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spk02: technology second quarter earnings conference call. All lines have been placed on mute to prevent any background noise. After the speaker's remarks, there will be a question and answer session open to Advent's analysts. On the call today, we are joined by Dr. Vasily Grigorio, Advent's chairman and CEO, and Kevin Brackman, Advent's CFO. Before we begin the prepared remarks, we'd like to remind you that Advent issued a press release announcing its second quarter 2023 financial results shortly before market open today. You may access the materials on the investor relations section of the company's website, www.advent.energy. I would also like to remind everyone that during the course of this conference call, Advent's management will discuss forecasts, targets, and other forward-looking statements regarding the company's future customer orders and the company's business outlook that are intended to be covered by the safe harbor provisions of the private securities litigation reform act of 1995 for forward-looking statements while these statements represent management's current expectations and projections about future results and performance as of today athens actual results are subject to many risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from those expectations. In addition to any risks highlighted during this call, important factors that may affect Advent's future results are described in its most recent SEC reports, followed with the Securities and Exchange Commission, including today's earnings press release. Accept as required by applicable law. The company undertakes no obligation to update any of these forward-looking statements for any reason after the date of this call. Lastly, information discussed on this call concerning the company's industry competitive position in the market in which it operates is based on information from independent industry and research organizations, other third-party sources, and management estimates. Management estimates are derived from publicly available information released by independent industry analysts, analysis, and other third-party resources, as well as data from the company's internal research and are based on assumptions made upon reviewing such data and with the knowledge of such industry and markets, which it believes to be reasonable. These assumptions are subject to uncertainties and risks, which could cause results to differ materially from those expressed in the estimates. Please note that this call is being recorded. Kicking off the call will be Dr. Vasili Gregorio. Dr. Gregorio, I now turn it over to you.
spk01: Thank you, operator. Good morning to everyone listening in, and thank you for joining us on Advent's second quarter 2023 earnings call. On today's call, I will provide an update on the business. I will then hand over to Kevin, who will give a review of our financial performance and outlook in more detail. During my last update on May 15, I highlighted that Aden has further consolidated its business operations and was focusing on the core sectors of mobility and stationary power. This has continued in the second quarter, with a gradual improvement in our cash burn as various non-costs are eliminated. We remain focused on expanding and executing on commercial pipeline with a view to embedding our technology and product portfolio in this key power sector. We also maintained our capital investment program in state-of-the-art equipment that's required to complete a scaling of production capacity. We intend for this progress to continue towards large-scale manufacturing as soon as our green hippo project commences. We believe that the future demand for ADMIN's high-temperature PEM technology and related products will create a significant opportunity, and we believe ADMIN will be ideally positioned to capitalize on these two suitable partners. We look forward to growing our commercial activities and achieving long-term profitable growth. Our business focus is on the production of advanced fuel cell materials and the development of advanced fuel cell systems, leading to direct sales. In addition, joint development agreements with OEMs will enable us to enter into long-term licensing and supply agreements. I will now give an overview of our recent business updates. BASF Environmental Catalyst and Metal Solutions, a global leader in precious metals and catalysts, in Advent concluded the terms of a new agreement to join efforts in building a full loop component supply chain for fuel cells. For the past 20 years, BE7 Environmental Catalyst and Metal Solutions has been a leader in membrane MEA technology for high temperature PEM fuel cells with a strong foundation in precious metal services and catalysts. ADVEN is a significant manufacturer of high temperature PEM fuel cell systems targeting emerging markets in the field of sustainable and decentralized energy, such as stationary power that can replace diesel generators, maritime power for in-methyl fuel cells, and heavy-duty mobility. High-temperature fuel cells operating at 120 to 100 degrees Celsius offer a broad operating window and can tolerate impurities in the hydrogen fuel gap. These fuel cells also enable simplified cooling and no required humidification. ADDEN offers competitive fuel cell systems for stationary and portable applications based on methylene and on-site reforming. Looking ahead, high-temperature PEM fuel cells will also be available for heavy-duty mobility and maritime power. The scope of the agreement includes BASF's role in scaling up MEA production at ADDEN's state-of-the-art manufacturing facility in Western Macedonia, Greece, while offering Advent its full portfolio of products and services to enable circularity in key materials. Both companies will cooperate on BASF's latest membrane development, TELTEX-Z, and the new ion-pair MEA membrane by Advent, aiming for improved performance, lifetime, and cost competitiveness. In the airspace sector, ADVENT signed a memorandum of understanding with Safran Power Systems, a leader in auxiliary power systems and turbojet engines. Leveraging ADVENT's propriety around per-MEA technology and Safran's aerospace knowledge and capabilities, the new collaboration will seek to advance the development of next-generation high-temperature PEM fuel cell technology specifically for the aerospace sector. High-temperature PEM enables more efficient heat management versus low-temperature PEM. High-temperature PEM is more adapted for applications requiring high amounts of power combined with strong degradation constraints as in aviation. High-temperature PEM is more robust and can withstand tougher variation conditions such as extreme temperatures and pollution versus low-temperature PEM. The collaboration further supported by a strong research consortium included the Research and Technology Center of Safran Group, the French Alternative Energies and Atomic Energy Commission, Fraunhofer Institute, the French National Center for Scientific Research, the University of Strasbourg, and the IMDEA Energy Institute. Led by Safran Power Assist Units and with the support of ADVEN, the consortium shall secure the grant for the Clean Hydrogen Permissive Nymphaea project. Running from 2023 to 2026, the project is funded by Hydro Horizon Europe, and the project's main objective is to develop an aircraft-compatible next-generation high-temperature PEM-MEA. This involves optimizing and enhancing various components, such as the catalyst layer, membrane, and gas diffusion layer. Adenchion PEM-MEA technology serves as the foundation for this advancement. As part of the newly signed MOU, Advent and Safran Power Units are exploring a joint development agreement for the advancement of high-temperature Penn fuel cells in aviation and for enhancing Advent's supply capability. In May, Advent announced a contract with a prominent fuel cell manufacturer specializing in track application in the East Asian market. Under this contract, Advent will supply high-temperature Penn MPAs to support the deployment development of advanced fuel cell solution for trucks. The contract has a combined value of $1.1 million and comes after a highly successful testing phase of ADVAN's proprietary MBA technology conducted by our customers. ADVAN will deliver high-temperature PEM MBAs with a projected continuation of deliveries aligned to the customer's specific time frame. The use of ADVAN MBA technology in fuel cell Power tracks is a critical and substantial enhancement to EV technology, effectively tackling the challenges associated with charging infrastructure and the limited range of pure EVs. MEAs are the critical component of fuel cell systems and have a pivotal role in determining the overall performance, durability, efficiency, weight, and cost effectiveness of the electrochemical products they empower. Advanced electrochemistry components business include electrodes, membranes, and MEAs. These components are critical for fuel cell electrolyzers and for long-duration energy storage, such as low batteries. In June, Adam participated in the second European Electrolyzer Summit held in Brussels. I was part of a delegation of 30 CEOs representing the European electrolyzer manufacturing sector in a meeting with European Commissioner Thierry Breton. The primary purpose of the meeting was to discuss and address the objective outlined in the joint declaration of the May 2022 EU Electrolyzer Summit. The meeting, jointly organized by the European Commission on Hydrogen Europe as part of the Electrolyzer Partnership, brought together approximately 44 companies actively involved in the European electrolyzer supply chain. Following the second European Electrolyzer Summit, the industry remains steadfast in its commitment to achieve the ambitious goals set out in the RepowerEU communication. The objective is to accomplish 10 million tonnes of domestic hydrogen production and import 10 million tonnes of hydrogen by 2030. As part of this commitment, the industry is planning to significantly increase electrolyser production in the EU, aiming to ramp up capacity by a factor of seven within seven years. This will involve scaling up from the current 3 gigawatt production capacity to approximately 21 gigawatt by 2025. In a recently published document, the partnership members and the European Commission provided an update on the progress that has been made one year after the sign of the joint declaration. The document highlights the industry's continued efforts to expand its European footprint as the regulatory framework works closer to completion. Notable developments include the renewable energy directive, delegated acts of additionality, and the hydrogen bank. For Advent Green HIPPO project, we provided an update in May on its status. This update highlighted the recent milestone achieved so far, emphasizing the collective dedication of the entire Advent team towards decarbonization and the transformation of the clean energy landscape increase in Europe. Most notably, one, ADVAN successfully acquired the ownership rights to a prime parcel of real estate located in Kozani, Greece, where its planned state-of-the-art facility for the Green Hippo IPCI project is expected to be located. This land acquisition underscores ADVAN's unwavering dedication to establishing a robust infrastructure that will effectively and strategically support the objectives of the Green Hippo IPCI project. ADVIANS has also set up a coordination and planning office in the center of Kozani, which will serve as the operational hub for the Green HIPAA-PCI project. Second, ADVAN has initiated the process of identifying and hiring key professionals, such as scientists, engineers, and managers, who will play integral roles in the new state-of-the-art facility in Kozani. These individuals will drive critical functions, such as research and development, first industrial deployment, and supply chain management. Their expertise will be instrumental in the development, design, and manufacture of innovative fuel cell systems and electrolyzer systems. ADRON's careful selection process will ensure that top-tier talent is recruited to support the successful execution of the Green Hippo IPCI project, thereby ensuring the project's success and innovation. On August 4, 2023, ADRON was informed by the Ministry of National Economy and Finance that the Greek state is currently reviewing the financing of IPCI I2Tech. Accordingly, and as a prerequisite for unlocking the state aid funding for GreenHippo, the Greek state is examining and planning ways to implement actions and to strengthen initiatives that will contribute to the transition of the productive and growth model of the Greek economy towards climate neutrality. Parameters for the planning of such actions include implementing projects at specific times, the availability of the completely proposed plan, as well as compliance with regulatory obligations and guidelines regarding the management of European funds. We will provide further updates on GreenHippo at an appropriate time. AVEN is suitably positioned to take advantage of the growth focus on clean energy. We will continuously advance our technology and consolidate our operations to address new and key opportunities. We have a product portfolio that's focused to enable a green economy, one that will reduce the reliance on fossil fuels and will decentralize the energy supply market, therefore providing energy security to communities and economies. With that, I would like to hand over to our CFO, Kevin Brackman.
spk03: Thank you, Vasili, and good morning, everyone. Thank you, Vasili, and good morning, everyone. Turning to our financials, we delivered revenue of $1.1 million in the second quarter, and income from grants of $0.7 million for a total of $1.8 million. R&D expenses were $2.9 million in the second quarter, primarily related to internal R&D costs incurred in each of our businesses, as well as our Cooperative Research and Development Agreement with the Department of Energy. Administrative and selling expenses were $8.3 million in the second quarter, combined with R&D Total operating expenses were $11.2 million, a year-over-year increase of $0.6 million, primarily related to an increase in research and development costs, as well as expenses related to our new Hood Park facility in Charlestown, Mass. We recognized $9.8 million of asset impairment charges in the second quarter, mostly related to the assessment of goodwill and other intangible assets from the company's acquisitions in 2021. Net loss in Q2 was $21.8 million, or 41 cents per share. Unrestricted cash reserves were $10.1 million as of June 30, 2023, a decrease of $9.5 million from March 31, which includes $3.4 million of cash that we raised from the company's equity line of credit with Lincoln Park Capital, $1.9 million paid to complete the acquisition of the fuel cell systems business in Denmark, Germany, and the Philippines, $0.8 million paid to acquire land in Kazani, Greece for the Green Hippo project, and $0.4 million paid for the build-out of the Hook Park facility. Our existing cash balances and projected operating cash flows are not expected to be sufficient to support planned operations for the next 12 months. However, in addition to the potential funding from the pending GreenHippo project, we finalized an agreement in April this year for an equity line of credit with Lincoln Park Capital which gives us the option to access up to $50 million of capital over the three-year term. The utilization of this equity line of credit is at Advent's discretion and provides us with an effective buffer that may be used alongside other funding routes. As I mentioned earlier, we raised $3.4 million in the month of June using this equity line of credit, sufficient to cover our current monthly run rate for operating and capital expenses. We also implemented in June an at-the-market equity program with HC Wainwright as sales agent, under which we may sell up to 50 million of shares of the company's common stock through the agent without any commitment from Advent. We did not utilize this ATM facility during the second quarter. Aside from raising capital, we will continue to manage our cost structure closely and capitalize on opportunities to reduce costs where possible. Let me now turn to our outlook. Advent has a strong pipeline of opportunities. As we all know, however, not every opportunity in the pipeline will transpire due to factors that are beyond Advent's control. Opportunities may not materialize or could be delayed. Due to the long-term contract nature of our business model, the timing of our revenue can also be difficult to predict. Due to the level of uncertainty caused by these factors, as well as the fact that GreenHippo is still under review by the Greek state, we are not providing an outlook for revenue and income from grants for 2023 on this call. With that, I will hand back to Vasili for closing remarks.
spk01: Thank you, Kevin. ADVEN has significant opportunities for its high-temperature PEM technology, advanced materials, and fuel cell system products. ADVEN is a clear energy technology company developing innovative products for key sectors that require clean energy. We look forward to growing the business and to give you a breath of development. I would like to thank you all for joining us today. Before we open the line to any questions from the company's analysts, I would like to address questions submitted by Lacey Middley with partner Gordon, who was unable to join the call today. The first question is, can you provide an update on the Green HIPAA project and expect the timing on evaluation, confirmation of final funding documents, and subsequent releases of funding? As I said a little bit in the script, we are very keen to officially launch the Green HIPAA. demonstrated particular actions that says that we're moving in this direction. First of all, we schedule all the R&D and development work. Second, we have identified the suitable site, we purchased the land, and we have commenced with planning. Third, very important, we have ended these very strategic agreements with BASF and other partners that we cannot mention right now. And we will announce all these little details at the appropriate time that ensure that the minute we start, we have these giants with us to be able to manufacture the products with quality and at the right time. In the meantime, as we said, we are complaining to the European Union because we feel that this is a big delay here from the state and it's not acceptable by us. So I sent a letter to Commissioner Breton who initiated an internal discussion within the European Commission with DG Growth and DG Internal Market Industry and SME. These are policy departments, the directional general. And there, what we got back is that despite that we're in the holiday month, the European Union will work very close to the Greek authorities to be able to inform us and us to inform you, the shareholders, that the project will receive the foreseen public funds. So I think we're in the last stages and there, as you know, we have very big delays with interaction with other European partners. Of course, you know, we have suffered, we believe, a big loss in our valuation because of all of that. So this thing needs to be resolved as soon as possible. The Europeans understand that this is a project of common European interest. You know, this is not Greece only, not Italy for Denora, let's say, it's not France for McPhee. So I think the Europeans will push very hard on this. Now we received on August the 4th a letter by the Deputy Minister of Economy and Finance from Greece, Mr. Nicholas Papathanassis, and respond to my letter to him on July 25th. And basically, the idea is, and I will go over the letter in a bit, the idea is that the Greek state is examining and planning ways to implement actions and to strengthen the initiatives that will contribute to the transition of the productive and growth model of the Greek economy towards climate neutrality. Parameters for the planning of such action include implementing projects at specific times, the viability of the completed proposal plans, as well as compliance with regulatory obligations and guidelines regarding the management of European funds. The Greek state is currently reviewing funding for the IPCI program and will provide further updates at an appropriate time. So the delay is solid with the Greek state, and we expect this to be resolved very, very soon. You can imagine we'll do everything in our capacity to finish this. And we will keep you posted on the developments, which, as I said, I think that will be very soon. Second question. is again from Lacey. Can you provide an update on the Hyundai JDA and next key milestones, including expected first sales? As you know, as with other automotive manufacturers, Hyundai is an OEM, and basically they're developing the fuel cell system in collaboration with the OEM. We have a joint development agreement now where the and actually our fuel cell expertise as well. will be incorporated in an automotive engine with Hyundai. And Hyundai has shown great interest in the technology and basically the ion pair technology. And we also there, we incorporate Hyundai technology as well. You know, we use Hyundai catalyst for that particular program. So the whole idea is to achieve the power targets that they're conducive for automotive in order for this to become an actual product. Now, as you know, we have three core hardware models on the market already, so we have good experience from using them. And as I said in other calls as well, it's not only Houdai that we work with, we have other large companies that we cannot name, but we're working very hard actively with all of them. The other question is, how has the collaboration with Siemens Energy for maritime fuel cell solution progressed? Is the relationship progressing to JDA or similar, depending on successful technology testing? And there, the collaboration with Siemens, as you know, is in this very exciting sector of maritime. We're very happy that our methanol vision, because we have this for quite some time now, as you know, the ones that you follow us. uh the the methanol and eventually in methanol that arrives from green hydrogen uh we believe will be you know a key fuel in the path to net zero for a maritime so not only is image but also alpha laval you know they all work there and we try to collaborate many of them as we can but we have the recent success with zeeman and san lorenzo And we feel very proud about that. So, again, the idea is that when you use high-temperature PEM and e-methanol, we're talking about a similar system, an expensive one-stage deformation, whereas low-temperature PEM requires 99.99% pure hydrogen. The syringe system now that we use is made in Denmark, and we're talking about 100 kilowatts. actually also can go to 250 easy. So that's the status over there. I think there is the right technology in the right market, and it's our obligation, if you will, to grow this as fast as we can. Another question is, how has part of the early stages of the BASF agreement progress with regard to establishing the end-to-end supply chain in Europe. I think we discussed that also in the script. Basically, the idea is that the BASF agreement is very significant for us, because one, it endorses our technology, and secondly, it fortifies our supply chain. We're working on high-temperature PEM with BASF for about 15 years now, as you know. BASF is a global leader in manufacturing and brands, electrodes, a lot of expertise with the PBI. And as I said, we're very close, and for me will be a key parameter, this association in accelerating the Green Kippel project. Win-win situation for both parties, and very secure deal if you will for the for the customer as well. Another thing I don't want to be left out of the conversation is the ability of DSF to manage precious metals in close-loop processing of these materials. That's very important when we go from you know more pilot programs to true large-scale manufacturing. The next question is does your current cost position and currently burn rate give you sufficient headroom are being funded and received for and to execute on the Green Hippo project and other commitments. I'm going to turn this to Kevin. So, Kevin, will you please answer this?
spk03: Yeah, sure. Thank you, Vasili. So, let me share some information on our liquidity situation and cash burn rate. So, we finished the second quarter with right around $10 million of available cash on our balance sheet. As you know, over the past three months or so, we've put in place a couple of different equity facilities. One is an equity line of credit with Lincoln Park Capital. The other is an ATM facility with H.C. Wainwright. Each of those facilities gives us the opportunity to access up to $50 million of capital over the next three years. That's our at our discretion on whether and when we utilize those facilities. So we have those two facilities in place. As I mentioned in my comments this morning, we raised $3.4 million in the month of June utilizing one of those two facilities. At the same time we we have also taken actions recently to reduce our costs and to reduce our spend rate So as I look forward to the second half of the year, I'm anticipating that our monthly spend For operating and capital expenses will will probably range between two and a half million and three million per month and so you know, the 3.4 million that we raised back in June is sufficient or even more than sufficient to cover what we expect to be our monthly spend rate in the second half of the year. So that would continue to be our plan in the short term, is to continue to use these facilities to raise the cash that we need to cover our operating expenses. Until such time, that we receive funding from either GreenHippo or from other sources of capital. And with that, I will turn it back to Vasili.
spk01: I think, Kevin, we're ready now to go to the Q&A. I don't see any questions, extra questions from that.
spk03: Yeah, we'll turn it back to the operator to open the line for any other questions.
spk02: thank you the floor is now open for your questions to ask a question this time please press star one your telephone keypad if any point you'd like to withdraw from the queue please press star one again you'll be provided the opportunity to ask one question and one further follow-up question we'll now take a moment to compile our roster Again, as a reminder, the floor is now open for your questions to ask a question, please press star one on your telephone keypad. There are no more questions Thank you, ladies and gentlemen, this does conclude today's call, thank you for your participation, you may now disconnect.
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