(MVST) 2023 Q4 法說會逐字稿

Thank you for standing by, and welcome to Microvast fourth quarter 2023 and full-year conference call. (Operator Instructions) And the conference is being recorded. (Operator Instructions) I would now like to hand the call over to Microvast Investor Relations. Please go ahead.

感謝您的支持，歡迎參加微宏 2023 年第四季和全年電話會議。 （操作員指示）會議正在錄製中。 （操作員說明）我現在想將電話轉交給微宏投資者關係部。請繼續。

Thank you, operator, and thank you, everyone, for joining us today. With me on today's call are Mr. Yang Wu, Founder, Chairman, and CEO, and Mr. Craig Webster, Chief Financial Officer. Mr. Wu will start off with a high-level overview of the quarter before providing some operational updates. Mr. Webster will then discuss our financials in more detail before handing it back to Mr. Wu to address our first quarter 2024 outlook and opening the call up to questions.

謝謝運營商，也謝謝大家今天加入我們。與我一起參加今天電話會議的有創始人、董事長兼首席執行官楊武先生和首席財務官克雷格·韋伯斯特先生。吳先生將首先對本季度進行總體概述，然後提供一些營運方面的最新情況。然後，韋伯斯特先生將更詳細地討論我們的財務狀況，然後將其交還給吳先生，以闡述我們對 2024 年第一季的展望並開始提問。

Ahead of this call, Microvast issued its fourth-quarter and full-year 2023 earnings press release, which can be found on the Investor Relations section of the company's website, ir.microvast.com. In addition, we have posted a slide presentation to the website to accompany management's prepared remarks.

在此次電話會議之前，Microvast 發布了 2023 年第四季和全年收益新聞稿，您可以在該公司網站 ir.microvast.com 的投資者關係部分找到新聞稿。此外，我們還在網站上發布了幻燈片演示文稿，以配合管理層準備好的評論。

As a reminder, please note that statements made in this call are forward-looking and based on current expectations and assumptions. They should not be relied upon as representative of views for subsequent dates and we undertake no obligation to revise or publicly release the results of any revision to these forward-looking statements due to new information or future events.

提醒一下，請注意，本次電話會議中的陳述具有前瞻性，並且基於當前的預期和假設。不應將它們視為後續日期的觀點代表，我們不承擔因新資訊或未來事件而修改或公開發布這些前瞻性陳述的任何修改結果的義務。

Actual results may differ materially from expectations due to a variety of risks and uncertainties. For more information on material risks and other important factors that could affect our financial results, please refer to our filings with the SEC.

由於各種風險和不確定性，實際結果可能與預期有重大差異。有關重大風險和可能影響我們財務業績的其他重要因素的更多信息，請參閱我們向 SEC 提交的文件。

We may also discuss non-GAAP financial measures during this call. These measures should be considered in addition to and not as a substitute for or in isolation from GAAP results. These non-GAAP measures have been reconciled to their most comparable GAAP metrics in the tables included at the end of our press release.

我們也可能在本次電話會議中討論非公認會計準則財務指標。這些措施應作為公認會計準則結果的補充而非替代或孤立考慮。這些非公認會計準則指標已與我們新聞稿末尾的表格中最具可比性的公認會計準則指標進行了調整。

After the conclusion of this call, a webcast replay will be available on the Investor Relations section of Microvast website. And now, I will turn the call over to Mr. Wu for opening remarks.

本次電話會議結束後，Microvast 網站的投資者關係部分將提供網路直播重播。現在請吳先生致開幕詞。

Thank you, and thank you all for joining us today. Please turn to slide 3 as I cover a few highlights from our full-year 2023 financial performance before turning to our key achievements in Q4. I'm pleased to say that we booked a record revenue of $306.6 million for the full year 2023. This was driven primarily by substantial year-over-year revenue increases in our EMEA business, which grew revenue 434% compared to 2022.

謝謝大家，也謝謝大家今天加入我們。請參閱投影片 3，我將介紹我們 2023 年全年財務表現的一些亮點，然後再介紹我們第四季的主要成就。我很高興地說，我們 2023 年全年營收達到創紀錄的 3.066 億美元。這主要是由於我們的 EMEA 業務收入同比大幅增長，與 2022 年相比，收入增長了 434%。

We also saw double-digit percentage growth in both APAC and China. The overall business saw a top-line increase of 50% year over year, and that we delivered this strong revenue performance at a high gross margin, which increased to 90% from a 4% in the prior year. I'm also very pleased with the results from our Huzhou 3.1 expansion that was completed during the year.

我們在亞太地區和中國也看到了兩位數的百分比成長。整體業務收入年增 50%，我們以高毛利率實現了強勁的營收表現，毛利率從前一年的 4% 增至 90%。我對今年完成的湖州 3.1 擴建工程的成果也感到非常滿意。

Starting in the second half of 2023, we were delivering qualified products to our diverse customer base from our latest fully automated production line. This demonstrates that we can successfully industrialize our technology at scale.

從 2023 年下半年開始，我們透過最新的全自動生產線向多元化的客戶群提供合格的產品。這顯示我們可以成功地將我們的技術大規模產業化。

Please join me on slide 5 to go over our successes in the final quarter of that year. Along with some challenges that we also faced, we saw our highest revenue quarter of $104.6 million, jumping 61% year over year, and that we achieved an adjusted gross margin of 23.5%.

請和我一起觀看投影片 5，回顧我們當年最後一個季度的成功。除了我們也面臨的一些挑戰外，我們還實現了最高季度營收 1.046 億美元，年增 61%，調整後毛利率達到 23.5%。

We saw major successes in our commercial vehicle business, expanding relationships with OEMs worldwide. We are working with new manufacturers on testing our products for additional contracts in 2025, and we have begun to gain meaningful traction in specialized and differentiated vehicle settlements.

我們的商用車業務取得了重大成功，擴大了與全球原始設備製造商的關係。我們正在與新製造商合作，測試我們的產品，以爭取 2025 年的額外合同，並且我們已經開始在專業化和差異化的車輛解決方案中獲得有意義的牽引力。

However, the year also brought challenges. We saw a challenging financing environment, a reduced energy storage contract through mutual resolution with a customer, and an overall negative market sentiment in both the sector and for rapid growth companies like ours.

然而，這一年也帶來了挑戰。我們看到了充滿挑戰的融資環境，透過與客戶的共同解決方案減少了儲能合同，以及該行業和像我們這樣的快速增長公司的整體市場情緒不佳。

Turning to slide 6, we have made some exciting business developments in our commercial vehicle business. We've received many new orders and it delivered to customer a variety of products showing the strength of our technology portfolio. This included leading OEMs such as eVersum, Evoy, LGMG, and Yongxing New Energy.

轉向幻燈片 6，我們在商用車業務方面取得了一些令人興奮的業務發展。我們收到了許多新訂單，並向客戶交付了各種產品，展示了我們技術組合的實力。其中包括領先的 OEM 廠商，如 eVersum、Evoy、LGMG 和永興新能源。

Please join me on slide 7 to go over some updates around our APAC operations. As I mentioned in the opening, our Huzhou Phase 3.1 automated line has been successfully brought online. It's producing qualified 53-point amp power cell. And as the products are being delivered to customers, we do not expect significant additional CapEx associated with Phase 3.1 going into 2024. The APAC business generated revenue of $219 million in full year 2023, increasing 18% year over year.

請跟我一起觀看投影片 7，以了解有關我們亞太地區營運的一些最新情況。正如我在開場白中提到的，我們湖州3.1期自動化生產線已成功上線。它正在生產合格的 53 點安培電池。隨著產品交付給客戶，我們預計 2024 年不會出現與 3.1 階段相關的大量額外資本支出。亞太地區業務在 2023 年全年實現收入 2.19 億美元，年增 18%。

We anticipate that the APAC business will generate original profitability as operations and now mature, self-funding, and achieving sustainable gross margins. We also expect a further revenue expansion year over year.

我們預計，隨著業務的發展，亞太區業務將產生最初的獲利能力，現在已經成熟，可以自籌資金，並實現可持續的毛利率。我們也預計收入將同比進一步增長。

Our expectations are driven by two major components. First is a market in China where we bring in stable revenue from our established base of e-Bus OEMs, but we are also seeing promising expansion opportunities in the electrified in mining and earth moving segments where our high-power products offer performance advantages. The second major contributors is India market, where the e-Bus segment is growing rapidly and is supported by government incentives with some of our major partners expect it to benefit.

我們的期望由兩個主要組成部分驅動。首先是中國市場，我們從已建立的電動巴士原始設備製造商基地獲得了穩定的收入，但我們也看到了採礦和土方運輸領域電氣化領域的廣闊前景，我們的大功率產品在這些領域具有性能優勢。第二個主要貢獻者是印度市場，該市場的電動巴士市場正在快速成長，並得到政府激勵措施的支持，我們的一些主要合作夥伴預計它將受益。

Turning to slide 8, we will go over some updates around our EMEA operations. We saw electrifying growth in 2023 with original revenues of more than 434% year over year. We have localized production of our VDA modules and anticipated customer demand will lead to increasing volumes. We also expect additional revenue growth in the region of 2024.

轉向幻燈片 8，我們將回顧有關 EMEA 運營的一些更新。 2023 年，我們實現了驚人的成長，原始收入年增超過 434%。我們已經實現了 VDA 模組的在地化生產，預計客戶需求將導致產量增加。我們也預計 2024 年該地區的收入將進一步成長。

Having narrowed our losses in 2023, we also have our sights set on original breakeven for the coming year in addition to a developing pipeline of the new and exciting commercial vehicle customers. We see several catalysts for continuing growth in 2024. One of those is higher package volume from e-Bus and LCV platforms. As we are seeing continued expansion and demand in this segment, we are also seeing segments demand and are working with the leading refuse truck OEM with the demo expected at IAA 2024.

在 2023 年縮小虧損之後，除了不斷開發新的、令人興奮的商用車客戶外，我們還著眼於來年實現最初的損益平衡。我們看到了 2024 年持續成長的幾個催化劑。其中之一是電動巴士和輕型商用車平台的包裹量增加。隨著我們看到該細分市場的持續擴張和需求，我們也看到了細分市場的需求，並正在與領先的垃圾車 OEM 合作，預計在 2024 年 IAA 上進行演示。

Finally, join me on slide 9 to go over some updates for our US operations. The challenging financing environment means that, for the time being, we have got Clarksville as far as we can on our own balance sheet. Because of this, regional growth and profitability in APAC and EMEA will be the key drivers for our business in 2024 until this third-party financing needed to complete the Phase 1A facility has been secured.

最後，請跟我一起觀看投影片 9，以了解我們美國業務的一些最新情況。充滿挑戰的融資環境意味著，目前我們已經在自己的​​資產負債表上盡可能地控制了克拉克斯維爾。因此，在完成 1A 階段融資所需的第三方融資獲得之前，亞太地區和歐洲、中東和非洲地區的區域成長和獲利能力將成為我們 2024 年業務的關鍵驅動力。

Accordingly, we are not currently anticipating material production volumes or revenues from our Clarksville facility. We are also not expecting IRA 45X credits in 2024.

因此，我們目前沒有預期克拉克斯維爾工廠的材料產量或收入。我們預計 2024 年也不會出現 IRA 45X 積分。

Once we are able to secure financing, our current estimate is that an additional six to eight months is needed to bring Clarksville Phase 1A to SOP. With a majority of this time allocated to equipment installation, in the interim, we will be slowing CapEx and OpEx spend in the US.

一旦我們能夠獲得融資，我們目前的估計是還需要六到八個月的時間才能讓克拉克斯維爾 1A 期進入 SOP。由於大部分時間分配給設備安裝，在此期間，我們將減緩在美國的資本支出和營運支出。

This slowdown will allow us to better manage liquidity, evaluating financing opportunities, and the build-out of our US operations for substantial success in 2025. Once we reach SOP, we anticipate generating IRA credits and delivering qualified products to commercial vehicle and energy storage customer in the US.

這種放緩將使我們能夠更好地管理流動性、評估融資機會以及擴大我們的美國業務，以便在2025 年取得實質成功。一旦達到SOP，我們預計將產生IRA 信用並向商用車和儲能客戶提供合格的產品在美國。

The lack of funding in the US has contributed to our assessment that there is currently a substantial doubt that we can continue as a going concern without raising additional capital. And we are engaged in a financing and customer activities to address this urgency.

由於美國缺乏資金，我們的評估是，目前人們對我們在不籌集額外資本的情況下能否繼續持續經營存在很大疑問。我們正在進行融資和客戶活動來解決這個緊迫問題。

However, we remain bullish on the US and the opportunity it presents to our business. The energy storage market continues to be an area with exponential growth and there is significant customer interest in our Clarksville capacity, given the advantages in secured battery supply that meets domestic contents requirement.

然而，我們仍然看好美國及其為我們的業務帶來的機會。儲能市場仍然是一個指數級增長的領域，鑑於滿足國內含量要求的安全電池供應優勢，客戶對我們的克拉克斯維爾產能非常感興趣。

On the commercial vehicle side, OEMs are increasingly electrifying their vehicle line-ups. We see demand for our various technology across a wide array of segments and have numerous projects underway that we anticipate will create a demand for Clarksville production in 2025.

在商用車方面，原始設備製造商越來越多地對其車輛陣容進行電氣化。我們看到了各個領域對我們的各種技術的需求，並且有許多項目正在進行中，我們預計這些項目將在 2025 年為克拉克斯維爾的生產創造需求。

So 2023 was not without challenges. It was also full of successes, and we are proud of our achievements in the last year. We are looking forward to executing on the many opportunities ahead of us in 2024. I will now turn the call over to Craig Webster to discuss financials in more detail.

因此，2023 年並非沒有挑戰。這也是充滿成功的一年，我們為去年的成就感到自豪。我們期待在 2024 年抓住我們面前的許多機會。我現在將把電話轉給克雷格·韋伯斯特 (Craig Webster)，更詳細地討論財務問題。

Thank you, Mr. Wu. I will spend the next few minutes discussing our full-year and Q4 2023 financial results. Please turn to slide 11, and I will summarize the main line items from our Q4 and full year P&L.

謝謝吳先生。我將在接下來的幾分鐘內討論我們的全年和 2023 年第四季的財務表現。請翻到投影片 11，我將總結第四季和全年損益表的主要項目。

We recorded revenue of $104.6 million in Q4 2023 compared to $64.8 million in Q4 2022, a 61% year-over-year increase that Mr. Wu mentioned earlier, a record revenue quarter for the company. On a full-year basis, despite facing several challenges, we achieved revenue of $306.6 million, up 50% from $204.5 million in the prior 12-month period.

我們在 2023 年第四季的營收為 1.046 億美元，而 2022 年第四季為 6,480 萬美元，年成長 61%，正如吳先生之前提到的，這是該公司創紀錄的季度收入。從全年來看，儘管面臨多項挑戰，我們仍實現了 3.066 億美元的收入，比前 12 個月期間的 2.045 億美元增長了 50%。

We posted gross profit of $23 million in Q4 2023 compared to gross profit of $2.2 million in Q4 2022, a 934% improvement. On a full-year basis, our gross profit was $57.2 million compared to a gross profit of $9.1 million for the prior year, a 531% improvement. Our gross margin for full year 2023 was 18.7%, whereas in the prior year, it was 4.4%, a 14.3-percentage-point improvement.

我們公佈 2023 年第四季的毛利為 2,300 萬美元，而 2022 年第四季的毛利為 220 萬美元，成長了 934%。全年毛利為 5,720 萬美元，與上一年的毛利 910 萬美元相比，成長了 531%。 2023 年全年毛利率為 18.7%，而前一年為 4.4%，提高了 14.3 個百分點。

Operating expenses were$46 million in Q4 2023 compared to $37.3 million in Q4 2022. The largest contributor to the increase in operating expenses was the increased headcount for both our Colorado and Tennessee facilities as we build out our US operations.

2023 年第四季的營運費用為4,600 萬美元，而2022 年第四季的營運費用為3,730 萬美元。營運費用增加的最大因素是隨著我們擴大美國業務，科羅拉多州和田納西州工廠的員工人數增加。

Full-year 2023 operating expenses were $165.9 million compared to $170.7 million in the prior year, a 3% decrease. GAAP net loss was $24.6 million in Q4 2023 compared to net loss of $33.7 million in Q4 2022. GAAP net loss for the full year 2023 was $106.4 million compared to a net loss of $158.2 million in the full year 2022. These results show that as we scale our business and industrialize our technologies, we are narrowing our losses.

2023 年全年營運費用為 1.659 億美元，較上年的 1.707 億美元下降 3%。 2023 年第四季的GAAP 淨虧損為2,460 萬美元，而2022 年第四季的淨虧損為3,370 萬美元。2023 年全年的GAAP 淨虧損為1.064 億美元，而2022 年全年的淨虧損為1.582 億美元。這些結果顯示，我們擴大業務規模，實現技術產業化，我們正在縮小損失。

We believe a more appropriate representation of our financial performance, especially as it relates to cash operating expenses and operating loss, is as illustrated in slide 12. After adjusting for non-cash settled, share-based compensation expense in our cost of sales, adjusted gross profit was $24.6 million in Q4 2023 compared to adjusted gross profit of $4.2 million in Q4 2022. This translates into an adjusted gross margin of 23.5% in Q4 2023 compared to 6.4% in Q4 2022, a 17.1-percentage-points improvement.

我們認為投影片 12 更能恰當地反映我們的財務業績，尤其是與現金營運費用和營運虧損相關的情況。在對銷售成本中的非現金結算、基於股份的補償費用進行調整後， 2023 年第第四季的毛利為2,460 萬美元，而2022 年第四季調整後毛利為420 萬美元。這意味著2023 年第四季調整後毛利率為23.5%，而2022 年第四季為6.4% ，提高了17.1 個百分點。

We're pleased to see another quarter of gross margin improvement as our business benefits from higher sales volumes, increased utilization, and better raw materials pricing on these higher volumes. By making the same adjustments for full year 2023, our adjusted gross profit was $63.3 million compared to an adjusted gross profit of $16.8 million in the full year 2022. This translates into an adjusted gross margin of 20.7% in full year 2023 compared to 8.2% in full year 2022, a 12.5-percentage-point improvement.

我們很高興看到毛利率又一個季度有所改善，因為我們的業務受益於銷量的增加、利用率的提高以及在銷量增加的情況下更好的原材料定價。透過對2023 年全年進行相同的調整，我們的調整後毛利為6,330 萬美元，而2022 年全年調整後毛利為1,680 萬美元。這意味著2023 年全年調整後毛利率為20.7% ，而2022 年全年調整後毛利率為8.2% 2022 年全年，提高 12.5 個百分點。

After adjusting for non-cash SBC expense in SG&A and R&D, our adjusted operating expense in Q4 2023 was $34.3 million compared to $21.4 million in Q4 2022. When making the same adjustment for full year 2023, our adjusted operating expense was $107.1 million compared to $96.5 million for full year 2022. This was an 11% year-over-year increase being a much slower rate of increase than our top line growth of 50%.

在SG&A 和研發中的非現金SBC 費用進行調整後，我們2023 年第四季調整後的營運費用為3,430 萬美元，而2022 年第四季為2,140 萬美元。對2023 年全年進行相同調整時，我們調整後的營運費用為1.071 億美元，而2022 年第四季調整後的營運費用為1.071 億美元。2022 年全年營收為9,650 萬美元。年成長11%，增幅遠低於我們50%的營收成長速度。

After making those non-cash SBC expense adjustments and accounting for changes in fair value of our warrant liability, adjusted net loss was $11.4 million in Q4 2023 compared to $15.9 million in Q4 2022. On a full-year basis, adjusted net loss was $41.6 million in full year 2023 compared to $77.3 million in full year 2022. Reconciliations of these non-GAAP metrics to the most comparable GAAP metrics are included in the tables at the end of our earnings press release.

在進行非現金SBC 費用調整併考慮我們的認股權證負債公允價值變動後，2023 年第四季調整後淨虧損為1,140 萬美元，而2022 年第四季調整後淨虧損為1,590 萬美元。全年來看，調整後淨虧損為41.6 美元2023 年全年為100 萬美元，而2022 年全年為7,730 萬美元。這些非GAAP 指標與最具可比性的GAAP 指標的調節結果包含在我們收益新聞稿末尾的表格中。

Slide 13 show the geographic breakdown of our revenue for the 12 months ended December 31, 2023, compared to the prior year period. As you can see, our three largest markets were Asia-Pacific, China, and India, growing 19%, 18%, and 434%, respectively year over year.

投影片 13 顯示了截至 2023 年 12 月 31 日的 12 個月與去年同期相比我們收入的地理分佈。如您所見，我們最大的三個市場是亞太地區、中國和印度，年比分別成長 19%、18% 和 434%。

Revenue in our US region for full year 2023 post a slight decline of 14% compared to full year 2022, with revenue losses in our EFS division being the biggest disappointment. However, as Mr. Wu mentioned, despite some near-term financing challenges to address in the US, we expect our US business to make meaningful contributions in the future as we are well positioned to capitalize on the domestic content opportunity in the US once our Clarksville facility reaches SOP. I will now turn it back over to Mr. Wu to provide some visibility in the outlook for the coming year.

與 2022 年全年相比，我們美國地區 2023 年全年的收入略有下降 14%，其中 EFS 部門的收入損失是最令人失望的。然而，正如吳先生所提到的，儘管美國近期需要解決一些融資挑戰，但我們預計我們的美國業務未來將做出有意義的貢獻，因為一旦我們的業務成功，我們就能夠充分利用美國國內內容的機會。克拉克斯維爾工廠達到 SOP。現在我將把它轉回給吳先生，以提供一些對來年前景的展望。

Thanks, Craig. Please turn to slide 15. We expect Q1 2024 revenue to increase 40% to 60% year over year. This first Q1 revenue guidance in the range of $65 million to $75 million. We also aim to maintain a gross margin target of between 20% to 25%.

謝謝，克雷格。請參閱投影片 15。我們預計 2024 年第一季營收將年增 40% 至 60%。第一季營收指引範圍為 6,500 萬美元至 7,500 萬美元。我們也致力於將毛利率目標維持在 20% 至 25% 之間。

From our Asia-Pacific operations, we expect all three Huzhou phases to deliver qualified products to customers throughout 2024. We will also be targeting increasing utilization, continuing progress on R&D for new products, and targeting original profitability,

從我們的亞太業務來看，我們預計湖州三期工程將在2024 年為客戶提供合格的產品。我們還將以提高利用率為目標，不斷推進新產品的研發，並以原有的盈利能力為目標，

In 2024, we also expect our EMEA operations to continue meaningful revenue growth with new customer wins for specialty commercial vehicles. We are targeting original breakeven for the year.

到 2024 年，我們也預計我們的 EMEA 業務將繼續實現有意義的收入成長，贏得特種商用車的新客戶。我們的目標是今年最初的損益平衡。

Turning to US, we plan a reduction in OpEx and CapEx spending for the year until we can secure funding for Clarksville. Once the facility is online, we will be targeting rapid growth and are aiming to secure capacity commitments from both energy storage and commercial vehicle customers to achieve a high utilization levels.

談到美國，我們計劃減少今年的營運支出和資本支出，直到我們能夠為克拉克斯維爾獲得資金。該設施上線後，我們將瞄準快速成長，並爭取能源儲存和商用車客戶的產能承諾，以實現高利用率水準。

For 2024, the company's core focus is going to be maintaining revenue growth and our margin profile as catalysts to improve our liquidity and providing us with a route to breakeven. With that, I would now like to open the call up to your questions. Operator, please provide instructions for the Q&A session.

2024 年，公司的核心重點將是維持收入成長和利潤率狀況，作為改善流動性的催化劑，並為我們提供盈虧平衡的途徑。現在我想開始電話會議，回答你們的問題。接線員，請提供問答環節的說明。

(Operator Instructions) Colin Rusch, Oppenheimer.

（操作說明）Colin Rusch，Oppenheimer。

Thanks so much, you guys. Can you talk a little bit about the overall quantum of capital that you're going to need to secure to get Clarksville back on track, and then also, yeah, how we should think about the moderation in OpEx in the US and how that impacts the overall company OpEx run rate?

非常感謝你們。您能否談談讓克拉克斯維爾重回正軌所需的整體資本規模，然後，是的，我們應該如何考慮美國營運支出的適度調整及其影響公司整體營運支出運作率？

Hi, Colin, hope you're well. So as we indicated last time, we've got about halfway through Clarksville on CapEx. So to get it done, it's about $150 million. That includes some aging AP. So the majority of what's left to spend, it relates to equipment and installation, and to do that, we need to raise money, as we've always said. We got this as far as we could on balance sheet.

嗨，科林，希望你一切都好。正如我們上次指出的那樣，克拉克斯維爾的資本支出已經完成了大約一半。因此，完成這項工作大約需要 1.5 億美元。其中包括一些老化的 AP。因此，剩下的大部分資金都與設備和安裝有關，為此，我們需要籌集資金，正如我們一直所說的那樣。我們在資產負債表上盡可能地做到了這一點。

So we've been working for quite a period now, and you're probably sick of hearing us talk about it on the financing. And it wasn't done at the end of the year. We're still making progress on that. No guarantees that it's done but we've been spending a lot of time with one lender in particular.

所以我們已經工作了相當長一段時間了，你可能已經厭倦了聽我們談論融資問題。而且到了年底還沒完成。我們仍在這方面取得進展。不能保證它會完成，但我們已經在一家貸款機構上花費了大量時間。

The estimated timing to get Clarksville the SOP would be six to eight months from when we closed our financing. And I just mentioned, the majority of that time is to do installation. We'd already started some installations during Q4.

預計克拉克斯維爾獲得 SOP 的時間將是我們完成融資後的六到八個月。我剛才提到，大部分時間都是在安裝。我們已經在第四季度開始了一些安裝。

OpEx-wise, currently, we're managing that because we've not closed the financing. So really, as we mentioned on the call, there's a regional focus on what we do, which is -- China's got really good and decent growth rate. It's profitable itself, financing. It's got access to its own CapEx and OpEx credit lines.

在營運支出方面，目前我們正在管理這一點，因為我們尚未完成融資。所以，實際上，正如我們在電話會議中提到的，我們所做的事情有一個區域重點，那就是——中國的成長率非常好且不錯。它本身就是有利可圖的，融資。它可以獲得自己的資本支出和營運支出信貸額度。

Europe, as you just saw, had a really good year, the start of, like, electrification for a lot of its customers. I would expect Europe to have another really solid year in '24. The operating base in Europe is much smaller because it's just a module line, doesn't need any financing, got a really good customer base. Does that answer your question?

正如您剛才所看到的，歐洲度過了非常美好的一年，對於許多客戶來說，這是電氣化的開始。我預計歐洲在 24 年將迎來另一個非常堅實的一年。歐洲的營運基地要小得多，因為它只是一條模組生產線，不需要任何融資，擁有非常好的客戶群。這是否回答你的問題？

Yeah, it does. And then in terms of the customer growth in Europe and China, can you talk a little bit about -- you talked a little bit about the (inaudible) revenue for the first quarter, but can you talk about the order activity and how that's trending versus where you're at a year ago in terms of backlog and how those orders are going to go?

是的，確實如此。然後就歐洲和中國的客戶成長而言，您能否談談第一季的（聽不清楚）收入，但您能否談談訂單活動及其趨勢與一年前相比，您的積壓情況以及這些訂單將如何進行？

Okay, the backlog impact we've had has come from energy storage. So we've reached a mutual resolution with the customer to reduce the volumes on their contract. That's impacted backlog. So backlog now is predominantly commercial vehicle. You know our business pretty well, so Q4 is always seasonally the strongest quarter, particularly in China, where they defer a lot of their orders until the end of the year.

好吧，我們所受到的積壓影響來自於能源儲存。因此，我們與客戶達成了共同解決方案，減少了合約上的數量。這影響了積壓。因此，現在的積壓訂單主要是商用車。您非常了解我們的業務，因此第四季度始終是季節性最強勁的季度，尤其是在中國，他們將大量訂單推遲到年底。

Q1, still going to be a really solid quarter for us. And as you know, it's always the slowest one because of impacts of Chinese New Year, so we lose a lot of revenue, and turned out to be February this year.

第一季對我們來說仍然是一個非常穩定的季度。如你所知，由於農曆新年的影響，它總是最慢的，所以我們損失了很多收入，結果是今年的二月。

The encouraging part on Europe is the number of platforms that we're on. So it's e-Bus, it's light commercial vehicles, and it's commercial truck specialty. So we'd expect Europe to have big contribution to overall revenue growth in the year. But just looking at where we're at on the financing side, which is a key focus, we can give you a much more informed decision on the year and what things look like in a couple of months' time.

歐洲令人鼓舞的部分是我們所在的平台數量。所以它是電動巴士，它是輕型商用車，它是商用卡車專業。因此，我們預計歐洲將對今年整體營收成長做出巨大貢獻。但只要看看我們在融資方面的進展（這是一個關鍵焦點），我們就可以為您提供有關今年以及幾個月後情況的更明智的決定。

Okay, thanks so much, guys. I'll hop back in the queue and I'll follow up offline. Thanks.

好的，非常感謝，夥計們。我會跳回隊列並離線跟進。謝謝。

(Operator Instructions) Sean Milligan, Janney Montgomery Scott.

（操作員說明）Sean Milligan、Janney Montgomery Scott。

Hey, Craig, can you walk us through expectations for 2024 on operating cash flow? You highlight that you're trying to run Asia and Europe breakeven or above breakeven. Just trying to get the expectations on pop cash flow for this year, and then just updated on CapEx figures, if you're not spending anything for CapEx in the US. We're spending on that 48-amp power line in China and that's still fully funded via the facility, correct?

嘿，克雷格，您能向我們介紹一下 2024 年營運現金流的預期嗎？您強調，您正在努力使亞洲和歐洲達到損益兩平或高於損益平衡。只是想了解今年流行現金流的預期，然後更新資本支出數據（如果您沒有在美國進行任何資本支出）。我們在中國的 48 安培電線上投入了資金，而且仍然透過該設施獲得全額資助，對嗎？

So any CapEx spend in the US is going to be completely contingent on raising financing to do that. So if we are successful to close, then we'd expect to spend around $150 million in the US. That's Clarksville Phase 1A debt-funded.

因此，美國的任何資本支出都將完全取決於為此籌集資金。因此，如果我們成功關閉，那麼我們預計將在美國花費約 1.5 億美元。這是Clarksville 1A 期債務融資項目。

CapEx elsewhere would be very, very minimal. China, if we need to do the Phase 3.2 expansion, and that's a smaller amount of dollars, like we estimate around $30 million to do that. We would do it, provided we've got financing in place. And as you know, we've got the CapEx -- it's a line we've not used yet in China from the local banks. So the biggest project and it's -- say, it's highly contingent on that financing is doing Clarksville Phase 1A.

其他地方的資本支出將非常非常少。中國，如果我們需要進行 3.2 階段的擴展，那麼需要較少的資金，我們估計大約需要 3000 萬美元。只要融資到位，我們就會這麼做。如您所知，我們已經獲得了資本支出——這是我們在中國尚未使用的來自當地銀行的額度。因此，最大的項目——比如說，它高度依賴融資，是克拉克斯維爾 1A 期項目。

Operating-wise, we're self-funded in China, self-funded in Germany. Germany's got a very strong position with its customers in terms of backlog, increasing sales. And it's not an expensive operating base to run. We've got to be quite careful in the US. And depending on where we get to in terms of that total financing solution for the US, we're going to have to be quite prudent in how we manage US operations going forward.

從營運角度來說，我們在中國是自籌資金，在德國也是自籌資金。德國在積壓訂單和銷售成長方面在客戶中佔據著非常有利的地位。而且它的營運成本並不昂貴。我們在美國必須非常小心。根據我們在美國整體融資解決方案方面的進展，我們必須非常謹慎地管理未來的美國業務。

Okay, and so right now, as it stands that Phase 3.2 in China, is that going forward or not?

好的，那麼目前中國的 3.2 階段是否會繼續進行？

Currently, we'll put 3.2 on hold. We still got plenty of decent growth opportunities in China without that.

目前，我們將暫停 3.2。即使沒有這些，我們在中國仍然有很多不錯的成長機會。

Okay, thank you.

好的謝謝。

Derek Soderberg, Cantor Fitzgerald.

德里克·索德伯格，康托·菲茨杰拉德。

Yeah, hey, guys. Thanks for taking the questions. On gross margin guidance, 20%, 25%, a really good number there, curious what's driving that. Can you talk a bit about Huzhou utilization today and kind of where that's going to move throughout the year? And maybe if you could just kind of frame gross margin directionally from there, how we should sort of move throughout the year would be helpful. Thanks.

是的，嘿，夥計們。感謝您提出問題。就毛利率指導而言，20%、25%，這是一個非常好的數字，很好奇是什麼推動了這個數字。您能否談談今天湖州的利用率以及全年的變化？也許如果你能從那裡直接確定毛利率，那麼我們全年的走勢將會有所幫助。謝謝。

Derek, you're right. Really -- a really solid year for us in terms of gross margin business fundamentals. We know the news on liquidity in the US is not great, but we feel we've got solutions for that. And the business fundamentals lend into it, right? So we've just grown revenue 50%. We really expanded the gross margin line and we really managed our OpEx.

德瑞克，你是對的。確實，就毛利率業務基本面而言，這對我們來說是非常堅實的一年。我們知道美國流動性的消息並不好，但我們認為我們已經找到了解決方案。商業基本面也有助於它，對吧？所以我們的收入剛剛成長了 50%。我們確實擴大了毛利率，並且真正管理了我們的營運支出。

And remember, we're a global business, so compare our OpEx to other people that are trying to launch a sort of new technology battery business, right. There's a global operation. We've managed that pretty well.

請記住，我們是一家全球性企業，因此請將我們的營運支出與其他試圖推出新技術電池業務的人進行比較，對吧。有一個全球性的行動。我們已經做得很好了。

Gross margin expansion really came down to higher sales, always helps. So higher sales, better pricing on our raw materials, yields being really good across the three phases, Phase 1, 2, and 3. And then raw material prices have helped as well. So that's been the real contribution there.

毛利率的擴張實際上取決於銷售額的增加，這總是有幫助的。因此，更高的銷售量、更好的原料定價、第一、第二和第三三個階段的產量都非常好。原物料價格也有幫助。這才是真正的貢獻。

As we look out this year, I think we're going to see good utilization on all lines, Phase 1, 2, and 3. Phase 3, as you know, is [53.5] because they're going to be delivering to all regions: China, Asia-Pacific, Europe, and the US. So we'd expect this year to be able to hold gross margin at 20% to 25%, and then it will just come down to, if we're really accelerating Clarksville again, then there will be some push-up on OpEx. But if we don't do that, we will be managing OpEx. You're not far from where it's currently at.

當我們今年展望時，我認為我們將看到所有線路（第1 階段、第2 階段和第3 階段）都有良好的利用率。正如您所知，第3 階段是[53.5]，因為它們將向所有地區：中國、亞太地區、歐洲和美國。因此，我們預計今年能夠將毛利率保持在 20% 到 25%，然後歸結為，如果我們真的再次加速克拉克斯維爾的發展，那麼營運支出將會上升。但如果我們不這樣做，我們將管理營運支出。你離它目前所在的位置並不遠。

Got it, that's helpful. And then just related to sort of a previous question, just wanted to clarify some things with the OpEx management here, is there sort of a revenue run rate you'd need to get to reach profitability? Could you share that with us?

明白了，很有幫助。然後與先前的問題相關，只是想與營運支出管理層澄清一些事情，是否需要某種收入運行率才能實現盈利？能與我們分享一下嗎？

And then just to clarify, it sounds like APAC is going to be profitable this year. What about EMEA and the broader business? I mean, you can kind of relate that back to the revenue run rate you need to get to from profitability. That'd be helpful. Thanks.

然後澄清一下，聽起來亞太地區今年將會獲利。歐洲、中東和非洲地區以及更廣泛的業務怎麼樣？我的意思是，你可以將其與你需要從盈利能力中獲得的收入運行率聯繫起來。那會有幫助的。謝謝。

Sure. So APAC had consistent profitability the whole year '23. We'd expect that to continue into '24. EMEA, if it can deliver the volumes that we're expecting, so a decent growth here would be very close to breakeven. The Q4 numbers are quite illustrative of what it needs to take to get close to breakeven. So probably, when we're at a sort of [150] run rate revenue per quarter, we're going to be very close to breakeven.

當然。因此，亞太地區在 2023 年全年都保持了穩定的獲利能力。我們預計這種情況會持續到 24 年。歐洲、中東和非洲地區，如果它能夠實現我們預期的銷量，那麼這裡的良好成長將非常接近盈虧平衡。第四季的數據充分說明了要達到收支平衡需要採取哪些措施。因此，當我們每季的營運率收入達到[150]時，我們可能會非常接近盈虧平衡。

Got it, really appreciate it. Thanks, guys.

明白了，真的很感激。多謝你們。

Thank you. I would now like to turn the conference back to Yang Wu for closing remarks. Sir.

謝謝。現在我想請楊武致閉幕詞。先生。

Okay, thank you all for joining us today. Look forward updating you our progress again soon for the first quarter of 2024, along with additional operational updates and guidance for the rest of the year. Thank you.

好的，謝謝大家今天加入我們。期待盡快再次向您更新 2024 年第一季的進展情況，以及今年剩餘時間的其他營運更新和指導。謝謝。

This concludes today's conference call. Thank you for participating. You may now disconnect.

今天的電話會議到此結束。感謝您的參與。您現在可以斷開連線。