Hyzon Motors Q2 2023 Earnings Call Transcript

Quartr
Provided by Quartr
August 8, 2023

There are 8 speakers on the call.

Operator

Good morning, and welcome to the Hyzon Motors Second Quarter 2023 Earnings Conference Call. Please note that this call is being recorded. All lines have been placed on listen only mode at this time. After the speakers' remarks, there will be a question and answer session. I would now like to turn today's call over to Henry Guan, Head of Investor Relations.

Operator

Please go ahead.

Speaker 1

Thank you, operator, and good morning, everyone. Welcome to Haizon Motors Q2 2023 earnings call. With me on the call today are Parker Meads, Chief Executive Officer Bapa Banerjee, Chief Operating Officer and Jia Jia Wu, Interim Chief Financial Officer. The press release detailing our financial results was distributed this morning. The release can be found on the Investor Relations section of the company's website With presentation slides accompanying today's call.

Speaker 1

Today's discussions include references to non GAAP measures. These measures are reconciled Also include forward looking statements about our future plans and expectations. Actual results may differ materially Those stated and factors that could cause actual results to differ are also explained in the forward looking statements at the end of today's earnings press release And the forward looking statements on Page 2 of our earnings presentation. Forward looking statements speak only as of the date on which they are made. You're cautioned not to put undue reliance on forward looking statements.

Speaker 1

Before I turn over the call, I would just like provide an update on an upcoming IR event this week in New York. On Thursday, August 10, Parker will be doing a fireside chat JPMorgan Automotive Conference with analyst Bill Peterson at 11 am Eastern. With that, I will hand the discussion over to partner.

Speaker 2

Good morning, everyone, and thank you for taking the time to join our call today. Izon remains steadfast in its mission to accelerate global clean energy transition by developing and commercializing our 0 emission fuel cell technology as quickly as possible. I'm excited by the significant strides we have made to date, both in the advancement of our 200 kilowatt fuel cell technology And in the commercialization of our heavy duty fuel cell electric truck platforms. As I mentioned on our Q1 earnings call, Izon has been hard at work streamlining our vehicle offerings, operations and geographies to support this fuel cell commercialization focus To our Asset Light Vehicle Assembly model, today we are progressing toward commercialization of our fuel cell EV truck platform. The conventional platform developed in the U.

Speaker 2

S, the Caviar platform developed in Europe and the rigid platform developed in Australia. We are grateful to our customers for continued commercial progress on these platforms over the past quarter. We have made significant progress against our previous guidance of 10 to 20 vehicles deployed under commercial agreements in 2023. As of end Q2 2023, we had already deployed 7 vehicles under commercial agreements to customers in 2023 And I've deployed an additional 3 vehicles between July 1 August 7 for a total of 10 vehicles to date. Of those vehicles, 3 were deployed to customers in Europe, All 7 Coach buses were deployed to a customer in Australia and are currently in the process of completing final site acceptance steps.

Speaker 2

We have also collected $2,900,000 in cash receipts year to date against those vehicles deployed commercially in 2023. We are pleased to have already met the bottom end of our guidance range and are increasingly confident about our potential to meet the upper end of the previous guidance range, Although risks remain, including our customers' ability to permit, install and commission on-site fueling prior to vehicles being delivered and ongoing supply chain risks. As we discussed in our Q1 earnings call, we are focused on large fleet customers in each region, working collaboratively with each to frame a multi year commercial delivery post trial and tailoring the commercial framework to balance risk sharing, particularly in the 1st year's allotment of high zone trucks deployed under that agreement. These collaborative 1st year commercial structures vary between direct sales, sales of buyback provisions, sales conditional for fiscal trials, unpaid trials, paid trials and others. To provide transparency as we move forward, we will refer to all cash generating contracts Commercial orders, commercial trials or commercial deployments in line with those variations.

Speaker 2

We will also focus equally on cash received along with revenue recognition as the timing and nature of that revenue recognition will vary depending on the nature of the 1st year vehicle supply risk sharing arrangement. Diving into specific regions, in the U. S, we announced a commercial agreement with Performance Food Group or PFG, One of the largest food and food service distribution companies in North America. If all tranches and options are executed, this agreement has a potential for up to 50 vehicles. First five trucks powered by Hison's Class 8 110 kilowatt fuel cell system are still on track to be delivered by year end.

Speaker 2

Our trial program in North America has also continued to expand and progress our focused potential fleet customers through our development pipeline. As we recently updated, we have now completed 15 trials in North America since March of 2022 with 7 completed in 2023. We have accumulated over 40,000 miles on our conventional truck platform in customer trial and track testing, providing us with important experience and learnings from real world operations A broad range of use cases and fleet operators, maturing our fuel cell EV platform even further future deployments as we move into production. As discussed on our Q1 earnings call, in Europe, we recently deployed our first cab over 120 kilowatt 4x2 vehicles under full commercial agreements into trial to start, Activating our commercial relationships with Highline in Germany and UVA in Austria. In Q2, we deployed one additional vehicle as part of these commercial trials For a total of 3 Hyzon FCEVs and European commercial trials at end of Q2, we anticipate deploying Up to another 6 fuel cell EVs in second half twenty twenty three in Europe as we transition toward the next generation 200 kilowatt fuel cell EV cap over.

Speaker 2

Additionally, our cab over fuel cell EVs have accumulated a total of over 20,000 miles in customer operations and track testing since February 2023. The new experience across our expanding customer deployed and internal testing vehicle fleet. Shifting from our vehicle progress to our core fuel cell technology focus. We are proud of the progress we have already made in our U. S.

Speaker 2

Fuel cell system production facility in Bolingbrook, Illinois, which is advancing well into prototype production today And remains on track for startup production or SOP of our 200 kilowatt fuel cell system in 2024. When we last spoke, I mentioned a major priority of ours was to assemble and test 9 fuel cell systems at a B sample stage by end of Q2. I'm incredibly proud that we recently announced the successful completion and factory acceptance testing of these 9 single stack 200 kilowatt fuel cell system B samples. This achievement shows growth in the company's prototype assembly rigs as they produced 3 units in Q1, 6 units in Q2 and are on track to produce 16 additional units in the second half of this year, bringing the full year total to 25 in 2023. In part, we were able to achieve this production efficiency improvement by successfully commissioning Hison's proprietary automated Roll to roll membrane electrode assembly production line, the semi automated single cell manufacturing line and the fully automated Fuel cell stack manufacturing line.

Speaker 2

Progression of the 200 kilowatt fuel cell system or FCS B samples validates the design, equipment Operating procedures, which are all critical to the final tooling and production of C samples and the eventual commercialization of the FCS. Pivoting to events announced after quarter end, we achieved several additional important updates and milestones in governance and commercialization of our vehicle platform. Last week, we achieved another major milestone. We completed our 1st U. S.

Speaker 2

110 kilowatt truck that was production tooled components. The vehicle is now progressing to the test track in Michigan for durability testing. With this vehicle, our U. S. 110 kilowatt truck program moved from prototype to production.

Speaker 2

This achievement completed in collaboration with Hizon's 3rd party assembly partner Fontaine Modification Launches Hyzon's truck production for customers in North America and starts the transition to at scale assembly with Fontaine. By working to commercialize the 110 kilowatt vehicle in the near term, we are building experience and know how with Fontaine and our customers. And internally, we're creating a foundation from which to accelerate our 200 kilowatt vehicle commercialization and deployment. As a reminder, our 200 kilowatt fuel cell EV program is currently in prototype track testing on track for commercial SOP in 2024. We also continue to strengthen our governance, finance and accounting operations with the appointment of Matthew Folston to our Board of Directors.

Speaker 2

He serves as Chair of the Audit Committee and as a member of the Compensation Committee. Matthew is a seasoned financial executive, Having served as CFO for 3 publicly listed companies throughout his career, he also brings extensive international expertise With more than 30 years of experience working globally across the automotive, commercial truck, mining and other sectors, we believe this financial experience in the heavy duty trucking industry We'll provide invaluable guidance as we further strengthen our governance, finance and accounting operations. Hyland intends to be player as the world pivots to clean energy. We are excited by our progress thus far, the milestones we have achieved and the upcoming milestones we are closing in on. As we sit here today, we are working towards several exciting milestones to drive Hison's single stack 200 kilowatt FCS technology to commercialization for the rest of 2023, including delivering our 1st commercial Class 8 Hyzon Fuel Cell EV to a major U.

Speaker 2

S. Fleet customer, Producing and validating 25200 kilowatt fuel cell B samples declaring C Sample the 200 kilowatt fuel cell system And executing additional commercial agreements with major fleet customers in the U. S. And Europe. As we mentioned last quarter, we are focused on efficiency, cash preservation and expense control.

Speaker 2

We must ensure we are taking a balanced, prudent approach to cash management, while continuing to develop and commercialize our proprietary single stack 200 kilowatt fuel cell system, Which we see as a true technology, product performance and economic advantage and driving commercialization of our heavy duty fuel cell truck platforms. As we mentioned last quarter, we've already taken several important steps in simplifying our strategic focus and operational footprint, which our COO, Doctor. Bapa Banerjee will expand upon later in this call. I'd like to spend a moment discussing our outlook for expenses, on which both Bapa and Jia Jia will go into greater detail. As we look to the second half of the year, we expect to minimize headcount additions The ongoing SEC investigations remain unclear.

Speaker 2

On a normalized recurring basis, we should expect to see a clear improvement from the SG and A and R and D expenses seen in the first half twenty twenty three and second half twenty twenty two. In 2024, we will target Bringing down our annual net cash outflow to a range of $110,000,000 to $120,000,000 for the full year and the additional cost efficiencies we are now driving Under the additional simplification and restructuring efforts, Bob will outline in more detail today. We will come back to you with a more detailed guidance for fiscal year 2024 as we close 2023. In the meantime, market conditions remain volatile. But as always, we remain opportunistic and proactive.

Speaker 2

We further continue to review all options available to us to raise additional capital, including full merger and acquisition, while seeking to minimize dilution and to maximize value for our shareholders. We're focusing our efforts on strategic investors and partners who are interested in our technology. We are pleased with the progress we've made about this process. We will keep you posted on important updates when appropriate. In closing, we have and continue to make significant progress on advancing our proprietary FuelCell Technology remain on track for SOP and commercialization of our single stack 200 kilowatt fuel cell system in the second half of twenty twenty four.

Speaker 2

Additionally, we are excited by the continued advancement of our commercial pipeline across our focused fuel cell EV platform. With commercial deployments ongoing for our 10 to 20 vehicle goal this year, of which we have already achieved 10 so far with $2,900,000 I'm confident that our differentiated technology, strong IP and in house U. S.-based fuel cell production Combined with our significantly streamlined organization and meaningfully reduced expenses positions us well in this fast growing market. Now I'm pleased to introduce and turn things over to Doctor. Bapa Banerjee.

Speaker 2

As previously announced, Bapa joined us as Hison's 1st Chief Operating Officer earlier this year. Papa is leading the operations team to ensure delivery of high quality products to customers and provide strategic direction for Hizon's continued growth The company develops and delivers hydrogen powered fuel cell vehicles throughout its target markets. In its 1st few months on board, Papa has been conducting a complete review of our operations, portfolio and footprint, and we're pleased that he has already developed a revised operational efficiency plan to reduce expenses, The first steps of which are already in active implementation. I will now turn it over to Papa to discuss these updates. Michael?

Speaker 3

Thank you, Parker. Good morning, everyone. It is my privilege to lead Hyzon's operations with focus and discipline as we work to reduce our expenses when serving our global customers. In my 3 months with Haizen, in the spirit of the Japanese philosophy of Genba or go see then act, I've been to every single Hyzon facility across the world, including our warehouses, and I've been meeting and learning from our employees and key partners, Our global customers and suppliers. Hizon is making great progress in advancing our technology and competitive edge.

Speaker 3

To execute Hyzon's vision, we are looking to push forward with clarity and alignment by simplifying, focusing I work with the Hyzon Board and our strong bench of leaders To identify waste and complexity across the business and find opportunities to reduce our costs. With the Board's approval, we have put in place I plan to accomplish these goals, and I'm pleased to provide you with the initial decisions and actions we have taken. First, we'll focus on our fuel cell product offering by transitioning from 3 options to 1. Instead of offering the 110 kilowatt, 120 kilowatt and the 200 kilowatt fuel cell systems, We'll shift our production focus solely to the single stack 200 kiloport fuel cell system, which is the core differentiator for Hyesa. As you would expect, the standardization is anticipated to drive efficiencies of scale and commonality throughout our operations, Driving down our expenses and lowering execution risk.

Speaker 3

We expect improved quality through reduced variation And reduced costs through volume increases on fewer part numbers to key suppliers. Our production cycle Times are expected to improve because of common assembly and reduced changeover times. 2nd, we will go from Having the conventional vehicle platforms for the U. S, the CaboWarp for Europe and the rigid platform for Australia and New Zealand To only the conventional vehicle platform serving the U. S.

Speaker 3

And the cabover vehicle platform serving both Europe and Australia and New Zealand. We will meet our current customer commitments for the Rigid, but will not develop it further internally at this time and will work instead To outsource the rigid platform fully to a 3rd party. The opportunity to use only 2 platforms to serve 3 regions Was developed based on feedback from key customers and their immediate needs. Core elements of the product will remain identical across The 2 vehicle platforms and the required variations in the product will be confined to the interfaces. This core interface product development strategy We'll bring with it the efficiencies of modularity and standardization.

Speaker 3

The vehicle platform strategy will allow us to improve our production planning. As Parker described, we are pursuing multiyear commercial structures with customers, beginning with trials in small orders and ramping up to hundreds of vehicles over the next 3 to 4 years. By streamlining our platforms, we can more accurately predict and control costs As we scale by our 3rd party assemblers such as Fontaine. This will allow us to explore organizational efficiencies to reduce our expenses while serving our markets and customers. These two major product and platform simplifications Will lead to multiple benefits and efficiencies across the organization, providing a simpler, lower cost and lower working capital business model Without sacrificing commercial market and near term revenue opportunities.

Speaker 3

For example, it will allow us to control costs By limiting headcount growth this year to only critically important positions across the organization, we had a headcount 3 80 people at the end of Q2, and we will target a marginal increase through end of the year. The headcount efficiencies will come in through 2024. That is down from the double digit growth percentage budgeted at the beginning of the year. It will allow us to further consolidate our geographical footprint. In the U.

Speaker 3

S. For instance, we will exit our location in Rochester, New York, Where we currently have subsystem assembly, medical prototyping and finance support teams. The facility has already been listed for sale, But as with any large asset sale, timing is unknown. Exiting our Rochester facility is just a first step in what we envision as a multi phase Longer term opportunity to drive efficiencies in our global operation. We are looking for additional opportunities to consolidate in other regions I'm trying to find additional levers over time.

Speaker 3

For example, we're actively engaging with 3rd party assemblers in Europe To replicate our asset light manufacturing model that has been developed in the U. S. With Fontaine. This focus We'll simplify our integrated global supply chain and simplify requirements for our 3rd party assembly partners, lowering expenses and improving cycle times. It will also allow us to monetize excess and obsolete inventory across our global operations And it will help us work more efficiently by eliminating the waste of duplication of effort across regions by improving knowledge sharing across teams and fostering practical continuous improvement.

Speaker 3

We will improve communication across our functions by implementing MS Dynamics And ERP software to drive consistent and stable processes across our finance, HR and procurement functions. We are driving clarity and alignment across regions by developing shared learning, hosting regular all employee meetings and aligning goals and objectives While we have made great progress, there is still a lot of work to be done. Our teams need to be aligned, better coordinated and avoid duplicate efforts. We are working to build a culture of 1 HiSOC, driving results with clarity and speed of execution. In summary, to improve our operating expenses and create a more efficient, streamlined and agile company, We will develop only 1 fuel cell system rather than 3 and develop only 2 vehicle platforms rather than 3, Allowing us to limit our headcount growth will consolidate our global footprint to drive organizational simplification and efficiency leading to lower costs.

Speaker 3

We will find and deliver upon practical continuous improvement opportunities across the company, including monetizing excess and obsolete inventory, Simplified, aligned and coordinated by enhancing global communication and removing the waste of duplicate effort. In addition to all these operational elements of expense reduction, we expect reductions in our legal, accounting and consulting expenses. To these measures, we expect to be well positioned to deliver net cash outflow in the $110,000,000 to $120,000,000 range for 2024, as Parker mentioned. Hyzon is making milestone driven significant progress In bringing the single stack 200 kilowatt fuel cell system to production and in the commercialization of our heavy duty fuel cell electric truck. With focus, discipline and the execution of our operational milestones and significant improvements to simplify and streamline our business According to the plan we have an implementation, we believe Hyzon is well positioned for leadership in this evolving hydrogen ecosystem.

Speaker 3

Now let me invite Jia Jia Wu to discuss the detailed financial outlook and the impact of this plan. Jia Jia?

Speaker 4

Thank you, Baba, and good morning, everyone. There's a lot to cover this morning. During last quarter's call, we mentioned that By filing our Q1 2023 quarterly report, we became current in our periodic reporting obligations. Additionally, on July 26, we received a letter from NASDAQ notifying us that we have successfully regained compliance with the listing requirements. I, along with the rest of Haizong management team, want to thank our dedicated employees, Especially the Haizong Finance Accounting teams across the globe for the continued hard work, which enabled us.

Speaker 4

We would not be here without your contributions. Moving to our Q2 financial results. We do not recognize revenue, but incurred cost of revenue of $2,400,000 Similarly to last quarter, this was related to cost provision Accrued for customer contract activities and additional inventory on RV write downs in Europe. However, I would like to echo to Parker's earlier comments. Around commercial progress, we have deployed 10 vehicles globally and collected $2,900,000 year to date.

Speaker 4

In addition, as we will disclose in the revenue for node O 2nd quarter 10 Q, we expect to recognize approximately $12,000,000 in revenue over the next 12 months period. Certain revenue contracts include customer acceptance clauses, which in our case can depend on the sourcing of hydrogen For the readiness of refilling infrastructure at customer location, a factor which is outside of our control. Our loss from operations amounted to $64,100,000 as compared to $41,000,000 in Q1 2023 and $31,900,000 in Q2 2022. The primary driver of this increase in net loss from operations What's related to increases in legal, accounting and consulting fees. This quarter's legal, accounting and consulting fees Approximately $32,000,000 increasing by $16,300,000 from Q1 2023 and increasing by $26,200,000 from Q2 2022.

Speaker 4

Included in this quarter's results approximately $28,500,000 in legal, Is a $22,000,000 loss contingency accrued in light of management's assessment of the SEC investigation? $7,000,000 is recorded in current accrued liability and $15,000,000 in long term other liabilities in the consolidated balance sheet. As we will state in the commitment and contingency footnote of the 10 Q, we cannot predict the ultimate outcome The timing of the SEC investigation or inquiries or if any actions may be taken by the SEC or the effect that such actions may have on the business, prospectus and operational results and financial condition. The $28,500,000 also included elevated accounting consulting expenses of $2,600,000 Continuing to June 2023, associated with the additional work to bring our SEC filings up to date. Below the operating line, the net loss attributable to Raizen for this quarter amounted to $60,200,000 for $42,000,000 in Q2 2022.

Speaker 4

Basic loss per share stood at negative $0.25 in Q2 2023 versus negative $0.12 in Q1 2023 and earnings per share of $0.17 in Q2 2022. Non cash driven changes in mark to market valuation of private placement warrants and earn out liabilities as well as non cash changes to fair value of equity securities significantly contributed to this fluctuation. This impact can be influenced quarter to quarter by a number of factors, including but not limited to, Hison's quarter end share price. Moving to our non GAAP financial measures, our adjusted EBITDA for Q2 2023 amounted to negative $33,000,000 compared to negative $27,300,000 in Q1 2023 and negative $28,000,000 in Q2 2022. We believe adjusted EBITDA provides a better view of our recurring operational performance.

Speaker 4

Besides the non cash gains on the fair value of private placement warrant liability and earn on liability, the largest add back Item was related to the regulatory and legal matters. The nonrecurring portion of this expense increased from $2,800,000 in Q2 2022 to $7,700,000 in Q1 2023 and to $25,900,000 in Q2 2023. On our Q1 2023 earnings call, we had indicated that our Board of Directors special committee investigation had concluded in March The significant jump in Q2 2023 was related to a potential SEC accrual of 22,000,000 which I discussed earlier. We will have limited visibility into the size of our legal expenses in the second half of twenty twenty three due to the ongoing investigation. However, we have caught up with our filing requirements and have concluded our engagement with a major consulting firm relating to our organizational restructuring.

Speaker 4

Therefore, we expect to see elevated consulting and accounting expense items significantly reduced in the second half of twenty twenty three, which should lead to our overall reduction in core non legal SG and A expenses. R and D expenses were remained relatively consistent over last year. From a macro Economic standpoint, our full year guidance assumes no material deterioration in the second half of the year compared to current conditions. We expect operating expenses excluding cost of revenue to be between $73,000,000 $81,000,000 for the second half of twenty twenty three. This range does not include legal settlement expenses in excess of our already recorded reserves.

Speaker 4

Turning to the balance sheet. As we have indicated in the previous calls, our asset light approach to our manufacturing operations Reduces the need for investments in facilities as compared to traditional OEMs in our industry. We still continue to make strategic capital investments to advance our technology and improve efficiencies As we ramp up fuel cell system production, CapEx for this quarter amounted to $1,200,000 comparable with prior quarter. Turning to cash, we ended this quarter with $172,400,000 in unrestricted cash, cash equivalents and short term investments. Due to the actions we discussed in the Q1 earnings call, such as reducing the number of vehicle platforms, We have seen improvements in our Q2 2023 average monthly cash burn to $12,000,000 a month.

Speaker 4

We also reported the July month end cash balance of $258,000,000 $14,000,000 in July included our Annual D and O insurance approximately $5,000,000 Excluding that, our monthly cash burn was at $9,000,000 per drug. After taking into account actions already implemented, our current net cash burn forecast for the second half of twenty twenty three will be in the range of $65,000,000 to $73,000,000 The range includes the previously mentioned $7,000,000 short term accrual We have already estimated related to the SEC investigation. The current cash Forecast is based on certain potentially volatile assumptions, which may vary, such as near term U. S. Hedging costs or our internal testing needs, Our ability to liquidate excess inventory in Europe and supply chain costs, which are subject to various factors That could be outside of our control.

Speaker 4

We have provided additional details for the second half of twenty twenty three expenses and cash guidance at Slide 17 of the earnings deck. We're pleased with the significant amount of progress we have made at Haizeng. However, our work is not done. As Parker mentioned earlier, our 2024 initiatives outlined and led by Baobao will reduce our cash burn further, Simplified fuel cell development and manufacturing focusing on 200 kilowatts and further Streamlining vehicle platform production by leveraging 3rd party assemblers will help us to achieve annual net cash outflow targets of $110,000,000 to $120,000,000 without considering potential impact of SEC settlement payment in 2024. Parker mentioned earlier, we're also working with the financial advisor on capital raise options.

Speaker 4

To conclude, with the right team, right strategy in place, we have demonstrated this quarter that We can and have substantially improved our cash preservation. We're working hard to show commercial progress across our key markets, We're still controlling spend. I alone with every Haizan employees are very confident in our technology and path forward to meet our targets. With that, I will turn the discussion back over to Parker.

Speaker 2

Thank you, Jia Jia. We believe that we have differentiated technology, A strengthened team and a clear vision to commercialize in a hydrogen market that is only accelerating, grounded in our strong IP and in house U. S.-based fuel cell production. During and since the end of the Q2, Tyslawn continued our focus on our core strength, Fuel Cell System Technology. As you heard from Bapa today, we have plans in place and already in action to hone that focus further, Both to reduce our costs and to accelerate the commercialization of our technology and our vehicle platforms.

Speaker 2

In Q2, we progressed that commercialization through vehicle trials and initial deployments across the globe, progressing our commercial pipeline in each of our focused Heavy duty fuel cell EV truck platforms. As I said during our last earnings call, these initial trials allow both customers and Hyzon To collaboratively validate the technology performance, building the foundation for multi year vehicle supply order programs, which we are actively shaping with our focused potential customers to help them begin or continue their crucial work of decarbonization. We believe that with our differentiated technology, Active major truck fleet collaboration and strong financial management and governance, we can execute our streamlined vision to commercialize fuel cells And fuel cell electric vehicles in a hydro market that has tremendous momentum. Thank you for joining us today. And I look forward to taking your questions.

Operator

Your first question comes from Rob Wertheimer with Melius Research. Your line is

Speaker 3

open.

Operator

Mr. Rob Wertheimer, please go ahead.

Speaker 5

I am so sorry. I'm embarrassed. I was on mute. It Good question though.

Speaker 2

No worries, Rob. Good morning.

Speaker 5

So my question was, if you could just first Describe a little bit the trials that you have and the process you used to get there to sort of qualify the seriousness How your customers think about it? Is it just a test or is it something they intend to do and are selecting people? Do you see competitors at those trials or is everybody playing in different ponds at this point? And your customers your trial customers have fueling strategies?

Speaker 2

Thanks, Rob. I think that's a great area for us to dive deeper into because working collaboratively with our customers to shape not just the trial program, What the entire experience to decarbonize their fleet will look like from trial into order program into delivery paired with fuel with our partners on the hydrogen side is critical Starting this mission for them. So to take that in a few pieces, first on the competitive landscape, a lot of fleets are trying a lot of different solutions. But When we're engaging with the fleet, we've really already done the work to understand what's that fleet's decarbonization goal? Are they focused on True 0, which only Hydrogen Fuel Cell Technology and Body Electric can provide versus others.

Speaker 2

And what's their use case, right? Is their use case 1 where Fuel cell should win the day, whereas a heavier weight, longer range, and or grid limited infrastructure in environments. So all that happens really early in the conversation, right? So we know that fleets mostly have diverse route trees, diverse use cases. So they likely will have somebody electric in their fleet at some point, some hydrogen fuel cell in their fleet and we focused on the area where fuel cell will out compete.

Speaker 2

Most are trying a lot of different solutions, but in many cases, fleets Made their choices based on their preferences. For instance, having a conventional truck in the U. S. Is very important. Cabo over trucks, there's a reason why those have less than the 10% market shift today.

Speaker 2

A lot of police in the U. S. In particular prefer conventional nose truck over a cab over. So many of the police we work with Tell us that they're not going to trial a cab over truck, some will. But once we get into that trial discussion, We're very clear that we're focused on fleets where the trial is really the proving point to get into a commercial agreement over multiple steps, Right.

Speaker 2

So trials are only conducted at this stage once we have a customer that we've progressed and understood What's their motivation from an ESG standpoint to truly decarbonize? What's their vision of where fuel cell technology fits in their use case And in their fleet, we work very closely with them on things like TCO modeling, route tree modeling, shaping the trial to really test the technology, prove to them and us that our And then the shape with our fueling partners, how is the fueling infrastructure going to come to life specifically So by the time we get to a trial stage, we really see that as that is the proof point for us to then complete the trial successfully And then it will work on what is the scale up pattern, what's the fuel answer for that fleet.

Speaker 5

Okay, perfect. And then if I can add more around the same topic, what is your sense on what Customers are finding on the use cases and workability for 110 versus the larger stack, the 200 stack. Does the 200 Expand the users dramatically. And then you managing trials With a 110 and then going to a 200 for your future technology plans, is that a pause in trialing or how do you kind of manage that with customers? I'll stop there for a moment to get back in line.

Speaker 2

No. Thanks. Thanks, Rob. So when it comes to the $0.10 to the 200 kilowatts, a very critical transition for us. So the 200 kilowatt single stack system given the power that can provide paired in our overall fuel cell powertrain, We see that as being able to do 80% to 90% of what any Class A truck needs to do across a typical route tree In the use cases that we are focused on, right.

Speaker 2

So early deployments over the next couple of years, we'll be focused more on the back to base use case, Strayage, food and beverage delivery, point to point brand, etcetera. When you look at the route trees for those use cases, in most parts of the country, The 200 kilowatt, we think can do almost everything that that rotary needs to do. The 1 10 kilowatts has been our focus first against production because that technology is available. Because of the cost efficiencies, the volume efficiencies and the weight efficiencies, the single stack 200 kilowatt that we Fairly uniquely have in the Western World and trucks can provide, we've used the 110 as really a transitionary vehicle, One that we got into production now, one that's been in trial for over a year and the early adopter fleets Well, I'd love to that 110 kilowatt to get experience. Knowing that it is somewhat limited in what it can do in the Route 3, our focus is the 200 kilowatt going forward.

Speaker 2

So the 110s, we We are delivering to early adopter fleets who find a place to use it where it can be used. Performance Food Group is a great Example of that, we have a contract in place with them to deliver 5 110 this year, which they're going to take and put into place to get experience in that first tranche. But the focus Most of our customers is at 200 kilowatt, which we're quite excited to have the Alpha truck and truck in track testing now and to look to SOP that truck next year.

Operator

Your next question comes from Bill Peterson with JPMorgan. Your line is open.

Speaker 6

Yes. Hi. Good morning, everyone. I want to follow-up on That point. So just to be clear, so you have this 110 truck available for production and I guess you're looking at Whatever, trying to match with the customer interest.

Speaker 6

But I guess, similarly, you have some trials or 120 cab over in Europe that have been delivered too. So I guess, how should we think about truck shipments in 2024, maybe based off the smaller fuel cell given your strategy and clear strategy to ship to 200 kilowatts? Should we just assume, Yes, I guess, for very small volumes in 2024 before, I guess, the 200 kilowatt platform is really ready to ramp in 2025 and beyond?

Speaker 2

Yes. Thanks, Bill. So, I think that basically the way that I would think about it is the 110 kilowatt trucks and the 120 kilowatt over in Europe, will deliver to customers whether it's early adopters that want to take that truck as part of their first order while the 200 kilowatt is still being delivered. Assume that 200 kilowatt is available in SOP ed, that will be able to service both a full 200 kilowatt use case and we actually can limit the 1 100 kilowatt output, if we need to, to service a 110 kilowatt use case should that power not be needed. So we are delivering 110 kilowatt trucks This year, we will likely look to deliver those in the early part of 2024, while the 200 ks also going through the SOP.

Speaker 2

But the focus really is to deliver those where it makes sense to start a customer journey where they want to get going, but to focus on again that 200 kilowatt SOP As fast as we can. Okay.

Speaker 3

Yes, thanks

Speaker 6

for that. And I guess maybe this might be for Baba, but Trying to understand based off the findings of the operational view, maybe provide additional color on the cost reduction efforts. Kind of related, but not maybe not exactly related. But on when you provide sub assembly, I presume you're really focused on the fuel cell. But I guess, can you remind us the other components of the powertrain that you're going to basically do internally versus buy externally?

Speaker 6

Should we assume for the total kilowatt launch, these are going to be all for the 3rd party outside of the core fuel cell?

Speaker 3

Thank you, Bill. So I referred to our thought process of having some core components As well as handling the variations through interfaces, our core components are the differentiated Parts of our business, the differentiated technology advantage that we keep very, very close to us. The interface side of the business, we are happy to work with 3rd parties. To give you some examples of what core means, Our fuel cell, for example, getting down to our MEA, how we put together the plate, how we put together the stacks, That all will be done in house. That is absolutely core to us and that will continue to be identical across our vehicle platforms.

Speaker 3

So as you can anticipate, this simplifies our supply chain, simplifies our number of part numbers and has all sorts of benefits, Not only for the production side, but also for our 3 PAs, our 3rd party assemblers, because their life becomes a little bit simple. Because when we provide them the kits that help them with their assembly, it's more structured, it's more defined and they can get things done faster. So that's how all of this comes together.

Speaker 6

Sorry, if I can sneak in one more. I wanted to kind of follow-up on the actually infrastructure side of your business. Maybe I get an update on Raymond SR, the timing of that, how that's progressing. But then also as we think about the other Projects you've talked about in the past, Transform, TCE, Recarbon, Woodside. I mean, are these projects likely to fire, I guess, 2025 and beyond as your business ramps?

Speaker 6

Or Maybe you can remind us what HiSign's contributions are for these projects?

Speaker 2

Yes, glad to Bill. That's an important part of our Business. So to start with RavenSR, we still remain quite excited by the first project with RavenSR, their plant in Richmond, California, we're invested in that plant. Chevron also has announced investment in that plant. That plant still is going through permitting, Did secure its groundbreaking permit and we're looking forward to following that project through to its completion.

Speaker 2

I don't believe Raven has given an update on specific timing of First production from that plant, but we are actively planning potential deployments around that production. And the broad spectrum of production partnerships that you mentioned that we're quite excited to have those with us, we still have a very active Pipeline of potential projects that we curate with those partners where to remind everybody, Huizon in most cases has the exclusive right to invest, In many cases, up to 50% of the equity in projects with the partners, where there's projects that's going in and around Hyzon trucks. And those partnerships, we really look to curate only to put capital to work where it's critically tied to near term The appointment. So we are actively looking at SoCal, looking at projects there. We have projects over in Europe as well that we're looking at.

Speaker 2

And Exelon, California is an area that given the strong demand there and the existing infrastructure that does exist on the dispensing side It's a place that's more likely than not for us to potentially have a next project. And it's as important that we have dispensing partners, which We haven't announced those in the U. S, but we do have companies that we work with closely to shape dispensing solutions. We're to have this come to life, our firm belief is back to base is the use case focus to simplify also dispensing and infrastructure need. And to get started, it's going to be mobile fuelers tied to close by production as more permanent installations are And install both behind the fence and with a semi private public access.

Speaker 2

So we have great partners on the dispensing We bring the customers who have mobile fueler access and who have between 20 50 truck initial dispensing deployments that we have to pair with the production that Who's coming on the line? And that's where you see customers that advance through trials. It's not just that they want to try the truck, it's that we've given them confidence that Once they've made the decision to enter into a commercial agreement that may scale to 50 to 100 trucks over time that we've shown them the dispensing and

Operator

Your next question comes from Steven Fox with Fox Advisors. Your line is open.

Speaker 7

First question, Parker, just following up on everything you just talked about there on the dispensing side. You did also mention that sometimes installing And commissioning of on-site fueling could be a timing issue. Like can you just sort of put everything you just said in perspective with how the customers Are pursuing the fueling infrastructure at the same time they're talking to you and how much of a delay that could lead to or whether that's part

Speaker 2

of the planning process? And I had a follow-up. Yes, great. Thanks Steve. It's obviously a very important part of us shaping our journey together.

Speaker 2

So The way that we pursue fueling to make sure that we're minimizing risk and ensuring that we have fuel available as much as possible, permitting and installing Permanent dispensing

Speaker 1

is what has a lot

Speaker 2

of risk in it. So when you're looking at permanent install, permanent fueling, particularly on-site behind a warehouse, that takes time. The early deployments will be paired with mobile fuelers. Those we have partners that have those available lined up access to capacity of fuelers, particularly on the West Coast of the U. S.

Speaker 2

I'll talk about Europe in a second. And it really is about laying out the transition Where if a first order is 5 to 10 trucks in the 1st year, mobile fuel capacity is generally available for us to be able to fuel that. And it's all about basically planning timing of the second order and the commitment by the customer to permit install the behind the fence or semi private fueling Station to meet their 2nd order and beyond. So there certainly is risk there on the 2nd order tranche, but we really try to minimize the 1st year delivery risk On the fuel side with mobile fuelers, in Europe, and it is a bit easier because there is more hydrogen structure over in Europe. So many of our customers in Europe have already been working on fueling infrastructure for some time.

Speaker 2

For instance, Our partner, JUVA, in Austria, one of our end customers through them, has installed significant electrolyzer capacity in dispensing on the site. So they already have fueling in place to scale up to a certain number of trucks. So it really is it's a focus in both Europe and the U. S. And as well as Australia, but in the U.

Speaker 2

S, mobile fueling is of utmost importance to allow us to make sure that the 1st year's deliveries Are delayed, while we work with the customer to ensure that they're permitting and installing permanent infrastructure for the second and the third years.

Speaker 7

Great. That's very helpful perspective. And then just a bigger question. If we dial back and look at The cash flow burn rates for the second half, you're talking roughly $140,000,000 annualized at the midpoint, and you're talking about 110 To 120 next year, can you sort of bridge that gap in terms of what's assumed and what's maybe not assumed? In other words, I know you talked about a lot of efficiencies That you're pulling through the business as you restructure.

Speaker 7

But do we think about, for example, the ramp of 200 kilowatt stacks as being A cash flow drag initially or how is that factored in and maybe one time costs that might be in the 110 to 1

Speaker 4

Good morning, Steve. Thank you for the question. I would say it would not happen overnight, but we made significant progress. As I said earlier in the call, right, our spend, if you look at the trend and we also have in the slide deck in the appendix, right, if you look at the trend, Our spend reduced from $55,000,000 in Q4 in 2022 down to $46,000,000 in Q1. Now in Q2, we're at 36.6%.

Speaker 4

The journey proves, right, our actions Good work. As our legal expense, our accounting expense continue to getting normalized in the second half of twenty twenty three, And as Barbara mentioned, right, with his 2024 initiatives, such as monetize the excess inventory in Europe, And we do see a path forward to achieve the target in 2024. Particularly, I think you mentioned about our If you look at our inventory balance, you have to see our inventory balance has grown in this quarter. So that's kind of related to those. So we do expect a significant impact from inventory procurement side for 2024.

Speaker 2

Yes. Just to add to that, I mean, if you So your question is about basically what does it take to make that leap happen from 140 to 110 to 120. It really is we have continuing potential reduction of legal finance and accounting. As Jojang mentioned in the call, that has been a decent part of the trend over time. And we have inventory that we have available to monetize from the cleanup of the platform Simplification, right inventory we no longer need because of our focus going forward, along with the benefit of the actions that we're driving now under the shape of our operational efficient program with Papa leading us through that.

Speaker 2

So you'll see as we progress the rest of 2023, The continued trend in that direction and we're comfortable that by Q1 of 2024, we'll be At the run rate to hit that $110,000,000 to $120,000,000 cash guidance.

Speaker 7

Great. That's helpful. Just one clarifying point, the potential The Rochester facility, is that in your estimates or not in your estimates?

Speaker 4

For that particular one, I would say the timing of

Speaker 7

Great. Thank you very

Speaker 2

much. Thanks, Steve.

Operator

Your next question comes from Rob Wertheimer with Melius Research. Your line is open.

Speaker 5

Howdy. I just wanted to have one follow-up on the 200 and how your trial customers Are seeing that evolution. Are you kind of starting from 0 again on that's not the right way to say it. But on durability and on Proof of how the system works. Is there a ton of carryover from the previous technology?

Speaker 5

Is that readily predictable from how you're doing it? And how do people think about durability in general? Is that currently a major selling point? Or is that something people know will evolve over time? Thanks.

Speaker 2

Great question there, Robin. I think durability is a point we really love to dive deeper into this so critical to Coming to market and our customers are very, very focused on it. So I'll take it in 2 parts, the fuel cell durability and the vehicle itself, right? So So with the fuel cell, while there is good durability data historically on the 1 to 20 kilowatt generation, we are starting from So to speak on the 200 kilowatt to re prove durability on that technology. 200 kilowatt single stack is a very Advanced Technology because of the ability to get that consistent power performance across the larger active area and the number of cells we have in that stack In that compressed box, so while we do think and our customers do look at the 1 to 1 20 kilo generation as instructive, We want to be clear that when we go through SOP, the durability testing is going to be all from the 200 kilowatt itself, reproving it over again.

Speaker 2

So it's both give us credit, but we also want to prove it to them in this technology because it's so advanced and so different from the other 100 ish Kilowatt generation inside of Hyzon and in the market. On the truck side, most of our customers that in the end really want to Scale with the 200 kilowatt truck are getting their first experience on the 110 kilowatt, 120 kilowatt generation. And that is a significant benefit to them Where they have a successful trial in our truck, not just trialing the fuel cell, they're trying the entire truck experience. Not only how the truck performs, But if and when there are issues, how we react, how our service providers help to resolve those, how the fueling is going to work, training their drivers and frankly putting a lot of excitement. So what we've seen In our pathways with some of our early customers where we have progressed from trial to order is they're willing to actually sign up for an order pattern Just on the ONCEEN120 kilowatt trial that has committed orders for the ONCEEN120 and contingent orders for the 200, Pending the 200 kilowatt truck trial that they'll do later, which that truck expect to be in trial relatively soon, but that 110 is Very helpful in building not just confidence in the technology, but also excitement, training, Fuel, experience, etcetera, where it goes a long way.

Speaker 2

So I guess what I'm trying to say is, doing once a kilowatt trials Are even more beneficial than you might think given it does get customers a long way toward the 200 kilowatt where most of them at the end say, I Thanks, Rob.

Operator

There are no further questions at this time. With that, I will now turn the call back over to Parker Meeks for closing remarks.

Speaker 2

Thank you, operator. Again, I want to thank everyone for joining us on this call today. At Hyzon, we are quite excited by the progress we've made over the past quarter And driving the commercialization of our fuel cell electric vehicle platforms and then the continued progress towards SOP of our 200 kilowatt fuel cell technology. We're thankful to have all of you following our journey. We're excited to provide more detail on our next call.

Speaker 2

Thank you very much.

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Key Takeaways

  • Hyzon has already deployed 10 fuel cell electric trucks under commercial agreements in 2023 (seven in Australia, three in Europe), collected $2.9 million in cash receipts and met the bottom end of its 10–20 vehicle guidance.
  • The company produced nine B-sample 200 kW fuel cell systems at its Bolingbrook, Illinois facility in Q2 and remains on track for system-of-production (SOP) of its single-stack 200 kW fuel cell in 2024, targeting 25 B-samples by year-end.
  • Hyzon simplified its product portfolio by focusing solely on a 200 kW fuel cell system (instead of three variants) and two vehicle platforms (U.S. conventional and EU/AU cab-over), aiming to reduce costs, boost scale and improve operational efficiency.
  • In North America, Hyzon signed a commercial agreement with Performance Food Group for up to 50 Class 8 fuel cell trucks, with the first five 110 kW units scheduled for delivery by year-end.
  • The company ended Q2 with $172 million in cash (and $258 million at July month-end), reduced its Q2 burn to $12 million per month (July at $9 million), and forecasts a $65–73 million net cash burn in H2 2023 including SEC accrual, targeting $110–120 million net cash outflow in 2024.
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Earnings Conference Call
Hyzon Motors Q2 2023
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