North American Construction Group Ltd (NOA) 2024 Q4 法說會逐字稿

Good morning, ladies and gentlemen. Welcome to the North American Construction Group conference call regarding the fourth quarter ended December 31, 2024. (Operator Instructions) The company wishes to confirm that today's comments contain forward-looking information and that actual results could differ materially from a conclusion, forecast, or projection contained in that forward-looking information. Certain material factors or assumptions were applied in drawing conclusions or in making forecasts or projections that are reflected in the forward-looking information. Additional information about those material factors is contained in the company's most recent management's discussion and analysis, which is available on SEDAR and EDGAR as well as on the company's website at nacg.ca.

女士們、先生們，早安。歡迎參加北美建築集團截至 2024 年 12 月 31 日第四季電話會議。（操作員指示）公司希望確認今天的評論包含前瞻性信息，並且實際結果可能與該前瞻性信息中包含的結論、預測或預計存在重大差異。在得出結論或做出前瞻性資訊中反映的預測或預期時，我們應用了某些重要因素或假設。有關這些重要因素的更多資​​訊包含在公司最新的管理層討論和分析中，可在 SEDAR 和 EDGAR 以及公司網站 nacg.ca 上查閱。

I will now turn the conference call over to Joe Lambert, President and CEO.

現在，我將電話會議轉給總裁兼執行長喬·蘭伯特 (Joe Lambert)。

Thanks, Jenny. Good morning, everyone, and thanks for joining our call today. I'm going to start with our operational performance in the fourth quarter of 2024 before handing it over to Jason for the financial overview, and then I'll conclude with the operational priorities, bid pipeline, backlog expectations for 2025, and our continued path for increased growth and diversification before taking your questions.

謝謝，珍妮。大家早安，感謝您參加我們今天的電話會議。我將從 2024 年第四季的營運表現開始，然後交給 Jason 進行財務概覽，然後我將介紹營運重點、投標管道、2025 年的積壓預期以及我們繼續實現成長和多元化的道路，然後再回答您的問題。

On slide 3, our Q4 trailing 12-month total recordable rate of 0.39 was a continuation of the improvement seen in Q3, and these full-year 2024 results remain below our industry-leading target frequency of 0.5. Key safety initiatives in the fourth quarter included implementing inspection and observation programs in Australia, improving heavy equipment operator mentorship programs, developing new field level risk assessment tools, expanding the green hand training program, and launching a new safety leadership survey to increase management awareness and provide gap analysis for further areas for continued safety improvement. Rest assured that from the front line to our boardroom, we are always looking to improve our safety, and we will relentlessly pursue our principal cultural value to get everyone home safe.

在投影片 3 上，我們第四季度過去 12 個月的總可記錄率為 0.39，延續了第三季的改善趨勢，而 2024 年全年業績仍低於我們業界領先的目標頻率 0.5。第四季度的主要安全措施包括在澳洲實施檢查和觀察計劃、改進重型設備操作員指導計劃、開發新的現場風險評估工具、擴大新手培訓計劃以及啟動新的安全領導力調查，以提高管理層意識並為進一步持續改進安全提供差距分析。請放心，從前線到董事會，我們始終致力於提高我們的安全性，我們將不懈地追求我們的主要文化價值，讓每個人都安全回家。

On slide 4, we highlight some of the major operational and financial improvements in 2024. In 2024, we achieved record annual revenue, fueled by strong growth in Australia and in Q4 saw MacKellar Group achieve its highest revenue quarter ever. Our major Fargo infrastructure project achieved peak annual revenue of over $150 million and progressed past the 60% completion mark, with over 20% being completed in the second half of 2024 after rain-impacted first half. The year ended with record backlog of $3.5 billion after major contract wins, including a four-year $500 million regional contract extension in the Canadian oil sands, $100 million mining and site development project for a New South Wales copper producer, and a two-year $125 million heavy civil construction contract in the Canadian oil sands.

在投影片 4 中，我們重點介紹了 2024 年的一些重大營運和財務改進。2024 年，在澳洲強勁成長的推動下，我們實現了創紀錄的年收入，而 MacKellar Group 在第四季度實現了有史以來最高的季度收入。我們的主要法戈基礎設施項目實現了超過 1.5 億美元的年收入峰值，並且已完成超過 60%，其中在上半年受到雨水影響後，將於 2024 年下半年完成 20% 以上。在贏得多項重大合約後，今年的訂單積壓金額達到創紀錄的 35 億美元，其中包括一份為期四年、價值 5 億美元的加拿大油砂地區合約延期、一份價值 1 億美元的新南威爾斯銅生產商的採礦和場地開發項目，以及一份為期兩年、價值 1.25 億美元的加拿大油砂重型土木工程合約。

As I mentioned in my letter to shareholders, I was particularly pleased to see the win at the New South Wales copper mine as our MacKellar team not only increased our geographic and commodity diversity but also demonstrated we can compete and win unit rate contracts, which are typical in the markets where we see significant growth opportunity in other resource-rich Australian states.

正如我在致股東的信中提到的那樣，我特別高興看到在新南威爾士銅礦的勝利，因為我們的 MacKellar 團隊不僅增加了我們的地理和商品多樣性，而且還證明了我們可以競爭並贏得單位費率合同，這在其他資源豐富的澳大利亞州看到巨大增長機會的市場中很常見。

Slide 5 highlights the year one achievements of our MacKellar acquisition. Growth, diversification, high utilization driving high returns on capital and providing opportunity to place underperforming assets from Canada are just a few areas where our Australian business has exceeded expectations. We see this Australian contractor market as second to none and believe we can continue this positive trend for many years to come.

投影片 5 重點介紹了我們收購 MacKellar 的第一年所取得的成就。成長、多樣化、高利用率推動高資本回報率，並提供了配置加拿大表現不佳資產的機會，這些只是我們澳洲業務超出預期的幾個領域。我們認為澳洲承包商市場是首屈一指的，並相信我們能夠在未來許多年繼續保持這種積極的趨勢。

On slide 6, our Australian acquisition was a major driver in our 2024 growth and will continue being a primary contributor going forward. But our overall five-year growth trend and 20% annual growth rate demonstrate consistent improvements in a business culture always looking to improve. During this time frame, we won and commenced our Fargo Flood Diversion project, which was the largest infrastructure project in company history, commenced and completed our joint venture with Nuna at the Ontario Gold Mine, which was the largest project in Nuna history. We acquired DGI in Australia, ML Northern in Canada, expanded our in-house maintenance capabilities, including about $100 million worth of second life rebuilds of our largest assets and added to our technology with tools such as our equipment telematics and real-time machine health and production monitoring.

在第 6 張投影片上，我們在澳洲的收購是我們 2024 年成長的主要驅動力，並將繼續成為未來的主要貢獻者。但我們整體的五年成長趨勢和 20% 的年增長率表明，我們始終尋求改進的企業文化正在持續改善。在此期間，我們贏得並啟動了法哥防洪項目，這是該公司歷史上最大的基礎設施項目，並開始並完成了與 Nuna 在安大略金礦的合資項目，這是 Nuna 歷史上最大的項目。我們收購了澳洲的 DGI 和加拿大的 ML Northern，擴大了我們的內部維護能力，包括對我們最大的資產進行價值約 1 億美元的二次重建，並透過設備遠端資訊處理和即時機器健康和生產監控等工具增強了我們的技術。

This five-year trend demonstrates not only can we replace work as completed, but we can win more than we consume and consistently improve profitability. I will talk more about this later with details on our outlook and future expectations.

這五年的趨勢表明，我們不僅可以替換已完成的工作，而且我們獲得的收益可以超過消耗的收益，並且可以持續提高獲利能力。稍後我將詳細談論我們的展望和未來期望。

Moving on to slide 7. Our Australian equipment fleet, which in Q4, now includes a couple of dozen assets shipped from Canada and about 20 growth assets required for contract wins earlier in the year, maintained a consistent monthly utilization over 80% and total Q4 utilization of 82%, which keeps us right on track to achieve our target range of 85% in Australia early in 2025. Our Canadian fleet utilization improved to 54%, building up the Q3 achievement of 51% and the Q2 low of 42%. The Canadian fleet utilization achieved monthly utilization of 60% during the quarter, and we expect to be back into the 60s through our busy Q1 winter season and achieve our target range of 75% by the end of 2025.

轉到投影片 7。我們的澳洲設備車隊在第四季度包括從加拿大運來的數十台設備，以及今年稍早中標所需的約 20 台成長設備，月利用率一直維持在 80% 以上，第四季總利用率為 82%，這使我們預計在 2025 年初實現在澳洲 85% 的目標。我們的加拿大船隊利用率提高至 54%，高於第三季的 51% 和第二季的 42% 的最低水準。本季度，加拿大車隊的月利用率達到了 60%，我們預計在第一季繁忙的冬季，利用率將回到 60% 左右，到 2025 年底實現 75% 的目標範圍。

Achieving Canadian utilization targets will require continuing to build off our project wins. And with the increased revenue in Q4 and expect to further increase here in Q1 of 2025, and we're working diligently to achieve these project wins for the later half of the year.

要實現加拿大的利用目標，就需要繼續鞏固我們的計畫成果。隨著第四季度收入的增加，預計 2025 年第一季營收將進一步增加，我們正在努力在下半年贏得這些項目。

With that, I'll hand it over to Jason for the Q4 financials.

說完這些，我會把第四季的財務報表交給 Jason。

Thanks, Joe, and good morning, everyone. Starting with slide 9. The headline EBITDA numbers of $104 million and 27.8% margin were driven by both a fifth consecutive successful quarter from Australia since the change of control on October 1, 2023, but also a strong operational quarter in the Oil Sands. I'll get to it on the next slide, but operations posted combined gross profit margin of 20%, which requires effective operations in both Australia and Canada.

謝謝，喬，大家早安。從投影片 9 開始。1.04 億澳元的 EBITDA 和 27.8% 的利潤率既得益於澳洲自 2023 年 10 月 1 日控制權變更以來連續第五個季度的成功，也得益於油砂業務強勁的營運表現。我將在下一張投影片中講到，但營運的綜合毛利率為 20%，這需要在澳洲和加拿大都進行有效的營運。

We included a comment here about our Oil Sands business, which, although down from last year's top-line revenue, is posting more consistent quarter-to-quarter results than in the recent past and generated an over 10% increase from the third quarter on continued improved site conditions and steady usage of the equipment. The improved consistency is due to the nature of the contracts in the oil sands, which are now focused on more steady time and material and rental arrangements.

我們在這裡對我們的油砂業務進行了評論，儘管該業務的營收較去年同期有所下降，但其季度業績較近期更為穩定，並且由於現場條件持續改善和設備穩定使用，其營收較第三季度增長了 10% 以上。一致性的提高是由於油砂合約的性質，現在合約更加重視更穩定的時間和材料以及租賃安排。

Moving to slide 10 and our combined revenue and gross profit and for the first time, now has MacKellar quarter-over-quarter in the results. MacKellar and DGI, which we combine as Australia in our results, were up $31 million on a quarter, which was impacted by rains in December, but during which MacKellar posted another impressive utilization number at 82%. This top-line positive variance was offset by lower revenue quarter over quarter in the Oil Sands, but as previously mentioned, was importantly up from the third quarter by 13%.

轉到第 10 頁，我們的綜合收入和毛利首次在業績中出現了 MacKellar 的季度環比增長。MacKellar 和 DGI（我們在結果中將它們合併為澳洲）的季度利用率較上一季度增長了 3,100 萬美元，這受到了 12 月份降雨的影響，但在此期間，MacKellar 的利用率再次達到了令人印象深刻的 82%。這項營收正向差異被油砂業務季度收入下降所抵消，但正如前面提到的，重要的是，該差異較第三季度增長了 13%。

Our share of revenue generated in the fourth quarter by joint ventures was down from last year as consistent scopes at the Fargo-Moorhead project were offset by lower scopes being completed within the Nuna Group of Companies. Our reported combined gross profit margin of 14.6% was significantly impacted by two items, which we have adjusted for in the adjusted EBITDA margins.

第四季度，合資企業創造的收入占我們總收入的比重較去年有所下降，原因是法哥-穆爾黑德計畫的穩定範圍被努納集團公司內完成的較低範圍所抵銷。我們報告的綜合毛利率為 14.6%，受到兩項因素的顯著影響，我們已在調整後的 EBITDA 利潤率中對此進行了調整。

First was a claim that we extinguished as part of our four-year regional contract, and second was the expensing of certain shipping and logistics costs in the quarter for the equipment that was sent to Australia. Excluding these items, combined gross profit of 19.7%, which reflects the strong underlying operational quarter we had. Margins benefited both from the operations in Australia, which were 22% in the quarter and the Canadian operational personnel and fleet posting solid margins of 18% as they benefited from consistent and stable operating conditions.

首先是我們作為四年期區域合約的一部分而消除的索賠，其次是本季度將設備運往澳洲的某些運輸和物流費用支出。除這些項目外，綜合毛利為 19.7%，這反映了我們本季強勁的基本營運表現。利潤率既得益於澳洲的運營，本季為 22%，也得益於加拿大營運人員和船隊的持續穩定的營運條件，實現了 18% 的穩健利潤率。

Moving to slide 11. Q4 EBITDA of $104 million beat last year. As mentioned, the 27.8% margin we achieved reflects an effective operating quarter and was almost 3% higher than last year's margin. This margin level is indicative of where we see our business operating at with cumulative EBITDA margin since the MacKellar acquisition now at 27.0%, which covers over $1.8 billion in revenue and an eventful 15-month time frame.

移至第 11 張投影片。第四季 EBITDA 為 1.04 億美元，超過去年同期。如上所述，我們實現的 27.8% 的利潤率反映了有效的營運季度，並且比去年的利潤率高出近 3%。這一利潤率水準表明了我們的業務營運狀況，自收購 MacKellar 以來的累計 EBITDA 利潤率現已達到 27.0%，涵蓋了超過 18 億美元的收入和多事的 15 個月的時間範圍。

Included in EBITDA is general and administrative expenses of $13.7 million in the quarter and equivalent to 4.5% of reported revenue, which is slightly above the 4% target we set for ourselves. G&A costs in Canada, in particular, have been lowered in light of lower revenue being generated in the Oil Sands. Going from EBITDA to EBIT, we expensed depreciation equivalent to 14.0% of combined revenue, which is consistent with the third quarter and reflects the depreciation rate of our entire business.

EBITDA 包括本季 1,370 萬美元的一般及行政開支，相當於報告收入的 4.5%，略高於我們為自己設定的 4% 的目標。特別是加拿大的一般及行政開支由於油砂收入的減少而降低。從 EBITDA 到 EBIT，我們將相當於合併收入 14.0% 的折舊費用化，這與第三季一致，反映了我們整個業務的折舊率。

When looking at just the wholly owned entities of our heavy equipment in Australia and Canada, the depreciation percentage for the quarter was also 14.0% of revenue and reflects the lower percentage of the Australian fleet as well as the fourth quarter operations in the oil sands, which require high idle time during the cold weather. Adjusted earnings per share for the quarter of $1 reflects all the positive factors mentioned, with interest and taxes generally consistent with last year. The average cash interest rate for Q3 was 6.7%.

當僅查看我們在澳洲和加拿大的全資重型設備實體時，本季的折舊百分比也為收入的 14.0％，反映了澳洲車隊的百分比較低以及第四季度在油砂中的運營，這在寒冷天氣下需要較高的閒置時間。本季度調整後每股收益為 1 美元，反映了上述所有積極因素，利息和稅收與去年基本一致。第三季平均現金利率為6.7%。

Moving to slide 12. I'll briefly summarize our cash flow. Net cash provided by operations prior to working capital of $62 million was generated by the business, reflecting EBITDA performance and net of cash interest paid. Free cash flow of $50 million was driven by the strong EBITDA quarter, offset by the typically lighter capital spending in the fourth quarter.

移至投影片 12。我將簡要總結一下我們的現金流。業務營運產生的營運資本前的淨現金為 6,200 萬美元，反映了 EBITDA 業績和已支付的現金利息淨額。5000 萬美元的自由現金流是由強勁的 EBITDA 季度推動的，但被第四季度通常較少的資本支出所抵消。

Moving to slide 13. Net debt levels ended the quarter at $856 million, a decrease of $26 million in the quarter as free cash flow was directed to both growth assets and debt reduction. Of the $856 million, $448 million or roughly half is denominated in Australian dollars and is naturally hedged with the heavy equipment we own in Australia.

移至幻燈片 13。本季末淨債務水準為 8.56 億美元，比上一季減少 2,600 萬美元，因為自由現金流用於增長資產和減少債務。在這 8.56 億美元中，有 4.48 億美元（大約一半）以澳元計價，自然是用我們在澳洲擁有的重型設備進行對沖的。

Net debt and senior secured debt leverage ended at 2.2 times and 1.7 times, respectively, which decreased in Q4 on free cash flow. Of note, of course, is that subsequent to year-end, we had $73 million of convertible debentures convert into shares, which when applied to the December 31 balances, result in net debt of $783 million and net debt leverage of 2.0 times.

淨債務和優先擔保債務槓桿率分別為 2.2 倍和 1.7 倍，由於自由現金流，第四季度淨債務和優先擔保債務槓桿率有所下降。當然值得注意的是，在年底之後，我們有 7,300 萬美元的可轉換債券轉換為股票，當應用於 12 月 31 日的餘額時，導致淨債務為 7.83 億美元，淨債務槓桿為 2.0 倍。

With that, I'll pass the call back to Joe.

說完這些，我就把電話轉回給喬。

Thanks, Jason. Looking at slide 15. This slide summarizes our priorities for 2025. In 2025, the company will prioritize enhancing safety systems with a focus on consistency and training for frontline leaders. Key objectives include increasing equipment utilization, advancing telematics, including a rollout in Australia, and maintaining a strong focus on customer satisfaction to secure contract extensions and expansions.

謝謝，傑森。看第 15 張投影片。這張投影片總結了我們 2025 年的優先事項。2025年，公司將專注於加強安全體系建設，並專注於一致性和對第一線領導的培訓。主要目標包括提高設備利用率、推動遠端資訊處理（包括在澳洲推廣），以及高度關注客戶滿意度以確保合約延長和擴展。

On slide 23, in the supplemental information, you'll see a Texas thermal coal mine contract and the Queensland thermal coal mine contract that ended in 2025. Both contracts are being retendered with the Texas contract award in the second half of the year and the Queensland contract, which includes both an extension of potential expansions of services being awarded in the first half of the year. We're confident in our ability to retain and expand these contracts because of our incumbency, our positive client relationships, and our safe low-cost provider status.

在第 23 張幻燈片的補充資料中，您會看到一份德克薩斯州動力煤礦合同和一份昆士蘭動力煤礦合同，這兩份合約均於 2025 年結束。這兩份合約都將重新招標，德克薩斯州的合約將於今年下半年授予，昆士蘭州的合約包括延長服務範圍並擴大其潛在服務範圍，將於今年上半年授予。憑藉我們的在職地位、良好的客戶關係以及安全的低成本供應商地位，我們有信心保留和擴大這些合約。

Additionally, the company plans to diversify geographically in terms of resources beyond Queensland and Alberta, optimize business processes and reduce costs through the ERP system in Australia, and expand external maintenance component rebuild services for third-party customers.

此外，公司還計劃在昆士蘭州和阿爾伯塔省以外實現資源地域多元化，透過澳洲的ERP系統優化業務流程、降低成本，並擴大對第三方客戶的外部維護部件重建服務。

On slide 16, the bid pipeline remains over $10 billion with continuing and consistent strong demand in Australia and modestly increasing demand in Canadian mining projects. The oil sands region is expected to see consistent project demand driven by higher projected barrel production, while infrastructure opportunities are also on the rise, especially in the United States. As I mentioned in my letter, we see infrastructure works growing to about one-fourth of our business over the next several years. And with that strategic focus, we will be adding some more infrastructure talent and experience to our team to bid, win, and execute these projected projects.

在投影片 16 上，投標金額仍超過 100 億美元，其中澳洲的需求持續強勁，加拿大採礦計畫的需求也略有增加。受預計石油產量增加的推動，油砂地區的專案需求預計將持續成長，同時基礎設施建設機會也在增加，尤其是在美國。正如我在信中提到的，我們預計未來幾年基礎設施工程將成長到我們業務的四分之一左右。基於這項策略重點，我們將為團隊增添更多基礎設施人才和經驗，以競標、中標和執行這些預期的專案。

Moving to slide 17. The company is a record-setting contractual backlog of $3.5 billion with strategic partnerships in the mining, resource, and civil sectors, such as those with the Mikisew Cree First Nation, Kitikmeot Inuit Association, Red River Valley Alliance, and ASN Constructors.

移至投影片 17。該公司的合約積壓量創下了 35 億美元的紀錄，並在採礦、資源和土木工程領域與米基索克里族第一民族、基蒂克美奧特因紐特人協會、紅河谷聯盟和 ASN 建築商等建立了戰略合作夥伴關係。

Despite over $1.1 billion of work being executed in 2024, new additions of $1.7 billion have further strengthened the backlog and continue to demonstrate not only our ability to win work, but to grow our backlog and continue to diversify both geographically and by commodity.

儘管 2024 年將執行超過 11 億美元的工作，但新增的 17 億美元進一步加強了積壓工作，並繼續證明了我們不僅有能力贏得工作，而且還能增加積壓工作並繼續在地域和商品上實現多樣化。

On slide 18, we've provided our outlook for 2025. The 2025 outlook remains aligned with previous expectations, driven by existing contracts in Australia and Canada. The per share metrics have been adjusted to the new share count after a recent debt conversion and the growth capital adjusted for deferred growth asset deliveries and project scheduling in Australia. Key financial metrics for 2025 include combined revenue of $1.4 billion to $1.6 billion, adjusted EBITDA of $415 million to $445 million, adjusted EPS of $3.70 to $4, sustaining capital of $180 million to $200 million and free cash flow of $130 million to $150 million, and growth capital of $65 million to $75 million with a net debt leverage target of 1.7, down from the 1.8 after the previously mentioned debt conversion and growth spending.

在第 18 張幻燈片上，我們提供了 2025 年的展望。受澳洲和加拿大現有合約的推動，2025年的前景與先前的預期保持一致。在最近的債務轉換之後，每股指標已經根據新的股份數量進行了調整，並且增長資本已根據澳洲的延期成長資產交付和專案安排進行了調整。2025 年的關鍵財務指標包括綜合收入 14 億美元至 16 億美元、調整後 EBITDA 4.15 億美元至 4.45 億美元、調整後每股收益 3.70 至 4 美元、維持資本 1.8 億美元至 2 億美元、自由現金流 1.3 億美元提到的債務轉換和成長支出後的 1.8。

Half-year and quarterly splits of EBITDA are expected to be weighted slightly towards the second half of the year, with Q1 contributing slightly less than Q2 and Q3 being the largest quarter as our typical high Q1 in Oil Sands has less influence on the overall business. Our Australian business having typical high Q1 weather impact and not achieving the full benefits of the growth capital additions until the second half of the year and our Nuna and infrastructure construction works, which achieved typical peaks in Q3.

預計 EBITDA 的半年和季度分割將略微偏向下半年，其中第一季的貢獻略低於第二季度，而第三季度是最大的季度，因為我們油砂業務的第一季通常較高，對整體業務的影響較小。我們的澳洲業務在第一季受到天氣影響較大，直到下半年才獲得成長資本增加的全部收益，而我們的 Nuna 和基礎設施建設工程在第三季度達到了典型的高峰。

Our half-year and quarterly splits in EPS are expected to follow the same trends, with increased weighting towards the second half of over 55%, Q1 contributing about 20% with Q3 again the largest quarter. The difference in the weighting on EPS from EBITDA is due to the front-loaded equipment repair costs and increased depreciation in our Canadian business unit from high Q1 equipment demand and increased equipment idling during cold weather.

我們對 EPS 的半年和季度劃分預計將遵循相同的趨勢，下半年的權重將增加到 55% 以上，第一季的貢獻率約為 20%，而第三季再次成為最大的季度。EPS 和 EBITDA 權重之間的差異是由於前期設備維修成本以及加拿大業務部門第一季設備需求高以及寒冷天氣下設備閒置增加導致的折舊增加。

On slide 19, the company's diversification journey continues, with Australian operations expected to generate 60% of earnings before interest and tax in 2025. The earnings composition by contract type includes 65% from time and material, 20% from unit rate, 10% from equipment rental, and 5% from fixed-price contracts. Mining services make up 80% of the revenue, with civil construction contributing 15% and equipment and component sales 5%. Geographically, 60% of the earnings came from Australia, 30% from Canada, and 10% from the US.

第 19 頁顯示，該公司的多元化之旅仍在繼續，預計 2025 年澳洲業務將產生 60% 的息稅前利潤。按合約類型劃分的收入組成包括：65%來自時間和材料，20%來自單價，10%來自設備租賃，5%來自固定價格合約。採礦服務佔收入的 80%，土木工程佔 15%，設備和零件銷售佔 5%。從地理上看，60%的收入來自澳大利亞，30%來自加拿大，10%來自美國。

The Canadian oil sands region is expected to contribute about 25%. In future quarterly decks, we plan to provide longer-term projections and insights into how we expect to continue to grow and diversify our business, including our target to grow our infrastructure business to 25% of earnings and our continued commodity and geographic diversification in Australia.

預計加拿大油砂地區將貢獻約25%。在未來的季度報告中，我們計劃提供長期預測和見解，說明我們如何繼續成長和多元化我們的業務，包括將基礎設施業務成長到收益的 25％ 的目標以及我們在澳洲繼續實現商品和地理多元化。

Lastly, regarding capital allocation, we remain committed to paying down debt and further strengthening our balance sheet. We believe our free cash flow will provide ample opportunity to continue to invest in shareholder-friendly ways while still being able to pay down debt and pursue acquisition and expansion opportunities when those returns warrant investment. In closing, and as I said in my letter to shareholders, we have great expectations for our business in 2025 and going forward and believe we're in the best position we have ever been to continue to grow and diversify with improving profitability and with positive free cash flow to drive increased shareholder benefits.

最後，關於資本配置，我們仍然致力於償還債務並進一步加強我們的資產負債表。我們相信，我們的自由現金流將提供充足的機會，讓我們能夠繼續以對股東友好的方式進行投資，同時仍然能夠償還債務，並在這些回報值得投資時尋求收購和擴張的機會。最後，正如我在致股東的信中所說，我們對 2025 年及未來的業務寄予厚望，並相信我們正處於有史以來的最佳位置，可以繼續增長和多元化，提高盈利能力並實現正的自由現金流，從而推動股東利益的增加。

With that, I'll open up to any questions you may have.

這樣，我就可以回答你們可能提出的任何問題。

(Operator Instructions) Yuri Lynk, Canaccord Genuity.

(操作員指示) Yuri Lynk，Canaccord Genuity。

Just want to dig in on the 2025 outlook in Canada. Utilization is still struggling. So wondering what you need to win to hit your numbers? Or do you feel you've got that in the backlog already?

只是想深入了解 2025 年加拿大的前景。利用率仍然很低。那麼想知道您需要贏得什麼才能達到您的數字嗎？還是您覺得這些已經積壓好了？

And kind of related to that, 12, 18 months ago, I thought the outlook for non-oil sands mining awards in Canada was pretty bright, but we continue to wait for some success there. Can you just update us on kind of the bid funnel as it pertains to commodities outside of the oil sands?

與此相關的是，12 到 18 個月前，我認為加拿大非油砂採礦業的前景非常光明，但我們仍在等待那裡取得成功。您能否向我們介紹油砂以外商品的投標管道的最新情況？

Yes. I think as far as our guidance, Yuri, we expect the utilization to stay similar to what it was last year with a little bit of increased demand in oil sands, drops off in the second half of the year a bit. To get to our 75%, which would put us over guidance, I would say, in Canada. That would mean winning some work outside. We still have active tenders in Ontario, in particular.

是的。尤里，就我們的指導而言，我認為利用率將與去年保持相似，油砂需求將略有增加，但下半年將略有下降。為了達到我們的 75% 的目標，我想說，這將使我們在加拿大的份額超過預期。這意味著贏得一些外面的工作。我們在安大略省仍有活躍的招標。

Or the worst-case scenario, we would prioritize it work in Canada, additional work in Australia, where we would have shipping, but that wouldn't necessarily affect 2025. And our final resolution, and this is predominantly a smaller equipment would be to sell them if they're underutilized and we can't place them.

或者最糟糕的情況是，我們會優先考慮在加拿大的工作，在澳洲進行額外的工作，在那裡我們可以進行航運，但這不一定會影響 2025 年。我們的最終解決方案是，如果小型設備未充分利用且我們無法放置它們，我們就將它們出售。

What do you -- I mean, there's obviously been a large step down in your Oil Sands business. I mean, is it deferred work? Is it work on to competitors? Is it in-sourced work? Can you just give some color as to what's going on in that market?

你怎麼看——我的意思是，你的油砂生意顯然已經大幅下滑了。我的意思是，這是延期的工作嗎？這是否對競爭對手有影響？這是內部工作嗎？能否簡單介紹一下該市場的狀況？

I can hypothesize, Yuri. It dropped about 30% last year. We're right about the same levels this year as last year. We look at that as the consistent level we'll project going forward. As far as the 30% drop and whether it was in-house or deferred, it's very difficult to say. It could be a combination of both.

我可以假設，尤里。去年該數字下降了約30%。我們認為今年的水平與去年相同。我們認為這是我們未來預測的一致水平。至於 30% 的降幅，以及是內部降幅還是延期降幅，很難說。這可能是兩者的結合。

It's a very long cycle. These are long-life mines. There could be deferral for four or five years. We're just going to plan on being where it is, and it's very strong demand on the big truck side. It's still low demand on the civil construction works from small trucks, and those are the ones we look to take out of oil sands and place somewhere else.

這是一個非常長的周期。這些都是長壽命礦山。可能會延期四到五年。我們只是計劃在那裡，而且大型卡車方面的需求非常強勁。小型卡車對土木工程的需求仍然很低，我們希望將這些卡車從油砂中取出並放置在其他地方。

But we just take the demand as it is. And if there's an upside in the future with increased production, the barrel production in oil sands projected to go up significantly year-on-year, then we just see it as an opportunity.

但我們只是接受原來的需求。如果未來產量增加，油砂桶產量預計將年比大幅增加，那麼我們就將其視為一個機會。

Okay. Last one for me. Just the two adjustments you made out of gross margin. I guess the shipping costs are self-explanatory, a bit much higher than I thought it was going to be. But what happened with the claim? And has that been put to bed?

好的。對我來說是最後一個。您對毛利率只做了兩項調整。我想運費是不言而喻的，比我想像的還要高一點。但索賠結果如何？那麼這個問題已經解決了嗎？

Yes. It was just negotiated as part of our four-year contract extension. So we resolved it with that. And so we dropped the claim, and we negotiated into our contract.

是的。這只是我們四年合約續約的一部分談判。所以我們就用這個方法解決了。因此我們放棄了索賠，並就合約進行了協商。

Aaron MacNeil, TD Cowen.

亞倫麥克尼爾（Aaron MacNeil），TD Cowen。

Maybe to build on Yuri's question, it looks like you've added a large project in Australia in the active procurement phase. More generally, things seem to be going pretty well there. Can you give us a bit more detail in terms of how you might mobilize equipment to the extent that you win incremental awards in Australia?

也許是為了進一步回答尤里的問題，看起來你們已經在積極採購階段增加了一個澳洲的大型計畫。更普遍地說，那裡的情況似乎進展得相當順利。您能否向我們詳細介紹如何調動設備以便在澳洲贏得增量獎勵？

And specifically, you're sort of bumping up against that 85% utilization target. Canada utilization remains below target. So is there an appetite for further asset transfers? Or is the stuff that's still in Canada too small to sort of be effective in that work scope?

具體來說，您即將達到 85% 的利用率目標。加拿大的利用率仍低於目標。那麼，是否有進一步進行資產轉移的興趣？還是說，目前在加拿大的這些東西太少，無法在工作範圍內發揮作用？

No, it's -- the work in Australia would fit our fleet in Canada, and we don't have long-term commitments on a lot of that fleet, be it big or small. The smaller assets fit into a lot of the Western Australia opportunities we see. And even the most recent copper mine win we had in New South Wales, that was 100-tonne trucks. And we placed some 240-tonne trucks at a coal mine there as well. So I think you hit the nail on the head there, Aaron, that if we can get 85% utilization in five-year committed contract terms, that kind of return on assets.

不，澳洲的工作適合我們在加拿大的車隊，而且我們對許多車隊（無論大小）都沒有長期承諾。我們看到，小型資產適合西澳大利亞的許多機會。甚至我們最近在新南威爾斯州贏得的銅礦，也是使用 100 噸重的卡車。我們還在那裡的一個煤礦上放置了一些重達 240 噸的卡車。所以我認為你說到了點子上，亞倫，如果我們能在五年承諾的合約期限內獲得 85% 的利用率，那麼這種資產回報率就很高。

Yes, I do think we'll continue to see assets going from Canada to Australia with wins of contracts like that. It makes great sense for us as far as return on the capital. You do incur a little bit of short-term pain in the shipping timeframe. I mean, we would love to have it engage in long-term contracts closer by to where we don't have that loss of time when we're mobilizing between jobs. But certainly, with the equipment we sent there and our replacement the contracts, if we can do more of that, I think it makes great sense for the business, both from return on capital and long-term stability.

是的，我確實認為，隨著此類合約的中標，我們將繼續看到資產從加拿大流向澳洲。就資本回報而言，這對我們來說非常有意義。您確實會在運輸過程中遭受一點短期痛苦。我的意思是，我們很樂意與其簽訂長期合同，這樣我們在工作調動時就不會浪費時間。但可以肯定的是，透過我們發送到那裡的設備和我們更換的合同，如果我們可以做更多這樣的事，我認為這對業務來說非常有意義，無論是從資本回報還是長期穩定性來看。

I guess, not to put too fine a point on it, but would there be like -- would it be better to sort of lease or buy new equipment to source that work? Or is it better to continue to transfer underutilized?

我想，不想對此進行過太過強調，但是是否有更好的方式——透過租賃或購買新設備來完成這項工作？還是繼續轉移未充分利用的球員會更好？

I think -- yes, it would be better to transfer underutilized assets and put them into an area where you can get high utilization long-term commitments. And frankly, if they're looking for newer assets, we can take the ones we have and rebuild them -- second life rebuilds back to new standards, if that was the need. So we'd absolutely look to employ our existing assets before we went out and bought any growth assets.

我認為——是的，最好將未充分利用的資產轉移並放入可以獲得高利用率長期承諾的領域。坦白說，如果他們正在尋找更新的資產，我們可以利用現有的資產並重建它們——如果需要的話，第二人生可以重建到新的標準。因此，在出去購買任何成長資產之前，我們絕對會考慮利用我們現有的資產。

Got you. And then maybe one for Jason. You outlined the diversification journey on slide 19. Can you speak to any progress, if applicable, on how you might be thinking about North American's GICS code and maybe more superficially about the corporate name, just given that the GICS code and the name don't really reflect the business fundamentals anymore?

明白了。然後也許還有一個給傑森的。您在第 19 頁上概述了多元化歷程。如果適用的話，您能否談談您對北美 GICS 代碼的看法，以及對公司名稱更膚淺的看法，因為 GICS 代碼和名稱不再真正反映業務基本面？

Yes. With the filing of yesterday, we will be engaging in a GICS review. We feel -- on slide 19, that does show a pretty diversified business, and we will be making the argument for a re-categorization to reflect that. So I'm looking forward to that. Actually, next week, we are scheduled to have those conversations.

是的。隨著昨天的提交，我們將參與 GICS 審查。我們認為 - 第 19 頁的幻燈片確實顯示了一個相當多樣化的業務，我們將提出重新分類的論點來反映這一點。所以我對此很期待。實際上，下週我們計劃進行這些對話。

So having this trailing 12 audit was an important milestone. And so that is done effective yesterday. And so those conversations will start next week. And Joe can comment as well, but we continue to debate the name change. It's one of those decisions that's tricky. We clearly have a name that doesn't fit our 60% Australia-generating business. But I would say, stay tuned for that.

因此，進行這 12 次審計是一個重要的里程碑。這項決定從昨天起生效。這些對話將於下週開始。喬也可以發表評論，但我們將繼續討論更改名稱的問題。這是很棘手的決定之一。我們的名字顯然與我們 60% 的澳洲發電業務不符。但我想說，請繼續關注。

Maxim Sytchev, National Bank Financial.

馬克西姆·瑟切夫（Maxim Sytchev），國家金融銀行。

I was wondering if it's possible to get any color in relation to -- I mean, I think there was some inclement weather in Australia recently and how we should be thinking about those impacts for the upcoming Q1. So yes, just maybe any color in terms of how Q1 is trending specifically to that.

我想知道是否有可能獲得與此相關的任何資訊——我的意思是，我認為最近澳大利亞出現了一些惡劣的天氣，以及我們應該如何考慮這些影響對即將到來的第一季的影響。所以是的，就 Q1 的趨勢而言，任何顏色都可能如此。

Like I said in my comments, Q1 is only about 20% of our year in the financial side of things. It's quite a contrast. I know you've been around with us a long time, Max, quite a contrast when we are 95% of oil sands, and Q1 used to be one-third of the business at times. What drives that is that Q1 is actually the highest weather impact quarter now because it's the biggest weather -- really the only weather quarter other than the tail end of Q4 in Australia. And we do get some impacts from the extreme cold in Alberta and oil sands -- the busier oil sands Q1 is now tempered by the fact that it's only 25% of the business.

正如我在評論中所說的那樣，從財務方面來看，第一季僅占我們全年財務狀況的 20% 左右。這真是一個鮮明的對比。我知道你和我們在一起很長時間了，馬克斯，當我們的油砂份額達到 95% 時，情況就截然不同了，而 Q1 曾經只佔業務的三分之一。造成這種情況的原因是，第一季實際上是受天氣影響最大的季度，因為這是受天氣影響最大的季度——實際上是除澳洲第四季末以外唯一一個受天氣影響的季度。我們確實受到了阿爾伯塔省極端寒冷天氣和油砂業務的影響——原本較為繁忙的油砂業務第一季受到了限制，因為該業務僅佔業務總量的 25%。

And then the other thing that affects that in the second half of the year is the growth assets we added last year, some of which have timing slipped into this year. We don't get a full-year effect of those. They start ramping up as those growth assets come in. And so the second half of the year, we'll just see more influence from that. And then we also -- if you look at our summer seasonal businesses, which is typically the Nuna work up north and the Fargo-Moorhead project, that's why we peak in Q3. So we go from that 20% low up to a peak in Q1 to a peak in Q3, and then it backs up slightly in Q4.

影響下半年的另一個因素是我們去年增加的成長資產，其中一些資產的時機已經延續到今年。我們並沒有獲得全年的效應。隨著這些成長資產的進入，他們開始加強。因此，今年下半年我們將看到更多的影響。然後，如果您看看我們的夏季季節性業務，通常是北部的 Nuna 工作和 Fargo-Moorhead 項目，這就是我們在第三季度達到頂峰的原因。因此，我們從第一季的 20% 的低點上升到第三季的峰值，然後在第四季略有回升。

Yes. Okay. Makes sense. And then your comments around 25% of the business to be infrastructure levered over time. How should we think about the capital intensity of the business? Is that still going to be very similar? And we should be thinking about kind of Fargo type projects? Or I guess, any thoughts on that would be helpful.

是的。好的。有道理。然後您評論說大約 25% 的業務將隨著時間的推移由基礎設施槓桿作用產生。我們該如何考慮企業的資本密集度？這仍然會非常相似嗎？我們應該考慮類似法戈類型的項目嗎？或者我猜，對此的任何想法都會有幫助。

Yes. I mean, my expectation would be very capital-light. It's part of why we like the business. The Fargo project is stand-alone on its fleet requirements. We haven't put any assets in there. It's very modest on capital and a positive cash flow very quickly. All of what's attractive about that marketplace. And then I think there's a growing demand for our kind of practical construction mentality and doing this kind of -- the type of contracts that the progressive design builds and construction management at-risk contracts, I think, fit the way we manage operations very well.

是的。我的意思是，我的預期是資本很少。這是我們喜歡這項業務的原因之一。法戈計畫在車隊需求方面是獨立的。我們還沒有在其中投入任何資產。它的資本非常有限，但很快就能產生正現金流。該市場的所有吸引力。然後，我認為，對我們這種務實的建設心態的需求越來越大，而這種漸進式設計建造和施工管理風險合約的類型，我認為，非常適合我們管理營運的方式。

And yes, I think that overall, we see a high demand in infrastructure projects, especially more that fit what we do with these climate resiliency. And with that low capital intensity, that's absolutely the reason we're pursuing them that much more, Max.

是的，我認為總體而言，我們對基礎設施項目的需求很高，尤其是那些符合我們氣候適應能力的項目。而且由於資本密集度低，這絕對是我們更加追求它們的原因，馬克斯。

Yes. And I guess, is it going to be both Canada, Australia? Or is there sort of more focus on a specific geography?

是的。我猜是加拿大和澳洲兩個國家吧？或是更關注某個特定的地理區域？

Yes, predominantly US and Australia, but certainly, some in Canada. But I think the biggest market is the US, and I think Australia is like just after that.

是的，主要是美國和澳大利亞，但加拿大肯定也有一些。但我認為最大的市場是美國，其次是澳洲。

Okay. That's helpful. And then maybe just one quick question for Jason, if I may. In terms of Fargo, because correct me if I'm wrong, it was peak revenue generation in 2024. So how should we think about kind of the curvature of that normalization as the year progresses in 2025?

好的。這很有幫助。如果可以的話，我只想問傑森一個簡單的問題。就法戈而言，如果我錯了請糾正我，它的收入高峰期是 2024 年。那麼，隨著 2025 年的到來，我們該如何看待這種正常化的曲率呢？

It's about 10% down from 2024. So it's still a big, strong year in 2025. We might not get to $150 million, but $140 million type of top line we expect out of Fargo this year.

比 2024 年下降約 10%。因此，2025 年仍然是強勁的一年。我們可能達不到 1.5 億美元的收入，但我們預計今年《冰血暴》的營收將達到 1.4 億美元。

And then is it possible to get -- the last question. Any incremental thoughts on sort of NCIB quantum timing, kind of trigger points? Anything you can add there?

那麼有可能得到──最後一個問題。對於 NCIB 量子計時、觸發點之類的問題有什麼想法嗎？還有什麼可以加的嗎？

We've been active in the NCIB. I think we'll continue to be at these share prices. I would expect we're kind of at a low level of activity. And as our cash flow improves and depending on where share price is, I would expect it to increase if we're staying the same as it is now as our cash flow improves during the year.

我們一直活躍於 NCIB。我認為我們的股價將繼續維持在目前的水平。我預計我們的活動量較低。而且隨著我們的現金流改善，並且取決於股價的水平，如果我們保持與現在相同的水平，我預計它會增加，因為我們的現金流在年內會改善。

(Operator Instructions) Adam Thalhimer, Thompson, Davis.

（操作員指示）亞當·塔希默、湯普森、戴維斯。

One of my questions was what you just answered, the Fargo going from, call it, $153 million down to $140 million. Do you think -- is there an offset maybe at Nuna or somewhere else within the JV line to where you can put up JV revenue growth this year?

我的一個問題就是您剛才回答的內容，法哥的票房從 1.53 億美元降到了 1.4 億美元。您是否認為－Nuna 或合資產品線內的其他地方是否有抵銷作用，可以實現今年的合資收入成長？

Yes, I think it's -- we've got some modest increase potential there. And they're bidding actively right now for a lot of summer work. So we'll have a better view on that, I think, after the Q1 close and into Q2.

是的，我認為——我們在那裡有一些適度的成長潛力。他們目前積極競標大量暑期工作。因此，我認為，在第一季結束之後和第二季進入後，我們對此有更好的看法。

Got it. And then I'm just curious, high level, kind of what you've learned from Fargo and what types of projects you'd be looking for in the US going forward?

知道了。然後我很好奇，從高層來說，您從《法哥》中學到了什麼，以及未來您會在美國尋找什麼類型的專案？

No, I think we've learned that the -- how much good partners count. We've had some good partners there. And we've learned a lot about executing that work and dealing with the authorities in the US, the permitting, the regulatory side. It was a very good experience for us because that project has national because it's on a river. It has two different states because it splits the border of two states.

不，我想我們已經了解到──好的合作夥伴有多重要。我們在那裡有一些很好的合作夥伴。我們學到了很多關於執行這項工作以及與美國當局、許可和監管方面打交道的知識。這對我們來說是一次非常好的經歷，因為該項目位於河上，具有全國性。它有兩個不同的州，因為它分裂了兩個州的邊界。

It's two different counties and two different cities. So it really gave us a lot of good experience into how regulatory works from municipalities up to the federal side of things. And I think we've just been in it longer and understand it and have been around our partners and talk to others in the US infrastructure world and feel more comfortable doing that kind of work. We look for -- still look for stuff that's more earthworks, civil construction that we've done before.

這是兩個不同的縣和兩個不同的城市。因此，它確實為我們提供了豐富的經驗，讓我們了解從市政當局到聯邦政府的監管工作方式。我認為我們在這個領域已經待了很長時間，對它有了更多的了解，與我們的合作夥伴一起合作，與美國基礎設施領域的其他人進行交流，對做這種工作感到更舒服。我們正在尋找——仍然在尋找我們以前做過的更多土方工程、土木工程。

But I don't think we'd be scared to get into other areas with the right partner and the right experience. We're not going to jump into building skyscrapers or anything like that. But we've done roadworks in the past. Concrete is not a huge expansion of our skill base and talent base. So I think most of the infrastructure work that isn't vertical construction would fit us pretty well.

但我認為，只要有合適的合作夥伴和豐富的經驗，我們就不會害怕進入其他領域。我們不會急於建造摩天大樓或諸如此類的東西。但我們過去曾做過道路工程。具體來說，並不是我們的技能基礎和人才基礎的巨大擴展。因此我認為大多數非垂直建設的基礎設施工程都非常適合我們。

Got it. Okay. And just last one for me. Curious how you see backlog trending this year because it looked like your larger bids were more concentrated in early '26.

知道了。好的。對我來說這只是最後一個。好奇您如何看待今年的積壓趨勢，因為看起來您的較大出價更集中在 26 年初。

That's the start date of those projects. So we would still look to win those in 2025, but they'd be in backlog before then. So yes, I think we've got some good opportunities to continue the growth with some potential expansions, predominantly in Australia and extensions, early extensions of contracts and some civil and mining opportunities, in particular in Ontario right now. Yes, I think there's good opportunities to continue to build on that.

這是這些項目的開始日期。因此，我們仍希望在 2025 年贏得這些獎項，但在此之前這些獎項仍會積壓。所以是的，我認為我們有一些很好的機會來繼續增長，包括一些潛在的擴張，主要是在澳大利亞和延期，合約的早期延期以及一些民用和採礦機會，特別是目前在安大略省。是的，我認為我們有很好的機會繼續在此基礎上進一步發展。

Wil Wutherich, Wutherich Company.

威爾‧伍瑟里奇 (Wil Wutherich)，伍瑟里奇公司。

So the one word I have not heard this whole call is tariffs, which is kind of the topic of discussion on virtually every other conference call. So address that. I mean, I presume some heavy equipment purchasing or moving thereof might be faced with this. But anyhow, if you can sort of put together any potential impacts you might see from tariffs?

因此，在整個通話過程中我沒有聽到的一個詞是關稅，這幾乎是每次電話會議討論的話題。因此請解決這個問題。我的意思是，我推測一些重型設備的採購或運輸可能會面臨這種情況。但無論如何，您是否可以總結一下關稅可能帶來的任何潛在影響？

Right now, Wil, we haven't felt much, and not to say we won't in the future, but it doesn't -- most of the stuff we -- our assets, we rebuild our own or we've already ordered them, and they're on their way. We don't see a lot of huge asset purchases coming from the US over the next 12 months. We haven't -- obviously, nothing is affecting Australia, which, like we said, is over 60% of our business. And nothing is affecting our US operations that we have seen.

威爾，現在我們還沒有感受到太大的影響，並不是說將來我們不會感受到，但事實並非如此——我們的大多數東西——我們的資產，我們自己重建的，或者我們已經訂購了它們，它們正在路上。我們預計未來 12 個月美國不會進行大量資產購買。我們沒有——顯然，沒有什麼影響到澳大利亞，正如我們所說，澳大利亞占我們業務的 60% 以上。據我們所知，沒有任何事物影響我們的美國業務。

And even when we look at the Canada stuff and the tariffs on oil, it's 10% versus 25%. And we certainly haven't seen any dramatic changes in plans as of yet from our clients and the producers. Not to say we'll be immune from it. But right now, it doesn't feel like it's going to have a material effect on us. And I guess, we'll know more about that on April 2, I guess.

即使我們看看加拿大的石油關稅，也是 10% 對 25%。到目前為止，我們還沒有看到客戶和生產商的計劃做出任何重大改變。這並不是說我們會免受其害。但目前，感覺它不會對我們產生實質的影響。我想，我們將在 4 月 2 日了解更多相關資訊。

And the other question I have is Australia. You referred to the first quarter as being a weaker quarter, in particular, because of a usual pattern in Australia. How about this year in particular? How has the first quarter weather in Australia looked overall? And what might this impact be?

我的另一個問題是澳洲。您提到第一季是一個較為疲軟的季度，特別是因為澳洲的常見模式。今年的情況尤其如此嗎？澳洲第一季的天氣總體怎麼樣？這可能會產生什麼影響呢？

We just went through cyclone Alfred. It has had a significant impact in our operations more on the corporate side. We had rains in February, which affected our operating sites more than the cyclone Alfred did. It's just Q1 is always their low quarter because it's the most impacted by rains. Generally, the rest of the year is unimpacted by weather other than possibly early cyclones in like late November, early December.

我們剛剛經歷了阿爾弗雷德颶風。它對我們公司方面的營運產生了重大影響。二月有降雨，對我們作業場所的影響比阿爾弗雷德颶風還要大。只是第一季總是他們的低迷季度，因為它受降雨的影響最大。一般來說，除了 11 月底或 12 月初可能出現的氣旋外，一年中其餘時間都不會受到天氣的影響。

But it's very similar to Northern Alberta is like our cold weather we usually get in January and February. The big rains in Australia are usually January and February as well. So that's why our Q1 is most impacted. And then the rest of it is just they're still getting growth assets delivered. We just started up our (inaudible) project at the copper mine in New South Wales and then those growth assets coming and ramping up.

但它與阿爾伯塔省北部非常相似，就像我們通常在一月和二月遇到的寒冷天氣。澳洲的大雨通常也發生在一月和二月。這就是我們的第一季受到的影響最大的原因。而剩下的只是他們仍在獲得成長資產。我們剛剛在新南威爾斯的銅礦啟動了我們的（聽不清楚）項目，然後那些成長資產就開始陸續湧現。

So that's what makes the later quarters in the second half of the year higher.

這就是導致下半年後幾季銷售額更高的原因。

(Operator Instructions) Sean Jack, Raymond James.

（操作員指示）肖恩傑克、雷蒙德詹姆斯。

So just one for me. It's important to note that there's been some new opportunities in Australia in the bid pipeline. I just wanted to check in and see how you're seeing the competition level for bids there. And I expect to know, but has there been any change in sentiment there with some of the noise in the global markets right now?

所以對我來說只有一個。值得注意的是，澳洲在申辦過程中出現了一些新的機會。我只是想檢查一下，看看您如何看待那裡的投標競爭水平。我希望知道，但是目前全球市場上的一些噪音是否引起了人們情緒上的變化？

We still see very strong demand. There is strong competition, but we will say it's very disciplined competition. We're very pleased in winning that copper mine in New South Wales and getting that kicked off. I think it's going to bode well for us in getting into areas like Western Australia where unit rate work is better, more prevalent.

我們仍然看到非常強勁的需求。競爭非常激烈，但我們可以說這是非常有紀律的競爭。我們非常高興贏得了新南威爾斯州的銅礦並啟動該計畫。我認為這對我們進入西澳大利亞等單位工資工作更優質、更普遍的地區來說是一個好兆頭。

So we still -- we see strong demand. We do see competition, but it's very disciplined competition. No one is acting desperate. And so we think that with our safe, low-cost structure, we'll have a very good opportunity to win that work. And they're continuing to -- we continue to see early potential renewals.

因此我們仍然看到強勁的需求。我們確實看到了競爭，但這是非常有紀律的競爭。沒有人表現出絕望。因此我們認為，憑藉我們安全、低成本的結構，我們將有很好的機會贏得這項工作。而且他們還在繼續——我們繼續看到早期的潛在續約。

Actually, if you look at the bid pipeline, the big blue dot in the middle of the graph in the second row, that's actually an early extension opportunity. So we continue to see contracts that have early renewals and expansion opportunities and long-term commitments. And so we see that marketplace is continuing to be strong and our relationships with our clients and our capabilities to expand beyond our current operations and continue to diversify geographically and commodity-wise. Like I said, I think we're in the best place we've ever been, Sean.

實際上，如果你看一下投標管道，第二行圖表中間的大藍點實際上是一個早期的延期機會。因此，我們繼續看到具有早期續約和擴張機會以及長期承諾的合約。因此，我們看到市場繼續保持強勁，我們與客戶的關係以及我們超越現有業務擴展的能力以及我們繼續在地域和商品方面實現多元化的能力。正如我所說的，肖恩，我認為我們現在處於最好的狀態。

Thank you. There are no further questions at this time. This concludes the Q&A section of the call. And I will pass the call over to Joe Lambert, President and CEO, for closing comments.

謝謝。目前沒有其他問題。本次通話的問答部分到此結束。然後我將把電話轉給總裁兼執行長喬·蘭伯特 (Joe Lambert)，請他發表最後評論。

Thanks, Jenny. Thanks again, everyone, for joining us today. We look forward to providing the next update upon closing of our Q1 2025 results.

謝謝，珍妮。再次感謝大家今天的參與。我們期待在 2025 年第一季業績結束後提供下次更新。

Thank you. This concludes the North American Construction Group conference call on fourth quarter 2024. The conference call has now ended. You may all disconnect your lines.

謝謝。北美建築集團 2024 年第四季電話會議到此結束。電話會議現已結束。你們都可以斷開自己的線路。