Quanta Services Inc (PWR) 2023 Q2 法說會逐字稿

Greetings, and welcome to the Quanta Services Second Quarter 2023 Earnings Conference Call. (Operator Instructions). As a reminder, this conference is being recorded. I would now like to turn the conference over to your host, Kip Rupp, Vice President of Investor Relations. Please go ahead.

各位來賓，歡迎參加昆騰服務公司2023年第二季財報電話會議。 （操作說明）提醒各位，本次會議正在錄音。現在我將會議交給主持人，投資人關係副總裁基普魯普先生。請開始。

Thank you, and welcome, everyone, to the Quanta Services Second Quarter 2023 Earnings Conference Call. This morning, we issued a press release announcing our second quarter 2023 results, which can be found in the Investor Relations section of our website at quantaservices.com, along with a summary of our 2023 outlook and commentary that we will discuss this morning.

感謝各位參加 Quanta Services 2023 年第二季財報電話會議。今天上午，我們發布了 2023 年第二季業績新聞稿，您可以在我們網站 quantaservices.com 的「投資者關係」欄位中找到新聞稿，以及我們 2023 年展望和評論的摘要，我們將在今天上午討論這些內容。

Additionally, we'll use a slide presentation this morning to accompany our prepared remarks, which is viewable through the call's webcast and is also available on the Investor Relations section of the Quanta Services website.

此外，今天上午我們將使用幻燈片演示來配合我們準備好的發言，該演示可透過電話會議的網路直播觀看，也可在 Quanta Services 網站的投資者關係部分查看。

Please remember that information reported on this call speaks only as of today, August 3, 2023. And therefore, you're advised that any time-sensitive information may no longer be accurate as of any replay of this call.

請注意，本次通話中報告的資訊僅代表截至2023年8月3日的情況。因此，任何有時效性的信息在本次通話重播時可能不再準確。

This call will include forward-looking statements intended to qualify under the safe harbor from liability established by the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995 including all statements reflecting expectations, intentions, assumptions or beliefs about future events or performance, but that do not solely relate to historical or current facts. You should not place undue reliance on these statements as they involve certain risks, uncertainties and assumptions that are difficult to predict or beyond Quanta's control, and actual results may differ materially from those expressed or implied.

本次電話會議將包含前瞻性陳述，旨在符合1995年《私人證券訴訟改革法案》所規定的免責條款，包括所有反映對未來事件或業績的預期、意圖、假設或信念的陳述，但這些陳述並非完全基於歷史或當前事實。您不應過度依賴這些陳述，因為它們涉及某些難以預測或超出昆塔控制範圍的風險、不確定性和假設，實際結果可能與明示或暗示的結果有重大差異。

We'll also present certain historical and forecasted non-GAAP financial measures. Reconciliations of these financial measures to their most directly comparable GAAP financial measures are included in our earnings release and slide presentation.

我們也將提供一些歷史數據和預測的非GAAP財務指標。這些財務指標與其最直接可比較的GAAP財務指標的調節表已包含在我們的獲利報告和簡報中。

Please see Slide 2 and the appendix of the slide presentation for additional information regarding our forward-looking statements and non-GAAP financial measures.

有關我們的前瞻性聲明和非公認會計準則財務指標的更多信息，請參閱幻燈片 2 和幻燈片演示文稿的附錄。

Lastly, if you would like to be notified when Quanta Services publishes news releases and other information, please sign up for e-mail alerts through the Investor Relations section of quantaservices.com. We also encourage investors and others interested in our company to follow Quanta IR and Quanta Services on the social media channels listed on our website.

最後，如果您希望在 Quanta Services 發布新聞稿和其他資訊時收到通知，請透過 quantaservices.com 網站的「投資者關係」區塊註冊電子郵件提醒。我們也鼓勵投資者和其他對我們公司感興趣的人士關注 Quanta IR 和 Quanta Services 在網站上列出的社交媒體帳號。

With that, I will now turn the call over to Duke Austin, Quanta's President and CEO. Duke?

接下來，我將把電話交給廣達航空總裁兼執行長杜克·奧斯汀。杜克？

Thanks, Kip. Good morning, everyone, and welcome to the Quanta Services Second Quarter 2023 Earnings Conference Call. On the call today, I will provide operational and strategic commentary, and we'll then turn it over to Jayshree Desai, Quanta's CFO, to provide a review of our second quarter results and full year 2023 financial expectations. Following Jayshree's comments, we welcome your questions.

謝謝，Kip。大家早安，歡迎參加昆塔服務公司2023年第二季財報電話會議。今天，我將首先就營運和策略方面進行評論，之後我們將把發言權交給昆塔首席財務官Jayshree Desai，由她來回顧我們第二季度的業績以及2023年全年的財務預期。 Jayshree演講結束後，歡迎大家提問。

Our second quarter results continue our solid start to the year with strong double-digit revenue growth that resulted in record quarterly revenues exceeding $5 billion for the first time in our history as well as a record total backlog of $27.2 billion. We added approximately 3,000 employees during the second quarter due to the building momentum and increasing demand for our Infrastructure Solutions.

第二季業績延續了年初的強勁勢頭，營收實現了兩位數的強勁成長，季度營收首次突破50億美元大關，創歷史新高，同時積壓訂單總額也達到了創紀錄的272億美元。由於業務發展勢頭強勁，市場對我們基礎設施解決方案的需求不斷增長，我們在第二季度新增了約3000名員工。

We are investing in safety and training programs for our employees expanding various service lines and advancing our supply chain and other solutions. We are positioning Quanta for decades of necessary infrastructure investment and continue to believe our operational portfolio is a strategic advantage that provides us the ability to manage risk and shift resources across service lines and geographies, which we believe will become increasingly important as the energy transition accelerates.

我們正加大對員工安全和培訓項目的投入，拓展各項服務，並推動供應鏈及其他解決方案的完善。我們正為未來數十年必要的基礎建設投資做好準備，並始終堅信，我們現有的營運組合是一項策略優勢，使我們能夠有效管理風險，並在各項服務和地理之間靈活調配資源。隨著能源轉型加速，我們認為這項優勢將變得愈發重要。

We believe our portfolio approach positions us well to allocate resources to the opportunities we find the most economically attractive and to achieve operating efficiencies and consistent financial results.

我們相信，我們的投資組合策略使我們能夠更好地將資源分配給我們認為最具經濟吸引力的機會，並實現營運效率和持續的財務表現。

Our Electric Power Operations are performing well overall, though segment margin experienced some pressure from lower utilizations in Canada. Demand for our Electric Power Infrastructure Solutions is strong, driven by broad-based business activity from utility grid modernization, grid security and system hardening initiatives as well as our reputation for consistent and safe execution.

我們的電力業務整體表現良好，但由於加拿大地區利用率下降，該業務板塊的利潤率受到一定壓力。市場對我們電力基礎設施解決方案的需求強勁，這得益於公用事業電網現代化、電網安全和系統加固等一系列廣泛的業務活動，以及我們一貫安全可靠的執行記錄。

Accordingly, we are investing in resources ahead of the anticipated start-up of multiple multiyear utility programs and projects. Additionally, our Communications operations continue to execute well from both a revenue and margin's perspective.

因此，我們正在加大資源投入，以應對多個預計啟動多年的公用事業項目。此外，從收入和利潤率來看，我們的通訊業務持續保持良好運作。

Going forward, our utility customers' multiyear CapEx plans remain strong and we are having discussions with a number of them about capital plans and programs looking out in years. North America's power grid continues to be challenged by a number of demands, including the need to increase the pace of modernization and increase the grid's resiliency and reliability through system hardening, enabling new technologies, facilitating higher levels of electric vehicle penetration, meeting growing power load demand and capitalizing on favorable federal and state policies designed to accelerate the energy transition.

展望未來，我們電力客戶的多年資本支出計畫依然強勁，我們正在與其中許多客戶探討未來幾年的資本計畫和項目。北美電網持續面臨許多挑戰，包括加速現代化進程，透過系統加固提高電網的韌性和可靠性，推廣新技術，促進電動車普及，滿足日益增長的電力負載需求，以及充分利用旨在加速能源轉型的聯邦和州政府的有利政策。

We believe Quanta Solutions' offering and ability to safely consistently execute is industry-leading. We are uniquely positioned to collaborate with our clients on their multiyear grid operations.

我們相信，昆騰解決方案公司提供的產品和服務以及安全穩定執行的能力在業界處於領先地位。我們擁有獨特的優勢，能夠與客戶在多年的電網營運方面合作。

Renewable Infrastructure Solutions segment revenues increased significantly in the quarter as construction of renewable generation projects within the multiyear programs ramped up and high-voltage electric transmission and substation work remained active.

本季度，隨著多年計畫內再生能源發電項目的建設加速推進，以及高壓輸電和變電站工程的持續開展，再生能源基礎設施解決方案部門的收入大幅增長。

Segment total backlog reached a record $7 billion at quarter end, driven by the addition of SunZia transmission and HVDC converter station contracts in various renewable generation, transmission and substation projects. We believe the momentum in this segment will continue, and we are making the necessary investments to scale our resources and capacity to handle multiyear renewable programs that we expect will yield record levels of new renewable generation over the coming decade, driven by the [IRA] and acceleration of North America's energy transition.

截至季末，該業務板塊的總積壓訂單達到創紀錄的70億美元，主要得益於SunZia在多個再生能源發電、輸電和變電站項目中新增的輸電和高壓直流換流站合約。我們相信該業務板塊的成長勢頭將持續，並且我們正在進行必要的投資，以擴大資源和產能，從而承接我們預計在未來十年內將創紀錄的新增可再生能源項目。這些新增項目主要受《工業關係法案》（IRA）和北美能源轉型加速的推動。

Additionally, we are pursuing billions of dollars of high-voltage transmission projects that are designed to support current and future renewable generation capacity growth and overall system reliability. As we have discussed on prior earnings calls and reported more recently in the media, federal and state policies, designed to accelerate the energy transition and the electrification of everything, are expected to significantly increase load demand and are already pressuring the power grid.

此外，我們正在推動數十億美元的高壓輸電項目，旨在支持當前和未來再生能源發電能力的成長，並提升整個系統的可靠性。正如我們在先前的財報電話會議上討論過，以及近期在媒體報道中提到的，旨在加速能源轉型和全面電氣化的聯邦和州政府政策預計將顯著增加負荷需求，並已對電網造成壓力。

At the same time, there are significant challenges to getting regional transmission infrastructure built in a timely manner, primarily due to obtaining necessary environmental permits and regulatory approvals. The need for collaboration at all levels to ensure grid reliability while minimizing cost impacts to the ratepayer remains the industry's greatest challenge.

同時，及時建設區域輸電基礎設施仍面臨許多挑戰，主要原因在於取得必要的環境許可和監管批准。如何在確保電網可靠性的同時，最大限度地降低對用戶的成本影響，仍然是該行業面臨的最大挑戰。

We remain pleased with the performance of our Underground Utility and Infrastructure Solutions segment, which delivered double-digit revenue growth and record second quarter profitability, demonstrating solid execution across our operations in this segment. Our Industrial Services Operations executed well, and we had strong demand for our gas utility and pipeline integrity operations, driven by regulated spend to modernize systems, reduce methane emissions, ensure environmental compliance and improve safety and reliability.

我們對地下公用設施和基礎設施解決方案業務板塊的業績依然感到滿意，該板塊實現了兩位數的收入增長，並創下第二季度盈利新高，充分展現了我們在該板塊各項運營活動的穩健執行。我們的工業服務業務也表現出色，受監管支出推動，天然氣公用設施和管道完整性運營業務需求強勁，這些支出用於系統現代化改造、減少甲烷排放、確保環境合規以及提高安全性和可靠性。

We believe we are in the early stages of capitalizing on significant opportunities across our service lines and geographies, which are driven by our collaborative solution-based approach that is designed to ultimately benefit consumers. Additionally, the growth of programmatic spending, with existing and new customers, increased renewable generation activity and favorable megatrends provide greater visibility into our near- and long-term growth outlook.

我們相信，我們正處於掌握各項服務領域和地域重大機會的早期階段，這些機會源自於我們以協作解決方案為導向的模式，旨在最終惠及消費者。此外，現有客戶和新客戶的程序化支出成長、再生能源發電活動的增加以及有利的大趨勢，都讓我們對近期和長期的成長前景有了更清晰的認識。

As a result of these dynamics and our solid year-to-date financial performance, we have increased our full year 2023 financial expectations for revenues, adjusted EBITDA and adjusted EPS. The energy transition towards a reduced carbon economy continues to progress, and we believe is gaining pace. Quanta is successfully executing on our strategic initiatives to drive sustainable and resilient operational excellence, total cost solutions for our clients and consistent profitable growth.

鑑於上述動態以及我們今年迄今穩健的財務業績，我們提高了對2023年全年營收、調整後EBITDA和調整後每股收益的預期。向低碳經濟轉型正在持續推進，我們相信這一進程正在加速。昆塔正成功執行各項策略性舉措，以推動可持續且穩健的卓越運營，為客戶提供全面的成本解決方案，並實現持續獲利成長。

We are focused on operating the business for the long term and expect to continue to distinguish ourselves through safe execution and best-in-class build leadership. We will pursue opportunities to enhance Quanta's base business and leadership position in the industry and provide innovative solutions to our customers.

我們專注於業務的長期運營，並期望透過穩健的執行和一流的建設領導力繼續保持領先地位。我們將尋求各種機會，提升廣達的基礎業務和產業領導地位，並為客戶提供創新解決方案。

We believe Quanta's diversity, unique operating model and entrepreneurial mindset form the foundation that will allow us to continue to generate long-term value for our stakeholders.

我們相信，昆騰的多元化、獨特的營運模式和創業精神是我們能夠繼續為利害關係人創造長期價值的基礎。

I will now turn the call over to Jayshree Desai, our CFO, for her review of the second quarter results and 2023 expectations. Jayshree?

現在我將把電話轉交給我們的財務長傑伊什裡·德賽，請她回顧第二季度業績並展望2023年。傑伊什裡？

Thanks, Duke, and good morning, everyone. Today, we announced record second quarter revenues of $5 billion. Net income attributable to common stock was $166 million or $1.12 per diluted share and adjusted diluted earnings per share was $1.65.

謝謝杜克，大家早安。今天，我們宣布第二季營收創歷史新高，達到50億美元。歸屬於普通股股東的淨利為1.66億美元，即每股稀釋收益1.12美元；調整後每股攤薄收益為1.65美元。

Our second quarter Electric Power revenues were $2.4 billion and operating income margins were 10.1% consistent with our expectations for sequential revenue growth and margin expansion against our first quarter results.

我們第二季電力業務收入為 24 億美元，營業利潤率為 10.1%，與我們對營收環比成長和利潤率擴張的預期一致，與第一季業績相比。

Our base business activities continue to lead the way for the segment of utility investments in hardening and modernization initiatives create growing demand for our comprehensive solutions. While the segment executed at a double-digit margin profile, it was negatively impacted by a lower-than-expected utilization of electric resources in Canada.

我們的基礎業務活動持續引領公用事業投資領域，尤其是在基礎設施加固和現代化改造方面，從而創造了對我們綜合解決方案日益增長的需求。儘管該業務板塊實現了兩位數的利潤率，但由於加拿大電力資源利用率低於預期，其業績受到了一定程度的負面影響。

Renewable Energy Infrastructure segment revenues for second quarter '23 were $1.4 billion, with operating income margins of 8%. The revenue strength in the quarter reflects the growing momentum behind Renewable Energy Infrastructure and our customers' ability to move forward with construction activities in this favorable regulatory environment.

2023年第二季度，再生能源基礎設施業務部門營收為14億美元，營業利潤率為8%。本季營收強勁成長，反映了再生能源基礎設施業務的持續發展勢頭，以及客戶在當前有利的監管環境下推進建設活動的能力。

Margins improved sequentially as increased revenues contributed to better cost absorption and as we successfully executed through risks on ongoing projects. Underground Utility and Infrastructure segment revenues were $1.2 billion for the quarter, and operating income margins were 8.6%, a noteworthy second quarter performance. Both large projects and base business operations contributed to the elevated revenues with margins benefiting from improved fixed cost absorption.

由於收入成長促進了成本吸收，加之我們在進行中的專案中成功應對了風險，利潤率環比有所提高。地下公用設施和基礎設施業務部門本季營收達12億美元，營業利潤率為8.6%，第二季業績表現顯著。大型專案和基礎業務營運均推動了收入成長，而固定成本吸收的改善則提升了利潤率。

For additional commentary comparing 2Q '23 to 2Q '22, please refer to the slides accompanying this call. Regarding backlog, with the inclusion of 2 of the 3 contracts with the previously announced SunZia Award and continued robust activity in our Renewable segment, we achieved another record level at quarter end.

如需對2023年第二季與2022年第二季進行更詳細的比較，請參閱本次電話會議附帶的投影片。關於積壓訂單，由於計入了先前宣布的SunZia中標的三份合約中的兩份，加上再生能源業務持續強勁的增長，我們在季度末再次創下歷史新高。

At June 30, 2023, backlog was $27.2 billion, an increase of $1.9 billion compared to March 31. Our 12-month backlog is also at a record level of $15.6 billion, approximately $1 billion higher than March 31. For the second quarter of 2023, we had free cash flow of $46 million. DSO measured 78 days for the second quarter, lower than our historical average and aided by favorable billing arrangements associated with certain awards during the quarter.

截至2023年6月30日，積壓訂單總額為272億美元，較3月31日增加19億美元。過去12個月的積壓訂單總額也創下156億美元的歷史新高，比3月31日高出約10億美元。 2023年第二季度，我們的自由現金流為4,600萬美元。第二季應收帳款週轉天數（DSO）為78天，低於歷史平均水平，這得益於本季度部分訂單相關的有利結算安排。

Regarding the Canadian Renewable Transmission Project, we've discussed in prior quarters, based on operating conditions and our ability to achieve stakeholder targets while overcoming the COVID-19-related challenges encountered throughout the course of the project, we decided to accelerate the construction schedule into the spring and early summer.

關於加拿大再生能源輸電項目，我們在前幾個季度已經討論過，根據運營情況以及我們在克服項目過程中遇到的與 COVID-19 相關的挑戰的同時實現利益相關者目標的能力，我們決定加快施工進度，將施工時間提前到春季和初夏。

As a result, the contract asset balance grew during the quarter and continues to pressure DSO, and will do so until we finish the project. Given our successful execution in the field and the ongoing discussions with the customer regarding significant portions of the balance representing approximately 6 to 7 days of DSO as of June 30, we remain confident in our position.

因此，本季合約資產餘額有所增長，並持續對應收帳款週轉天數 (DSO) 構成壓力，這種情況將持續到專案完成為止。鑑於我們在現場的成功執行，以及截至 6 月 30 日與客戶就相當於約 6 至 7 天 DSO 的餘額部分進行的持續磋商，我們仍然對自身處境充滿信心。

As of June 30, 2023, we had total liquidity of approximately $1.8 billion and a debt-to-EBITDA ratio of 2.5x as calculated under our credit agreement. We expect second half earnings growth and cash generation to support our ability to delever over the coming quarters while continuing to create stockholder value through opportunistic capital deployment.

截至2023年6月30日，根據我們的信貸協議計算，我們的總流動資金約為18億美元，債務與EBITDA之比為2.5倍。我們預計下半年的獲利成長和現金流將有助於我們在未來幾季降低槓桿率，同時透過把握機會進行資本配置，持續為股東創造價值。

Turning to our guidance. We are pleased with our performance through the first half of the year and see significant strength in the back half of the year, particularly the fourth quarter. From a segment perspective, we continue to expect Electric Segment revenues between $10 billion and $10.1 billion for the year. However, we expect full year margins will be impacted by the costs incurred this year in preparation for the anticipated growth in multiyear utility programs. That, along with pressure from our Canadian operations, is leading us to lower our full year margin expectations for the segment to range between 10.5% and 11%.

接下來談談我們的業績展望。我們對上半年的業績表現感到滿意，並預計下半年，特別是第四季度，將呈現強勁成長勢頭。從業務板塊來看，我們仍然預期電力業務板塊將全年營收將在100億美元至101億美元之間。然而，我們預計全年利潤率將受到應對多年期公用事業項目預期成長而產生的成本影響。此外，加拿大業務也面臨壓力，因此我們將該板塊全年利潤率預期下調至10.5%至11%。

Regarding our Renewables segment, given the performance of the second quarter and increased visibility into project activity, we are raising our full year revenue expectations for the segment by $700 million, now ranging between $5.2 billion and $5.4 billion. We continue to expect margins around 8.5% for the year as much of the work is just getting started, and we will need to execute through project risks before margins have the opportunity to improve.

關於我們的再生能源業務板塊，鑑於第二季度的良好表現以及專案進展的日益明朗，我們將該板塊全年營收預期上調7億美元，目前預計在52億美元至54億美元之間。我們仍預期全年利潤率約為8.5%，因為許多專案才剛啟動，我們需要克服專案風險，利潤率才有機會提升。

After a good second quarter, we now expect revenues from our Underground segment to range between $4.4 billion and $4.5 billion, a $250 million increase at the midpoint and we continue to expect full year margins for the segment to range between 7% and 7.5%.

經過一個良好的第二季度，我們現在預計地下運輸部門的收入將在 44 億美元至 45 億美元之間，中間值將增加 2.5 億美元，我們繼續預計該部門全年的利潤率將在 7% 至 7.5% 之間。

As Duke said, given our performance to date and improved visibility, we are raising our full year revenue expectations, which we now expect to range between $19.6 billion and $20 billion, a $950 million increase at the midpoint of our range.

正如杜克所說，鑑於我們迄今為止的業績和日益明朗的前景，我們提高了全年收入預期，目前預計全年收入將在 196 億美元至 200 億美元之間，按預期範圍的中點計算，將增加 9.5 億美元。

We've increased our expectation for full year adjusted diluted earnings per share attributable to common stock to now range between $6.90 and $7.30 and increased our expectation for full year adjusted EBITDA to range between $1.88 billion and $1.97 billion for the year.

我們已將全年調整後稀釋後普通股每股收益預期上調至 6.90 美元至 7.30 美元之間，並將全年調整後 EBITDA 預期上調至 18.8 億美元至 19.7 億美元之間。

With regard to free cash flow, we are modestly raising our full year expectations, primarily due to the expected increase in renewable revenues, which typically have a favorable working capital profile compared to our other segments. Therefore, we now expect free cash flow for the year to range between $800 million and $1 billion, with the highest levels in the fourth quarter as is typically the case.

關於自由現金流，我們小幅上調了全年預期，主要原因是預計再生能源收入將有所增長，而與其他業務板塊相比，再生能源通常具有更有利的營運資本狀況。因此，我們現在預計全年自由現金流將在8億至10億美元之間，第四季將達到最高水平，這符合慣例。

We slightly modified other aspects of our guidance, the details of which are included in our outlook summary, which can be found in the Financial Information Section of our IR website at quantaservices.com.

我們對其他方面的指導意見略作修改，詳情請參閱我們的展望摘要，該摘要可在我們投資者關係網站 quantaservices.com 的財務資訊部分找到。

Looking ahead, we are excited by the momentum and highly visible and growing multiyear outlook behind our Electric and Renewable segments. Additionally, we are encouraged by the strength of our underground utility and infrastructure segment, which continues to grow and execute at a high level. With this core operating portfolio, we are confident in our ability to deliver comprehensive solutions to support the energy transition and to create significant shareholder value through organic growth and strategic capital investment.

展望未來，我們對電力和再生能源業務板塊的強勁發展勢頭以及未來幾年清晰可見的成長前景感到振奮。此外，地下公用設施和基礎設施業務板塊的強勁表現也令我們倍感鼓舞，該板塊持續成長並維持著高水準的營運。憑藉這一核心業務組合，我們有信心提供全面的解決方案，以支持能源轉型，並透過內生成長和策略資本投資創造顯著的股東價值。

I'll now turn it back to the operator for Q&A. Operator?

現在我把電話轉回接線生進行問答環節。接線生？

(Operator Instructions) Our first question comes from the line of Brent Thielman with D.A. Davidson.

（操作說明）我們的第一個問題來自 Brent Thielman 和 D.A. Davidson 的提問。

A nice rebound in Renewable margin this quarter. I was wondering if you could just provide an update on solar supply chain pressures previously seen, maybe how that may or may not still be impacting the renewables business? And should that sort of be a factor here still for you for the rest of the year?

本季再生能源利潤率出現了不錯的反彈。我想請您更新一下先前太陽能供應鏈面臨的壓力，以及這些壓力目前是否仍對再生能源業務產生影響？在今年剩餘的時間裡，這是否仍然是您需要考慮的因素？

We're seeing what we thought would happen with the solar supply chain slashing in general, I think we are operating through those issues, and we had 6 months really where the industry stopped. And as we move forward, we thought there would be cadence to the segment to solar in general. That cadence is playing out like we thought. We're certainly increasing guidance due to some of that. And I think as you go through '23 and you operate through '24, you'll get a more balanced quarter-over-quarter type margin profile, but the margin pickups and the opportunities that we see on the other side of the year -- second half of the year into '24, '25 and beyond, are certainly what we thought or greater.

我們目前看到的正是預期的太陽能供應鏈整體削減的情況，我認為我們正在克服這些問題，整個產業實際上停滯了六個月。隨著業務的推進，我們預期太陽能產業整體會呈現出一定的節奏。這種節奏正在按預期發展。因此，我們確實提高了業績預期。我認為，隨著2023年和2024年的運營，季度環比利潤率將更加均衡，但我們預計，從下半年到2024年、2025年及以後，利潤率的回升和機會將達到甚至超過我們的預期。

Got it. And then just my follow-up. Can you talk about what from SunZia is reflected in bookings this quarter? Is there still more to come as you're likely still in negotiations? Is it all represented here in the financials?

明白了。我還有一個後續問題。您能談談SunZia在本季預訂量中體現了哪些內容嗎？由於您可能還在進行談判，是否還有更多預訂即將到來？這些都反映在財務報表上了嗎？

No. We're still negotiating a third contract there on the wind side of the business. So that will be -- we believe we'll have that finished up here in the second half of the year, third quarter, fourth quarter, somewhere in there.

不，我們仍在就風電業務的第三份合約進行談判。所以，我們相信會在今年下半年、第三季或第四季完成這項工作。

Our next question comes from the line of Michael Dudas with Vertical Research Partners.

我們的下一個問題來自 Vertical Research Partners 的 Michael Dudas。

Duke, I want to follow up on your prepared remarks, you talked about the challenges that the customers, utilities and regulators are facing. Have -- I assume to date, they've been overcome? Are there -- do you anticipate or given your discussions with your utility clients that there's going to be much more coming ahead like in the next 12 to 18 months? Or is it sooner? And is that impacting any of the mix of what type of either wind or solar development or what -- from regulators and customer base are looking at as you pace out your backlog opportunities?

杜克，我想就您事先準備好的發言進行後續跟進。您談到了客戶、公用事業公司和監管機構面臨的挑戰。我假設到目前為止，這些挑戰都已克服了嗎？根據您與公用事業客戶的討論，您是否預計未來12到18個月內會有更多的挑戰出現？還是會更早？這是否會影響監管機構和客戶群在考慮風能或太陽能開發專案類型時，以及您在推動積壓專案時所關注的其他方面？

Yes, Mike, good question. When we look at regulation and you look at the -- what's going on at the consumer level, when you rebate EVs, the way we're rebating and then the grid itself at the distribution level certainly needs a rebuild, a significant modernization. So that needs to get started now, not when the consumer is getting his car and bringing it to the home, and they have no way to power their vehicle or it's intermittent power.

是的，麥克，問得好。當我們檢視監管，檢視消費者層面的情況，檢視電動車的補貼方式，以及配電層面的電網本身，這些都亟需重建和重大現代化改造。這項工作必須立即啟動，而不是等到消費者提車回家後才發現沒有辦法為車輛充電，或電力供應不穩定。

So I think as an industry, we've always been in front of what we anticipate. In those levels, we have to get in front of that. So at a federal level and state level, the collaboration with -- along with utility customer is necessary and where you have states that are worried on the bill and the capital at the consumer level, which we are as well, and you have federal pushing in the other direction. We've just got to get a better mechanism to make sure that we can service what's coming at us.

所以我認為，作為一個產業，我們一直走在預期的前面。在這些層面上，我們必須走在前面。因此，在聯邦和州層面，與公用事業客戶合作是必要的。各州擔心消費者層面的帳單和資金問題，我們也是如此，而聯邦政府卻朝著相反的方向努力。我們必須建立一個更好的機制，以確保我們能夠應對即將到來的挑戰。

I think when you listen to the car manufacturers, when you listen to anything that we've been talking about, we thought that generation would double, we're here in triple now. There's no question, it's moving forward. If it's double, if it's triple and you're also decreasing the decarbonization of coal and gas with renewables, the impacts for interconnections for transmission, the rebuilds that are necessary are monumental and the necessary capital to go into the grid, although when you look -- when you go forward and you try to net present value, total cost of energy, I think it's the right answer. It's just we have to get started with the capital plans and they're greater than you may anticipate or anyone may anticipate as you move forward.

我認為，當你聽汽車製造商的說法，當你聽我們一直在討論的任何事情時，我們原本以為發電量會翻一番，而現在已經翻了三番。毫無疑問，它正在向前發展。如果發電量翻番，甚至翻三番，同時還要用再生能源減少煤炭和天然氣的脫碳，那麼輸電線路互聯的影響、必要的重建以及電網所需的資金投入將是巨大的。然而，當你展望未來，試著計算淨現值和能源總成本時，我認為這是正確的答案。只是我們必須開始著手製定資本計劃，而這些計劃的規模可能比你或任何人預想的都要大。

So it's just trying to put people in front of that and make sure the industry is collaborating. When we look at our clients even with inflation, even with everything that's going on, the capital is moving up. It's just the pace of where we need to be 5 years from now. It's not a matter of tomorrow. It's a matter of 3 years from now, 5 years from now and the industry itself is certainly I'm talking about the need for transmission and also the modernization of distribution systems.

所以，我們現在要做的就是讓人們關注這個問題，並確保整個產業通力合作。即使考慮到通貨膨脹和各種因素，我們的客戶仍然在努力提升資本水準。關鍵在於我們未來五年需要達到的速度。這不是明天就能解決的問題，而是未來三年、五年內需要解決的問題。我指的是整個產業，包括輸電需求以及配電系統的現代化改造。

So I guess from a -- the industry has been growing (inaudible) at very slow rates. And are your customers seeing that going to be accelerating in the next 5 years? And again, are the plans there to -- that you have the ability to capacity given your 3- to 5-year outlook to execute on that?

所以我覺得，從某種意義上來說，這個產業（聽不清楚）的成長速度非常緩慢。您的客戶是否認為未來五年成長速度會加快？另外，根據您未來三到五年的展望，您是否有能力製定相應的計劃來執行這些計劃？

I think when you look at transmission, certainly, it's necessary if you're fuel switching and then where the load is going from data centers, AI to just about everything, you're seeing load growth now in the industry across the board, you've got 110-degree heat. You had a [load], what I would consider a mild winter, first quarter was pretty mild for the industry. But July into August, you're 100 plus in many areas. It just -- those impacts to the way capital is spent and where it's necessary to spend. You start moving up deviations of temperatures on this grid from a planning standpoint, it's exponential of load.

我認為，從輸電的角度來看，如果你要進行燃料轉換，那麼輸電肯定是必要的。而且，隨著資料中心、人工智慧等幾乎所有領域的負載增加，整個產業的負荷都在成長，再加上華氏110度（約攝氏43度）的高溫，情況就更加複雜了。第一季度，我認為是溫和的冬季，對整個產業來說也比較溫和。但是到了7月到8月，很多地區的氣溫都超過了100華氏度（約攝氏38度）。這些都會影響資金的使用方式和投入方向。從規劃的角度來看，電網溫度的波動會隨著負載的增加而呈指數級增長。

Our next questions comes form the line of Steven Fisher with UBS.

接下來的問題來自瑞銀集團的史蒂文費雪。

Obviously, the -- some of the investments you're making for growth are weighing a little bit on the electric margins for now, but it's not really a new concept you've long talked about how you need to make investments to prudently support the growth. So can you maybe just talk a little bit about some of those investments that you've made this year already to support the growth, if you can kind of quantify year-over-year what that impact is? And how should we think about the investments for the second half versus the first half kind of where you're making these investments and out of frame what that might look like in '24 relative to the investments in '23?

顯然，你們為促進成長而進行的一些投資目前對電力業務的利潤率造成了一定程度的影響，但這並非什麼新概念，你們一直以來都在強調需要進行投資以審慎地支持成長。那麼，能否請您談談今年以來為支持成長而進行的一些投資，並量化一下這些投資對公司業績的同比影響？此外，我們該如何看待下半年和上半年的投資安排？以及，從宏觀角度來看，2024年的投資情況與2023年相比會是怎麼樣的呢？

Yes, Steve, I think when you look at the quarter, we added from around 3,000 employees. We normally add about a 1,000. So when you start thinking through that, it does pressure where the company is capable of training, doing all the things that we need to do, the investments are already made. It's just pressure, there's 4 or 5 things that we could call out that's pressuring inflation, and you can call out whether we can make all kinds of excuses about it.

是的，史蒂夫，我覺得如果你看一下這個季度，我們增加了大約3000名員工。通常情況下，我們只會增加1000人左右。所以當你仔細考慮這個問題時，你會發現這確實給公司帶來了壓力，因為公司有能力進行培訓，能夠完成所有我們需要做的事情，而且投資也已經到位了。這確實是一種壓力，我們可以列舉四、五件推高通膨的事情，你也可以說說我們是否可以為此找各種各樣的藉口。

Really, we can operate much better in Canada than we have been operating. The transition is a little bit behind in Canada, where we can operate Canada at normalized margins. We've been through the pandemic there. We've made different levels of, I would say, balance from [G&A] to training, to [interacts] and all those kind of things in Canada.

實際上，我們在加拿大的營運效率遠比現在高得多。加拿大的轉型進程稍顯滯後，但我們完全可以以正常的利潤率運作。我們在加拿大經歷了疫情。我認為，我們在加拿大已經實現了不同層面的平衡，從一般及行政費用到培訓，再到員工互動等等。

As we move out of '23 into '24, you'll get into more normalized Canadian execution, and I think you'll see much better results that we can absorb just about anything. The portfolio that we put together in the segments, which should allow us to train, to put people in place for the foreseeable future. And still even in outward growth years, produce the type of margins that we produced in the past. I see no reason why we cannot. And I do believe we can operate the renewable segment in double digits. I'll stand by it.

隨著我們從2023年邁入2024年，加拿大的營運模式將更加規範化，我相信我們能夠取得更好的業績，幾乎可以應對任何挑戰。我們建構的多元化業務組合，應該能夠讓我們在可預見的未來進行人員培訓和配置。即使在經濟成長的年份，我們也能維持過去那樣的利潤率。我看不出我們有什麼理由做不到。而且我相信，我們能夠實現再生能源業務兩位數的成長。我對此充滿信心。

Okay. And maybe just to follow up there. Jayshree mentioned that the Renewables margins are staying in this range until you can get comfortable with, I guess, execution and some of the other risk factors. So how should we think about the timing for allowing some of that upside to be realized in the margins and when could we see that better margin come through Renewables?

好的。或許我想補充一點。 Jayshree提到，再生能源的利潤率會一直維持在這個區間，直到執行情況和其他一些風險因素都得到改善。那麼，我們該如何看待利潤率提升的時機，以及何時才能看到再生能源帶來更高的利潤率呢？

Yes, Steve. We're starting quite a few large transmission projects in the segment. We're also starting thousands of renewable-type utility-scale solar win. So when we look at that and where we're at, the cadence itself, we thought it would be back end loaded, so the start to the jobs, as we operate through those contingencies, I think you'll see a more normalized margin profile into '24. We have to operate in double digits in the second half or you won't get to the numbers that you -- what you see.

是的，史蒂夫。我們在這個領域啟動了不少大型輸電計畫。同時，我們也啟動了數千個公用事業規模的再生能源太陽能專案。所以，當我們檢視這些專案以及我們目前的進度時，我們原本以為專案啟動會集中在後半段，也就是專案初期。隨著我們逐步解決這些突發情況，我認為到2024年，利潤率會更加穩定。我們必須在下半年維持兩位數的成長率，否則就達不到你現在看到的業績。

I do think there's opportunities all the way through for us, we took a prudent approach to it. We tried to hit it down the middle. That's what we've done here. And I do think there's opportunities into '24 to get on a more normalized cadence.

我認為我們一路走來都有很多機會，我們採取了謹慎的態度。我們力求做到兩全其美。這就是我們在這裡所做的。而且我認為到2024年，我們還有機會進入一個更正常的節奏。

The next question comes from the line of Andy Kaplowitz with Citigroup.

下一個問題來自花旗集團的安迪·卡普洛維茨。

Backlog does continue to rise in your Underground Utility business and revenue has actually continued to pick up. I know last quarter, you were modestly concerned. You did raise the forecast there for the year -- for this year. So what are you seeing on the ground there? And how are you thinking about the business moving forward? Could it end up being more resilient even into '24 than you expected?

您的地下公用設施業務積壓訂單持續增加，而收入實際上也持續成長。我知道上個季度您對此略感擔憂，也確實上調了今年的業績預期。那麼，您目前的實際經營狀況如何？您對該業務未來的發展有何看法？它能否比您預期的更具韌性，甚至在2024年依然保持成長？

When we look at the UUI segment, we've said that we thought we could get scale through some regional offices through the portfolio. I think you're starting to see that show up in the segment. We did -- we've operated great. We've had good industrial performance in the first half of the year. When you get into the back half, we do see some -- we have some pipe awards that we were awarded. We have some good things going on. We don't need those things to make the numbers. So we do see opportunity but you also have the weather impacts.

當我們審視UUI業務部門時，我們曾表示，我們認為可以透過一些區域辦事處來擴大業務規模。我認為您已經開始在該板塊看到成效。我們的營運非常出色，上半年產業表現良好。進入下半年，我們確實看到了一些進展——我們獲得了一些管道項目合約。我們有一些不錯的項目正在進行中。但我們並不需要這些項目來達到業績目標。因此，我們看到了機遇，但同時也面臨天氣的影響。

We're doing more electrical underground. And so that will shift some of our UUI segment over in the Electric segment. Just the way the segment reporting works, but as far as the crews and what we're doing from the scalability, it should rise our returns on the company. It will rise returns on the company overall. And the segment is also doing nicely in our service lines.

我們正在加大地下電力工程的投入。因此，部分地下電氣工程業務（UUI）將轉移到電力業務板塊。這是板塊報告機制的運作方式，但就施工團隊和我們目前的規模化工作而言，這應該會提高公司的收益。整體而言，這將提升公司的收益。而且，該業務板塊在我們的服務線中也表現良好。

Duke, maybe if I could follow up on that. You did 8.6% in that UUI segment, which is basically as high as we've seen Quanta deliver but it's maybe the consistency over the last few quarters that's been interesting in that segment. So based on your comments, scale, balancing of the businesses there, could you continue to see more consistent and higher margin in that segment moving forward?

杜克，我想就此問題再補充一下。你們在UUI業務板塊的收益率達到了8.6%，這基本上是廣達迄今為止的最高水平，但該板塊近幾個季度的穩定性才是真正引人注目的地方。所以，根據您先前的評論，考慮到該板塊的規模和業務平衡，您認為未來該板塊的收益率能否繼續保持穩定並達到更高水平？

Always, we would operate in upper single digits, and I see expectation. We are prudent about how we got in the second half due to the weather in northern climbs and things of that nature. But I do think that overall segment can operate in that upper single-digit range. We are pushing -- you are getting absorptions throughout due to the fact that you're doing electric and gas and telecom and renewables out of the same offices, you're going to see some scale out of that. And those margins are going to rise a bit, and that's what you're seeing show up.

我們一直以來都保持著個位數以上的成長率，我認為市場也對此有所預期。考慮到北方地區上半年的天氣狀況以及其他類似因素，我們在下半年採取了謹慎的態度。但我認為，整體而言，該業務板塊的成長率仍能維持在個位數以上。我們正努力推動──由於電力、天然氣、電信和再生能源等業務都在同一辦公地點開展，因此各環節的吸收能力都在提升，規模效應也隨之顯現。利潤率將會略有提高，而這正是我們目前所看到的。

The next question comes from the line of Justin Hauke with Baird.

下一個問題來自賈斯汀·豪克和貝爾德的連線。

I guess I wanted to ask a little bit in the Electric segment, the equity income contribution, which I know is multiple things, but it's mostly LUMA, at $9.4 million this quarter, it's -- it was kind of light last quarter as well. It looks like you took your guidance down a little bit for the contribution from there. Given that last year, it was kind of running almost at double these levels, is there anything that's kind of changed in that business that maybe we should think about that this is kind of the more appropriate run rate with the contribution from that?

我想問一下關於電力業務板塊的權益收益貢獻，我知道這其中包含很多方面，但主要是指LUMA，本季為940萬美元，上季也比較低。看起來你們下調了對該板塊貢獻的預期。考慮到去年同期，該板塊的貢獻幾乎是現在的兩倍，該業務是否發生了一些變化，導致目前的貢獻水準更為合理？

LUMA is performing as expected. There are some investments that we have in other businesses there that are off on the first half. We expect those to pick up in the '23 and into '24. But Jayshree, you can comment.

LUMA 的表現符合預期。我們在其他一些企業的投資在上半年表現不佳。我們預計這些投資將在 2023 年和 2024 年有所回升。 Jayshree，你有什麼看法？

Yes, Justin, we had a couple of outsized events from last year. We had a storm that helped our -- some of those entities in that part of the segment. And we also had some catch-up in LUMA, that's what you were seeing last year. This year, in general, the -- that part of the segment is performing very well. We continue to see the operations going as we would expect, a little bit of pullback, but nothing systemic, and we believe we can operate through a lot of that and continue to perform at these levels.

是的，賈斯汀，去年我們確實遇到了一些比較棘手的事件。一場風暴對我們業務板塊中的一些實體起到了一定的幫助。此外，LUMA 也出現了一些業務追趕的情況，這就是你去年看到的情況。今年，總體而言，該業務板塊的表現非常出色。我們預期營運狀況將持續符合預期，雖然出現了一些小幅回調，但並未出現系統性問題。我們相信能夠克服這些困難，並繼續保持目前的績效水準。

Okay. And then maybe following up on Andy's question on just the margins in Underground. Obviously, they were quite strong. Usually, you would have more margin in the second half than you do in 2Q, but your guidance would imply a little bit softer than it was in 2Q. But is there anything unusual like project closeout or something like that, anything quantifiable that was in the quarter that made those margins unexpectedly high?

好的。接下來我想回答Andy關於Underground業務利潤率的問題。顯然，他們的利潤率相當高。通常情況下，下半年的利潤率會高於第二季度，但你們的業績指引似乎顯示下半年的利潤率會比第二季度略低。那麼，這個季度是否存在一些特殊情況，例如專案收尾之類的，或者其他任何可以量化的因素，導致利潤率出乎意料地高呢？

No.

不。

No. I mean we said our Industrial business performed really well in the quarter as well. So that certainly was strength in the quarter. And I do think when you start to look out, you do not have great visibility in the fourth quarter in the Industrial business. So that said, the prudent guidance would be to pull it down a bit in the fourth quarter. And that's kind of what you're seeing show up.

不，我的意思是，我們之前也說過，工業業務在本季表現非常出色。所以，這無疑是本季的一大亮點。但我認為，展望未來，工業業務第四季的前景並不明朗。因此，審慎的做法是略微下調第四季的業績預期。而這大概就是我們目前所看到的。

Our next question comes from the line of Neil Mehta with Goldman Sachs.

我們的下一個問題來自高盛的尼爾·梅塔。

A couple of big picture questions. Duke, maybe your perspective on the M&A markets here. It has clearly been a core competency for you guys, particularly as we saw with Blattner, what do you think the market looks like for M&A? And are you thinking to the extent it is opening up smaller bolt-ons versus larger strategic?

幾個比較宏觀的問題。杜克，您能否談談您對本地併購市場的看法？併購顯然一直是貴公司的核心競爭力，尤其是像布拉特納的例子，您認為目前的併購市場前景如何？您認為併購市場在多大程度上更傾向小型補充性收購，還是更傾向大型策略性收購？

Yes. M&A, we have a strategy. We have a 5-year strategy to provide solutions to our customers. We see opportunities across the board related to add-on, bolt-on, provide solutions, do some things that we talked about our front-end services. There's no shortage of opportunities out there. We're picky about how we go about it, and we'll follow the strategy. We're watching our cash generation. We're making sure we can absorb what we have, and we'll be prudent about how we go forward. And anything that we're doing is following the 5-year plan, the strategy we laid out to our investors and we're ahead of those plans significantly.

是的。關於併購，我們有自己的策略。我們制定了一項五年策略，旨在為客戶提供解決方案。我們看到了各個領域的機遇，包括附加功能、整合功能、提供解決方案，以及我們之前提到的前端服務。機會比比皆是。我們會謹慎選擇推進方式，嚴格執行策略。我們密切注意現金流，確保能夠消化現有資金，並謹慎行事。我們所做的一切都遵循五年計劃，也就是我們向投資者闡述的策略，而我們目前的進展遠超預期。

And I feel like the company is in a great position to provide those solutions that are necessary to keep the company moving forward at the pace that we've seen in the past. And we have good visibility into the next decade. And we're known for execution. We have to keep executing in the field, while looking at the strategy to add on and deploy capital in the proper manner for our stakeholders.

我認為公司目前處於非常有利的地位，能夠提供必要的解決方案，確保公司繼續以過去的速度向前發展。我們對未來十年的發展前景非常清晰。我們以執行力著稱。我們必須繼續在實際工作中保持高效執行，同時也要著眼於策略，以適當的方式為利害關係人增加和部署資本。

That was the follow-up. If I go back to last April, you talked about the glide path of $6 to $6.50, I believe it was to $8 to $8.50. So like a 7% to 10% EPS CAGR. But then you talked about upside scenarios where you could get as high as $11 or $12. Just could you just give us a status update on how you think you're tracking relative to that plan? And remind us again, what are the levers that would get you beyond the base case of that $8 to $9.50 to some of those upside scenarios?

那是後續問題。如果我回顧去年四月，您當時談到了股價從 6 美元到 6.50 美元的下滑路徑，我記得是到 8 美元到 8.50 美元。也就是大約 7% 到 10% 的每股盈餘複合年增長率。但您也提到了股價上漲的可能性，最高可達 11 美元或 12 美元。您能否更新一下您認為目前股價與該計劃的差距？另外，能否再次提醒我們，有哪些因素能讓您突破 8 美元到 9.50 美元的基本目標，實現上述上漲目標？

I think when you look at our guidance at the EPS level, which is what we're measured upon, we're ahead of the 10% guide now on a growth basis this year, relatively 13% or better. So when I think about it, we're already doing that as we sit here today. And I do think we set all levers of the balance sheet, the opportunities that we see going forward. We'll continue to (inaudible) big numbers and those kind of things. We're executing at the local level. We're executing across the strategy and doing the things we need to do to drive EPS.

我認為，從我們衡量業績的指標——每股盈餘（EPS）來看，我們今年的成長目標已經超過了10%的預期，達到了13%甚至更高。所以，仔細想想，我們現在已經達成了這個目標。而且，我認為我們已經充分利用了資產負債表的各個方面，抓住了未來的機會。我們將繼續取得（聽不清楚）亮眼的業績。我們在本地層級執行各項計劃，也全面貫徹執行策略，並採取一切必要措施來提升每股盈餘。

And it's not just the top line, it's the quality of earnings. We're constantly talking about quality of earnings. If you look at our returns -- return on invested capital and all of our returns, they are moving in the right direction as we go forward.

而且，重要的不僅是營收，還有獲利品質。我們一直在強調獲利品質。如果你看看我們的回報——投資回報率以及所有回報，你會發現它們都朝著正確的方向發展。

The next question comes from the line of Martin Malloy with Johnson Rice.

下一個問題來自馬丁·馬洛伊和約翰遜·賴斯那一連串的問題。

Congratulations on the quarter. My 0first question, I wanted to ask about the outlook for CO2 pipelines related to the carbon capture and sequestration. And just following on Exxon's acquisition of Denbury in part related to Exxon wanting to get larger in terms of the CO2 pipeline infrastructure. And just kind of curious what you're seeing out there in terms of outlook for potential building on those kind of pipelines.

恭喜您本季業績出色。我的第一個問題是，我想了解與碳捕獲和封存相關的二氧化碳管道的前景。埃克森美孚收購丹伯里公司，部分原因在於埃克森美孚希望擴大其二氧化碳管道基礎設施規模。我很好奇您對這類管道的潛在建設前景有何看法。

Yes. We see opportunities there across the board on hydrogen and also carbon sequestration. We do see that market as being a nice market. The blinds are usually smaller that they run longer, but they're smaller on that type of builds. But we're in constant discussions with the operators as well as the end users of hydrogen and also carbon the way we're looking at it.

是的。我們看到氫能和碳封存領域都蘊藏著巨大的機會。我們認為這是一個很有發展前景的市場。這類建築的百葉窗通常尺寸較小，但長度較長。我們一直在與營運商以及氫能和碳封存的最終用戶就此進行深入探討。

So I do think you'll see some of those lines move forward in '24, be some opportunities for us. The bill, the RA certainly provides economic benefit on both sides of that. And I do think that will help the market as well. So we are seeing opportunities in that area and staying in front of it. We've had some nice pipe awards. So we're happy with the business. We certainly said we would be able to handle those type of things and we can, and we are. So I think it's opportunities for us. It's not the mainstay of the business, but we certainly like it.

所以我認為，在2024年，你會看到一些專案向前推進，這對我們來說是個機會。這項法案，也就是RA法案，無疑會為雙方都帶來經濟效益。而且我認為這也會對市場有所幫助。所以我們看到了這方面的機遇，並且一直保持領先地位。我們已經獲得了一些不錯的管道項目訂單。因此，我們對目前的業務狀況感到滿意。我們之前就說過我們有能力處理這類項目，而我們也確實做到了。所以我認為這對我們來說是個機會。雖然這並非我們業務的支柱，但我們確實很喜歡它。

Okay. And then for my follow-up question, I wanted to ask about undergrounding of transmission distribution lines. And it seems like it's appearing more in the press and utility company commentary about these multiyear programs to underground electric lines. Can you maybe talk a little bit about what you think out there from a customer's perspective, is that -- is it investment in those type of programs? Is it picking up meaningfully?

好的。接下來想問一個關於輸配電線路地下化的問題。似乎媒體和電力公司都在越來越多地提及這些為期多年的電力線路地下化計畫。您能否從使用者的角度談談您的看法，看看這些項目是否真的能吸引用戶投資？投資額是否顯著成長？

I mean you see it in the West, the fire hardening that's going on and the fires outwest from an insurability and what the punitive nature of a fire is to utility at this point, you have no choice but to start undergrounding. And I think you've seen that in the West. We're in early stages of that. It will continue on. It's decades of type reconstruction, but many of the lines that are out there in fire-prone areas will go underground. They're not -- the insurance rates, things of that nature make it economical to underground, which you would have never said that a decade ago. And today, it's the only way.

我的意思是，你在西部地區就能看到，正在進行的防火加固工程，以及西部地區因保險和火災對公用事業公司造成的毀滅性打擊而引發的火災，使得公用事業公司別無選擇，只能開始進行地下管線鋪設。我想你在西部地區已經看到了這一點。我們正處於這一進程的早期階段，而且它還會繼續下去。這需要幾十年的時間進行重建，但許多位於火災易發地區的管線最終都會被埋入地下。保險費率等因素使得地下管線鋪設變得經濟實惠，這在十年前是絕對不可能的。而如今，這已成為唯一的出路。

So I do believe you'll see the prevalent underground transmission in the corridors that we are. You have large wire constraints when you start looking at the larger transmission, the wire in Europe and things of that nature, that supply chain is tight, I do believe when you move forward some of those bigger projects that are undergrounding transmission will come about. We're certainly around the edges on those.

所以我相信，在我們所在的區域，地下輸電線路將會非常普遍。當你開始考慮更大規模的輸電線路時，例如歐洲的輸電線路等等，就會面臨電線供應緊張的問題。我相信，隨著計畫的推進，一些大型的地下輸電計畫將會出現。我們目前在這方面已經初見成效。

But I mean, the mainstay work is overhead, long haul will still be in the air. Where in the fire-prone areas, you'll see some undergrounding.

但我的意思是，主要的施工工作還是在高空，長途運輸還是會依賴空中作業。而在易燃地區，你會看到一些地下作業。

The next question comes from the line of Chad Dillard with Bernstein.

下一個問題來自查德·迪拉德和伯恩斯坦的對話。

So my question is about the large versus small project mix, particularly for Electric Power and Renewables. Can you talk about what that mix is in the first half? What do it look like in the second half? And what did that second half exit rate mean for '24 and ultimately margins?

所以我的問題是關於大型專案與小型專案的組合，特別是電力和再生能源專案。能否談談上半年的專案組合情況？下半年的情況又如何？下半年的退出率對2024年以及最終的利潤率意味著什麼？

Yes. I don't look at it. We don't look at it like that from our standpoint. It's really utilizations. The utilizations are great on all segments. You'll see bigger work. If you want to talk about a project, it will be more in your Renewables at this point. Your bigger programs, your multiyear programs will be more in Electric. It's just the deployment of capital, same crews, same people, cross and segments. So we're cognizant of that. The utilizations on both sides will be at high levels. What I will say is the company itself, no matter what segment you're in, the project starts are significant, and the cadence will start to stack versus just being a starting -- on the starting line.

是的。我不會那樣看待這個問題。從我們的角度來看，我們也不會那樣看待這個問題。關鍵在於資源利用率。所有業務板塊的資源利用率都很高。你會看到更大的項目。如果你想談論具體項目，目前來看，再生能源項目會更多。而規模更大的項目，那些多年期項目，則會更集中在電力領域。這只是資金的部署，同樣的團隊，同樣的人員，跨板塊合作。所以我們很清楚這一點。各領域的資源利用率都會很高。我想說的是，無論你身處哪個板塊，公司本身的專案啟動數量都相當可觀，而且專案節奏會逐漸加快，而不是像以前那樣，一開始就處於起跑線上。

And right now, we're kind of in the early stages of a lot of large projects and programs. So those early stages will as you move in out of '23 into '24, into '25, you'll start to stack on top of that, and you'll get a normalized cadence where you'll see it as we operate through them contingencies move out, things of that nature as long as we execute like we have the last 25 years, we'll be in good shape, and we'll see those contingencies flow into future earnings.

目前，我們許多大型專案和計劃都處於早期階段。隨著時間推移，從2023年到2024年，再到2025年，這些早期階段的計畫將會逐步推進，最終形成一個正常的節奏。隨著我們持續推進這些項目，各種突發事件也會陸續發生。只要我們像過去25年那樣高效執行，我們就能保持良好的發展勢頭，這些突發事件最終也會轉化為未來的收益。

That's helpful. And then my next question is on the Northwest Lineman College. Just trying to understand your ability to scale that just to meet the demand in labor if we're looking over the next 3 to 5 years? Maybe you can talk about like what the capacity is today and where it can go over that time period? And then also the 3,000 people that you brought on what was -- how much came from Northwest versus other channels?

這很有幫助。我的下一個問題是關於西北線路工學院的。我想了解一下，如果展望未來3到5年，你們是否有能力擴大規模以滿足勞動力需求？能否談談學院目前的招生規模以及未來幾年的發展潛力？另外，你們新招的3000名員工中，有多少來自西北地區，又有多少來自其他管道？

We recruit just internally across the board, Northwest certainly is some -- there's a lot of curriculum work, a lot of work that's necessary to be able to scale. It's one thing to -- it's another thing to add 3,000 every quarter or 1,000 every quarter. And also while we're not totally pleased with the Electric margins, it's down 25 basis points or whatever it is on the guide. There's opportunities to operate at the same level we thought.

我們所有職位都只進行內部招聘，西北大學當然也算一個——我們需要做很多課程方面的工作，很多工作都是擴大規模所必需的。每季新增3000人是一回事，每季新增1,000人又是另一回事。而且，雖然我們對電力業務的利潤率並不完全滿意，但它比指導價下降了25個基點，或具體數字是多少。我們有機會維持在預期的營運水準。

That said, it's not as easy as we make it sound. They are certainly contributing to our ability to put the people in the field and execute very quickly and as we get absorption and things of that nature, that's only -- will only scale. And I do think we've invested in those colleges. We've invested in those curriculums and we're not having issues with cross-skilled labor or front-end engineering. Could we use more? Yes. But we're able to meet the demands and the foreseeable demands on any type of curve we're looking at. We hope that supply chain catches up with us.

話雖如此，事情遠沒有我們說的那麼簡單。他們的確為我們快速派遣人員到現場並執行任務做出了貢獻，隨著我們逐步吸收人才等等，這種能力只會不斷擴大。而且我認為我們已經對這些院校進行了投資，也對這些課程進行了投資，因此我們在跨技能勞動力或前端工程方面沒有遇到任何問題。我們是否還需要更多人才？當然需要。但我們有能力滿足當前的需求，以及我們預見的任何成長曲線下的需求。我們希望供應鏈能夠跟上我們的步伐。

The next question comes from the line of Jamie Cook with Credit Suisse.

下一個問題來自瑞士信貸的 Jamie Cook。

(technical difficulty).

（技術難題）

Jamie, you're breaking up. Jamie, you're breaking up. I can't hear you. You got to do it again.

傑米，你聲音斷斷續續的。傑米，你聲音斷斷續續的。我聽不見。你得再說一次。

Can you hear me now?

現在能聽到我說話嗎？

That is it.

就是這樣。

So my first question, if I think about your guide for 2023 and the back half earnings trajectory, it's $2.10 a quarter or so, which implies if we just annualize that earnings of, let's say, a base of $8.40 and that's without SunZia, so I'm just trying to think about the back half of earnings in the setup and what that implies for 2024 is like can we think of an $8 base for 2024 without SunZia and that would imply upside to that?

所以我的第一個問題是，如果我參考你們對 2023 年的指導以及下半年的收益軌跡，大約是每季度 2.10 美元左右，這意味著如果我們把收益按年計算，假設基數為 8.40 美元（不包括 SunZia），那麼我只是想思考一下下半年的情況，以及這對 2024 年收益意味著什麼。比方說，我們能否假設 2024 年的基數為 8 美元（不包括 SunZia），這是否意味著收益還有上漲空間？

And then my second question Duke is more to you, strategically. I understand you're fairly comfortable with your ability to ramp labor in this environment and capitalize on the growth opportunities. But to what degree do you get concerned just with projects like the size of SunZia that you want to limit the number of big projects you want to take on just in terms of more from a risk management perspective.

杜克，我的第二個問題更多的是問你的策略層面問題。我知道你對在當前環境下擴充勞動力規模並抓住成長機會的能力相當有信心。但是，對於像SunZia這樣規模的項目，你是否出於風險管理的考慮，而希望限制大型項目的數量？

Thanks, Jamie. I figured I'd get '24 guidance. So I think when we look at it. '24, you have some seasonality in the numbers and the run rate. I do think we talked about double-digit type growth at the EPS line. I don't see no reason why we won't continue those kind of numbers. Can it get outward, yes. We're not ready to guide to that. We see a great market. We're starting on great markets. I agree with you. We're stacking and it certainly bodes well for us going into next year.

謝謝，傑米。我以為會得到2024年的業績指引。所以我覺得，當我們檢視2024年的數據時，會發現其中存在一些季節性因素和成長率。我確實認為我們討論過每股收益兩位數的成長。我認為我們沒有理由不繼續保持這樣的成長勢頭。成長會向外擴展嗎？當然會。但我們目前還不準備給予具體的指引。我們看到了一個非常好的市場。我們正處於一個非常好的市場環境。我同意你的看法。我們正在穩步發展，這無疑對我們明年的發展大有裨益。

When we look at the projects, the larger projects have been through that before with CREZ and other things in the company, we're highly focused on the customer and the customer level, the baseload work, we're still at a baseload work of 80-plus percent. That hasn't changed. I don't think it will. We will get large projects as we move forward. We are in negotiations constantly around programs and projects, you have to think about some of them being multiyear, 5 years in nature. Some of them are short nature. So it's just different type of projects. The company itself is focused on execution on those projects.

當我們審視這些專案時，大型專案之前在CREZ以及公司其他專案中都經歷過類似的情況。我們高度重視客戶，並專注於客戶層面，以及基礎工作量。我們目前的基礎工作量仍維持在80%以上，這一點沒有改變，我認為也不會改變。隨著公司的發展，我們會獲得更多的大型專案。我們一直在就各種項目進行談判，其中一些項目是多年期的，長達五年。當然，也有一些項目是短期的。所以，項目類型各不相同。公司本身專注於這些項目的執行。

I see both sides of it, I think we're seeing more material content within our EPC business. So just different things that the company is capitalizing on. So when you look at a return basis, our returns go better if we're able to sort of the material content as well. So lots of things going our way on that. And I think it's a competitive advantage for us moving forward as we start to be a large purchaser of material.

我看到了事情的兩面性，我認為我們在EPC業務中看到了更多材料含量。所以公司正在利用不同的優勢。從回報的角度來看，如果我們也能提高材料含量，我們的回報就會更好。所以這方面有很多對我們有利的因素。我認為，隨著我們逐漸成為材料的主要採購商，這將為我們未來的競爭優勢奠定基礎。

So I like it. I like what we're doing. I think it will only enhance -- the larger projects will only enhance the business and the base business as well as how we provide that solution to the client.

所以我喜歡這樣。我喜歡我們正在做的事情。我認為更大的專案只會促進業務發展，提升我們的基礎業務，並改善我們為客戶提供解決方案的方式。

Our next question comes from the line of Adam Thalhimer with Thompson Davis & Company.

我們的下一個問題來自 Thompson Davis & Company 的 Adam Thalhimer。

Nice quarter. What's the outlook for large T&D projects in Canada? And if it's not good, can you shift some of those resources back to the U.S.

本季業績不錯。加拿大大型輸配電計畫的前景如何？如果前景不佳，能否將部分資源轉移回美國？

Good question. We see a good market in Canada. We have some awards already that we anticipate starting on by the end of the year. We have some great clients partnering in Puerto Rico. So -- and a lot of customers in Canada. We are able to move resources, engineering capacity, some of the things that we do in Canada over in the Lower 48. I wish it was easier. I wish the [border] was easier. It would certainly help us from a skill set standpoint. But that said, the company has done a nice job moving resources and doing some things in Canada.

問得好。我們看到加拿大市場前景良好。我們已經獲得了一些項目，預計將在年底前啟動。我們在波多黎各有一些很棒的合作夥伴。所以——我們在加拿大也有很多客戶。我們可以將資源、工程能力以及我們在加拿大開展的一些業務轉移到美國本土48州。我希望這個過程能更方便一些。我希望邊境手續能更簡單。這肯定會對我們技能的提升大有裨益。但即便如此，公司在資源轉移和在加拿大開展業務方面已經做得相當不錯了。

In general, when I look and step back at it, COVID played a big impact much more than we had here in the Lower 48, and we forget about it a lot. And we think, oh, well, it was nothing. It was significant. And we were in camps, we were doing some things there that were different.

總的來說，當我回顧過去，仔細想想，新冠疫情的影響遠比我們美國本土48州要大得多，而我們卻常常忽略了這一點。我們覺得，哦，沒什麼大不了的。但實際上影響非常巨大。當時我們被困在營地裡，在那裡我們做了一些與以往不同的事情。

If we don't see the market will downsize the market, but we do see that -- what we see right now is the transition happening there as well. We're seeing more -- we're seeing wind, solar, some hydro different things in Canada to decarbonize as well. We're right in the middle of those things. It's just a little bit behind the Lower 48. And as we catch up, I think you'll see more normalized margins in Canada and a great market.

如果我們看不到市場萎縮的跡象，但我們現在確實看到了——我們正在看到轉型正在發生。我們看到加拿大正在發展更多能源，包括風能、太陽能和一些水力發電，以實現脫碳。我們正處於這些轉型的核心地帶。只是稍微落後美國本土48個州。隨著我們迎頭趕上，我認為加拿大的利潤率將會更加正常化，市場前景一片光明。

Okay. And then in the Renewable segment, I hate to ask about '24. But Jamie started it. You guys kind of blew me away top line for Renewables for 2023. And I'm just curious if you can -- or how you think you might build on that next year.

好的。關於再生能源部分，我不太想問2024年的情況。但Jamie先提到了這一點。你們2023年再生能源的營收成長讓我非常驚喜。我只是好奇你們明年能否──或者說你們打算如何在此基礎上繼續發展。

I think we can continue to grow the business in the Renewable segment. We said it when we purchased Blattner kind of the cadence of that, and you're coming off of a year where the outward -- what I think pullback was primarily due to the solar panel discussions. And when that cleaned up, there was pent-up demand, but I also see a great future in a future market. You're going to see quite a bit of wind repowering coming up as well as wind projects. And I don't even think you're seeing that yet. And when you start to see the programmatic [spends] of the wind repower on that as well, the company is positioned nicely for those things, and we'll take advantage of that. That was what led us to the Blattner acquisition, and I think that strategy is playing out. And we see decades of renewable switching, you have load growth as well that will go towards a renewable state.

我認為我們可以在再生能源領域繼續發展壯大。我們在收購Blattner時就說過，我們正朝著這個方向發展。過去一年，市場出現了回調——我認為主要是由於太陽能電池板的討論。隨著討論的結束，被壓抑的需求得以釋放，但我同時也看到了未來市場的巨大潛力。你會看到大量的風電改造項目和新的風電項目湧現。而且我認為你現在甚至還沒看到這些。當風電改造專案開始大規模投資時，公司已經做好了充分的準備，我們將從中獲益。這正是我們收購Blattner的原因，我認為這項策略正在發揮作用。我們預見未來幾十年再生能源轉型將會持續，電力負載的成長也將朝著再生能源的方向發展。

So as you see load growth double and you start to say, okay, well, how much the carbon are we going to take out of the system while you're getting the load growth, it's significant. EV penetration, all those things are starting to hit the electrification of everything and then you have the security issue of North America where you're onshoring. All these things are happening at once, and I see really, really good markets for a long time. Can you have some blips in the radar, of course, but on a CAGR basis over time, we like what we see, and we'll continue to execute in the field, which is our main concern, is to make sure that we execute, build projects on time, on budget that are at cost that's what we feel economic to the consumer

所以，隨著負載成長翻倍，你會開始思考，在負載成長的同時，我們究竟能從系統中減少多少碳排放？答案是：相當可觀。電動車的普及，所有這些因素都在推動電氣化進程，再加上北美地區的安全問題（也就是將相關業務轉移到國內），所有這些因素都在同時發生。我認為，未來很長一段時間內，市場前景都非常樂觀。當然，期間可能會出現一些波動，但從長期的複合年增長率來看，我們對目前的情況感到滿意。我們將繼續在現場執行項目，這才是我們最關心的問題：確保項目按時按預算完成，並且成本控制在我們認為對消費者來說經濟合理的範圍內。

(Operator Instructions) our next question comes from the line of Gus Richard with Northland.

（操作說明）我們的下一個問題來自 Gus Richard 與 Northland 的連結。

In terms of energy storage. Are you starting to see an increase in demand for that in the Renewables segment. If so, what regions and as storage is incentivized at residential, does that have any impact on transmission and distribution.

就儲能而言，您是否開始看到再生能源領域對儲能的需求成長？如果是，具體是哪些地區？鑑於住宅儲能有激勵措施，這會對輸配電產生什麼影響？

I think energy storage can certainly benefit and we're seeing quite a bit, I would say, it probably doubled in size, take it plus or minus 10, but we're seeing quite a bit of storage projects. We'll continue to see that to the West. And we see it all over, honestly. It's something from a utility skill standpoint that's necessary with the markets there. We're participating in it, albeit we -- it was a low piece of the business. So don't take that the wrong way. It definitely is growing. We were in front of it. We're doing nicely in the storage business.

我認為儲能肯定會受益匪淺，而且我們已經看到了很多，可以說規模可能翻了一番，上下浮動十倍，但我們看到儲能項目確實很多。在西部地區，這種情況還會持續下去。說實話，我們在世界各地都能看到儲能專案。從公用事業技術的角度來看，儲能是當地市場不可或缺的。我們也參與其中，儘管我們只佔很小一部分業務。所以別誤會我的意思。儲能肯定在成長。我們走在了前面。我們在儲能業務方面做得很好。

I do think it can help. It can help alleviate some transmission. But it's not -- batteries will continue to get better as you move forward. The storage capacity will get better. We're not there yet. It will be a small piece of the business for a foreseeable future -- but growing.

我確實認為它會有幫助。它可以幫助緩解一些傳輸問題。但目前還不是這樣——隨著時間的推移，電池技術會不斷進步，儲存容量也會越來越大。我們還沒達到那個階段。在可預見的未來，它只會佔業務的一小部分——但會不斷成長。

So like the business, like it, it fits nicely with our solar win. We're looking for ways to even get more efficient in batteries. So as we see that, the transmission as well, it can alleviate a bit, not to the point where you would see any kind of downturn in transmission at this point.

所以，就像這項業務一樣，它與我們在太陽能領域的成功非常契合。我們正在尋找進一步提高電池效率的方法。因此，我們看到，傳輸方面也能有所緩解，但目前還不至於出現任何傳輸量的下降。

Our next question comes from the line of Sean Eastman with KeyBanc Capital Markets.

我們的下一個問題來自 KeyBanc Capital Markets 的 Sean Eastman。

I wanted to come back to the comment about adding basically 3x the normal run rate of people in the quarter? I mean, obviously, that's pretty notable. I mean other than the obvious signal that -- that's positive for underlying demand trends. What else we should take away from that? Is this showing an ability for the training infrastructure to flex up? Maybe we've hit a new kind of throughput level there? Any additional thoughts on this addition to the human capital story this quarter?

我想回到之前提到的，本季新增人員數量幾乎是正常的三倍。我的意思是，這顯然非常值得關注。除了這明顯顯示潛在需求趨勢向好之外，我們還能從中得到什麼結論？這是否顯示培訓基礎設施能夠靈活應對？或許我們已經達到了一個新的吞吐量水準？關於本季人力資本方面的這一增長，您還有什麼其他想法嗎？

I think, Sean, it's just a great example of what we've tried to say for a long period of time that we're able to scale the business. And a lot of people can talk about it and a lot of people can talk about scaling it. I want to see somebody add 3,000 and put the projects in there and execute at the levels we're executing.

肖恩，我覺得這正是我們長期以來一直強調的——我們有能力擴大業務規模——的絕佳例證。很多人都能談論這個話題，很多人都能談論如何擴大規模。我想看看有沒有人能增加3000名員工，把專案都安排進去，並且像我們一樣有效率地執行。

So I think we put the infrastructure in place to be able to do this, not 1 quarter but over time, and it surprised me a bit from a seasonality standpoint, we added quite a bit in Renewable segment. And their ability to scale their business to these utility scale projects is many reasons why we acquired Blattner and we have the resources that we have internally. I just can't say enough about what we do from an execution level in the field every day to put the numbers up we put up. And they're just doing a really, really nice job. And we have great curriculum, great people. We'll continue to build upon what we have.

所以我認為我們已經建立了實現這一目標的必要基礎設施，這並非一蹴可幾，而是需要時間累積。從季節角度來看，我們在再生能源領域的成長幅度相當可觀，這讓我有些意外。他們能夠將業務擴展到這些公用事業規模的項目，這正是我們收購 Blattner 的許多原因之一，而我們本身也擁有豐富的資源。我們每天在現場執行層面所做的工作，以及最終的業績，都讓我讚不絕口。他們真的做得非常出色。我們擁有優秀的課程體系和優秀的人才。我們將繼續鞏固和發展我們現有的優勢。

It's exponential the way I see it in the curriculum and the things that we're doing from technology and training and things of that nature. We're certainly in the forefront. I look forward to us continuing down the path that we're on.

在我看來，無論是課程設置，還是我們在技術、培訓等方面所做的工作，其發展都是呈指數級增長的。我們無疑處於領先地位。我期待我們繼續沿著這條道路前進。

The next question comes from the line of Marc Bianchi with TD Cowen.

下一個問題來自 Marc Bianchi 和 TD Cowen 的連線。

I wanted to ask about the renewable power growth and kind of as it relates to the CAGR that you outlined at the Analyst Day last year of 10% to 12%. It would seem like you're well above that rate here, exceptional year in '23. But how should we be thinking about that 10% to 12% now? Is there upside to that? And how much of a bottleneck is interconnection?

我想問一下再生能源發電的成長情況，以及它與您去年在分析師日上提到的10%到12%的複合年增長率之間的關係。看起來你們目前的成長率遠高於這個數字，2023年確實是個例外。但我們現在該如何看待這10%到12%的成長率呢？它還有上升空間嗎？併網究竟會造成多大的瓶頸？

I think when you look at it, we talked about kind of a 10% derisk at the bottom on a CAGR basis and then all levers of the balance sheet, the megatrends that we see, you'll have some 15% outer years as you make acquisitions as you do other things or use your balance sheet with free cash.

我認為，從長遠來看，我們討論過在複合年增長率的基礎上，底部風險降低約 10%，然後，考慮到資產負債表的所有槓桿作用以及我們看到的宏觀趨勢，隨著你進行收購、做其他事情或利用自由現金流來調整資產負債表，未來幾年可能會出現 15% 的增長率。

So those things are there when you look outward, if you take those things into account, if we invest the same way we've invested our capital in the past, I like our chance is on the upper end on the [outward looks]. But when you look at just organically, the business the way it sits in the queues and things of that nature, yes, there's tightening of your queues. Your transformers are 24, 36 months out on your HVDc. So if you have a project today and you're talking about it and you haven't ordered your transformers to have a spot, you're 24, 36 months out. I don't think it affects our clients, the clients that we work for.

所以，從外部來看，這些因素確實存在。如果我們把這些因素考慮在內，並且像過去那樣進行投資，我認為從外部來看，我們的機會還是比較有利的。但是，如果僅僅從業務本身，例如它在訂單隊列中的位置等等來看，是的，訂單隊列確實在收緊。你的變壓器在高壓直流輸電線路的交貨期已經排到了24到36個月之後。所以，如果你今天有一個項目，你正在討論這個項目，但你還沒有訂購變壓器來預留位置，那麼你就得等24到36個月。我認為這不會影響我們的客戶，也就是我們服務的客戶。

Your bigger clients already have transformers or have slots. So there's no real issue for them. But others that are looking for projects, it's not just, hey, I need in the queue -- Hey, I need in the queue, but I have my transformer capacity. I have my lines, I have the things that are necessary there.

你們的大客戶已經有變壓器或預留了機房，所以對他們來說沒什麼問題。但其他正在尋找專案的客戶，情況就不同了，他們不是簡單地說“嘿，我需要排隊”，而是說“嘿，我需要排隊，但我有變壓器容量，我有線路，我有所有必要的設備”。

So that planning and things of that nature is a piece of it. I do think you're getting some clarity of regulation. I think the federal government, FERC and the states and the utility business, everyone is trying to collaborate here, more so than I've seen in my career. But I'll say this, it's necessary for us to do this as a group. And we need to collaborate as a group here for the next decade and beyond.

所以，規劃之類的工作就是其中的一部分。我認為監管方面正在逐漸明朗化。我認為聯邦政府、聯邦能源監管委員會（FERC）、各州以及公用事業企業都在努力合作，這種合作程度是我職業生涯中前所未見的。但我必須強調，我們必須作為一個整體來做這件事。而且，在未來十年甚至更長的時間裡，我們都需要繼續合作。

The next question comes from the line of Alex Rygiel with B. Riley Securities.

下一個問題來自 B. Riley Securities 的 Alex Rygiel。

A very nice quarter. DSOs have improved into the 70s from past historical ranges of the high 70s to 90s. Can you talk about the catalyst to this and whether or not mix or contract terms have been a factor? And maybe expand a little bit more on contract terms today versus a handful of years ago and if they've become a little bit more favorable to the contractor?

這是一個非常好的季度。應收帳款週轉天數（DSO）已從以往70多天到90多天的歷史區間改善至70多天。您能否談談促成這項改善的催化劑，以及產品組合或合約條款是否發揮了作用？能否再詳細談談如今的合約條款與幾年前相比有何不同，是否對承包商更有利？

Yes. I'll say a little bit. We're acquiring more materials and things of that nature, Alex, so it's helping us a bit on some of those projects from a DSO standpoint, but I think that's the bigger piece of what you see from a term standpoint. We need to be able to order outward and you've seen some inventories. Our inventories move up a little bit here or there on some of those things. But that said, I think that's the better terms. Jayshree, you can comment on the DSOs.

是的，我簡單說一下。 Alex，我們正在採購更多材料之類的東西，所以從應收帳款週轉天數（DSO）的角度來看，這對我們一些項目有所幫助。但我認為這才是從期限角度來看更重要的部分。我們需要能夠向外訂購，你也看到了一些庫存。我們的庫存在某些方面略有增加。但即便如此，我認為這才是更好的期限。 Jayshree，你可以談談應收帳款週轉天數（DSO）的問題。

Yes. I think we've talked in the past about our expectations will improve on our DSOs and our working capital, and we're starting to see that. In terms of contract terms, certain parts of our renewable projects definitely allow us to -- because the materials or the way the work is performed, allow us to run in a positive working capital and you're seeing some of that benefit coming in now.

是的。我們之前討論過，我們預計配電服務義務（DSO）和營運資本狀況會有所改善，現在我們開始看到這些改善了。就合約條款而言，我們再生能源專案的某些部分確實允許我們——因為材料或施工方式——保持正營運資本，而您現在也看到了部分收益正在顯現。

But in general, we're feeling good about where our DSOs are headed as well as our cash flow projections. And you see that's why we modestly increased our cash flow for the year. It's moving in what we expected and we -- we'll continue to see that improvement as our business grows in the Renewable segment.

但總的來說，我們對配電系統營運商（DSO）的發展方向以及現金流預測都感到樂觀。因此，我們小幅上調了今年的現金流預期。現金流正如預期成長，隨著再生能源業務的成長，我們預期這一趨勢將持續改善。

Ladies and gentlemen, this concludes the question-and-answer session. I'd like to turn the call back to management for closing remarks.

女士們、先生們，問答環節到此結束。現在請管理階層做總結發言。

Thank you. We want to thank the 52,000-plus employees of Quanta for their commitment to safe execution. It does not go un-noticed that you're working in a 100-plus degree heat every day. Thank you. And I want to thank all the participating people in our conference call. We appreciate your questions and your ongoing interest in Quanta Services. Thank you. This concludes our call.

謝謝。我們要感謝昆塔公司超過52,000名員工對安全營運的堅持。我們注意到你們每天都在超過100華氏度（約攝氏38度）的高溫下工作。謝謝。我還要感謝所有參加我們電話會議的人員。感謝你們的提問以及對昆塔服務的持續關注。謝謝。本次電話會議到此結束。

This concludes today's conference. You may disconnect your lines at this time. Thank you for your participation.

今天的會議到此結束。您可以斷開線路了。感謝您的參與。