Advent Technologies Holdings Inc (ADN) 2022 Q2 法說會逐字稿

Morning, everyone. I will be your conference operator today. At this time, I would like to welcome everyone to Advent Technology's second-quarter earnings conference call. (Operator Instructions) On the call today, we are joined by Dr. Vasilis Gregoriou, Advent's Chairman and CEO; and Kevin Brackman, Advent's CFO.

Before we begin the prepared remarks, we would like to remind you that Advent issued a press release announcing its second-quarter 2022 financial results shortly before market opened today. You may access the materials on the Investor Relations section of the company's website, www.advent.energy.

I would also like to remind everyone that during the course of this conference call, Advent's management will discuss forecasts, targets, and other forward-looking statements regarding the company's future, customer orders, and the company's business outlook that are intended to be covered by the Safe Harbor provisions of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995 for forward-looking statements.

While these statements represent management's current expectations and projections about future results and performance as of today, Advent's actual results are subject to many risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from those expectations.

In addition to any risks highlighted during this call, important factors that may affect Advent's future results are described in its most recent SEC reports filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission, including today's earnings press release. Except as required by applicable law, the company undertakes no obligation to update any of these forward-looking statements for any reason after the date of this call.

Lastly, information discussed on this call concerning the company's industry competitive position in the market in which it operates is based on the information from independent industry and research organizations, other third-party sources, and management estimates.

Management estimates are derived from publicly available information released by independent industry analysis and other third-party resources, as well as data from the company's internal research and are based on assumptions made upon reviewing such data and with knowledge of such industry and markets, which it believes to be reasonable.

These assumptions are subject to uncertainties and risks which could cause results to differ materially from those expressed in the estimate. Please note, this call is being recorded. Kicking off the call will be Dr. Vasilis Gregoriou. Dr. Gregoriou, please go ahead.

Thank you, operator. Good morning to everyone listening in and thank you for joining us on our second-quarter 2022 earnings call. I'm joined today by Advent's CFO, Kevin Brackman. On today's call, I will provide comments regarding our second-quarter results, followed by an update on the business. I will then hand over to Kevin, who will give a review of our financial performance and outlook in more detail.

Subsequent to my last update on May 12, Advent presented its inaugural Investor Day on July 7, which provided a comprehensive review of our technology and commercial progress. This event was very well attended, and for those of you who couldn't join in, the full recording is available [towards] through our website.

Advent had a very exciting second quarter, capital identification from the Greek state for funding of EUR782.1 million under IPCEI hydrogen technology for Advent's Green HiPo project. The notification from the Greek state was sent to the EU under the IPCEI framework that was subsequently ratified by the EU.

The ratification has approved up to EUR5.4 billion support by 50 member states in the hydrogen technology value chain. It is also expected that this funding will unlock additional EUR8.8 billion in private investments. This value chain has four key areas consistent with hydrogen generation, fuel cell technology, storage, transportation and distribution, and end-user technology.

Advent's Green HiPo encapsulates the area of hydrogen generation fuel cell technology. And examples of other companies in these areas includes Hyvia, the joint venture between Plug Power and Renault, Cummins, McPhy, Alstom, Arkema, Bosch, and Daimler Truck.

Advent's Green HiPo project was originally among five projects out of 20 candidates from Greece for IPCEI funding. These five projects were then subject to detailed review and due diligence by the EU, resulting in two projects being notified by the Greek state.

The notification in the first wave of IPCEI hydrogen technology project is a testament to the world-class innovation that Advent possesses, and the commitment Greece and the EU have in Advent's ability to deliver such an important project.

The scope of Green HiPo, over the initial period of six years, is to innovatively develop and manufacture fuel cell systems and electrolyzer systems. We're aiming for cumulative capacity of 180 megawatts of fuel cells and 1.5 gigawatts of electrolyzers over that time.

The production of these systems will take place in Greece in the region of Western Macedonia, which will become our focal point for technology development and mass production.

In my last update, I mentioned that during this year, we will continue to consolidate our business to make operations more efficient and effective and to concentrate our global activities on our key sectors. We have, therefore, honed our expertise in stationary power, [portable], and mobility.

This has resulted in [urban-development-specific beacons] of technical and commercial expertise within these key sectors. This clear vision has given rise to serious traction from global OEMs; therefore, augmenting our pipeline. System sales will provide near-term revenue.

Our stationary power sector has therefore been targeting telecommunications, and our portable sector has been targeting the defense sector. Product development in the defense sector is geared toward factors such as reliability, compactness, versatility of fuel source, and power output. As a result, the same factors have also made our portable products attractive to a multitude of non-defense applications.

Our mobility efforts are geared towards heavy-duty vehicles, marine, and aviation. While opportunities for the mobility sector are significant, they will likely emanate from longer-term license agreements.

What is apparent is that our overlapping mixture of revenue streams would eventually [intertwine] and will contribute to both the [magnitude] and the strength of Advent's commercial strategy. We continue to have strong cash reserves totaling $46.5 million last June 30th.

Overall, our performance this quarter leaves us confident about the long-term growth and earnings potential of the company. In addition to the Green HiPo project I mentioned earlier, I will now give an overview of our key achievements during the quarter.

In April, Advent announced the signing of a technology assessment, sales, and development agreement with Hyundai, a leading multinational automotive manufacturing, offering a range of world-class vehicles and mobility services in over 200 countries. Advent and Hyundai aim to deliver green energy solutions to current high-carbon applications using fuel cell technology.

Under this agreement, Hyundai will provide catalysts to Advent for evaluation with Advent's proprietary MEAs. Advent intends to support Hyundai in fulfilling its fuel cell project needs to developing [inks and structures] using Hyundai catalysts, following which, they will determine where their own catalyst or alternative standard catalyst is will be used for the project.

In addition, Advent will support Hyundai by supplying Advent MEAs throughout the development and commercialization cycle for testing, evaluation, and optimization under conditions set by Hyundai and by assisting Hyundai with the use and specifications of MEAs as well as their implementation into Hyundai's designs.

Following the completion of the first phase of the project, Hyundai and Advent will collaborate closely to set out specific product requirements, collaborative product goals, and milestones for achieving defined targets and plans for the second phase, which will also include Advent's stack cooling technology.

The Advent MEA to be tested by Hyundai are currently being developed within the framework of the L'Innovator, Advent's joint development program with the US Department of Energy's Los Alamos National Laboratory, Brookhaven National laboratory, and National Renewable Energy Laboratory. The new Advent MEA is expected to redefine the MEA market globally and further validate Advent's leading position in the electrochemical component business.

MEAs are the most important components of a fuel cell as they greatly define performance, lifetime, weight, and cost of the end system. Advent MEA operate at a temperature between 80 degrees Celsius to 240 degrees Celsius compared to the incumbent load temperature PEM technology, which is restricted to operate at a temperature of below 100 degrees Celsius.

The ability to operate at above 100 degrees Celsius confer significant advantages such as the efficient heat removal in heavy-duty mobility applications, making Advent's high-temperature PEM an ideal technology for trucks, aviation, and marine application.

Advent MEA can operate effectively with fuel cells as low -- with fuels such as low-grade hydrogen, which can be reformed on board from methanol, natural gas, and other renewable fuels. Advent MEAs are also resilient to extreme temperature variations, humidity, and air quality conditions.

As a further milestone to our mobility focus, in May, Advent announced the signing of the technology assessment agreement with another large global automotive manufacturer. With a common goal of sustainability and the fastest decarbonization of the US automotive industry, Advent is supporting efforts to advance innovative fuel cell technology as a sustainable and efficient option for achieving carbon neutrality.

More specifically, Advent will provide assistance to supplying MEAs for testing, evaluation, optimization, providing support on MEA operational parameter, and sharing technical know-how for fuel cell stack, proprietary high-temperature PEM technology, and leveraging high-temperature PEM for advanced cooling systems.

One of the primary objectives will be to conduct a detailed assessment of Advent's proprietary high temperature technology and MEAs for consideration of future opportunities. Contingent upon the successful execution of the first phase of the project, the companies will work to establish a joint development agreement governing specific project requirements, goals, milestones, and plans.

The new Advent MEAs to be tested as part of this project are currently being developed again within the framework of the L'Innovator. In April, Advent announced that it received new orders for its proprietary MEAs from Safran Power Units, a leader in auxiliary power systems and turbojet engines. The MEAs are based on Advent's proprietary high-temperature PEM technology.

The supply of Advent's MEAs started in the first quarter of 2022, and deliveries continued through the second quarter. The MEAs will support Safran Power Units' R&D efforts.

High-temperature PEM technology has application across multiple industries such as heavy-duty automotive and aviation because it can operate with almost any low-carbon or zero-carbon fuel. Safran Power Units constantly innovates and develops new power unit solutions featuring high performance with lower environment footprint and operating cost, relying on its expertise in hybridization and fuel cells.

Safran Power Units is a long-term customer of Advent, having tested and deployed Advent's state-of-the-art MEAs in a variety of applications in the past. MEAs form the heart of the fuel cell, and their performance determines the lifetime efficiency, weight, and to a large extent, the final cost of the complete power delivery system.

In May, Advent participated in the European Electrolyser Summit in Brussels. This event was organized by the European Commission in cooperation with Hydrogen Europe and took place under the [auspices] of the European Clean Hydrogen Alliance.

Commissioner for the Internal Market, Thierry Breton; CEO of Hydrogen Europe, Jorgo Chatzimarkakis; and 20 other CEOs and executives from the European electrolyzer community met and signed a joint declaration, establishing the clear goal of paving the way towards achieving the objectives of the REPowerEU proposed hydrogen accelerator.

This sets out the strategy to double the previous EU renewable hydrogen target to 10 million tons of annual domestic production and an additional 10 million tons of annual hydrogen imports.

Under the joint declaration, Europe's leading electrolyzer manufacturers agreed to increase their manufacturing capacity in an effort to share by 2025 a combined annual electrolyzer manufacturing capacity of 17.5 gigawatts as well as to further increase the capacity by 2030 in line with projected demand for renewable and low-carbon hydrogen.

The joint declaration features the objective for regulatory framework, access to financing, and to supply chain integration.

In June, Advent announced the signing of an MoU with Neptune Lines, a leading vehicle logistics provider via global marine vessels. Neptune Lines and Advent have agreed to jointly conduct a pilot program to explore the application of a fuel-cell-based auxiliary power system.

This application would be tested by Neptune Line's high-experienced team who will evaluate its performance as a sustainable source of power generation. After the evaluation stage, the parties will consider a broader collaboration.

Advent's fuel cells are a reliable source of on-demand power generation across various applications and industries, including shipping, power generation, and heavy-duty mobility. The fuel cells can deliver direct power without power loss from additional converters, offering a substantial and high-efficient solution.

Also in June, Advent announced the signing of an MoU with Laskaridis Shipping, a renowned ship management company based in Athens. Under the terms of the MoU, Laskaridis Shipping and Advent agreed to jointly conduct a pilot program where Advent will supply Laskaridis Shipping with its SereneU methanol-powered fuel cells.

Laskaridis Shipping will install these systems on selected dry-bulk vessels to assess their overall performance as auxiliary, backup, or emergency power sources. Following the successful completion of the pilot program, Laskaridis Shipping and Advent will collaborate on manufacturing and testing the next generation of Advent's fuel cells.

This collaborative testing of fuel cells is expected to be based on Advent's next-generation MEA.

Advent is a vertically integrated manufacturer. Its portfolio includes advanced high-temperature PEM fuel cell systems, covering the range from 25 watts to 90 kilowatts. SereneU methanol-powered fuel cells deliver critical and reliable power in environmental-friendly way, reducing carbon dioxide emissions and operating silently while having a low impact on surroundings.

Methanol, as a carrier of hydrogen, allows simpler storage such as handling and logistics, compared to pure hydrogen, and enhances the safety of operations. Advent has made very good progress over the last quarter as well as having a strong pipeline of opportunities.

Our projects are very significant, and [the HiPo alone is potentially transformational]. We remain totally focused on commercializing our innovative technology. With that, I would like to turn it over to our CFO, Kevin Brackman. Kevin?

Thank you, Vasilis, and good morning, everyone. Turning to our financials, we delivered revenue of $2.2 million in the second quarter compared to $1 million in the prior-year quarter. The increase primarily resulted from the businesses in Denmark, Germany, and the Philippines acquired by Advent on August 31 of 2021.

Gross profit decreased $0.4 million year over year in the second quarter due to the mix of products and customers included in revenue, a higher fixed cost base resulting from the acquired businesses, and supply chain cost pressure in the second quarter of 2022.

R&D expenses were $2.6 million in the second quarter, primarily related to internal R&D costs incurred in each of our businesses, as well as our cooperative research and development agreement with the Department of Energy.

Administrative and selling expenses were $8 million in the second quarter, a year-over-year increase of $1.4 million, primarily due to increased staffing and costs resulting from the acquisitions and from stock-based compensation expenses.

Net loss totaled $11.1 million in the quarter, and adjusted net loss was $10.9 million. I should note that our adjusted net loss excludes a $0.2 million loss from the change in the fair value of outstanding warrants. Our net loss per share was $0.22 in the second quarter.

Advent remains well-capitalized with $46.5 million in cash reserves on the balance sheet as of June (technical difficulty) provides us with the flexibility to be agile in (technical difficulty) [strategic] and operational priorities.

This is a decrease of $12.8 million from March 31 of 2022, driven by the increased level of R&D and administrative and selling expenses, as well as $2.8 million of spending during the second quarter for the build-out of our Hood Park R&D and manufacturing facility.

In the second half of 2022, we expect to receive approximately $5 million in tenant improvement allowances for the Hood Park facility, net of additional spending for the build-out. Our existing cash reserves and projected cash flows are anticipated to be sufficient to support our planned operations for the next 12 months.

I will now turn to our outlook. Advent developed significantly during 2021, and we entered 2022 with a more advanced product range and a dedicated technical sales team focused on key sectors and geographies. We therefore have a strong pipeline.

Also, in mid-June, the company announced the successful notification from the Greek state for funding of EUR782.1 million for Advent's Green HiPo project, which was subsequently ratified by the EU. As we all know, not every opportunity in the pipeline will transpire due to factors that may be beyond Advent's control. Opportunities may not materialize or could be delayed.

Due to the long-term contract nature of our business model, the timing of our revenue can also be difficult to predict. Due to global inflationary pressures and economic conditions, we have recently been experiencing some delays from our customers in the Philippines for fuel-cell systems and their installation.

Notwithstanding this, our pipeline is robust, and together with year one of the Green HiPo funding expected later in 2022, we expect to exceed our previous estimate of $23 million for the year from the total of revenue and grant income.

In closing, we believe that Advent is well positioned to be the provider of clean energy solutions across a variety of end markets. The company has built a solid foundation for the business and continues to execute on its strategic initiatives.

With that, I will hand back to Vasilis for closing remarks.

Thank you, Kevin. Advent's significant portfolio of technology and commercial strength [are allowing us] to compete and be successful at the global level. Green HiPo will be transformational for Advent, and Green HiPo is for the long term.

During and beyond the initial six-year development and production timeframe, we're aiming for significant revenue growth. Through Green HiPo, we will cement our foothold in the global electrolyzer market and fuel cell market.

In parallel, Advent is pursuing a visible and defined path towards key and significant sectors. Advent is a clean energy technology company. By innovative development and state-of-the-art technology, we will leverage from this strength to generate commercial products and provide attractive technology solutions through partnerships with OEMs.

I would like to thank you all for joining us today, and we are now ready to answer questions. Thank you very much.

(Operator Instructions) And at this time, we have no questions. That does conclude today's conference call. Thank you for your participation. You may now disconnect.