Gogoro Q1 2023 Earnings Call Transcript

Quartr
Provided by Quartr
May 11, 2023

There are 7 speakers on the call.

Operator

Welcome to the Gogoro Inc. 2023 Q1 Earnings Call. This session will be recorded. I'd like to introduce Bruce Aiken, CFO of GoGuru, who will kick us off.

Speaker 1

Thanks, operator, Thanks to everyone for taking the time to join us today. I'm Bruce Aiken, CFO of Gogoro, and I'm pleased to welcome you to our for the Q1 2020 earnings call. Hopefully, by now, you've seen our earnings release. If you haven't, it is available on the Investor Relations tab of on our website, investor. Gogoro.com.

Speaker 1

We will also be displaying the materials on the webcast screen as we go. We're looking forward to sharing our Q1 results as well as providing guidance on what we're seeing as the outlook for 2023. But before our CEO, Horace Lukeshares, I'd like to introduce Michael Bowen of ICR, who will share the process for today's call and provide some important disclosures. Michael?

Speaker 2

Thanks, Bruce. I'm sure you're all looking forward to hearing from Horace and Bruce on behalf of Gogoro. But before that, allow me to remind you of a few things. You are all currently on mute. If you have a specific question, please use the chat function in the system to submit questions and we'll answer as many as time allows.

Speaker 2

After Horace has given a brief overview of Gogoro and some of the business highlights from Q1, Bruce will go a bit deeper into the Q1 financial results. During the call, we will make statements regarding our business that may be considered forward looking within applicable securities laws, including statements regarding our Q1 2023 results, management's expectations for our future financial and operational performance, The capabilities of our technology, projections of market opportunity and market share, our potential growth, Statements relating to the expected impact of the COVID-nineteen pandemic, supply chain issues and other headwinds facing the company, the company's business plans, including its expansion plans the company's expectations relating to its growth in overseas markets Statements related to the potential of our strategic collaborations, partnerships and joint ventures, statements regarding regulatory developments and our plans, prospects and expectations. These statements are not promises or guarantees and are subject to risks and uncertainties, which could cause them to differ materially from actual results. Information concerning those risks is available in our earnings press release distributed prior to market open today and in our SEC filings. We undertake no obligation to update forward looking statements, except as required by law.

Speaker 2

Further, during the course of today's call, we will refer to certain adjusted financial measures. These non IFRS financial measures should be considered in addition to, not as a substitute for or in isolation from for IFRS measures. Additional information about these non IFRS measures, including reconciliation of non IFRS to comparable IFRS is included in our press release and investor presentation provided today. Now over to Horace.

Speaker 3

Thanks, Bruce and Michael. Thanks for joining our call today. We're pleased to have this opportunity to meet with you and provide an update on the Q1 for 2023 results and guidance for the rest of 2023. 2022 Was a transformational year for Gogoro as we migrated from being a private company to a public company. We have now been a public company for a little bit over a year and 2023 is already shaping up to be a year of both immense opportunities, but also some challenges.

Speaker 3

The macro operating environment is certainly more challenging than the past few years, but we believe our solutions for clean and sustainable urban mobility We'll enable Gogoro to continue to be successful. Our battery swapping platform, partner ecosystem And Energy's grid integration combined with our people and culture provide unique advantages that will allow us to successfully grow in Taiwan and internationally. In Taiwan, 2023 is expected to be the 1st year since 2020, not substantially impacted by COVID in one way or another. Various restrictions have been lifted during Q1, but comparisons between 20232022 will be difficult to make given the COVID impact during 2022 in preceding years. We have projected the Taiwan market to be roughly flat in 2023, both from the standpoint of total ICE The e vehicle sold as well as electric vehicles sold.

Speaker 3

Our Q1 financial results were as anticipated with a little volume downside. While the overall two wheeler market grew in Taiwan, unit sales of Gogoro and partner branded vehicles were down slightly. The total number of registered scooter was 177,000, up 9.8% from 161,000 in Q1 of 2022. As mentioned, any comparison to 2022 or earlier years is difficult as there were a variety of COVID lockdowns throughout the year, which makes either year on year or quarter on quarter comparisons difficult. It is not yet clear whether this slight increase in Q1 is a short term market increase or whether full year 2023 sales will likewise outstrip 2022 vehicle sales.

Speaker 3

You may recall in 2022, the market was at 7 year low of approximately 735,000 units. We believe this Q1 increase in the Overall market is the result of post COVID return in consumer spending. But again, it is unclear within This volume trend will be maintained throughout 2023. In these challenging economic times, Customers tend to revert to price consciousness and conservative purchase patterns. ICE scooter pricing has been extremely aggressive in Q1 and as a result, some consumers have purchased ICE vehicles rather than making the switch to cleaner electric solutions.

Speaker 3

The total number of registered electric scooters in Q1 in Taiwan was 16,741 units, down slightly from 17,065 units in Q1 of 2022. Of these electric scooters, approximately 13,000 We're Gogoro and Partner Brands and 10,593 units were Gogoro Branded. While volumes of Gogo and partner branded vehicles were down, we attribute this to a number of contributing factors. 1st, The delay in city level subsidy communication. The last major city to announce its subsidies program was made only last month.

Speaker 3

And secondly, the emergence of a number of new fuel efficient ICE vehicles and substantial marketing from large OEMs behind these vehicles. Additionally, a new heavily marketed low cost, low power electric moped in the entry market segment, attract customer attention and demand in the market. We currently don't have a product offering in this new eMofed category, but have plans to introduce a number of new products in the second half of twenty twenty three. When viewed on a like for like 100 to 125 cc performance basis, market share for Gogoro and our partners for Q1 2023 was 80.6% of We encourage competition in the Taiwan 2 wheel electric vehicle market. It serves to expand the market and drive innovation.

Speaker 3

The fact that other companies are adopting battery swapping technology further proves that the market for electric 2 wheelers is best served with battery swapping solutions. As a leader in this space, We welcome healthy competition and remain dedicated to providing sustainable, efficient and convenient modes of urban mobility that benefits both our customers and the environment. We welcome the Taiwan government's extension of a subsidy program for the purchase of electric 2 wheelers. Each consumer can get a New Taiwan Dollar $7,000 or US2 $30 subsidy from the central government as well as additional subsidies from local city level government and for replacing an aging vehicle with an electric scooter. These subsidies, while not central to our business model, do help consumers make a transition to electric mobility.

Speaker 3

In order for Taiwan and other countries to hit their electrification targets, a constant predictable commitment to electrification in the forms of specific incentive programs and electrification policies if necessary. Despite any periodic short term challenges or hurdles we encounter, we believe that the shift toward electric vehicles is inevitable and will happen both in Taiwan and the other markets. Our Go to network continues to grow. We now have over 540,000 riders and have deployed more than 1,100,000 smart batteries at over 1200 battery swapping cabinets at approximately 2,400 locations across Taiwan. As has been the case throughout Gogoro's history, the total number of subscribers in the 1st quarter continues to grow quarter on quarter, mirroring the total number of vehicles that Gogoro and our PBGM partner sells.

Speaker 3

The model remains the same. A customer can buy any vehicle they like, brand, styling, motor size, performance, etcetera. And they then become subscribers to the GoGo network and join our accumulating subscriber base in making a monthly payment for this service. This payment amount depends largely on the behavior based on customer riding range, the mix of B2C and B2B riders, as well as different tariff plans that we charge. The current average revenue per rider is just above $20 for a subscriber in Taiwan, with the vast majority of the subscriber Using their vehicle for personal commute.

Speaker 3

In international markets, we expect an increased mix of B2B riders in an increased mileage range among typical B2C users. We continue to see very little fall off from our network users. Even if a vehicle is sold into the secondhand market, the buyer of that vehicle becomes a subscriber of the Gogoro network. Since 2015, Gogoro has successfully completed over 460,000,000 battery swaps with approximately 410,000 individual battery Displays 287,000,000 liters of gas and avoided 603,000,000 kilograms We've done this safely and at scale for a number of years, accumulating experience, Data and fine tuning our network for international deployment. Our network collects real world data on riding distance and power consumption, and we're able to accurately calculate the total CO2 emissions from Gogoro vehicles.

Speaker 3

In general, If a gasoline powered 2 wheeler vehicle is replaced by an electric vehicle, emissions are reduced by over 80% of current level of CO2 emission from an average gasoline ICE vehicle. Our impact report highlights our ongoing commitment and progress in sustainability, which is available for view on our website. We have deployed this network and built an extensive and smart management system To make every vehicle more sustainable, our platform is able to monitor every battery, every swap and perform over the air upgrades to battery or vehicle software, Optimizing the system for efficiency, while extending lifespan of the battery. These batteries also enable the growth of sustainable urban areas. Together with partners, we're building a range of smart city solutions and applications that include battery swapping, Smart electric vehicles, smart sharing mobility, AIoT devices, decentralized energy storage and demand response services.

Speaker 3

Our batteries are now powering thousands of device serving non mobility customers as well. With the announcement of the commercialization of our partnership with Enel X, We can now add a potential substantial future revenue stream as well as broadly deploy a new use case for swappable smart We've always said not to think of Gogoro as only a hardware and vehicle company. In 2022, we initiated a pilot program in Taiwan together with Thai Power and Enel X, the world's largest aggregator of power and demonstrated the use of our battery in GO Station as virtual power plants or VPP. After the successful pilot, We recently announced the commercial deployment of more than 2,500 cabinets at over 1,000 battery swapping locations. This is a significant milestone for Gogoro and it's the world's first as this marks the beginning of a new era of smart energy infrastructure.

Speaker 3

The VPP technology enables and support grid efficiency and stability, returning energy to the grid when demand is high And pause charging during grid imbalance without interrupting the service for the riders. Gogoro's battery swapping energy load Is aggregated by Enelx VPP to support Highpower Company Energy Trading Platform for ancillary services. This platform enables companies like Gogoro to actively participate in energy trading and contribute to the overall energy supply in Taiwan. This collaboration with Enel X marks a significant step for GoGro's network in our evolution as an energy innovation technology company. With plans to deploy more than 2,500 cabinets across 1,000 Go Station's location By mid-twenty 23, our proactive participation in Taiwan renewable energy future and our role in the sustainable transformation of energy and mobility is Clear.

Speaker 3

Our demonstrated technology and operational leadership is meaningful to the international governments. This VPP use case can be deployed globally and is entirely new revenue stream for Gogoro and indicates the strength and breadth of our product offering in a variety of businesses that stems from our ability to customize batteries and station performance and behaviors to a specific business use case. The transition to electric mobility is already underway. And increasingly, the battery swapping approach that Gogoro pioneered is being adopted. For many, this transition to electric presents The chance for a cleaner future versus the current state of 2 wheeler pollution in large urban centers of the world.

Speaker 3

We continue to be heavily invested in helping to solve the urban mobility challenges with the cleanest and most efficient battery swapping system available, and then extend the use of that network to additional use cases. While virtually all of our competitive market Have a long history of dependence on gas powered internal combustion engine vehicles. We are confident the acceleration in affordability, Reliability and range of vehicles that are electric will speed the replacement of older technology with cleaner electric based solutions. Whenever there is a short term headwind of any kind, we remember that the long arc of history clearly points toward both electrification as well as battery swapping. A critical focus area for Gogu in 2023 is international expansion.

Speaker 3

I'm thrilled with the reception we've been receiving in new markets from governments, customers and partners, and Bruce will walk you through that progress and our plans.

Speaker 1

Thanks, Horace. We've made good progress and launched 3 pilots since we last reported earnings. Before I give market specifics, let me go into a bit of detail regarding expanding Via B2B as a starting point in international markets and specifically Why we believe B2B is a great starting point for India. The adoption of electric 2 wheeled vehicles is gaining popularity as a sustainable solution for urban transportation, particularly in congested cities and particularly among B2B riders. The The sheer distances driven daily by B2B riders makes the focus on converting them to clean solutions an imperative.

Speaker 1

And many city governments are making steps towards banning the use of ICE vehicles in B2B services. Electric vehicles have lower greenhouse gas emissions and reduced noise pollution within a city. The challenge that B2B riders have Always experienced with electric vehicles is the amount of time that charging takes and the range anxiety given the amount of time and space required for charging an electric vehicle. When Gogoro's battery swapping solutions are deployed, this charging location and time issue as well as range anxiety concerns are effectively addressed as battery swaps occur in a matter of seconds. Simultaneously, concerns about battery volatility under charge are addressed via our ability to charge batteries in our go stations at the optimal time and temperature to maximize for safety.

Speaker 1

Provided we launch these services at roughly price parity to gas on a per kilometer basis, the feedback we received from B2B riders, delivery platforms And demand aggregators is overwhelmingly positive. In Taiwan, B2B delivery riders are using Gogoro powered vehicles for their daily deliveries. Given the distances they ride daily and the constant power they need, B2B riders are the best customers for pilot programs and early adoption of Gogoro Technology in New Markets. These pilots give us the opportunity to tailor our vehicles and test road and climate conditions to meet market needs. As proof points increase, Gogrow can scale its network and grow with just in time CapEx deployment.

Speaker 1

We We intend to finance network expansion in overseas markets with both global and local partners to remain relatively asset light. In these new markets, we are working with delivery platforms and aggregators to accelerate the shift to EV in last mile deliveries. As we expand into the B2B market, we expect a variety of sales models in India. We have launched our pilot together with Zip, who is a 100% electric vehicle demand aggregator. They work closely with a variety of large platform companies whose services range from food delivery to scooter taxis, to grocery delivery, both large and last mile and other services.

Speaker 1

Zip buys vehicles directly from Gogoro and leases at the Gogoro network, contributing quickly to our accumulating subscriber base in India. Ziff is growing quickly, Having already established a presence in a number of cities and increased both their fleet size and geographic presence, We expect to shift towards full commercialization of our pilot program with ZIIP in the second half of twenty twenty three as the pilot program matures. A separate three way partnership between Gogoro Zomato and Kotak Mahindra Prime Bank is a significant step towards accelerating on the adoption

Speaker 4

of EV Scooters in India.

Speaker 1

With more than 300,000 delivery partner riders, Xamato is a major player in the food ordering and delivery industry in India. The The introduction of a vehicle purchase program for delivery partners on boarded with Zomato, along with favorable loan terms, will make it easier and more affordable for them to transition to EVs. As the only food ordering and delivery platform committed to The Climate Group's EV100 initiative, Xematos' commitment to transition to 100 percent electric based deliveries by 2,030 is commendable, and we are proud to be a part play a part in the process. With India's electric vehicle market experiencing a remarkable 58% growth, We see a huge potential for us to make a positive impact in the India EV Industry. Two wheelers make up over 70% of all vehicles present on the roads in India, with an additional 10% being 3 wheelers.

Speaker 1

Last year, these two categories constituted a significant 92% of the registered electric vehicles in India. Electric vehicles accounted for 4% of the 16,000,000 2 wheelers sold in 2022, up from 1% in the previous year, while about 40% of the 3 wheelers sold in 2022 were electric. Government incentives for both manufacturers and consumers Have been a major driver of this growth with subsidies from both national and state governments. The Indian government aims for EVs to make up 80% Challenging. The amount of charging infrastructure that would be required both from the standpoint of charge locations as well as the unpredictable tax that charging creates on the power grid would make battery swapping a much better solution for large scale urban adoption.

Speaker 1

To support this growth, we are growing in India. We have substantially increased our employee base in India and now have employees across most business functions: Product Development, Supply Chain Management, Manufacturing, Business Development as well as a variety of support staff from Central Functions. We'll continue to invest to grow our footprint in India and help India and local companies in their electrification journey. We welcome the opportunity to work with many different partners. In another country milestone, which occurred in April, We launched a pilot in the Philippines with market leader Globe, Globe's 917 Ventures and the Ayala Group to provide Gogoro smart scooter and battery swapping services in the Philippines, and we expect to have vehicles available for both B2B and B2C consumers in the second half of twenty twenty three.

Speaker 1

The 2 wheeler market in the Philippines is quite large, typically approximately 2,000,000 units per year Gogoro and Cyclone Carriage were awarded a battery swapping sandbox pilot for electric 2 wheel vehicles by Singapore's Land Transit Authority. Insights from the trial are being used to guide next steps to accelerate the adoption of sustainable mobility. We're excited about these specific pilot programs and the transition they represent to clean mobility in many countries. Although our international markets have not yet contributed significantly to our revenue for this year, we're dedicated to building a strong foundation for growth in these areas. We remain committed to R and D investments to develop and diversify our product portfolio to meet the right price points in the international markets and to ensure that we are well positioned to capitalize on these opportunities.

Speaker 1

The key to expansion in these countries is vehicle cost And energy plan cost to consumer. These markets, including consumers and partners, are extremely cost conscious. I'm pleased that we're making great progress on developing vehicles that will hit the price points required for these markets. Depending on vehicle power, Range and other factors, vehicles must be priced between about $1,000 $1,500 per vehicle. We target to launch vehicles that are competitive to other ICE and electric products in the market in the second half of twenty twenty three for each of the markets mentioned.

Speaker 1

We'll continue to provide updates as we can and plan for a variety of announcements over the coming months as these vehicles and services launch more broadly. With that background, let me give you some details about our Q1 financial performance. Q1 revenues were consistent with historic seasonality and our own internal projections. We have intentionally taken a conservative view of Taiwan market growth, Whether because consumer sentiment might slow due to macroeconomic challenges or because the ICE OEMs compete aggressively for customers, We do not expect much growth in overall or electric vehicle sales in 2023 and have forecasted accordingly. In the second half of the year, we do expect sales of vehicles internationally and should see an associated pickup in revenue in the second half.

Speaker 1

The Go Grow network growth is consistent with an accumulating subscriber base. For the Q1, revenue was $79,300,000 Foreign exchange rates remain consistent with the average rate of the same quarter last year, revenue would have been up by an additional $6,800,000 Sales of hardware and other revenue for the quarter were $47,000,000 down 27% year over year and down 21.5 and recorded. For the entire Powered 2 Wheel market, sales in Taiwan for the Q1 were up 9.8% year over year, While electric scooter sales were down 1.9% compared to the same quarter last year. The growth in the Powered 2 wheel market was driven by substantial sales of new, Heavily marketed, low priced and fuel efficient internal combustion engine scooter models launched in January 2023. Gogro vehicle sales volume decreased by 17.3% compared to the same quarter last year.

Speaker 1

This was driven by a combination of factors: Delays in the announcement of city government subsidies, increases in internal combustion engine sales due to new product launches and aggressive pricing strategies And in the case of Gogoro's sales drop, the emergence of a new heavily marketed low cost, low power electric moped in the entry market segment, which appeared to reduce Gogrow's market share. However, when viewed on a like for like performance basis, we maintained market share of 80.6%. Battery swapping service revenue for the Q1 was $32,300,000 up 9.8% year over year and up 19.2% on a constant currency basis. Total subscribers at the end of the Q1 exceeded 538,000, up 15.2% from 467,000 subscribers at the end of the same quarter last year. Battery swapping service revenue increase was primarily due to our large subscriber and the high retention rate of our subscribers.

Speaker 1

We continue to see the strength of our subscription based business model to accrue new customers to maximize for battery swapping network efficiency. For the Q1, gross margin was 12.9%, down from 13.7% in the same quarter last year. And non IFRS gross margin was 13.7%, down from 14.2% in the same quarter last year. The gross margin and non IFRS gross margin declines were driven by a decrease in the average selling price of our product portfolio, together with higher production costs per vehicle as a result of lower volumes. The decline was partially offset by the improved cost efficiencies of Gogo's battery swapping services operations.

Speaker 1

For For the Q1, net loss was $40,600,000 up $18,900,000 from $21,700,000 in the same quarter last year. The increase in net loss was primarily due to an unfavorable change in the fair value of financial liabilities of $18,500,000 This increase in net loss was partially offset by the decrease in sales and marketing expenses as a result of a more targeted retail marketing campaign and reduced headcount compared to the same quarter last year. For the Q1, adjusted EBITDA was $10,600,000 down from $13,500,000 in the same quarter last year. The decrease was primarily the result of non IFRS gross profit decreasing to $10,900,000 down 19% from $13,400,000 in the same quarter last year due to reduced sales volumes. The decrease was partially offset by the continued growth of Gogo's battery swapping services business in the Q1.

Speaker 1

We reduced operating cash outflow by $19,200,000 compared to the same quarter last year through tightening of our business operations and reducing working capital. As we execute on our international expansion strategy, we continue to make investments for growth, including a $16,400,000 equity investment, Other operational investments in multiple expansion markets in the Q1 and we'll continue to invest in growing our battery swapping infrastructure. We have paid back $17,700,000 in bank loans in the Q1 as part of our effective working capital and financing cost management. With a $167,100,000 cash balance at the end of the Q1 and additional credit facilities available, We believe we have sufficient sources of funding to meet our near term business growth objectives. For the full year 2023, we reiterate our outlook of revenue of $400,000,000 to $450,000,000 and we continue to estimate that we will generate 90% to 95% of 2023 full year revenue from the Taiwan market.

Speaker 1

With that financial update, I'll hand things back over to you, Michael.

Speaker 2

Thanks, Horace and Bruce for the business update, details on financial results and forward guidance. As attendees are formulating their questions, I will ask 2 questions, which I think are likely on everyone's minds given what you just shared.

Speaker 5

Okay. The first question will be on international markets and operational issues. You've made a number of announcements about expansion. Which of the international markets do you anticipate to ramp this year and which has The collaboration with Enel X to turn your swappable stations into virtual power plants sounds very interesting and could be a game changer. But can you elaborate on the technology behind this in more detail?

Speaker 4

Great. Thanks, Michael. I think it's important before I go into the specific markets in the question in Southeast Asia and also in India, It is important to really kind of understand our expansion process. I've always had a 3 step process in our global expansion. The first step as you probably have witnessed in our most recent announcement, for example, we have announced 3 pilots just in Q1 and pilots before that last year.

Speaker 4

It is a 3 step process in which it starts the pilot where we understand and get data from and user feedback from the market locally, so we understand how to adjust our technology, adjust our product, adjust our offering and how to actually communicate our value proposition to the customer. And the second step in the process is to expand out and grow out the network via B2B business model, where a lot of these B2B riders are very much based on how often spoke riding patterns, where then we can reliably and with a very, very predictable income build up the network. And only upon a successful build up of a B2B network Do we actually grow and expand into a B2C opportunity in those markets? A great example of that It's actually in Korea, a market that maybe we don't talk about very much. Today, after a very successful pilot, a year, year and a half back.

Speaker 4

We have actually exited out of our second phase of our pilot. And now there's over 70 stations in Korea, in cities across 8 cities, in cities like Seoul, Sejong and Deizhou. Those cities are very heavily densely populated. Today, we have about 1,000 vehicles in Korea doing B2B delivery, including powering the local DHL fleet without battery swapping. And then we expect to have about 200 go stations by the end of this year to launch the B2C business with our partner.

Speaker 4

That's a great example as to how we took a 1, 2, 3 step process and reliably and predictably launch the network. Today in the Philippines, in Singapore as well as in India As well as in Jakarta, Indonesia, we have active pilot programs where we're constantly gathering data, adjusting our design of our product to meet the local needs of those lighters. And I hope that very quickly, you'll see in the second half As we launch vehicles in both the Philippines and also in India, 2 of the largest growing markets in electric That will actually prove out to be a very successful launch. When it comes to the Enel X technology The Inelix technology, there's really in our we've always started our company with a thesis That we're more than just a mobility service for our battery swapping network. As Bruce has defined it a little bit ago, It's really a virtual power plant, a distributed power plant all throughout the city.

Speaker 4

The first phase is also again a 3 phase process for us to realize that vision. The first phase was something we announced about 2 years ago, where we actually started doing demand response. When the grid actually requires people to stop charging or stop using electricity, we can actually remotely And via the server and smart meter stations that actually have extra capacity to and enough for riders to come to actually stop using power from the grid. So that was Phase 1. Phase 2 is really around demand response.

Speaker 4

About 30 times a day in the Taiwan grid. Usually, the grid balance is 60 Hertz and sometimes it goes to 59.88 Hertz, Very specific 59.88 hertz. Our stations will then actually push power back for about an hour. We have about 150 megawatt power Megawatts of energy on standby to do that with the power company. And then our 3rd phase and eventually what we're going to do is actually to energy storage.

Speaker 4

With batteries that are no longer capable of powering users to ride maybe with a family up a hill, but it's plenty enough to actually serve as a power reserve, a large power reservoir for cities. And so we are into the Phase 2 with INellx and then we'll look to one day launch Phase 3 also as well as our capacity to build larger. Now with the technology, we're definitely on the leading edge of this technology. It is a world's first. And it is a great conversation as we engage with different governments across the world such as India, Philippines, Indonesia and even Singapore as we discuss with them how we actually play a bigger role not just to serve as electrification of mobility, but also converting electricity to smart electricity as Citi grows in the future.

Speaker 4

I hope that answers your question, but we are our company is extremely focused on innovation and being a first mover in every Category that we go into and look to these technologies to really materialize as we grow into much larger cities that As Bruce mentioned, in India, for example, it's 20 times that of Taiwan in volume. And so we can only imagine the scale of the network and how much energy we can to electric grid as they transition from traditional electricity grid to now more efficient, smarter,

Speaker 5

So the second question we will go to is more on the financial side. Can you help reconcile the downtrend in EV unit Sales with a bit of growth in the ICE market in Taiwan. Do you see this trend continuing in the latter part of 2023? Sounds like from the call that the downside was expected and cyclical in nature. But then do you foresee second quarter and the rest of the year playing out relative to Q1 and how that might impact your full year guidance of $400,000,000 to $450,000,000 So if you can help us understand Your comfort with that guidance, I'd be appreciated.

Speaker 5

Thanks.

Speaker 1

Thanks, Michael. Q1 revenue was basically as we expected. Q1 is traditionally our smallest by volume seasonal quarter, both from a revenue standpoint as well as from a unit sales standpoint, typically contributing about 18% to 20% of full year revenue. So we're on track from that standpoint. Consumer sentiment in the Q1 due to all of the pressures in the macroeconomic environment, inflation and so on, also compounded by geopolitical pressure.

Speaker 1

We think that's what slowed purchases just a little bit. And in those Challenging economic times, people tend to make conservative, predictable choices in terms of how they spend their money. We do hope to see more people converting to electric in the second half in the second quarter and the second half of the year going forward. We do expect in the second half to gain growth from international vehicle sales, As we as Forrest said begin to see market shift from that first stage of pilot into a more B2B deployment model. And so we're comfortable with where we sit right now from our guidance of $400,000,000 to 450,000,000 And we do expect things to continue to play out as anticipated in the back half of the year as well.

Speaker 5

All right. Thanks, Bruce. With that operator, could you please open up the line for

Speaker 4

the Q and A session.

Operator

Thank Thank you. Our first question comes from Ali Chen with UBS. Your line is open. Ali, your line is open. You may be muted.

Speaker 6

Hi. Can you hear me?

Speaker 1

We can hear you now, Ali.

Speaker 6

Hello? Okay. Thank you for taking my question and thank you for sharing the progress of our alliances in each So I have a question for India. You just share about the alliance with BID. So how about the other alliances?

Speaker 6

Can we have an update on the progress? Thank you.

Speaker 4

Thank you, Ali. This is Horace. So yes, as I said, as I mentioned, the first step is really to have a Pilot that allow us to take lesson learned from these riders, learning how they use it, the low condition, the weather condition, The environmental issues such as dust, water, flood, etcetera, etcetera, will really educate us and our partners on what is needed to build a great product. The second phase for us is really to launch a B2B program. Now our partners most of our partners that we're working with today are very B2C focused.

Speaker 4

And with that said, we're going to go with the B2B first, where we can actually build a predictable network, a robust network with healthy riders on it and with healthy batteries and then open it up in the future for B2C. So long story short is that our partners are still developing their vehicles. There are many partners that are in talk with us about using our technology to actively develop their vehicle as well. But we're going to stay focused on B2B because it's very India is a large place, 2,600 kilometer wide and 1900 kilometer deep. And so we're going to actually go focus on Major cities where we have a large demand from aggregators like ZIPP And also from businesses who are focused on delivery, such as Zomato, Flipkart, etcetera, to really help us build out the network first and then we'll pivot to B2C like we did with like we're doing with Korea today.

Speaker 6

Thank you, Harish. My second question is regarding the Taiwan market. Like you just mentioned, the competition has become fiercer and with ICEs Becoming more aggressive in pricing and also there are launch in entry level products. So how would you plan to Regain market share in Taiwan market, I heard you that there will be new product in second half. Wondering if there is any other plans to regain the market share in Taiwan.

Speaker 6

And also when we launch the New products at entry level, will that have any impact on our margin? Thank you.

Speaker 4

Great. I'll take the first half and maybe Bruce can take a second step, but I didn't answer all of it. At GoGirl, we're very much focused on user experience. To us, it is not necessarily a price driven decision for the customer. Usually, what it is, is a great better user experience, a healthier user for the customer.

Speaker 4

And so with that said, what we are doing in the second half is we're broadening our portfolio with a number of Different partnerships as well as different products that we're doing, as well as making the readout with Products that are better fit with the different market segments. Now with Q1's results, I think there was As Wu said, it is conservative time. There is a lot of noise about everything from bank failure to geopolitical tension that made the consumer make decision maybe a little bit more reserved. But however, as we look at Taiwan, The moratorium for gas vehicle purchase is imminent. It will come.

Speaker 4

And there's a very, very clear target with the government that has put out to the public about how many percent they want to convert. And with that, they will put the right policies, the right incentives in place to push the customers toward making the right decision. So I think it's both the headwind of the moratorium as well as tailwind that we're putting in with better products and better innovation and better user experience Hopefully, we'll today, like as Bruce said, we have a very healthy market share in electric, little more than 80% when we Look at the 125cc, 100cc class vehicle, we believe that will continue because our innovation is clearly in that space. So we're very, very optimistic as to what Taiwan is today. However, for the year, we still want to be a little bit more conservative when it comes to our projection, because you don't know what will happen.

Speaker 4

But we're very much focused on growing and stabilizing Taiwan market share, As well as diversifying our revenue internationally, it is critical for us to diversify into the international market with the proven technology that we've got. Lighting up these cities is actually quite quick. If you think about what we are, we are literally a distributed power plant that goes all around the city with Stations that have energy storage within it that can distribute. When you think about PowerPoint, it takes 10, 15 years to deploy to build 1. We have been able to successfully launch these pilots very, very quickly in Q1 and I think we will only see that progress accelerate throughout the year.

Speaker 1

I'll just add a couple of comments about margin, Ali. In the Q1, as you saw, margins down just a little bit, largely driven by Low volumes in our manufacturing facilities as well as some ASP pressure as we intentionally look to broaden our offerings in the mainstream kind of market segments. In terms of going forward, there's a multiple there's a number of different ways we're working to ensure that margins We're increasing the use of consistent components across our entire vehicle lineup, And that helps us to be more flexible in our manufacturing. We are increasing the operating efficiency on our Go Gurum network as we become more I'm experienced at running that network and experienced efficiency there. And then thirdly, we're just really cost conscious at the moment.

Speaker 1

We're engaged in Belt tightening, we're engaged in tight control of marketing dollars to ensure that they're used effectively. We're looking at all kinds of different spending at the macro level. And then maybe the last thing we're doing also is really diversifying our supply chain. As we localize manufacturing in different countries, we can use some of those lower cost products and bring them back to Taiwan for Lower overall product costs and we're finding benefits in places like India and in other countries from doing that. So keep margins flat is the goal for the year.

Speaker 6

Okay. Thank you, Horace and Bruce. That's my questions. Thank you.

Speaker 4

Thanks,

Operator

I'm not showing any further questions at this time. I'd like to turn the call back over to Michael.

Speaker 5

Okay. Thanks, operator. This concludes our question and answer session, but I'd like to turn the call back over to Horace for any closing remarks. Horace?

Speaker 4

Great. Thanks, Michael. Our thesis as a company has always been an electric transition will occur, That it will occur fastest on 2 years and that battery swapping is a solution that best meets the needs of urban customers, for the B2B or B2C. That thesis is not only intact, it is now becoming widely held among OEMs, governments and customers. I continue to be proud of and inspired by the work of all the Gogoro team members and partners are putting together in every day to contribute to a cleaner world.

Speaker 4

Additionally, my thanks to all of our loyal Cogrow Network customers for placing your trust in us and our solution. We're working tirelessly to ensure that you have a great customer experience. With the market shifting toward electric, the sentiment of 2 wheel electric vehicles is expected to experience rapid growth in the coming years. This transition is a critical is a crucial move toward sustainable urban transportation. We'll continue to execute in Taiwan and international markets along with our partners and lead the transition to renewable, clean, mobility in urban cities.

Speaker 4

Thank you everyone for attending today's webcast.

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Earnings Conference Call
Gogoro Q1 2023
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