Consolidated Water Co Ltd (CWCO) 2024 Q2 法說會逐字稿

Good morning, everyone. Thank you for joining us today to discuss the results for Consolidated Water's second quarter of 2024.

大家早安。感謝您今天加入我們討論 Consolidated Water 2024 年第二季的業績。

Hosting the call today is the Chief Executive Officer of Consolidated Water Company, Rick McTaggart; and the company's Chief Financial Officer, David Sasnett. Following their remarks, we will open the call to questions. (Operator Instructions)

今天主持電話會議的是聯合水務公司執行長 Rick McTaggart；以及公司財務長 David Sasnett。在他們發表講話後，我們將開始提問。（操作員說明）

Before we conclude today's call, I'll provide some important cautions regarding the forward-looking statements made by management during the call. I'd like to remind everyone that today's call is being recorded and will be made available for telecom replay for the instructions in yesterday's press release, which is available in the Investor Relations section of the company's website.

在我們結束今天的電話會議之前，我將就管理層在電話會議期間發表的前瞻性聲明提供一些重要的警告。我想提醒大家，今天的電話會議正在錄音，並將根據昨天新聞稿中的說明進行電信重播，該新聞稿可在公司網站的投資者關係部分找到。

Now, I'd like to turn the floor over to Consolidated Water Company's CEO, Rick McTaggart. Sir, please go ahead.

現在，我想請聯合水務公司執行長 Rick McTaggart 發言。先生，請繼續。

Thank you, Jamie, and good morning, everyone. Thank you for joining us today to discuss our financial and operating results for the second quarter of 2024. As you saw in our release issued yesterday, we reported revenue of $32.5 million for the quarter.

謝謝你，傑米，大家早安。感謝您今天加入我們討論我們 2024 年第二季的財務和營運表現。正如您在昨天發布的新聞稿中看到的，我們報告的本季收入為 3250 萬美元。

Our retail segment revenue benefited from a 10% increase in the volume of water sold to customers in our exclusive utility service area on Grand Cayman, resulting from continued resident population growth and lower rainfall amounts during the quarter. This increased our retail revenue by 8% to $8.2 million for the quarter.

我們的零售部門收入受益於大開曼島專屬公用事業服務區向客戶出售的水量增加了 10%，這是由於本季居民人口持續成長和降雨量減少所致。這使我們本季的零售收入增加了 8%，達到 820 萬美元。

Our bulk and manufacturing segments both had relatively consistent revenues compared with last year. Our services segment was down by about half due to the anticipated reduction in construction-related revenue as the Grand Cayman and Arizona design-build projects were completed earlier this year.

與去年相比，我們的散貨和製造部門的收入都相對穩定。由於大開曼島和亞利桑那州設計建造項目今年稍早完成，預計建築相關收入將減少，我們的服務部門下降了約一半。

Our construction of the $81 million water treatment plant in Goodyear, Arizona, was substantially completed in the first quarter. We are currently finishing up minor site works and punch list items and expect final completion of this design build contract by the end of the third quarter.

我們在亞利桑那州固特異耗資 8,100 萬美元建造的水處理廠已於第一季基本完工。我們目前正在完成小型現場工程和遺留問題清單項目，預計該設計建造合約將在第三季末最終完成。

Also during the second quarter, we completed the construction and commissioning of the new 2.6 million gallon per day Red Gate desalination plant in Grand Cayman for the Water Authority of the Cayman Islands. In May, we began operating this facility under a 10 year operations and maintenance agreement, which will fall -- revenues from that will fall within our bulk segment.

同樣在第二季度，我們為開曼群島水務局完成了位於大開曼島每天 260 萬加侖的新紅門海水淡化廠的建設和調試。五月份，我們開始根據為期 10 年的營運和維護協議運營該設施，該協議將會下降——來自該協議的收入將屬於我們的大宗業務部門。

Meanwhile, development activities continue to ramp up on the $147 million project to design, construct, operate and maintain a seawater desalination plant for the Board of Water Supply in Honolulu, Hawaii, which was announced in June last year. We are currently in the piloting, design and permitting stage, which we expect will lead into the full construction stage late next year.

同時，去年 6 月宣布的耗資 1.47 億美元的項目的開發活動繼續加強，該項目旨在為夏威夷檀香山供水委員會設計、建造、運營和維護一座海水淡化廠。我們目前正處於試點、設計和許可階段，預計明年底進入全面施工階段。

Such efforts now in development have included ongoing site investigations, design, procurement, installation and operation of the piloting systems for the seawater desalination and post-treatment systems, permitting activities and public outreach initiatives. The installation and commissioning of the pilot plant was completed on schedule and is now gathering essential operational data that will inform the final design and permitting of the full scale project.

目前正在進行的此類工作包括正在進行的海水淡化和後處理系統試點系統的現場調查、設計、採購、安裝和運行、許可活動和公共宣傳活動。試點工廠的安裝和調試已按計劃完成，目前正在收集重要的營運數據，這些數據將為最終設計和全規模項目的許可提供資訊。

The completion of the Hawaii project encompasses the current two year development phase, which started last year, followed by a two year construction phase. And then after construction and commissioning is completed, we will operate the plant under a 20 year operations and maintenance contract which also has two five-year extensions, which are exercisable at the client's discretion.

夏威夷計畫的完成包括去年開始的當前兩年開發階段，以及隨後的兩年建設階段。然後，在建設和調試完成後，我們將根據一份為期 20 年的營運和維護合約來運營該工廠，該合約還包括兩次為期五年的延期，可由客戶自行決定是否行使。

The reduction in construction-related revenue in the second quarter was partially offset by an increase in the revenue generated from O&M contracts by both PERC and REC in Colorado.

第二季建築相關收入的減少被科羅拉多州 PERC 和 REC 營運與維護合約收入的增加部分抵消。

We acquired REC last October to provide a new channel for growth in water-stressed regions of Colorado and we've been pleased with REC's integration into our company, and the new opportunities we see developing in the Colorado market.

我們去年 10 月收購了 REC，為科羅拉多州缺水地區的成長提供了新的管道，我們對 REC 融入我們公司以及我們在科羅拉多州市場看到的新機會感到高興。

Similar to our acquisition of PERC, we anticipate that our greater financial and management resources will enable REC to pursue larger projects that will accelerate their growth over time. But during the quarter, we also settled our dispute with Mexico that arose as a result of the cancellation of the agreement for our desalination project in Playas de Rosarito, Mexico, that was canceled in 2020.

與我們收購 PERC 類似，我們預計我們更大的財務和管理資源將使 REC 能夠開展更大的項目，從而隨著時間的推移加速其成長。但在本季度，我們也解決了與墨西哥的爭端，該爭端是由於墨西哥羅薩裡託海灘海水淡化項目協議被取消而引起的，該項目於 2020 年被取消。

We sold the project land and project documentation to the Mexican government as part of the settlement for net proceeds of approximately USD32 million plus MXN20 million.

作為和解協議的一部分，我們將專案土地和專案文件出售給墨西哥政府，淨收益約為 3,200 萬美元加 2,000 萬墨西哥比索。

Now before getting more into recent developments and our outlook for the rest of the year, I'd like to turn the call over to our CFO, David Sasnett, who will take us through the financial details for the quarter.

現在，在詳細介紹最近的事態發展和我們對今年剩餘時間的展望之前，我想將電話轉給我們的財務長 David Sasnett，他將向我們介紹本季的財務細節。

Thanks, Rick, and good morning, everyone. In the second quarter of this year, revenues totaled $32.5 million, which is a decrease of 27% from the $44.2 million in revenue we reported for the same quarter of last year.

謝謝瑞克，大家早安。今年第二季度，營收總計 3,250 萬美元，比去年同期的 4,420 萬美元下降了 27%。

This overall decrease in revenue was almost entirely due to a $16.5 million decrease in construction revenue attributable to PERC's project for Liberty Utilities in Arizona and the completion of the Red Gate project in Grand Cayman, as Rick has mentioned earlier.

正如 Rick 之前提到的，收入總體下降幾乎完全是由於 PERC 亞利桑那州 Liberty Utilities 項目和大開曼島 Red Gate 項目竣工導致建築收入減少 1650 萬美元。

Retail revenue increased primarily due to a 10% increase in the volume of water sold. The volume of water sold for the retail segment was up due to a 5.5% increase in the number of customer accounts in our license area as compared to the second quarter of last year. The retail revenue was also up due to significantly less rainfall on Grand Cayman in April and May of this year as compared to the same months of last year.

零售收入的成長主要是因為售水量增加了 10%。與去年第二季相比，我們許可區域的客戶帳戶數量增加了 5.5%，導致零售部門的售水量增加。由於今年四月和五月大開曼島的降雨量與去年同期相比明顯減少，零售收入也有所增加。

Our marginal decrease in bulk segment revenue was attributable to lower energy costs, which decreased the energy pass-through component of our Bahamas operations bulk rates. And the decrease in services revenue, as we mentioned earlier, was attributable to a decrease in construction revenue.

我們的大宗業務收入小幅下降是由於能源成本下降，這減少了我們巴哈馬業務大宗費率的能源轉嫁部分。正如我們之前提到的，服務收入的下降是由於建築收入的下降。

It's important to note that revenue generated under our operations and maintenance contracts totaled $7.1 million in the second quarter of 2024, an increase of 75% from the second quarter of last year. Revenue from REC, which we acquired in October of last year, constituted $1.9 million of the increase with the remainder of the increase related to new PERC contracts.

值得注意的是，2024 年第二季我們的營運和維護合約產生的收入總計 710 萬美元，比去年第二季成長 75%。我們去年 10 月收購的 REC 收入佔增量的 190 萬美元，其餘增量則與新 PERC 合約相關。

Our manufacturing segment was consistent with last year, with revenue at $3.9 million as compared to $4.1 million in the second quarter of '23. Our gross profit for the second quarter of this year was $11.6 million or 36% of total revenue, which was down from the $15.5 million or 35% of total revenue in the second quarter of last year due to the overall decrease in revenue.

我們的製造部門與去年持平，營收為 390 萬美元，而 2023 年第二季的營收為 410 萬美元。我們今年第二季的毛利為 1,160 萬美元，佔總營收的 36%，低於去年第二季的 1,550 萬美元，佔總營收的 35%，原因是營收整體下降。

Net income from continuing operations attributable to our shareholders for the second quarter of this year was $4.2 million or $0.26 per diluted share compared to net income of $7.5 million or $0.47 per diluted share in the second quarter of '23.

今年第二季歸屬於股東的持續經營淨利為 420 萬美元，即稀釋後每股收益 0.26 美元，而 2023 年第二季淨利為 750 萬美元，即稀釋後每股收益 0.47 美元。

We reported income from discontinued operations this quarter of $11.6 million. This resulted from the $12.1 million gain that we recorded on the sale of the project land and the project documentation in connection with our settlement on the arbitration with the Mexico government.

我們報告本季來自已終止業務的收入為 1160 萬美元。這是由於我們在出售專案土地和與墨西哥政府達成的仲裁和解相關的專案文件中記錄的 1,210 萬美元收益。

Including discontinued operations, our net income attributable to Consolidated Water stockholders for the second quarter of this year was $15.9 million or $0.99 per diluted share, which was up from the net income of $7.3 million or $0.46 per diluted share that we reported in the second quarter of last year.

包括終止經營業務在內，今年第二季歸屬於Consolidated Water 股東的淨利潤為1,590 萬美元，即稀釋後每股收益0.99 美元，高於我們第二季報告的淨利潤730 萬美元，即稀釋後每股收益0.46 美元去年的。

Now turning to the balance sheet. Our cash and cash equivalents totaled $96.7 million as of June 30, 2024. Our working capital was $131.2 million, and our stockholders' equity was $206.7 million. Our substantial increase in cash and working capital since December 31, 2023, reflects the USD32 million and MXN20 million that we received for the Mexico settlement.

現在轉向資產負債表。截至 2024 年 6 月 30 日，我們的現金及現金等價物總額為 9,670 萬美元。我們的營運資金為 1.312 億美元，股東權益為 2.067 億美元。自 2023 年 12 月 31 日以來，我們的現金和營運資金大幅增加，反映出我們為墨西哥和解方案收到的 3,200 萬美元和 2,000 萬墨西哥比索。

We have enhanced and continued to maintain very healthy levels of liquidity and credit capacity and an extremely solid financial condition. Our projected liquidity requirements for the balance of this year include capital expenditures for existing operations of approximately $7.1 million, which includes approximately $2.5 million to be incurred for our new West Bay plant and the addition of additional capacity there and approximately $3.9 million to be incurred for other projects.

我們增強並繼續保持非常健康的流動性和信貸能力水平以及極其穩健的財務狀況。我們預計今年剩餘時間的流動性需求包括約710 萬美元的現有營運資本支出，其中包括為我們的新西灣工廠和增加額外產能而產生的約250 萬美元，以及為新西灣工廠增加約390 萬美元的資本支出。

We paid approximately $1.6 million in dividends in July '24, and our liquidity requirements may also include future quarterly dividends if such dividends are declared by our Board. This completes our financial summary for the quarter.

我們在 2024 年 7 月支付了大約 160 萬美元的股息，如果我們的董事會宣布了此類股息，我們的流動性要求可能還包括未來的季度股息。我們本季的財務摘要到此結束。

Now, I'd like to turn the call back over to Rick.

現在，我想把電話轉回給瑞克。

Thank you, David. We believe our second quarter results were fairly positive despite the variability in service segment revenues and earnings, caused by the timing of our large design-build projects in Arizona and Hawaii.

謝謝你，大衛。我們相信，儘管由於我們在亞利桑那州和夏威夷的大型設計建造項目的時間表導致服務部門收入和收益存在差異，但我們第二季度的業績相當樂觀。

As mentioned earlier, the Liberty project in Arizona was completed ahead of schedule in the first quarter of this year and our Hawaii project is expected to start construction late next year. Revenues from our Retail segment and services O&M business increased meaningfully this past quarter and have helped to offset the reduced design-build revenues.

如前所述，亞利桑那州的Liberty計畫已於今年第一季提前竣工，夏威夷計畫預計將於明年底動工。上個季度，我們的零售部門和服務營運與維護業務的收入大幅成長，有助於抵銷設計建造收入的減少。

Our growth strategy continues to be to pursue opportunities in the most water-stressed regions of the United States and the Caribbean, offering a diversified suite of products and services, such as our superefficient desalination solutions, efficient and visually appealing wastewater treatment plants, world-class operation and maintenance expertise and cost-effective project delivery models, all of which we believe set us apart from our competitors.

我們的成長策略仍然是在美國和加勒比地區最缺水的地區尋求機會，提供多樣化的產品和服務，例如我們的超高效海水淡化解決方案、高效且具有視覺吸引力的廢水處理廠、世界各地的一流的營運和維護專業知識以及具有成本效益的專案交付模式，我們相信所有這些都使我們在競爭對手中脫穎而出。

As David mentioned, we plan to incur $2.5 million in capital expenditures this year to expand our new West Bay desalination plant to meet the growing demand for water by our customers in our exclusive utility service area in Grand Cayman.

正如 David 所提到的，我們計劃今年投入 250 萬美元的資本支出來擴大我們新的西灣海水淡化廠，以滿足我們在大開曼島專屬公用事業服務區的客戶對水不斷增長的需求。

The first phase of this new desalination plant was completed less than 12 months ago and due to increasing retail water demand, we are already doubling the production capacity of this plant, which is also the most energy-efficient plant we have ever designed and built.

這個新海水淡化廠的第一期工程不到12 個月前就完工了，由於零售用水需求不斷增加，我們已經將工廠的產能提高了一倍，這也是我們設計和建造的最節能的工廠。

In the Bahamas, we received a binding letter of acceptance notice to commence under a new 15 year agreement with the Water and Storage Corporation of the Bahamas to design, build, own, operate and finance two seawater desalination plants on Cat Island in the Bahamas.

在巴哈馬，我們收到了一份具有約束力的接受通知書，根據與巴哈馬水務和儲存公司簽訂的為期15 年的新協議開始設計、建造、擁有、運營和資助巴哈馬卡特島的兩個海水淡化廠。

This will be our first project for the WSC and the family islands of the Bahamas, which have historically been served by our competitors. We are very excited about this opportunity and hope to use this project as a steppingstone to grow our Bahamas business beyond currently Nassau.

這將是我們為 WSC 和巴哈馬群島的第一個項目，這些島嶼歷來都是由我們的競爭對手提供服務的。我們對這個機會感到非常興奮，並希望利用這個項目作為踏腳石，將我們的巴哈馬業務發展到目前拿騷以外的地區。

Our newest business in Colorado, REC contributed $1.9 million in recurring revenue last quarter and is performing as anticipated. Our business development team is working very closely with the REC team to pursue important projects in the Colorado market with the greater financial and technical resources that Consolidated Water brings to the table.

我們在科羅拉多州的最新業務 REC 上季度貢獻了 190 萬美元的經常性收入，並且表現符合預期。我們的業務開發團隊正在與 REC 團隊密切合作，利用 Consolidated Water 帶來的更多財務和技術資源在科羅拉多州市場開展重要專案。

As mentioned in previous quarters, we are seeing interesting opportunities with potential industrial water treatment and lithium mining customers that require specialized high-pressure reverse osmosis equipment to concentrate sourced water, whether to extract the minerals in that source water or significantly reduce the volume of contaminated source water.

正如前幾季所提到的，我們在潛在的工業水處理和鋰礦開採客戶中看到了有趣的機會，這些客戶需要專門的高壓逆滲透設備來濃縮源水，無論是提取源水中的礦物質還是顯著減少污染量源水。

Consequently, we formed a joint venture with two other industry experts in June of last year to pursue this business. If we successfully develop this equipment business, it could significantly increase revenues and earnings in the coming years and further diversify the products and services we offer to non-municipal markets.

因此，我們在去年六月與另外兩位行業專家成立了一家合資企業來開展這項業務。如果我們成功開發這項設備業務，它將在未來幾年顯著增加收入和收益，並進一步使我們向非城市市場提供的產品和服務多樣化。

So looking ahead for the remainder of the year and beyond, we're very excited about Consolidated Water's future. Consistent strong water sales growth in Grand Cayman, long-term recurring revenues from our Caribbean-based bulk water business, and US based O&M business, stabilized manufacturing revenues and earnings that we saw this quarter and expected revenues and earnings from our $147 million design-build, operate project in Hawaii, altogether provide a very solid base for the company in coming years.

因此，展望今年剩餘時間及以後，我們對 Consolidated Water 的未來感到非常興奮。大開曼島的水銷售持續強勁增長，我們位於加勒比海的散裝水業務以及美國的O&M 業務的長期經常性收入，穩定了我們本季度看到的製造收入和收益，以及我們1.47 億美元設計的預期收入和收益 -在夏威夷建設、營運項目，共同為公司未來幾年提供了非常堅實的基礎。

Supported by our exceptionally strong balance sheet, we will continue to invest in new long-term projects, such as the desalination plant on Cat Island and the Bahamas as well as new infrastructure to serve the growing water needs of our utility customers in the Cayman Islands that will ultimately drive future revenue growth.

在我們異常強勁的資產負債表的支持下，我們將繼續投資新的長期項目，例如卡特島和巴哈馬的海水淡化廠以及新的基礎設施，以滿足開曼群島公用事業客戶不斷增長的用水需求這最終將推動未來的營收成長。

Our strong balance sheet also gives us the ability to capitalize quickly on any potential acquisition targets that we may identify. In addition, the market for design-build project shows no signs of slowing and although we are currently in a period between two large projects, we believe that our efficient and aesthetically pleasing plant designs, our cost-efficient project delivery models and our significant industry experience will help us obtain new projects.

我們強大的資產負債表也使我們能夠快速利用我們可能發現的任何潛在收購目標。此外，設計建造專案市場沒有顯示出放緩的跡象，儘管我們目前正處於兩個大型專案之間的時期，但我們相信，我們高效且美觀的工廠設計、具有成本效益的專案交付模式以及我們重要的行業經驗將幫助我們獲得新專案。

We recently signed master design-build service agreements with two major national clients for a number of projects that they are contemplating, which we believe will positively impact revenue and earnings in future periods.

我們最近與兩個主要的國內客戶就他們正在考慮的多個項目簽署了總體設計建造服務協議，我們相信這將對未來時期的收入和收益產生積極影響。

Along with the strong tailwinds from the positive market conditions in our industry, we anticipate these factors will continue to drive our long-term growth, enhance profitability and further strengthen shareholder value.

隨著我們行業積極的市場狀況帶來的強勁推動力，我們預計這些因素將繼續推動我們的長期成長，提高獲利能力並進一步增強股東價值。

And now, Jamie, I'd like to open up the call for questions.

現在，傑米，我想開始提問。

(Operator Instructions) Gerry Sweeney, Roth Capital.

（操作員指令）Gerry Sweeney，Roth Capital。

Yeah. Good morning, Rick and David. Thanks for taking my call. Rick, I was wondering if you could give us a little bit more detail maybe on the pipeline on the projects. Obviously, water projects, there's a lot percolating out there. You had stimulus dollars coming through.

是的。早安，瑞克和大衛。感謝您接聽我的電話。里克，我想知道你能否給我們更多關於專案進度的細節。顯然，在水利工程中，有許多滲透。你已經收到刺激資金了。

Our channel check suggests that a lot of money is just starting to hit the front-end engineering companies with projects coming behind that money 12 to 18 months. So I'm just curious just to what you're seeing out there and maybe a little bit of qualitative description of the pipeline?

我們的通路調查顯示，大量資金剛開始流入前端工程公司，而這些資金的專案進度落後了 12 至 18 個月。所以我只是好奇你在那裡看到了什麼，也許還有一些管道的定性描述？

Well, I mean, hard pipeline stuff. Obviously, the Hawaii project that you're well aware of, the Cat Island project, and these are -- this is non-US, obviously. I know you're interested in the US market. Cat Island project really, I think, is, I wouldn't say a game changer, but it's definitely a catalyst to help us to expand our desalination business beyond just one island in the Bahamas.

嗯，我的意思是，硬管道的東西。顯然，你所熟知的夏威夷項目、貓島項目，這些顯然不是美國的。我知道您對美國市場有興趣。我認為，貓島計畫確實是，我不會說是一個遊戲規則改變者，但它絕對是一個催化劑，幫助我們將海水淡化業務擴展到巴哈馬的一個島嶼之外。

I mean they're obviously very impressed with what we've done for Nassau and now they've recognized what we can do for some of the other islands there in the Bahamas, and there's quite a number of islands that are having water issues at the present time. If you check the press, it's pretty much in the press daily in the Bahamas.

我的意思是，他們顯然對我們為拿騷所做的事情印象深刻，現在他們已經認識到我們可以為巴哈馬其他一些島嶼做些什麼，而且有相當多的島嶼面臨水問題現在的時間。如果你查一下媒體，你會發現巴哈馬媒體每天都會報道這樣的事情。

So we're excited about that. I mean that's a project that's going to run through this year, probably part of next year on the construction. And then, we go into a 15-year operating agreement with them.

所以我們對此感到興奮。我的意思是，這是一個將在今年進行的項目，可能是明年施工的一部分。然後，我們與他們簽訂了 15 年的營運協議。

Other things that we're seeing, I mean, there's -- I mentioned these master service agreements. I mean, there's some smaller projects that the water treatment projects, wastewater treatment projects that we're discussing with these clients, nothing that we can speak about in detail at this point. But it's possible that at least one of these will impact our revenues this year.

我的意思是，我們看到的其他事情——我提到了這些主服務協議。我的意思是，我們正在與這些客戶討論一些較小的水處理項目、廢水處理項目，目前我們無法詳細討論。但其中至少有一項可能會影響我們今年的收入。

We're seeing in certain markets, there is -- because of the lack of freshwater and identifiable new natural sources, I mean, we're seeing less pricing sensitivity, I think, to new drinking water sources. So I mean that's in very specific markets, Gerry. I think in the Texas market, you're starting to see that.

我們在某些​​市場看到，由於缺乏淡水和可識別的新自然資源，我認為我們對新飲用水源的定價敏感性較低。所以我的意思是這是在非常特定的市場，格里。我認為在德克薩斯州市場，您已經開始看到這一點。

So that's good because desalination is not a cheap alternative, but when you don't have anything else, I mean people are starting to recognize that's the way you've got to fall back on. So we are seeing less price sensitivity in some markets. That's all I got for you.

所以這很好，因為海水淡化並不是一種廉價的替代方案，但當你沒有其他東西時，我的意思是人們開始認識到這是你必須依靠的方式。因此，我們發現某些市場的價格敏感度較低。這就是我為你準備的一切。

There are a lot of projects that we're pursuing that haven't actually gone to the point where we would submit a formal proposal yet. We're in the preliminary discussions with the client to understand their needs. And when we do all those things seem to come in bunches for us. So there's a lot of conversations underway in the marketplace, but we don't have firm projects yet. Customer hasn't decided exactly what they want and when they want it.

我們正在進行的許多項目實際上還沒有達到我們提交正式提案的程度。我們正在與客戶進行初步討論，以了解他們的需求。當我們這樣做時，所有這些事情似乎都會為我們帶來一堆。因此，市場上正在進行很多對話，但我們還沒有確定的項目。客戶尚未確定他們想要什麼以及何時需要。

Is it fair to say that you're -- there's more conversations this year on potential projects than last year?

可以公平地說，今年關於潛在項目的討論比去年更多嗎？

I think, it's similar. It's definitely not abating at all, but there's a lot of clients that need help. And we're talking to people that -- for example, we're going down the road of a traditional design-build, project delivery model, and we've been able to get a lot of traction with our CDRs, customized design reports, and our not-to-exceed pricing on these design-build projects.

我想，這是相似的。它絕對沒有減弱，但有很多客戶需要幫助。我們正在與人們交談——例如，我們正在走傳統的設計構建、項目交付模式的道路，並且我們已經能夠通過我們的 CDR、定制設計報告獲得很大的吸引力，以及我們對這些設計建造項目的不超過定價。

So I mean what we try to do there is disrupt some of these traditional project delivery model projects and offer an alternative to the client. And in some cases, we have a lot of interest. So as David mentioned, we're talking to people. And I mean, we're not going to -- I mean, we don't have anything specific to disclose other than what I talked about earlier.

所以我的意思是，我們試圖做的就是顛覆一些傳統的專案交付模式項目，並為客戶提供替代方案。在某些情況下，我們有很大的興趣。正如大衛所提到的，我們正在與人們交談。我的意思是，我們不會——我的意思是，除了我之前談到的內容之外，我們沒有任何具體資訊可以透露。

But I will say this, Gerry, our sales department remains very active. They have a lot to do these days.

但我要說的是，格里，我們的銷售部門仍然非常活躍。這些天他們有很多事情要做。

Yeah. That's essentially what I was getting at. I mean it feels like there's a lot of activity out there, and we do see a lot of projects and we do know they take a little bit longer to get through the bid process. It's taking longer to get to the bid process per se but suffice to say there's a lot of activity out there.

是的。這基本上就是我的意思。我的意思是，感覺那裡有很多活動，我們確實看到了很多項目，而且我們確實知道它們需要更長的時間才能完成投標過程。進入投標流程本身需要更長的時間，但足以說明那裡有很多活動。

On the Cat Island side, what's the size of those desal plants? And are we -- should we think of that more as a stepping stone for -- are they larger, or should we look at that as a steppingstone so you're going to do a bunch of smaller plants in the outlying islands?

在貓島一側，海水淡化廠的規模有多大？我們是否應該將其視為更大的墊腳石，或者我們是否應該將其視為墊腳石，以便您將在離島上建造一些較小的工廠？

Well, they're much smaller than what we're doing in Nassau. I mean, right now, we have, what is it, like 14 million, 15 million gallons per day of production capacity just on Nassau, which is the most populated island. These plants are a lot smaller. You're talking about islands that have populations of typically less than 5,000 people. But they're more challenging because they're remote.

嗯，它們比我們在拿騷所做的小得多。我的意思是，現在，我們在人口最多的島嶼拿騷擁有每天 1400 萬、1500 萬加侖的生產能力。這些植物要小得多。您談論的是人口通常少於 5,000 人的島嶼。但它們更具挑戰性，因為它們地處偏遠。

So the price of water is typically higher than what we charge in Nassau. I think you're going to see some meaningful revenues from these projects over time, certainly from the Cat Island project.

因此，水價通常高於拿騷的收費。我認為隨著時間的推移，你會從這些項目中看到一些有意義的收入，尤其是貓島項目。

Yeah. We think we have a really good relationship with the Bahamian government. So we're hopeful that we can help them meet what's going to be a growing need for water in the Bahamas, not just in Nassau, but elsewhere in the country.

是的。我們認為我們與巴哈馬政府有著非常好的關係。因此，我們希望能夠幫助他們滿足巴哈馬日益增長的用水需求，不僅是拿騷，而且是該國其他地方。

And then one or two more quick follow-ups. REC had $1.9 million of recurring revenue in the quarter. I think you mentioned PERC, but I didn't catch it. Could you -- do you have that number? And if not, I can follow-up with you?

然後再進行一兩次快速跟進。REC 本季的經常性收入為 190 萬美元。我想你提到了PERC，但我沒聽清楚。你能——你有那個號碼嗎？如果沒有，我可以跟進你嗎？

So David mentioned --

所以大衛提到--

[75%] year over year, right.

[75%] 年同比，對。

Yeah. So what we said was revenue generated under O&M totaled $7.1 million for the second quarter, $1.9 million of that was the REC increase. And then you just have to look at last year's segment, I think that's in there --

是的。所以我們所說的是第二季 O&M 產生的收入總計 710 萬美元，其中 190 萬美元是 REC 成長。然後你只需要看看去年的部分，我想就在那裡--

Well, our O&M revenue was $14.2 million for the first half of this year, Gerry, compared [to $7 million] for the first half of last year. And if you look in the 10-Q, I don't have it in front of me, we detailed exactly how much the O&M revenue was for both the first quarter and second quarter and the increase from last year (multiple speakers)

格里，今年上半年我們的維運收入為 1,420 萬美元，而去年上半年為 700 萬美元。如果你看一下10-Q，我面前沒有它，我們詳細說明了第一季和第二季的維運收入以及與去年相比的成長情況（多個發言者）

Yeah, [1.9 million] was right that that's attractive (multiple speakers)

是的，[190 萬] 是對的，這很有吸引力（多個發言者）

So as we just mentioned, our O&M revenue for the second quarter was $7.1 million, which is up 75% in total for the same quarter of last year. And out of that, we didn't have REC for the second quarter of last year. So $1.9 million of the 75% increase is related to REC. So we could do the math really quick here, but you could do really quick on your calculator --

所以正如我們剛才提到的，我們第二季的維運收入是710萬美元，比去年同期成長了75%。其中，去年第二季我們沒有 REC。因此，75% 的成長中有 190 萬美元與 REC 有關。所以我們可以在這裡很快地完成數學計算，但你可以在計算器上快速完成數學計算--

(inaudible) But my last question. Obviously, very -- with the Mexico settlement, lots of cash on the balance sheet. And I get that this is probably a Board decision, but just curious if there's been any discussions on sort of capital allocation. Obviously, you're looking at acquisitions, but dividends, buybacks, I don't know if actually you can buy back shares. But just curious --

（聽不清楚）但我的最後一個問題。顯然，隨著墨西哥的和解，資產負債表上出現了大量現金。我知道這可能是董事會的決定，但只是好奇是否有任何關於資本分配的討論。顯然，你正在考慮收購，但股利、回購，我不知道你是否真的可以回購股票。但只是好奇--

Yeah. I mean, I could pretty much tell you that my math here would not be considered just because of the challenges with our articles (technical difficulty) obviously, looking at the dividend rate and that sort of thing. And it's really up to the Board. I mean, we're meeting again next week. So I'm sure it will be discussed.

是的。我的意思是，我幾乎可以告訴你，我在這裡的數學不會僅僅因為我們的文章的挑戰（技術難度）而被考慮，顯然，看看股息率之類的事情。這實際上取決於董事會。我的意思是，我們下週再見面。所以我確信它會被討論。

(Operator Instructions) Ladies and gentlemen, at this time, we'll conclude our question-and-answer session. I'd like to turn the floor back over to Mr. McTaggart. Sir, please go ahead.

（操作員指示）女士們、先生們，我們的問答環節到此結束。我想把發言權交還給麥克塔格特先生。先生，請繼續。

Thanks, Jamie. Just wanted to thank everybody again for joining on the call and look forward to talking with you again in November when we released our third quarter results and hope everybody has a great rest of the summer. Thanks.

謝謝，傑米。只是想再次感謝大家參加電話會議，並期待在 11 月我們發布第三季業績時再次與大家交談，並希望每個人都能度過一個愉快的夏天。謝謝。

Thank you. Before we conclude today's call, I would like to provide the company's safe harbor statement that includes cautions regarding forward-looking statements made during today's call. The information that we have provided in this conference call includes forward-looking statements within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995, including but not limited to statements regarding the company's future revenue, future plans, objectives, expectations and events, assumptions and estimates.

謝謝。在我們結束今天的電話會議之前，我想提供該公司的安全港聲明，其中包括有關今天電話會議期間做出的前瞻性陳述的警告。我們在本次電話會議中提供的資訊包括 1995 年《私人證券訴訟改革法案》含義內的前瞻性陳述，包括但不限於有關公司未來收入、未來計劃、目標、預期和事件、假設的陳述和估計。

Forward-looking statements can be identified by the use of words or phrases usually containing the words, believe, estimate, project, intend, expect, should, will or similar expression. Statements that are not historical facts are based on the company's current expectations, beliefs, assumptions, estimates, forecasts, and projections for its business and the industry and markets related to its business.

前瞻性陳述可以透過使用通常包含「相信」、「估計」、「計劃」、「打算」、「期望」、「應該」、「意願」或類似表達的單字或短語來識別。非歷史事實的陳述是基於公司目前對其業務以及與其業務相關的行業和市場的預期、信念、假設、估計、預測和預測。

Any forward-looking statements made during this conference call are not guarantees of future performance and involve certain risks, uncertainties and assumptions that are difficult to predict. Actual outcomes and results may differ materially from what is expressed in such forward-looking statements.

本次電話會議期間所做的任何前瞻性陳述均不能保證未來業績，並涉及某些難以預測的風險、不確定性和假設。實際結果和結果可能與此類前瞻性陳述中所表達的內容有重大差異。

Factors that could cause or contribute to such differences include but are not limited to tourism and weather conditions in the areas we serve, the economic, political and social conditions of each country in which we conduct or plan to conduct business, our relationships with the government entities and other customary certain regulatory matters, including resolution of the negotiations for the renewal of our retail license on Grand Cayman, our ability to successfully enter new markets and various other risks as detailed in the company's periodic report filings, the Securities and Exchange Commission.

可能導致或促成此類差異的因素包括但不限於我們服務地區的旅遊業和天氣條件、我們開展或計劃開展業務的每個國家的經濟、政治和社會條件、我們與政府的關係實體和其他慣常的某些監管事項，包括解決我們在大開曼島零售許可證續約的談判、我們成功進入新市場的能力以及公司定期報告文件中詳細說明的各種其他風險，美國證券交易委員會。

For more information about risks and uncertainties associated with the company's business, please refer to the management's discussion and analysis of financial conditions or results of operations and risk factors sections of the company's SEC filings included, including and not limited to the annual report on Form 10-K and quarterly reports from Form 10-Q.

有關與公司業務相關的風險和不確定性的更多信息，請參閱公司向 SEC 備案的管理層對財務狀況或經營業績和風險因素的討論和分析部分，包括但不限於表格 10 中的年度報告-K 和表格10-Q 中的季度報告。

Any forward-looking statements made during the conference call speaks as of today's date. The company expressly disclaims any obligations or undertaking to update or revise any forward-looking statements made during the conference call to reflect any changes in its expectations with regard there to or any changes in events, conditions or circumstances of which any forward-looking statement is based except as required by law.

電話會議期間所做的任何前瞻性聲明均截至今天。本公司明確不承擔更新或修改電話會議期間所做的任何前瞻性陳述的任何義務或承諾，以反映其預期的任何變化，或任何前瞻性陳述所涉及的事件、條件或情況的任何變化。法律要求。

I would like to remind everyone that this call will be available for replay starting later this evening. Please refer to yesterday's earnings release for dial-in replay instructions available via the company's website at www.cwco.com.

我想提醒大家，該電話會議將於今晚晚些時候開始重播。請參閱昨天的收益報告，以了解可透過公司網站 www.cwco.com 取得的撥入重播說明。

Thank you for attending today's presentation. This concludes the conference call. You may now disconnect your lines.

感謝您參加今天的演講。電話會議到此結束。現在您可以斷開線路。