Wallbox N.V.

Perfect, thank you. Transferring us through in three, two, one. Hello everyone and welcome to Warbox's first quarter 2024 earnings conference call and webcast. My name is Charlie and I'll be the operator for today's call. At this time, all participants' lines have been placed in listen-only mode to prevent any background noise. After the speech remarks, there'll be a question and answer session. Analysts who wish to ask a question can place themselves into the queue by pressing star followed by one on their telephone keypads. I'd now like to turn the call over to Michael Wilhelm to begin. Michael, please go ahead.

Thank you, Charlie. And good morning and good afternoon to everyone listening in. Thank you for joining today's webcast to discuss Wallbox first quarter 2024 results. This event is being broadcast over the web and can be accessed from the investor section of our website at investors.wallbox.com. I am joined today by Enrique Asuncion, Wallbox CEO, Jordi Lyons, our current CFO, and Luis Boala, who will join Wallbox as its new Chief Financial Officer, effective May 15. Earlier today, we issued our press release announcing results from the first quarter ended March 31st, 2024, which can also be found on our website. Before we begin, I would like to remind everyone that certain statements made on today's call are forward-looking, that may be subjected to risk and uncertainties relating to future events and or the future financial performance of the company. Actual results could differ materially from those anticipated. The risk factors that may affect results are detailed in the company's most recent public filings with the SEC, including the annual report on Form 20F for the fiscal year ended December 31st, 2023, filed on March 21st, 2024. We will be presenting unothered financial statements in IFRS format that reflect management's best assessments of actual results. Also, please note that we use certain non-IFRS financial measures on this call and reconciliations of these measures are included in a presentation posted on the investor section of our website. Also, A copy of these prepared remarks can be obtained from the investor relations website on the quarterly results section. So you can more easily follow along with us today. So with that out of the way, I will turn it over to Enric.

Thank you, Michael. And thanks everyone for joining us today. In addition to reviewing highlights from the first quarter of 2024, we'll spend some time discussing recent product introductions and commercial wins. including the washington state project and the pulsar pro launch in north america we will also discuss the integration progress of our recent acquisition abl as well as the general commercial agreement and we will touch on how the market is expected to evolve in 2024. jordi will offer a closer look at our financial results and our key financial metrics and finally I'll return to close the conversation and highlight what we are focused on for the remainder of the year, as well as welcome Luis Boada, who will formally join us next week as our incoming CFO. We will end by taking questions from our covering research analysts. So let's get started. Q1 revenue was 43.1 million euros, up 23% year over year, driven by EV market seasonality slightly impacted by softer AC sales in the US and the timing of DC shipments within specific customers and large projects. We do not believe that the latter is a result of overall market weakness, but rather of new European regulations that are being digested by customers and which have impacted the timing of orders and deployments of new installations. ABL results were in line with expectations and we're excited to accelerate the cross-selling opportunity. especially after the launch of the EM4 across Europe in March. DC revenue increased by more than 100% from the previous year period, as customers continue to expand their networks and select Supernova for its high quality and low cost of ownership. We installed the first Supernova 180 in North America in the quarter, a meaningful milestone, and we look forward to ramping up activity quickly in the second quarter. In total, we delivered 37,500 AC units globally, including ABL, and approximately 320 units of DC during the period. Gross margins were 39.6% in the first quarter, positively impacted by the aggressive actions we discussed last period, including cost engineering, strategic sourcing, and lower transportation costs. Those efforts show strong early results, and we believe we can continue to hold them in the range of 38% to 40%. This is yet another proof point in our ongoing shift towards operational excellence, and we want to thank all World Boxers for their hard work and focus. Q1 2024 included a full quarter of all revenue and costs from AVL. And on a consolidated group level, saw a 21% reduction in labor costs or headcount-related costs, and a 30% reduction in OPEX, both on a year-over-year basis. Sequentially, both expense categories are up slightly, as anticipated with the inclusion of a full quarter of ABL. However, we continue to identify opportunities to reduce our cost base, and we're flexible even in the market volatilities. First quarter adjusted a bit, the loss tightened by more than €1 million to €13.5 million from the fourth quarter and represents a year-over-year improvement of 38%. Gross margins and our operating costs have come close to the range that now only leaves scale and top-line revenue as a barrier to profitability. With the introduction of new products, current strong traction of Supernova Rollout in North America, and the progress discussed here, we believe we will be close to rake-even adjusted EBITDA in Q2. For the first quarter of 2024, Europe contributed €36.5 million of consolidated sales, or 85% of total revenue, and grew by almost 30% from the year-ago period. We saw strength in Benelux and the UK, which offset softness elsewhere. North America contributed €4.7 million, or 11%, and was impacted by an inventory adjustment at a specific retailer. APAC was strong this quarter, contributing €1.3 million, or 3%, and LATAM was approximately €600,000, or 1%. These mixed shifts were also somewhat driven by the full impact of AVL, whose sales are entirely AC within the EMEA region. AC sales of 29.9 million euros, including ABL, represented approximately 69% of our global consolidated revenue, down one percentage point from last year. The global rollout of Pulsar Pro continues to go very well. Pro is designed for commercial and multifamily residential use in the North American market and other relevant markets. The charger is equipped with RFID integration and ISO 15118 readiness, ensuring secure and future-ready charging capabilities. The Pulsar Pro stands out for its dynamic power sharing feature, which monitors the building's power and automatically allocates power to connected TVs, reducing the need for costly upfront electrical infrastructure upgrades. A great example of the overwhelming market reception is the $26 million project we announced on March 7 with the state of Washington. Those funds will be used to deploy hardware, software, and services throughout almost 150 GrayStars multifamily housing properties across the state of Washington, with a strong focus on environmental justice communities. COIL will participate in those installations too. We expect much of this project to occur and be recognized in 2024. DC contributed 19% of the revenue in the first quarter, a nine percentage point increase from the prior year period. The Supernova product line continues to see strong reception from customers and is driving growth in our pipeline, which now totals more than 2,000 units. Today, we have more than 10 customers which receive more than 50 units for their charging network. We see large customers with broad and expanding footprints are becoming the norm. So the full list of more than 100 unique customers have the opportunity to grow into key accounts as we impress them with our offering. One example of a highly valued customer is Osprey, which is building one of the leading EV charging networks in the UK. The company is growing fast and is using Wallbox as a supplier for both the Supernova 60 and the Supernova 150. Currently, we have sold 180 DC fast charging units to Osprey, including the Wallbox Care Programme. offering preventive and corrective maintenance and warranty extensions. At Wallbox, we understand the dynamics of our CPO customers and the importance of open, flexible collaboration. This includes incorporating product development ideas, short lead times, capacity to deliver reliable solutions at scale, and aligning with the rollout speed of our customers. We would also like to provide you with some color on the status of the DC fast charger rollout with Iberdrola. we announced in the past iberdrola is an important long-term partner of wallbox both as a customer and a shareholder and has a strong commitment to sustainable mobility together iberdrola and wallbox have large ambitions in developing reliable charging infrastructure for electric vehicles and we are currently taking the initial steps in delivering supernova units As of now, we have sold close to 150 units to Verdola, and we are expecting to see this number increase steadily as the rollout of charging infrastructure continues. Supernova 180 is currently shipping to North America, and we have begun conversations with a variety of CPOs, beyond free-to-move and Stellantis. We believe we're able to ramp up production and meet the growing demand that's not currently being met by legacy players. And finally, we are seeing strong interest from European customers in more powerful systems, including the Supernova 220 announced last call and beyond. Customers are focused today on ease of deployment, reliability, and protecting their investment. They want the right system in the right location, and they want it to be relevant for 10 years, which is critical given the rapid pace of both EV technology and consumer behavior. We believe we check all the boxes and have established Wallbox as a leading provider of public fast-charging equipment and software. We're excited to see such positive traction. Growth margin improvement is something we've been very focused on for the last several quarters, and we believe we've turned the corner. As mentioned before, after the introduction of a new product, the growth margins have a ramp-up time, and now, as the Supernova product line is maturing, we see significant improvements. going from negative gross margins to contributing significantly to the group result. We are pleased with a gross margin in the quarter of almost 40%, but we still see opportunities for improvement going forward. Jordi will talk more about this in a minute, but I'm confident in our strategy and ability to focus on what we can control and turn our attention to increasing sales growth and the successful rollout of all the new products we introduced this year. I want to take a moment and share some thoughts on ABL because we are very pleased with the progress we've seen after closing the first full quarter as part of Wallbox. Conversations with current and prospective customers are encouraging and highlight the need for a comprehensive solution for both AC and DC that together we now offer. We launched the EM4 across key markets in Europe last month and look forward to capitalizing on strong initial interest. The EM4 is AVL's newest AC Level 2 product for commercial applications. Given its OCP capabilities, wire or wireless up to 100 charging points, a single or dual GAN configuration, IP55 and IK10 for a robust solution, and advanced load management functions. We believe this product meets the unique needs of apartments, office parking lots, hotels, and retail applications. We are excited to watch the progress of the rollout, and we look forward to sharing more with you next quarter. Aside from the integration of the EM4, we have also introduced the ABL Pulsar to the DAG market as part of our product and innovation integration. Educating the market on the benefits of Supernova 150 and 220 is also well underway. In the first six months, we have made great progress on our integration efforts, and I am proud to have ABL as part of the Volvo Group. I would like to take the opportunity to thank everyone involved and a special note to the whole AVL team for their continuous efforts. Both companies recognize the collaborative potential and I appreciate the strong commitment to join future roles. Today, we will also like to talk about the commercial agreement with Generac in more detail. As discussed during our previous earnings call, the Generac partnership is one of our most exciting and impactful events in our history. We believe that our aligned ambition will bring both companies significant long-term commercial opportunities. This is reflected in our commercial agreement, which has a 10-year term and a worldwide scope. In the long term, we foresee offering Wallbox full product portfolio through generic extensive $8,700 network. But initially, we will launch with the Pulsar Plus UL for North America. The charger will be co-branded and provided with a wide-level app, allowing for its integration with Generac's existing home energy management systems and solutions. In the following months, we expect new products will become part of the scope of the commercial agreement, which includes both AC and DC charging solutions. We will also put our efforts together to develop new products relevant for a wide range of customers. We are very excited about these first steps in our journey together, and we appreciate the commitment of Generac to Wallbox from both a commercial and shareholders perspective. We spoke to you in February about our view of the market and how we envision it evolving. There were almost 1.1 million EVs sold in Europe and North America in the first quarter of 2024, representing 8% year-over-year growth as reported by RoadMotion. They expect more than 5.6 million to be sold this year across these two regions, which excludes China, representing year growth of almost 20%. This also doesn't include the sale of used EVs to new owners, which often require the installation of a new AC charger. What we share with you is our belief that early adopters are fully bought into the value proposition of EVs and the market volatility you read about from several OEMs is natural in the adoption of a disruptive technology. It's no different from what we saw from consumers with the PC or cellular phones. At the same time, we recognize the current economic dynamics with slower economic growth and recent high inflation figures pressuring consumer budgets. But even though the adoption curve and economic slowdown coincide, the long-term potential of the industry remains solid with more affordable EV models being introduced continuous rollout of charging infrastructure and innovative technical improvements in the industry. In the meantime, what we focus on is exiting this period in the strongest competitive position and well ahead of our peers. We have developed a product portfolio for every charging segment, which allow us to capture growth where it takes place. For example, the current demand for DC fast charging infrastructure remains high as the rollout of DC infrastructure is essential to the mass adoption of EVs, This provides us with a great opportunity to leverage our diversified position, both geographically and commercially. Now is the time in which winners and losers are determined. And therefore, we will continue to invest in operational excellence, forge strong partnerships, and rationalize our cost base. Jordi, I'll turn it over to you to comment further on our financial details.