:

£’000
At 31 December 2019

Trade receivables

Loan receivables from a related party

Total
At 31 December 2018

Trade receivables 

Loan to related parties 

Total

Related amounts set off in the balance sheet

Related amounts not set off in the balance sheet

Gross
amounts – 
financial
assets

–

10,845

10,845

-

28,441

28,441

Gross
amounts –
financial
liabilities

Net amounts –
financial assets 
presented in the 
balance sheet

Financial assets /
liabilities

Financial 
collateral 
received

–

(332)

(332)

-

(270)

(270)

–

10,513

10,513

-

28,171

28,171

13,219

–

13,219

12,168

–

12,168

–

–

–

-

–

–

Net amount

13,219

–

13,219

12,168

–

12,168

166

48. FINANCIAL RISK MANAGEMENT (CONTINUED)
g.  Offsetting financial assets and financial liabilities (continued)

ii.  Financial liabilities

The Company has the following financial instruments subject to enforceable master netting arrangements or similar agreements as 
follows:

49. PRIOR YEAR RESTATEMENT
Under IAS 21 The Effects of Changes in Foreign Exchange Rates, investment in subsidiaries should have been translated to the 
presentation currency at the closing rate at each financial statement date, with the corresponding translation difference recorded within 
equity. Investment in subsidiaries on the Company Balance Sheet was previously accounted for based on the historical translation rate 
at the date of acquisition. As disclosed in Note 2.2(a), while the Company’s functional currency is USD, the financial statements are 
presented in GBP. 

Accordingly, these balances have been restated and accounted for using the closing rate at each financial statement date and in 
accordance with IAS 21.

The effects of this restatement are as follows: 

RECONCILIATION FOR THE BALANCE SHEET ON 1 JANUARY 2018:

£’000
ASSETS

Investment in subsidiaries

EQUITY

Translation reserve

RECONCILIATION FOR THE BALANCE SHEET ON 31 DECEMBER 2018:

£’000
ASSETS

Investment in subsidiaries

EQUITY

Translation reserve

As previously 
reported

Adjustment

As restated

29,786

14,493

44,279

3,364

14,493

17,857

As previously 
reported

Adjustment

As restated

29,786

17,165

46,951

5,337

17,165

22,502

167

XP Power Annual Report & Accounts for the year ended 31 December 2019FINANCIALSFIVE YEAR REVIEW  
CONSOLIDATED INFORMATION 

Results
Revenue

Profit from operations

Profit before tax

Assets employed
Non-current assets

Current assets

Current liabilities

Non-current liabilities

Net assets

Financed by
Equity

Non-controlling interests

Key statistics (pence)
Earnings per share

Adjusted earnings per share

Diluted earnings per share

Diluted adjusted earnings per share

Share price in the year (pence)
High

Low

Dividends per share (pence)

2019
£ Millions

2018
£ Millions

2017
£ Millions

2016
£ Millions

2015
£ Millions

199.9

26.7

24.0

137.4

96.0

(30.4)

(64.1)

138.9

138.2

0.7

138.9

107.0

148.3

105.0

145.5

195.1

39.3

37.6

129.2

105.1

(26.8)

(70.1)

137.4

136.4

1.0

137.4

157.8

176.1

154.9

172.8

166.8

32.5

32.2

88.1

83.5

(25.1)

(29.6)

116.9

116.0

0.9

116.9

148.3

149.4

146.0

147.0

129.8

28.0

27.8

73.2

65.7

(25.8)

(6.2)

106.9

106.1

0.8

106.9

112.0

116.2

111.2

115.3

109.7

25.6

25.4

65.4

53.5

(19.8)

(10.0)

89.1

88.3

0.8

89.1

103.7

105.3

102.8

104.3

3,110.0

1,965.0

91.0

3,740.0

2,090.0

85.0

3,626.0

1,725.0

78.0

1,845.0

1,410.0

71.0

1,750.0

1,375.0

66.0

168

ADVISERS

COMPANY BROKERS
Investec 
2 Gresham Street
London
EC2V 7QP
United Kingdom

PRINCIPAL BANKERS
HSBC Bank plc
Level 7
Thames Tower
Station Road
Reading 

SOLICITORS
Osborne Clarke
2 Temple Back East
Temple Quay
Bristol
BS1 6EG
United Kingdom

REGISTRARS
Link Asset Services
The Registry
34 Beckenham Road
Beckenham
Kent
BR3 4TU
United Kingdom

COMPANY SECRETARY
M & C Services Private Limited
112 Robinson Road #05-01
The Corporate Office
Singapore 068902

AUDITORS
PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP
7 Straits View 
Marina One, East Tower, Level 12
Singapore 018936

169

XP Power Annual Report & Accounts for the year ended 31 December 2019FINANCIALSSHAREHOLDER NOTES

170

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XP Power Limited
401 Commonwealth Drive
Haw Par Technocentre
Lobby B #02-02
Singapore 149598
T: +65 6411 6900
F: +65 6479 6305