Arq Inc (ARQ) 2024 Q3 法說會逐字稿

Good morning everyone, and thank you for joining us today for our third quarter 2024 earnings results call. With me on the call today are Bob Rasmus, Arq's Chief Executive Officer and President; as well as Stacia Hansen, Arq's Treasurer and Chief Accounting Officer. This conference call is being webcasted live within the Investors section of our website, and a downloadable version of today's presentation is available there as well. A webcast replay will also be available on our site, and you can contact Arq's Investor Relations team at investors@arq.com.

大家早安，感謝您今天參加我們的 2024 年第三季收益結果電話會議。今天與我一起參加電話會議的還有 Arq 的執行長兼總裁 Bob Rasmus；以及 Arq 的財務主管兼首席會計官 Stacia Hansen。本次電話會議將在我們網站的「投資者」部分進行網路直播，今天的簡報的可下載版本也可以在那裡下載。我們的網站上也將提供網路直播重播，您可以透過 investors@arq.com 聯絡 Arq 的投資者關係團隊。

Let me remind you that the presentation and remarks made today include forward-looking statements as defined in Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act. These statements are based on information currently available to us and involve risks and uncertainties that could cause actual future results, performance and business prospects and opportunities to differ materially from those expressed in or implied by these statements.

讓我提醒您，今天的演示和評論包括《證券交易法》第 21E 條定義的前瞻性陳述。這些聲明基於我們目前掌握的信息，包含風險和不確定性，可能導致實際未來結果、業績和業務前景和機會與這些聲明中表達或暗示的結果、業績和前景和機會存在重大差異。

These risks and uncertainties include, but are not limited to, those factors identified on Slide 2 of today's slide presentation, in our Form 10-Q for the quarter ended September 30, 2024 and other filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission. Except as expressly required by securities laws, the company undertakes no obligation to update those factors or any forward-looking statements to reflect future events, developments or changed circumstances or for any other reason. In addition, it is especially important to review the presentation and today's remarks in conjunction with the GAAP references in the financial statements.

這些風險和不確定性包括但不限於今天幻燈片演示的第 2 張幻燈片、截至 2024 年 9 月 30 日的季度 10-Q 表以及向美國證券交易委員會提交的其他文件中確定的因素。除證券法明確要求外，本公司不承擔更新這些因素或任何前瞻性陳述以反映未來事件、發展或情況變化或任何其他原因的義務。此外，結合財務報表中的 GAAP 引用來審查該報告和今天的評論尤其重要。

With that, I would like to turn the call over to Bob.

說完這些，我想把電話轉給鮑伯。

Thank you, Anthony, and thanks to everyone for joining us this morning. This was a really strong quarter. With that in mind, I'd like to start today by reflecting on our journey: where we've been, where we stand now and where we're headed. Looking back over the past 15 months, I'm incredibly proud of our team and everything we've achieved. First, we have successfully executed a complete turnaround in the financial and operating performance of our foundational PAC business.

謝謝你，安東尼，也謝謝大家今天早上加入我們。這是一個非常強勁的季度。考慮到這一點，今天我想先回顧一下我們的旅程：我們去過哪裡，我們現在站在哪裡，我們要去哪裡。回顧過去的 15 個月，我為我們的團隊和我們所取得的一切感到無比自豪。首先，我們成功實現了基礎 PAC 業務的財務和營運績效的全面扭轉。

The net result underpins our business with attractive cash flows to springboard our growth. We approached the turnaround with a nothing is sacred mantra. This strategy helped transform a consistently loss-making business into not just a profitable business today, but a sustainability profitable business over the longer term. As I've said before, our enhanced performance is not the result of any magic formula, but rather the diligent focus and thoughtful execution around the basics. I'm proud of our team for sharpening its focus on cost and embracing an every penny counts mentality.

淨結果以富有吸引力的現金流支撐我們的業務，從而推動我們的成長。我們以「沒有什麼是神聖的」咒語來應對轉變。這項策略幫助一家持續虧損的企業轉型為不僅是當前獲利的企業，而且長期可持續獲利的企業。正如我之前所說，我們業績的提升並不是靠什麼神奇的公式，而是對基礎工作的認真關注和深思熟慮的執行。我為我們的團隊高度關注成本並秉持「每一分錢都很重要」的心態而感到自豪。

At the same time, the sales team has done a great job in fundamentally improving our contract portfolio by removing all low and negative margin agreements. As we announced this morning, sales prices for our PAC business in Q3 2024 were 15% higher than the same quarter last year. Gross margins have improved by approximately 800 basis points year-over-year to a very encouraging 39%. While the pace of improvements will naturally slow down from here given the significant improvements already realized, we do continue to target and expect further benefits as we optimize all aspects of our PAC business. I often describe our PAC business as Arq's foundational business, given it was the foundational asset base on which we were built.

同時，銷售團隊透過取消所有低利潤和負利潤協議，從根本上改善了我們的合約組合，做得非常出色。正如我們今天早上宣布的那樣，2024 年第三季我們的 PAC 業務的銷售價格比去年同期高出 15%。毛利率年增約800個基點，達到令人鼓舞的39%。雖然考慮到已經實現的重大改進，改進的速度自然會從現在開始放緩，但隨著我們優化 PAC 業務的各個方面，我們仍將繼續瞄準並期待獲得更多的收益。我經常將我們的 PAC 業務描述為 Arq 的基礎業務，因為它是我們建立的基礎資產。

But increasingly, it's also growing to reflect a business whose positive cash flows will serve as a financial foundation to help fund its own maintenance CapEx as well as our growth initiatives in the quickly evolving granular activated carbon market. That brings up the second highlight I'd like to make, the strides forward we continue to make in our exciting GAC growth business. Shortly following my appointment, we offered to you our commitment to drive robust contracting activity as we execute on our GAC growth initiatives. And I am excited to confirm today that we are now contracted for approximately15 million pounds of annual GAC product, or approximately 60% of our 25 million-poundnameplate capacity, clearly validating the value of our product, solution and strategy. Moreover, we are in advanced stages of negotiations for the remaining nameplate capacity and expect to complete this by the time we achieve our full run rate of 25 million pounds, which is targeted for the end of Q1 2025.

但越來越多地，它也成長地反映出一家企業的正現金流將作為財務基礎，幫助資助其自身的維護資本支出以及我們在快速發展的顆粒活性碳市場的成長計畫。這就是我想說的第二個亮點，即我們在令人興奮的 GAC 成長業務中繼續取得長足進步。在我上任後不久，我們承諾在執行 GAC 成長計畫的同時，推動強勁的承包活動。今天我很高興地確認，我們目前已簽訂了每年約 1500 萬磅 GAC 產品的合同，約占我們 2500 萬磅標稱產能的 60%，這清楚地證明了我們的產品、解決方案和戰略的價值。此外，我們正就剩餘額定產能進行後期談判，預計在實現 2,500 萬磅的最大產能時完成談判，目標是在 2025 年第一季末。

We also have identified the potential for Red River to deliver production capabilities above our nameplate capacity, and I'll have more on that shortly. Third, I'd like to highlight the progress we've made with regards to funding our exciting set of growth initiatives. We have raised approximately $44 million of total capital via strategic equity raises in May and September of this year at a volume weighted average price of roughly $5.75. While our thinking around equity issuance has evolved alongside the market and our opportunity set, I would emphasize that the average issuance price across these two strategic offerings is more than 3.6x higher than the day I joined. The quality and depth of our investor base has also improved significantly, alongside a nearly five-fold increase in our market capitalization to approximately $250 million today.

我們還發現了 Red River 提供超出我們額定產能的生產能力的潛力，我很快就會詳細介紹這一點。第三，我想強調我們在為一系列令人興奮的成長計畫提供資金方面所取得的進展。我們在今年 5 月和 9 月透過策略性股權融資籌集了約 4,400 萬美元的總資本，成交量加權平均價格約為 5.75 美元。雖然我們對股票發行的思考隨著市場和機會集而不斷發展，但我要強調的是，這兩項策略發行的平均發行價格比我加入之日高出 3.6 倍以上。我們的投資者基礎的品質和深度也得到了顯著改善，同時我們的市值增長了近五倍，達到今天的約 2.5 億美元。

We have also fundamentally improved the quality of our earnings stream and balance sheet. As a result, we are well positioned to execute on further expansion of our GAC capability. So in summary, I look back on these last 15 months with great pride. We've implemented sustainable and impactful changes to our operations that have driven immediate improvements and set the stage for long-term financial success. As proud as I am of our accomplishments, and there are many, we still have the opportunity to make significant further progress.

我們也從根本上提高了我們的獲利流和資產負債表的品質。因此，我們已做好準備進一步擴展我們的 GAC 能力。總而言之，我非常自豪地回顧過去的 15 個月。我們對營運實施了可持續的、有影響力的變革，這些變革帶來了立竿見影的改善，並為長期的財務成功奠定了基礎。儘管我為我們所取得的成就感到自豪，而且我們還有許多成就，但我們仍有機會取得重大進展。

I'm excited to finish 2024 on a high note and embrace what promises to be an even more transformational year in 2025. More on that soon, but let's cover a review of our latest financial performance. This morning, we were pleased to report our financial and operating results for the third quarter of 2024. Our latest results reflect yet another strong overall quarter, further evidencing the material progress we are making across a range of business areas. The business achieved record PAC operating revenue of approximately $35 million and adjusted EBITDA of approximately $5 million.

我很高興能以高調結束 2024 年，並迎接有望更加變革的 2025 年。很快我們會對此進行更詳細的介紹，但讓我們先回顧一下我們最新的財務表現。今天上午，我們很高興地報告 2024 年第三季的財務和營運表現。我們的最新業績反映出又一個整體季度表現強勁，進一步證明了我們在一系列業務領域的實質進展。該業務實現了創紀錄的約 3500 萬美元的 PAC 營業收入和約 500 萬美元的調整後 EBITDA。

These results exceeded forecasts and demonstrate our ability to drive a more stable and resilient foundational business. Our improved results were driven by higher ASP, lower operating costs and an improvement in volumes. This contributed to strong gross margins during the quarter of roughly 39%, up approximately 800 basis points over the same period last year. While I am very pleased with what we have achieved and our latest results, I am far from satisfied, and we will continue to challenge the status quo to drive even better performance. In light of the strong PAC performance, it's worth commenting on the sustainability of our PAC business turnaround.

這些結果超出了預期，並證明了我們有能力推動更穩定、更有彈性的基礎業務。我們業績的改善得益於平均售價的提高、營運成本的降低以及銷量的增加。這使得本季毛利率高達約 39%，比去年同期成長了約 800 個基點。雖然我對我們所取得的成就和最新的業績感到非常滿意，但我並不滿足，我們將繼續挑戰現狀，以取得更好的業績。鑑於 PAC 的強勁表​​現，值得評論一下我們的 PAC 業務轉型的可持續性。

This is a topic that many investors raise when speaking with us. As we started 2024, approximately 26% of our PAC contracts were up for renewal. Against this backdrop and utilizing this as an opportunity for improvement, we've delivered ASP increases of 15% in the third quarter of 2024 over the prior year period and overall revenue increases of nearly $5 million or nearly 17% over the same period last year. Looking ahead to 2025 and 2026, we have very good visibility on PAC contract renewals, especially in the PG&I sector, and believe this extends the runway and visibility we have in our overall PAC business. This gives me tremendous confidence in the financial performance of our foundational PAC business in 2025 and beyond, and I remain confident in the sustainability of that performance in future years.

這是許多投資者在與我們交談時提出的話題。截至 2024 年，我們約有 26% 的 PAC 合約需要續約。在此背景下，並利用此作為改進的機會，我們實現了 2024 年第三季的平均銷售價格較去年同期增長 15%，總收入較去年同期增長近 500 萬美元或近 17%。展望 2025 年和 2026 年，我們對 PAC 合約續約有著非常好的可見性，特別是在 PG&I 領域，並且相信這將延長我們整體 PAC 業務的跑道和可見性。這讓我對我們基礎 PAC 業務在 2025 年及以後的財務業績充滿信心，並且我對未來幾年業績的可持續性仍然充滿信心。

Turning now to our capital position and funding initiatives. I'd like to take a moment to discuss our recent equity raise. As most of you will know, our initial financing plan for our strategic GAC expansion contemplated a term loan refinancing. During our second quarter earnings call, we discussed our progress in the refinancing, including the signing of a term sheet. However, as negotiations progressed, the terms became increasingly unfavorable.

現在來談談我們的資本狀況和融資計劃。我想花點時間討論一下我們最近的股權融資。大多數人可能都知道，我們針對 GAC 策略擴張的初步融資計劃考慮了定期貸款再融資。在第二季的財報電話會議上，我們討論了再融資的進展，包括簽署條款清單。然而，隨著談判的進展，條款變得越來越不利。

Non-call provisions, or when callable at onerous levels, especially when considering the significant near-term cash flow expectations of the GAC and PAC business, high cash flow sweeps, a high and increasing coupon rate, the addition of warrants and prepayment covenants that would have been highly inhibiting to our ongoing GAC expansion capabilities. At the same time, we expect to generate an even stronger cash flow stream once our first GAC line is up and running early in 2025.

不可贖回條款，或在繁重水平上可贖回時，尤其是考慮到 GAC 和 PAC 業務的近期現金流預期巨大、高現金流清掃、高且不斷增加的票面利率、增加的認股權證和預付款契約，這些都會嚴重抑制我們正在進行的 GAC 擴張能力。同時，我們預計，一旦我們的第一條 GAC 生產線於 2025 年初投入運營，將產生更強勁的現金流。

We have a substantial base of tax credits and NOLs, diminishing the value of the term loan's interest shield. After extensive analysis and strategic discussion, we determined that issuing equity would be far more accretive option while also providing greater balance sheet flexibility. And with our Phase 1 GAC line up and running early next year, we expect to be well positioned to finance a potential second granular activated carbon line as a traditional corporate cash flow credit, lowering interest costs and driving higher shareholder accretion.

我們擁有大量的稅收抵免和淨營業收入，這降低了定期貸款的利息保護價值。經過廣泛的分析和策略討論，我們認為發行股票將是更具增值性的選擇，同時也能提供更大的資產負債表彈性。隨著我們第一階段的 GAC 生產線於明年初投入運營，我們預計將能夠以傳統的企業現金流信貸形式為潛在的第二條顆粒活性碳生產線提供資金，從而降低利息成本並推動更高的股東增值。

With this in mind, we initiated a three-day confidential marketing period, which uncovered robust institutional interest. Due to this high demand, we increased the size of the offering, reflecting investors' confidence in our growth plans. It is important to emphasize that we were not willing to sell at any price. The final offering price represented only a 9% discount relative to our closing share price prior to the start of the marketing process, demonstrating the competitive pricing of our offering. It's also worth noting that this process gave our team several important insights.

考慮到這一點，我們啟動了為期三天的保密行銷期，發現了機構的濃厚興趣。由於需求量龐大，我們增加了發行規模，反映了投資者對我們成長計畫的信心。必須強調的是，我們不願意以任何價格出售。最終發行價相對於行銷過程開始前的收盤價僅折價 9%，顯示我們發行的定價具有競爭力。另外值得注意的是，這個過程為我們的團隊帶來了一些重要的見解。

We encountered strong interest from investors who were largely unfamiliar with our story, many of whom hadn't engaged with us since before I joined and some who had never heard of us at all. I see this as a positive. It means we have a fresh audience to introduce our exciting story to in the months ahead. We were also pleased that the offering was oversubscribed by high-quality institutional investors, many of whom we believe are continuing to buy in the aftermarket. I also want to emphasize that I personally participated in this offering, further aligning my interests with those of our shareholders.

我們引起了投資者的強烈興趣，他們大多不熟悉我們的故事，其中許多人在我加入之前就沒有與我們合作過，還有一些人根本就沒有聽說過我們。我認為這是積極的。這意味著在接下來的幾個月裡我們將有新的觀眾來介紹我們令人興奮的故事。我們也很高興此次發行獲得了優質機構投資者的超額認購，我們相信其中許多投資者會在售後市場繼續買入。我還想強調的是，我個人參與了此次發行，進一步使我的利益與股東的利益保持一致。

Since joining last year, I have now purchased 975,000 shares with cash. These were not granted as options or similar incentives. Additionally, the majority of my compensation is equity-based with a substantial portion having no value unless Arq's common stock maintains a price of $10 and $15 per share without any adjustments for dilution. My interests are definitely aligned with all shareholders. So please rest assured that any decision to issue equity is made with careful consideration and only when it serves the best interest of all shareholders.

自去年加入以來，我現在已經用現金購買了 975,000 股。這些並非作為期權或類似的激勵措施授予的。此外，我的大部分薪酬都是基於股權的，除非 Arq 的普通股保持每股 10 美元和 15 美元的價格且不進行任何稀釋調整，否則很大一部分薪酬沒有任何價值。我的利益肯定與所有股東的利益一致。因此請放心，任何發行股票的決定都是經過仔細考慮的，並且只有在符合所有股東的最佳利益的情況下才做出的。

We believe that this equity raise leaves us in a very robust financial position, including $57.4 million of restricted and unrestricted cash on the balance sheet as of quarter end. Overall, we believe our decision to complete an equity offering provided multiple benefits, including expanding our institutional investor base, enhancing the balance sheet and improving our financial flexibility.

我們相信，此次股權融資將使我們的財務狀況非常穩健，截至季度末，資產負債表上的受限和非受限現金為 5,740 萬美元。總體而言，我們認為完成股票發行的決定帶來了多重好處，包括擴大我們的機構投資者基礎、增強資產負債表和提高我們的財務靈活性。

It also positions us well to finance a potential second line at Red River with a traditional cash flow-based corporate loan once our first GAC line at Red River is operational. Our recent financing activity relates to our key growth initiative, the expansion at our Red River facility to produce granular activated carbon. I'm pleased to confirm today that this remains on budget with the latest guidance and on track for first deliveries in Q1 2025.

一旦我們在 Red River 的第一條 GAC 生產線投入運營，它還可以讓我們以傳統的基於現金流的公司貸款為 Red River 的潛在第二條生產線提供融資。我們最近的融資活動與我們的關鍵成長計劃有關，即擴建紅河工廠以生產顆粒活性碳。今天我很高興地確認，該專案仍符合最新指導預算，並將於 2025 年第一季首次交付。

We recently disclosed that following the addition of several key hires, we made the decision to bring virtually all aspects of the construction process at Red River in-house. We have a unique and powerful opportunity to leverage our strong in-house capabilities, which we expect will reduce capital requirements and provide potential for expedited time lines.

我們最近透露，在招募了幾名關鍵員工後，我們決定將 Red River 的幾乎所有施工流程都納入公司內部。我們擁有獨特而強大的機會來利用我們強大的內部能力，我們預計這將減少資本需求並提供加快時間表的潛力。

Previously, we were operating under a cost-plus contract with the general contractor. By bringing control in-house, we eliminate the fees paid to the external general contractor and regain full oversight of both the time line and spending, driving greater efficiency and accountability. As well as now having full control of our own construction projects, it's also important to highlight that the commissioning of Red River is modular, allowing each phase of the process to derisk key elements before full completion.

在此之前，我們與總承包商簽訂的是成本加成合約。透過引入內部控制，我們免除了支付給外部總承包商的費用，並重新全面監督時間表和支出，從而提高效率和責任感。除了現在我們完全控制自己的建設項目之外，還需要強調的是，紅河的調試是模組化的，允許在完全完成之前降低每個階段的關鍵要素的風險。

This approach not only helps us stay on track with our time lines, but also positions us for a smoother production ramp once the facility is fully operational. For example, with nearly 100% of our steel and concrete installed and over 95% of our equipment in place, we were already approximately 15% commissioned as of late October.

這種方法不僅可以幫助我們按時完成任務，而且一旦設施全面投入運營，還可以讓我們的生產更快。例如，我們的鋼筋混凝土已安裝完畢近 100%，超過 95% 的設備已到位，截至 10 月底，我們的投入使用率已達到約 15%。

This gives us confidence in two key areas. First, by addressing potential challenges in a staged manner, we can reduce the impact of any short-term issues during startup. And second, this method should enable us to reach our full run rate nameplate capacity of 25 million pounds targeted for the first quarter of 2025 more quickly.

這使我們對兩個關鍵領域充滿信心。第一，透過分階段解決潛在挑戰，可以減少啟動過程中短期問題的影響。其次，這種方法可以使我們更快達到 2025 年第一季設定的 2,500 萬磅滿載生產能力。

On this point, we announced today that we have identified the potential to increase Red River's capacity by 10% to 20% over its 25 million pound targeted nameplate capacity with no anticipated additional CapEx required. We believe we could achieve this potential capacity on a run rate basis by the third quarter of 2025. Testing has shown our product significantly surpasses the required specification for most customers, although we don't expect to receive additional compensation for this outperformance. Therefore, we expect to be able to detune our product. The net result would still exceed customer requirements while potentially achieving 10% to 20% upside versus Red River's 25 million pound per year nameplate.

關於這一點，我們今天宣布，我們已經發現可以將 Red River 的產能提高 10% 至 20%，超過其 2500 萬磅的目標額定產能，並且不需要預計的額外資本支出。我們相信，到 2025 年第三季度，我們可以按運行率實現這一潛在產能。測試表明，我們的產品大大超出了大多數客戶的規格要求，儘管我們並不期望因這種優異表現而獲得額外補償。因此，我們希望能夠對我們的產品進行降諧。淨結果仍將超過客戶要求，同時與 Red River 每年 2,500 萬磅的標稱產量相比，可能實現 10% 至 20% 的成長。

It's important to note that this is not factored into our forecast. To repeat, just to ensure I am clear, this potential upsized production capacity would come with no anticipated additional CapEx required. Our focus remains firmly on the successful commissioning of Phase 1, but as we stated before, our ambitions and market demand certainly extend to a second phase and beyond. As such, we are already assessing the parameters of what Phase 2 might look like, which is heavily dependent on two critical factors. First, we will want to be comfortable that Phase 1 is successfully up and running at nameplate production levels of 25 million pounds or better.

值得注意的是，這並未計入我們的預測中。我再重複一遍，以確保我說清楚，這種潛在的擴大生產能力不需要預期的額外資本支出。我們的重點仍然是第一階段的成功調試，但正如我們之前所說，我們的目標和市場需求肯定會延伸到第二階段及以後。因此，我們已經在評估第二階段的參數，這在很大程度上取決於兩個關鍵因素。首先，我們希望第一階段能夠成功啟動並運行，達到 2500 萬磅或更高的標稱生產水準。

And second, we will want good visibility on contract demand, providing better clarity on our investment return, competitive positioning and other factors. With strong signals on these two elements and with permitting already in place, we can certainly envision pursuing a second phase at Red River next year with groundbreaking activity as early as Q3 2025, but anticipate confirming potential timing in the first half of 2025.

其次，我們希望合約需求具有良好的透明度，從而更清楚地了解我們的投資回報、競爭定位和其他因素。有了這兩個要素的強烈信號，並且已經獲得許可，我們當然可以設想明年在紅河進行第二階段的建設，最早將於 2025 年第三季度開展開創性活動，但預計在 2025 年上半年確認潛在時間。

We'd also highlight that Phase 2 is already permitted, and we have the potential for three further modules of 25 million pounds of GAC, which could take our combined production to approximately 125 million pounds of granular activated carbon in total. Based on the invaluable insights gained during Phase 1, we'd anticipate construction for Phase 2 would take 12 months or less. Assuming 25 million pounds of production capacity, CapEx requirements are likely to be roughly equivalent to the spending on our Phase 1 at approximately $3 per pound of annual production.

我們還要強調的是，第二階段已經獲得許可，我們有可能再生產三個 2500 萬磅 GAC 模組，這將使我們的總產量達到總產量約 1.25 億磅顆粒活性碳。根據第一階段所獲得的寶貴見解，我們預計第二階段的建設將需要 12 個月或更短的時間。假設生產能力為2500萬磅，資本支出需求可能大致相當於我們第一階段的支出，即每年每磅產量約3美元。

We conservatively believe that efficiency gains are likely to be offset by possible inflationary factors. As such, a further phase reflects a highly attractive growth opportunity with equally compelling investment returns that we'd be eager to pursue as quickly as responsible. As I've mentioned before, our GAC growth potential is substantial. While the exact time line for further expansion is not yet set, we have abundant feedstock at Corbin, permits in place and a site ready for expansion. This positions us exceptionally well, perhaps better than any of our peers, to capitalize on what we believe will be a multiyear supply shortfall exacerbated by rapidly growing demand.

我們保守地認為，效率收益可能會被潛在的通膨因素所抵銷。因此，下一階段將反映出極具吸引力的成長機會和同樣誘人的投資回報，我們渴望盡快且負責任地追求這一機會。正如我之前提到的，我們的 GAC 成長潛力巨大。雖然進一步擴張的具體時間表尚未確定，但我們在 Corbin 擁有豐富的原料、現有的許可證和隨時可供擴張的場地。這使我們處於非常有利的地位，或許比任何同行都更有利，可以利用我們認為因快速增長的需求而加劇的多年供應短缺。

With that in mind, I'd now like to provide more detail around our contracting success at Red River. As I mentioned earlier, we've made solid progress on our Phase 1 contract negotiations and now have approximately 60% of our 25 million pound per year nameplate capacity contracted. Regarding pricing, I understand from the many investor calls we've had in recent months, the desire for our company to provide greater details in regards to pricing. However, virtually all of our peers are not obligated to report any metrics, and providing elaborate detail on pricing would put us at a competitive disadvantage. That said, I'm pleased to confirm that recent contracts reflect strong and attractive pricing.

考慮到這一點，我現在想提供有關我們在 Red River 的承包成功的更多細節。正如我之前提到的，我們在第一階段的合約談判中取得了堅實的進展，現在我們每年 2500 萬磅的額定產能已經簽訂了約 60% 的合約。關於定價，從最近幾個月我們接到的許多投資者電話中我了解到，他們希望我們公司提供更多有關定價的細節。然而，實際上我們所有的同行都沒有義務報告任何指標，而提供詳細的定價資訊會使我們處於競爭劣勢。儘管如此，我很高興地確認最近的合約反映了強勁且有吸引力的定價。

Additionally, I would point out that there are significant differences in pricing across various industry applications. This underscores the importance of diversifying our customer base across different sectors. Given our strong contracting progress year-to-date, we are confident in contracting our remaining production by the time nameplate capacity run rate is achieved in Q1 2025 and are in advanced negotiations to do so.

此外，我想指出的是，不同行業應用的定價有顯著差異。這強調了在不同行業中實現客戶群多元化的重要性。鑑於我們今年迄今的強勁簽約進展，我們有信心在 2025 年第一季度達到額定產能運行率時簽訂剩餘的生產合同，並且正在進行深入的談判。

However, we may ultimately determine it to be advantageous to hold back a small portion of production, approximately 3 million to 5 million pounds to pursue alternative markets with higher pricing potential, even if they require longer qualification processes. For instance, the RNG opportunity, which I detailed on the last call, differs from the PFAS customer base in that RNG customers typically prefer to sample large-scale product at their sites, meaning we need to be in production before completing final testing.

然而，我們最終可能會認為，保留一小部分產量（約 300 萬至 500 萬磅）以尋求具有更高定價潛力的替代市場是有利的，即使它們需要更長的資格認證流程。例如，我在上次電話會議中詳細介紹的 RNG 機會與 PFAS 客戶群的不同之處在於，RNG 客戶通常更喜歡在他們的網站上對大規模產品進行抽樣，這意味著我們需要在完成最終測試之前投入生產。

Again, for clarity, we remain confident in our ability to fully contract Red River by first production. But we are likely to utilize the time between now and achieving nameplate capacity to optimize how we're contracting to maximize shareholder value. As such, we will remain focused but flexible. While I currently aim to have 100% of our product contracted by the time our 25 million pound nameplate capacity run rate is achieved in Q1 2025, if I believe in the coming months that holding back a small quantity could secure better pricing, I will pursue that course. As both a CEO and a shareholder, I believe in the importance of providing accurate guidance, but I also recognize that we shouldn't be rigid with targets.

再次明確說明，我們仍然有信心在首次生產時完全承包 Red River 合約。但我們可能會利用從現在到實現額定產能之間的時間來優化我們的簽約方式，以實現股東價值最大化。因此，我們將保持專注但又靈活。雖然我目前的目標是在 2025 年第一季實現 2,500 萬磅的額定產能運行率時，實現 100% 的產品簽約，但如果我相信在未來幾個月內保留少量產品可以確保更好的價格，我就會繼續這樣做。身為執行長和股東，我相信提供準確的指導非常重要，但我也意識到我們不應該對目標太死板。

If flexibility offers a better long-term outcome, we should adapt accordingly to maximize value for shareholders. While discussing guidance and before turning things over to Stacia, I'd like to reiterate some of our key initiatives and milestones, which we target achieving by year-end. First, I expect we will continue optimizing the PAC business as the entire company works to identify cost savings, while the sales team continues its steady progress in expanding into adjacent markets and securing pricing improvements.

如果靈活性能夠帶來更好的長期結果，我們就應該做出相應調整，以實現股東價值最大化。在討論指導方針並將事情移交給斯塔西婭之前，我想重申我們的一些關鍵舉措和里程碑，我們的目標是在年底前實現這些舉措和里程碑。首先，我預計我們將繼續優化 PAC 業務，因為整個公司致力於尋找節​​省成本的方法，而銷售團隊將繼續穩步推進，擴展到鄰近市場並確保價格改善。

Second, with Corbin fully commissioned and awaiting Red River to follow suit, we anticipate steady state production at Corbin to begin shortly, allowing us to stockpile feedstock for use at Red River. Additionally, we will start to explore cost reduction opportunities at Corbin, which will be a key focus for 2025.

其次，隨著 Corbin 專案全面投入營運並等待 Red River 專案跟進，我們預計 Corbin 專案很快就會開始穩定生產，這使我們能夠儲存原料供 Red River 專案使用。此外，我們將開始探索 Corbin 的成本削減機會，這將是 2025 年的重點。

Third, we will continue the modular commissioning of Red River, which is already underway. While not every milestone will be announced, we may provide an end-of-year update if appropriate, giving the market a clear sense of progress as we move into 2025. With critical elements of the build complete, advancements at Red River are significant and will accelerate through completion.

第三，我們將繼續進行已正在進行的Red River模組化調試工作。雖然我們不會宣布每個里程碑，但如果合適，我們可能會提供年終更新，讓市場在我們進入 2025 年時清楚地了解進展。隨著關鍵建設要素的完成，紅河計畫的進展十分顯著，並將在完工後加速。

And as discussed, we have identified the potential to increase Red River's 25 million nameplate capacity by 10% to 20% and believe we could achieve this on a run rate basis during the third quarter of 2025. And fourth, we will continue entering into new GAC contracts ahead of startup and ramp, further informing our strategy related to a potential Phase 2.

正如所討論的，我們已經發現將 Red River 的 2500 萬額定產能提高 10% 至 20% 的潛力，並相信我們可以在 2025 年第三季度按運行率實現這一目標。第四，我們將在啟動和提升之前繼續簽訂新的 GAC 合同，進一步告知我們與潛在的第二階段相關的策略。

With that in mind, I will hand over to Stacia to discuss the latest financials in greater detail.

考慮到這一點，我將交給 Stacia 更詳細地討論最新的財務狀況。

Thanks, Bob, and thanks, everybody, for joining us today. We delivered strong financial results during the third quarter with revenue growing 17% year-over-year to $34.8 million. This is driven largely by enhanced contract terms, including 15% growth in average selling price. This is our 6th consecutive quarter of double digit year-over-year percentage growth in ASP and positive changes in product mix as well as a 5% increase in consumable volumes. Our gross margin in the quarter was approximately 39%, up approximately 800 basis points versus the 31% margins reported in the prior year period.

謝謝鮑勃，也謝謝大家今天的參與。我們在第三季取得了強勁的財務業績，營收年增 17%，達到 3,480 萬美元。這主要得益於合約條款的加強，包括平均售價成長 15%。這是我們連續第六個季度實現平均售價年增長兩位數、產品結構發生積極變化以及消耗品數量增加 5%。本季我們的毛利率約為 39%，比去年同期的 31% 上升了約 800 個基點。

We generated positive adjusted EBITDA of approximately $5.1 million compared to an adjusted EBITDA of $800,000 in the prior year period. Net income was $1.6 million, a significant improvement versus a net loss of $2.2 million in Q3 of 2023. As I mentioned earlier, average selling price for the quarter improved 15% year-over-year. We continue to eliminate negative margin contracts as we focused on profitability over volumes. And as previously guided on our last call, we have reduced loss-making contracts to roughly 2% of volume versus roughly 24% in 2022 and approximately 13% in 2023.

我們產生的調整後息稅折舊攤提前利潤約為 510 萬美元，而去年同期的調整後息稅折舊攤提前利潤為 80 萬美元。淨收入為 160 萬美元，與 2023 年第三季的 220 萬美元淨虧損相比有顯著改善。正如我之前提到的，本季的平均售價年增了 15%。由於我們更注重獲利能力而非銷量，我們繼續取消負利潤合約。正如我們上次電話會議中所指出的那樣，我們已將虧損合約佔交易量的約 2% 減少到 2022 年的約 24% 和 2023 年的約 13%。

We have now amended the sole remaining loss-making contract, which will be a net contributor in 2025. Selling, general and administrative expenses totaled $8.1 million. This reflects a reduction of approximately 3% versus the prior year period, driven by a reduction in payroll and benefit expenses as well as legal and professional fees. Third quarter results included approximately $400,000 of non-recurring items related to severance and fees associated with our financing efforts. Research and development costs for the third quarter increased 23% compared to the prior year period.

我們現在已經修改了唯一剩下的虧損合同，該合約將在 2025 年成為淨貢獻者。銷售、一般及行政開支總計 810 萬美元。與去年同期相比，這減少了約 3%，原因是工資和福利費用以及法律和專業費用的減少。第三季的業績包括與我們的融資努力相關的遣散費和費用約 40 萬美元的非經常性項目。第三季的研發成本比去年同期增加了23%。

As in Q3 of 2024, year-over-year increases in R&D were primarily driven by conducting further product qualification testing with potential GAC adopters. Overall, and on an annualized basis, our performance demonstrates our ability to operate our PAC business in a way that contributes positively to our economic position while further enabling us to pursue and execute on high-growth and high-margin opportunities within our expanding GAC business.

與 2024 年第三季一樣，研發費用的年增率主要得益於與潛在的 GAC 採用者進行進一步的產品資格測試。總體而言，按年度計算，我們的業績證明了我們有能力以對我們經濟狀況做出積極貢獻的方式運營我們的 PAC 業務，同時進一步使我們能夠在不斷擴大的 GAC 業務中追求和執行高增長、高利潤的機會。

We remain extremely confident that the PAC business will be cash generative in fiscal year 2024 and beyond, and with it, we will have a much more secure foundational business on which we can add the more rewarding GAC opportunity. And turning to the balance sheet, we ended the third quarter with total cash of $57.4 million, of which approximately $49 million was unrestricted. This change versus last quarter was driven by the net proceeds from our recent equity raise totaling approximately $26.7 million and partially offset by the expenditures at Red River consuming approximately $16.5 million.

我們仍然非常有信心，PAC 業務將在 2024 財年及以後產生現金，並且有了它，我們將擁有更加安全的基礎業務，在此基礎上我們可以增加更有價值的 GAC 機會。從資產負債表來看，截止第三季末，我們的現金總額為 5,740 萬美元，其中約 4,900 萬美元為無限制現金。與上一季相比，這項變更是由於我們近期股權融資的淨收益總計約 2,670 萬美元，但被 Red River 約 1,650 萬美元的支出部分抵銷。

Today, we are reiterating our 2024 CapEx forecast of $60 million to $70 million with $20 million to $25 million expected to be spent in the fourth quarter of this year. We continue to expect to fund our CapEx needs via our existing cash, cash generation, ongoing cost reduction initiatives and the potential prepayment on GAC contracts.

今天，我們重申 2024 年資本支出預測，即 6,000 萬至 7,000 萬美元，預計今年第四季將支出 2,000 萬至 2,500 萬美元。我們繼續期望透過現有現金、現金創造、持續的成本削減措施和 GAC 合約的潛在預付款來滿足我們的資本支出需求。

On this final note, I would repeat Bob's comments that post our equity raise, we are now in a materially stronger position with regards to our discussions and possible lenders and anticipate completing some sort of ABL facility in the near term, which will potentially enable us to remove both the expensive CFG term loan, which we took out as part of the historical Arq Ltd transaction, as well as to smooth the working capital profile of the business as we move from first production to first sale. With that, I will turn things back to Bob.

最後，我想重複鮑勃在我們股權融資後發表的評論，我們現在在談判和潛在貸款方面處於更有利的地位，並預計在短期內完成某種 ABL 設施，這將使我們能夠消除昂貴的 CFG 定期貸款（作為歷史 Arq Ltd 交易的一部分），並在我們從首次生產轉向首次銷售時理順業務的營運資本狀況。說完這些，我就把事情交還給鮑伯。

Thanks, Stacia. Before my closing remarks and opening it up for Q&A, I'd like to add one more important component to the financial discussion. As our business continues to transform and attract even more investor attention, we remain keen on providing better and more comprehensive information and disclosures to the market, enabling investors to more thoughtfully forecast and track our business and its performance.

謝謝，斯塔西婭。在我發表結束語並開始問答之前，我想為財務討論補充一個更重要的內容。隨著我們的業務不斷轉型並吸引更多投資者的關注，我們始終熱衷於向市場提供更好、更全面的資訊和揭露，使投資者能夠更加周到地預測和追蹤我們的業務及其表現。

With this in mind, we anticipate providing financial guidance sometime next year following the completion, ramp-up of GAC production, achieving full run rate production and final determination of what amount over 25 million pounds we can produce. More information to come on timing and scope of that guidance, but we preliminarily expect that to coincide with our first quarter 2025 earnings cycle in May.

考慮到這一點，我們預計將在明年某個時候提供財務指導，屆時 GAC 產量將會增加，達到滿載生產，並且最終確定我們可以生產多少超過 2500 萬磅的產量。有關該指引的時間和範圍的更多資訊即將公佈，但我們初步預計它將與我們 5 月的 2025 年第一季收益週期相吻合。

In conclusion, this was a really strong quarter, which has left me very pleased but far, far from satisfied. I'm genuinely excited by the progress we have made, but I also believe that we are just beginning to realize the potential of this opportunity. We plan on maintaining our focus as it relates to the PAC business. By doing so, we believe we can demonstrate that this is now a self-sustaining business. And of course, we need to be laser focused on execution as regards to GAC expansion at Red River.

總而言之，這是一個非常強勁的季度，這讓我非常高興，但還遠遠不夠滿意。我對於我們所取得的進展感到由衷的興奮，但我也相信我們才剛開始意識到這個機會的潛力。我們計劃繼續關注與 PAC 業務相關的事務。透過這樣做，我們相信我們可以證明這現在是一個可以自給自足的企業。當然，我們需要全神貫注於 GAC 在 Red River 擴張的執行。

If we can continue with the progress we have already achieved, then I think 2025 will be a game changing year for us. I'm obviously biased, but I think we have a great team, a great story, which combined represent a fantastic opportunity. I'm very encouraged by the increasing level of investor interest we continue to receive as well as the engagements from equity research analysts who are also starting to see the potential. As we continue to execute and as the story continues to gain a wider audience, then I think the rest of 2024 and through 2025 and beyond will be a period of material value creation for all our stakeholders. With that, I will turn the call back over to our operator to move us to Q&A.

如果我們能夠繼續保持已經取得的進步，那麼我認為 2025 年對我們來說將是一個轉捩點。我顯然有偏見，但我認為我們擁有一支優秀的團隊，一個偉大的故事，這一切結合起來代表著一個絕佳的機會。令我感到非常鼓舞的是，投資人對我們的興趣不斷增加，股票研究分析師也開始看到我們的潛力。隨著我們繼續執行並且故事繼續獲得更廣泛的受眾，我認為 2024 年剩餘時間以及 2025 年及以後將成為我們所有利益相關者創造物質價值的時期。說完這些，我將把電話轉回給我們的接線生，讓我們進入問答環節。

(Operator Instructions)

（操作員指令）

Gerry Sweeney, Roth Capital.

羅斯資本 (Roth Capital) 的格里·斯威​​尼 (Gerry Sweeney)。

Just wanted to start, you provided a lot of details in your prepared remarks, so I only have a few questions. But starting on the GAC side and commissioning at Red River, you gave us a little bit of a time line. But just from a risk standpoint, I just want to understand maybe some of the major hurdles that remain in terms of getting Red River up and commissioning and into production.

首先，您在準備好的發言中提供了很多細節，所以我只有幾個問題。但是從 GAC 方面開始並在 Red River 進行調試，您給了我們一點時間表。但僅從風險的角度來看，我只是想了解 Red River 專案在啟動、調試和投入生產過程中仍然存在的一些主要障礙。

Sure, Gerry. A couple of things. As I mentioned, we basically got 100% of the structural steel and cement completed. We've got 95% or more of the equipment installed. What we're basically doing now is final electrical and piping of that.

當然，格里。有幾件事。正如我所提到的，我們基本上已經完成了 100% 的結構鋼和水泥。我們已經安裝了95％或更多的設備。我們現在主要在做最後的電氣和管道工作。

But the great thing about this expansion is we're able to conduct modular commissioning. And what I mean by that is we don't have to wait until everything is in place, everything is wired, all the piping is done to flip a switch and every machine and every bit of machinery starts whirring and turning, if you will. We're able to commission things on a modular basis.

但這次擴建最棒的地方是我們能夠進行模組化調試。我的意思是，我們不必等到一切就緒，所有線路都連接好，所有管道都安裝好，才打開開關，每台機器和每一台機械裝置都開始旋轉和轉動。我們能夠以模組化的方式委託設計事物。

And for instance, we've already done the feeder into the furnace and a couple other items. And that's important because it allows us to derisk and troubleshoot items that as if -- or as opposed, I should say, to doing everything all at once.

例如，我們已經完成了爐內進料器和其他一些項目的完成。這很重要，因為它使我們能夠降低風險並排除故障，就像——或者我應該說，相反，我們可以一次完成所有事情。

So stuff always goes wrong when you commission a new plant, but I'm comfortable that we're on top of it and that we're going to be able to shorten that commissioning and debugging cycle.

因此，當您調試新工廠時，總是會出點問題，但我很高興我們能夠掌控一切，並能夠縮短調試和調試週期。

Got you. I just want to confirm, and I apologize if I'm wrong on this, but did you say 25 million pounds of production, I'm assuming by the end of Q1? I just want to clarify that. Or run rate. Run rate.

明白了。我只是想確認一下，如果我錯了，我深感抱歉，但您是否說過產量是 2500 萬磅，我假設到第一季末？我只是想澄清這一點。或運行率。運行率。

Yes. So the ideal is to be at full run rate production at the end of Q1. That's our goal on that. And it relies on when we start up and the debugging process. But that's our goal, and that's what we're working towards.

是的。因此，理想的情況是在第一季末實現滿載生產。這就是我們的目標。它依賴我們的啟動時間和調試過程。但這是我們的目標，也是我們努力的方向。

And again, and then potentially the detuning and production enhancements sometime in the third quarter impacting potentially the fourth quarter?

那麼，第三季某個時候的失諧和生產增強可能會對第四季產生影響嗎？

Sure. No, and I think that obviously we've got to reach full run rate production on the $25 million and then get the final determination in terms of how we've optimized production, what we've done to be able to determine whether that amount is 10%, 15% or 20%. Our goal is to be able to get that extra in the third quarter, getting some impact in the third quarter, hopefully, and the fourth quarter. And we're comfortable we're going to achieve some type of optimization and enhancement over the $25 million. Otherwise, I wouldn't feel comfortable mentioning it.

當然。不，我認為我們顯然必須在 2500 萬美元上達到滿載生產，然後就如何優化生產做出最終決定，我們已經做了什麼才能確定這個數字是 10%、15% 還是 20%。我們的目標是能夠在第三季獲得額外的收入，並希望在第三季和第四季產生一些影響。我們很高興能夠透過這 2500 萬美元實現某種類型的優化和增強。否則，我不會感到舒服地提及它。

And on that front, I understand detuning, the product comes out at as an extremely high quality. How does detuning take place? Is it less time in the kiln so you can put more product through? Just want to get a little bit more detail on that front as well.

從這方面來說，我理解失諧會導致產品的品質極高。失諧是如何發生的？是不是在窯內燒製的時間更短，所以可以生產出更多的產品？只是想在這方面獲得更詳細的資訊。

Yes, that's essentially it. It's less time in the kiln. Just change some of the formulas in terms of what we do and literally what buttons we push when and what levers we pull. It's a complex process, but one we're very comfortable with the science and technology behind.

是的，本質上就是這樣。在窯中的時間較短。只是就我們所做的事情、何時按什麼按鈕、拉什麼槓桿等方面改變一些公式。這是一個複雜的過程，但我們對其背後的科學和技術感到非常滿意。

Got it. And then final question, just switching gears to the PAC side. Natural gas was actually very low this summer as compared to last year. Wondering if there were any headwinds on that front. Results were great, but just wondering if there were -- if you had any headwinds due to natural gas pricing.

知道了。最後一個問題，轉到 PAC 方面。與去年相比，今年夏天的天然氣價格實際上非常低。想知道這方面是否有任何阻力。結果很棒，但只是想知道是否存在——由於天然氣定價而遇到任何阻力。

And then secondarily, political landscape is changing, and curious if you had any thoughts on what that could do to the PAC business as well.

其次，政治格局正在發生變化，我想知道您是否認為這會對 PAC 業務產生什麼影響。

Sure. So as it relates to nat gas pricing, we've been facing nat gas headwinds for the power generation segment for quite some time, for well over a year. So this was nothing new for us. What you're really seeing in terms of our results from the PAC business is both optimizing the PG&I segment as well as the expansion into adjacent markets, which reduces our reliance or previous overall emphasis on the PG&I market. So while nat gas prices were down, they've been down for a long time.

當然。因此，就天然氣定價而言，我們在發電領域已經面臨天然氣逆風很長一段時間了，已經有一年多了。所以這對我們來說不是什麼新鮮事。就我們的 PAC 業務表現而言，您真正看到的是，我們既優化了 PG&I 部門，又向鄰近市場擴張，這減少了我們對 PG&I 市場的依賴或先前的整體重視。因此，雖然天然氣價格下降，但已經下降了很長一段時間。

It wasn't any additional headwinds that we faced versus prior quarters. As it relates to the election and uncertainty, we're glad the election is over and glad the uncertainty is eliminated. The market and investors really don't like uncertainty. And that if you look at the legislation that was passed by Congress authorizing the EPA to promulgate PFAS regulations, had very strong bipartisan support. And if you look at it, PFAS remediation is just one of many undersupplied and growing markets that we've designated for our granular activated carbon product.

與前幾季相比，我們並沒有面臨任何額外的阻力。就選舉和不確定性而言，我們很高興選舉結束了，也很高興不確定性消除了。市場和投資者確實不喜歡不確定性。如果你看看國會通過的授權環保署頒布 PFAS 法規的立法，你會發現它得到了兩黨的大力支持。如果你看一下，你會發現 PFAS 修復只是我們為顆粒活性碳產品指定的眾多供應不足且不斷成長的市場之一。

We really like how we're positioned both in the PFAS-related and other uses and outlets for our products. So we're glad the uncertainty for the election is over, and it's no change, full speed ahead.

我們非常喜歡我們產品在 PFAS 相關以及其他用途和銷售管道中的定位。因此，我們很高興選舉的不確定性已經結束，選舉沒有任何變化，一切順利。

Graham Mattison, WRT.

格雷厄姆·馬蒂森，WRT。

It's Graham from Water Tower Research. Just to follow up on what Gerry said. Thank you. You gave a lot of detail in the prepared comments but also the slide deck, so thank you for that. Looking at the new GAC contracts, what were the end markets that were driving that?

我是水塔研究公司的格雷厄姆。只是想跟進一下 Gerry 所說的話。謝謝。您在準備好的評論和幻燈片中給出了很多細節，對此表示感謝。看看新的 GAC 合同，推動這項合約的終端市場是什麼？

And have you seen any changes from the beginning of the year to now?

從今年年初到現在，您看到什麼改變了嗎？

Thanks, Graham. Really a variety of markets. One of the things we've tried to do is to get a spread of, if you will, industry risk or have a broad portfolio. We could contract the entire 25 million pounds right now in the water market. But we think it's the best course for shareholders, both in terms of the industry portfolio as well as pricing is to get a variety of industries.

謝謝，格雷厄姆。真的是各種各樣的市場。我們嘗試做的一件事就是分散行業風險或擁有廣泛的投資組合。我們現在就可以在水市場上承包全部 2500 萬英鎊。但我們認為，對股東來說，最好的做法是，無論從產業組合或定價方面來說，都選擇多元化的產業。

So we've got respirating equipment. We've got municipal water. We've got equipment manufacturers. We've got RNG people we're talking to. It's really across a wide variety of industries with whom we're speaking with.

所以我們有呼吸設備。我們有市政供水。我們有設備製造商。我們正在與 RNG 人員交談。我們交流的對象確實涵蓋了各行各業。

Got it. Great. And then a question on the RNG markets, because you talked about that earlier. Are you seeing any increase in demand there? And the reason I ask that is they're listening to some of the earnings calls from the other players out there in the market in terms of the people manufacturing the engines or providing natural gas fuel, they were very, very bullish as of late.

知道了。偉大的。然後是關於 RNG 市場的問題，因為您之前談到了這個問題。您是否發現那裡的需求增加？我之所以問這個問題，是因為他們正在聽取市場上其他參與者的收益電話會議，這些參與者是製造引擎或提供天然氣燃料的人，他們最近都非常非常樂觀。

Yes. No, we're seeing extremely strong demand in the RNG sector. The demand could consume the entire production line if we wanted it to, it's so strong. But we're really looking, again, as I mentioned with Gerry, to diversify the end markets and not rely on any particular one market, but RNG demand and the pace of advanced contract negotiations is extremely strong and favorable.

是的。不，我們看到 RNG 領域的需求極為強勁。如果我們願意的話，需求可能會消耗整條生產線，它的需求非常強勁。但正如我和 Gerry 所提到的那樣，我們確實在尋求終端市場的多樣化，而不是依賴任何一個特定的市場，但 RNG 需求和高級合約談判的步伐非常強勁且有利。

Yes. That new 15-liter engine from Cummins is pretty much the game changer everyone's been waiting for there. Broadly speaking, as you look at the length of the contracts, how do they compare between PAC and GAC? Is there a difference of who's driving that and who the customers are and what are they looking for in terms of timing? And I realize you can't get into specifics on contracts, so broadly speaking.

是的。康明斯的這款新型 15 升引擎正是每個人都在等待的改變遊戲規則的產品。廣義上講，從合約期限來看，PAC 和 GAC 之間有何區別？推動這一進程的人、客戶是誰以及他們在時間方面尋求什麼，是否存在差異？我知道你無法詳細談論合同，所以從廣義上講。

Right. So on the granular, again, we're looking for a mix. We've got some one year, but we're looking for multiyear in general. The reason we've done the one-year contract is we think pricing is going to improve. And again, along with getting a portfolio of industries, we also want to stagger the maturities of our contracts on the granular side.

正確的。因此，從細節上看，我們再次尋找一種混合。我們有一些一年期的，但我們總體上尋求多年期的。我們簽訂一年期合約的原因是我們認為價格將會改善。再次，除了獲得行業組合之外，我們還希望在細節方面錯開合約的到期日。

So it's anywhere from one year, excuse me, to four or five years. On the PAC side, again, it's a variety. Those are generally longer term, three, four, five years as it relates to that. And what drives and circling back and digressing on the granular side, we're the ones really driving that mix of maturity. The granular customers really want as long a contract as possible.

所以，對不起，這個時間可能是從一年到四、五年不等。從 PAC 方面來看，情況又多元。這些通常是較長的期限，與此相關的是三、四、五年。而推動我們回顧和討論細節問題的是，我們才是真正推動這種成熟度組合的人。精細化客戶確實希望合約期限盡可能長。

Got it. Great. And then one final question sort of on the housekeeping side. You added additional GAC contracts this quarter but didn't put out a press release. Is the right way to think about that going forward is that we'll hear updates on the incremental contracts at the quarters as opposed to looking for press releases?

知道了。偉大的。最後還有一個關於內部管理的問題。您本季度增加了額外的 GAC 合同，但尚未發布新聞稿。正確的思考方式是不是這樣的：我們會聽到季度增量合約的最新消息，而不是等待新聞稿？

I think that's right. One, we wanted to just to let people know that, A, we've got a viable product at the beginning. B, the market knows that we have a viable contract. We're very pleased at where we are with the executed contracts on that. But we think what's the best way to do that is prudent is to do them in batches or mostly at quarter end.

我認為那是對的。第一，我們只是想讓人知道，A，我們一開始就已經有一個可行的產品。B，市場知道我們有一個可行的合約。我們對所執行的合約的現狀感到非常滿意。但我們認為，最好的謹慎做法是分批進行或主要在季度末進行。

Or if we get the plant up and running and fully commissioned prior to doing any quarter end earnings call, we would put out an update on the contracts as well. But really, really like where we're positioned on the contracting side.

或者，如果我們在進行任何季度末收益電話會議之前使工廠啟動並全面投入運營，我們也會發布合約的更新資訊。但實際上，我們確實處於承包商的位置。

Yes. No, that makes sense. And it's now more normal course of business and just standard as opposed to like you're just starting a line. So that makes sense to do it that way. All right.

是的。不，這很有道理。現在這已經成為了更正常的業務流程和標準，而不是像你剛開始一條生產線那樣。因此這樣做是有意義的。好的。

Great. Well, congratulations on the great results.

偉大的。好吧，恭喜你取得如此好的成績。

There are no questions at this time. I will turn the call back over to Robert Rasmus for closing remarks.

目前還沒有問題。我將把電話轉回給羅伯特‧拉斯穆斯 (Robert Rasmus)，請他作最後發言。

Thanks, Demi. And thank you, everyone, for joining us this morning. While we are very pleased with our results, we are far, far from satisfied. I look forward to providing our next update. Thank you all for your interest, your time and your attention.

謝謝，黛米。感謝大家今天早上加入我們。雖然我們對結果非常滿意，但我們還遠遠沒有滿足。我期待著提供我們的下一次更新。感謝大家的關心、時間和關注。