diff --git a/.gitea/scripts/set_poetry_version.sh b/.gitea/scripts/set_poetry_version.sh
index 272e938..d2d60cf 100755
--- a/.gitea/scripts/set_poetry_version.sh
+++ b/.gitea/scripts/set_poetry_version.sh
@@ -1,6 +1,10 @@
 #!/bin/bash
 
-BASE_VERSION=$(cat VERSION)
+if [[ -f VERSION ]]; then
+  BASE_VERSION=$(cat VERSION)
+else
+  BASE_VERSION="0.1.0"
+fi
 NIGHTLY_SUFFIX=""
 
 if [[ "$1" == "nightly" ]]; then