Clean Energy Fuels Corp. (NASDAQ: CLNE) (“Clean Energy” or the
“Company”) today announced its operating results for the first
quarter of 2022.
Andrew J. Littlefair, Clean Energy’s President and Chief
Executive Officer, stated: “We continued to execute and ramp up our
RNG plan during the first quarter of the year, with investments in
fueling stations to support customers such as Amazon and in our RNG
supply joint ventures. Despite volatility in the market from
lingering effects of the pandemic, supply chain stress, labor
shortages, and near term softening of LCFS prices, we were able to
grow volumes year over year, generate operating cash and positive
Adjusted EBITDA. And our cash and investment balance remained at
approximately $229 million, the same as it was at the end of 2021.
All in all, I am pleased with the first quarter and that we are
executing on our RNG plan as expected.”
The Company delivered 95.8 million gallons in the first quarter
of 2022, a 3.7% increase from 92.4 million in the first quarter of
2021. This increase was principally from continued growth in Amazon
and in our airports, refuse and public transit customer markets.
Renewable natural gas (“RNG”) delivered was 39.7 million gallons in
the first quarter of 2022, a 7.3% increase compared to the first
quarter of 2021.
The Company’s revenue for the first quarter of 2022 was $83.5
million, an increase of 8.2% compared to $77.1 million for the
first quarter of 2021. Revenue for the first quarter of 2022 was
reduced by $3.8 million of non-cash stock-based sales incentive
contra-revenue charges (“Amazon warrant charges”) related to the
warrant issued to Amazon.com NV Investment Holdings LLC (the
“Amazon Warrant”). There were no Amazon warrant charges in the
first quarter of 2021 Revenue for the first quarter of 2022 also
included an unrealized loss of $1.0 million on commodity swap and
customer fueling contracts relating to the Company’s Zero Now truck
financing program, compared to an unrealized loss of $2.0 million
in the first quarter of 2021. The increase in revenue, which was
partially offset by the Amazon warrant charges, was principally due
to higher renewable identification number (“RIN”) and natural gas
prices, a favorable fuel price mix, which is based on the variation
of fuel types and locations where we deliver fuel, and an increase
in the number of gallons delivered. Revenue in 2022 included
carryover alternative fuel tax credit (“AFTC”) revenue of $0.2
million, due to the expiration of AFTC for vehicle fuel sales after
December 31, 2021, whereas 2021 included $4.5 million of AFTC
revenue.
On a GAAP (as defined below) basis, net loss attributable to
Clean Energy for the first quarter of 2022 was $(24.2) million, or
$(0.11) per share, compared to $(7.2) million, or $(0.04) per
share, for the first quarter of 2021. Compared to the first quarter
of 2021, the first quarter of 2022 was negatively affected by the
Amazon warrant charges, higher stock compensation expense, expenses
associated with ramping up our RNG supply investments and a loss on
extinguishment (refinancing) of debt at our NG Advantage
majority-controlled subsidiary.
Non-GAAP loss per share and Adjusted EBITDA (each as defined
below) for the first quarter of 2022 was $(0.05) and $3.3 million,
respectively. Non-GAAP loss per share and Adjusted EBITDA for the
first quarter of 2021 was $(0.01) and $11.6 million,
respectively.
Non-GAAP income (loss) per share and Adjusted EBITDA are
described below and reconciled to GAAP net income (loss) per share
attributable to Clean Energy and GAAP net income (loss)
attributable to Clean Energy, respectively.
Non-GAAP Financial Measures
To supplement the Company’s unaudited condensed consolidated
financial statements presented in accordance with accounting
principles generally accepted in the United States of America
(“GAAP”), the Company uses non-GAAP financial measures that it
calls non-GAAP income (loss) per share (“non-GAAP income (loss) per
share”) and adjusted EBITDA (“Adjusted EBITDA”). Management
presents non-GAAP income (loss) per share and Adjusted EBITDA
because it believes these measures provide meaningful supplemental
information about the Company’s performance, for the following
reasons: (1) these measures allow for greater transparency with
respect to key metrics used by management to assess the Company’s
operating performance and make financial and operational decisions;
(2) these measures exclude the effect of items that management
believes are not directly attributable to the Company’s core
operating performance and may obscure trends in the business; and
(3) these measures are used by institutional investors and the
analyst community to help analyze the Company’s business. In future
quarters, the Company may adjust for other expenditures, charges or
gains to present non-GAAP financial measures that the Company’s
management believes are indicative of the Company’s core operating
performance.
Non-GAAP financial measures are limited as an analytical tool
and should not be considered in isolation from, or as a substitute
for, the Company’s GAAP results. The Company expects to continue
reporting non-GAAP financial measures, adjusting for the items
described below (and/or other items that may arise in the future as
the Company’s management deems appropriate), and the Company
expects to continue to incur expenses, charges or gains like the
non-GAAP adjustments described below. Accordingly, unless expressly
stated otherwise, the exclusion of these and other similar items in
the presentation of non-GAAP financial measures should not be
construed as an inference that these costs are unusual, infrequent,
or non-recurring. Non-GAAP income (loss) per share and Adjusted
EBITDA are not recognized terms under GAAP and do not purport to be
an alternative to GAAP income (loss), GAAP income (loss) per share
or any other GAAP measure as an indicator of operating performance.
Moreover, because not all companies use identical measures and
calculations, the Company’s presentation of non-GAAP income (loss)
per share and Adjusted EBITDA may not be comparable to other
similarly titled measures used by other companies.
Non-GAAP Income (Loss) Per Share
Non-GAAP income (loss) per share, which the Company presents as
a non-GAAP measure of its performance, is defined as net income
(loss) attributable to Clean Energy Fuels Corp., plus Amazon
warrant charges, plus stock-based compensation expense, plus
(minus) loss (income) from the SAFE&CEC S.r.l. equity method
investment, and plus (minus) any loss (gain) from changes in the
fair value of derivative instruments, the total of which is divided
by the Company’s weighted-average common shares outstanding on a
diluted basis. The Company’s management believes excluding non-cash
expenses related to the Amazon warrant charges provides useful
information to investors regarding the Company’s performance
because the Amazon warrant charges are measured based upon a fair
value determined using a variety of assumptions and estimates, and
the Amazon warrant charges do not impact the Company’s operating
cash flows related to the delivery and sale of vehicle fuel to its
customer. The Company’s management believes excluding non-cash
expenses related to stock-based compensation provides useful
information to investors regarding the Company’s performance
because of the varying available valuation methodologies, the
volatility of the expense (which depends on market forces outside
of management’s control), the subjectivity of the assumptions and
the variety of award types that a company can use, which may
obscure trends in a company’s core operating performance.
Similarly, the Company believes excluding the non-cash results from
the SAFE&CEC S.r.l. equity method investment is useful to
investors because these charges are not part of or representative
of the core operations of the Company. In addition, the Company’s
management believes excluding the non-cash loss (gain) from changes
in the fair value of derivative instruments is useful to investors
because the valuation of the derivative instruments is based on a
number of subjective assumptions, the amount of the loss or gain is
derived from market forces outside of management’s control, and the
exclusion of these amounts enables investors to compare the
Company’s performance with other companies that do not use, or use
different forms of, derivative instruments.
The table below shows GAAP and non-GAAP income (loss)
attributable to Clean Energy per share and also reconciles GAAP net
income (loss) attributable to Clean Energy to the non-GAAP net
income (loss) attributable to Clean Energy figure used in the
calculation of non-GAAP income (loss) per share:
Three Months Ended
March 31,
(in thousands, except share and per
share data)
2021
2022
Net loss attributable to Clean Energy
Fuels Corp.
$
(7,169
)
$
(24,191
)
Amazon warrant charges
-
3,756
Stock-based compensation
3,367
8,253
Loss (income) from SAFE&CEC S.r.l.
equity method investment
396
158
Loss (gain) from change in fair value of
derivative instruments
2,045
1,035
Non-GAAP net loss attributable to Clean
Energy Fuels Corp.
$
(1,361
)
$
(10,989
)
Diluted weighted-average common shares
outstanding
198,995,453
222,559,648
GAAP loss attributable to Clean Energy
Fuels Corp. per share
$
(0.04
)
$
(0.11
)
Non-GAAP loss attributable to Clean Energy
Fuels Corp. per share
$
(0.01
)
$
(0.05
)
Adjusted EBITDA
Adjusted EBITDA, which the Company presents as a non-GAAP
measure of its performance, is defined as net income (loss)
attributable to Clean Energy Fuels Corp., plus (minus) income tax
expense (benefit), plus interest expense (including any losses from
the extinguishment of debt), minus interest income, plus
depreciation and amortization expense, plus Amazon warrant charges,
plus stock-based compensation expense, plus (minus) loss (income)
from the SAFE&CEC S.r.l. equity method investment, and plus
(minus) any loss (gain) from changes in the fair value of
derivative instruments. The Company’s management believes Adjusted
EBITDA provides useful information to investors regarding the
Company’s performance for the same reasons discussed above with
respect to non-GAAP income (loss) per share. In addition,
management internally uses Adjusted EBITDA to determine elements of
executive and employee compensation.
The table below shows Adjusted EBITDA and also reconciles this
figure to GAAP net loss attributable to Clean Energy:
Three Months Ended
March 31,
(in thousands)
2021
2022
Net loss attributable to Clean Energy
Fuels Corp.
$
(7,169
)
$
(24,191
)
Income tax expense
83
49
Interest expense
1,436
3,077
Interest income
(254
)
(264
)
Depreciation and amortization
11,735
11,390
Amazon warrant charges
-
3,756
Stock-based compensation
3,367
8,253
Loss (income) from SAFE&CEC S.r.l.
equity method investment
396
158
Loss (gain) from change in fair value of
derivative instruments
2,045
1,035
Adjusted EBITDA
$
11,639
$
3,263
Definition of “Gallons Delivered”
The Company defines “gallons delivered” as its gallons sold as
compressed natural gas (“CNG”) and liquefied natural gas (“LNG”),
along with its gallons associated with providing operations and
maintenance services, in each case delivered to its customers in
the applicable period, plus the Company’s proportionate share of
gallons delivered by joint ventures in the applicable period. RNG
sold as vehicle fuel is included in the CNG or LNG amounts as
applicable based on the form in which it was sold.
Three Months Ended
March 31,
Gallons of RNG delivered (in
millions)
2021
2022
CNG
30.1
34.6
LNG
6.9
5.1
Total
37.0
39.7
The table below shows gallons delivered for the three months
ended March 31, 2021 and 2022:
Three Months Ended
March 31,
Gallons Delivered (in millions)
2021
2022
CNG
78.6
82.3
LNG
13.8
13.5
Total
92.4
95.8
Sources of Revenue
The following table shows the Company's sources of revenue for
the three months ended March 31, 2021 and 2022:
Three Months Ended
March 31,
Revenue (in millions)
2021
2022
Volume-related (1) (2)
$
68.1
$
80.0
Station construction sales
4.5
3.3
AFTC
4.5
0.2
Total revenue
$
77.1
$
83.5
(1)
For the three months ended March 31, 2021
and 2022, volume-related revenue includes an unrealized (loss) from
the change in fair value of commodity swap and customer fueling
contracts of $(2.0) million and $(1.0) million, respectively.
(2)
Includes $0.0 million and $3.8 million of
Amazon warrant contra-revenue charges for the three months ended
March 31, 2021 and 2022, respectively.
2022 Outlook
GAAP net loss for 2022 is expected to range from approximately
($57) to ($65) million, assuming no unrealized gains or losses on
commodity swap and customer contracts relating to the Company’s
Zero Now truck financing program, and including Amazon warrant
charges estimated to range from $34 to $44 million. Changes in
diesel and natural gas market conditions resulting in unrealized
gains or losses on the Company’s commodity swap and customer
fueling contracts relating to the Company’s Zero Now truck
financing program, and significant variations in the vesting by
Amazon of the Amazon warrants could significantly affect the
Company’s estimated GAAP net loss for 2022. Adjusted EBITDA for
2022 is estimated to range from approximately $60 to $65 million.
These expectations exclude the impact of any acquisitions,
divestitures, new joint ventures, transactions or other
extraordinary events including a deterioration in, slower or lack
of any recovery from the COVID-19 pandemic. Additionally, the
expectations regarding 2022 Adjusted EBITDA assumes the calculation
of this non-GAAP financial measure in the same manner as described
above and adding back the estimated Amazon warrant charges
described above and without adjustments for any other items that
may arise during 2022 that management deems appropriate to exclude.
These expectations are forward-looking statements and are qualified
by the statement under “Safe Harbor Statement” below.
(in thousands)
2022 Outlook
GAAP Net loss attributable to Clean Energy
Fuels Corp.
$
(57,000) - (65,000)
Income tax expense (benefit)
—
Interest expense
9,400
Interest income
(1,050)
Depreciation and amortization
46,000 - 49,000
Stock-based compensation
28,350
Loss (income) from SAFE&CEC S.r.l.
equity method investment
—
Loss (gain) from change in fair value of
derivative instruments
—
Amazon warrant charges
34,300 - 44,300
Adjusted EBITDA
$
60,000 - 65,000
Today’s Conference Call
The Company will host an investor conference call today at 4:30
p.m. Eastern time (1:30 p.m. Pacific). Investors interested in
participating in the live call can dial 1.888.321.0431 from the
U.S. and international callers can dial 1.412.902.4121. A telephone
replay will be available approximately two hours after the call
concludes through Sunday, June 5, 2022 by dialing 1.844.512.2921
from the U.S., or 1.412.317.6671 from international locations, and
entering Replay Pin Number 10165233. There also will be a
simultaneous, live webcast available on the Investor Relations
section of the Company’s web site at www.cleanenergyfuels.com,
which will be available for replay for 30 days.
About Clean Energy Fuels Corp.
Clean Energy Fuels Corp. is the country’s largest provider of
the cleanest fuel for the transportation market. Our mission is to
decarbonize transportation through the development and delivery of
renewable natural gas (RNG), a sustainable fuel derived from
organic waste. Clean Energy allows thousands of vehicles, from
airport shuttles to city buses to waste and heavy-duty trucks, to
reduce their amount of climate-harming greenhouse gas. We operate a
vast network of fueling stations across the U.S. and Canada. Visit
www.cleanenergyfuels.com and follow @ce_renewables on Twitter.
Safe Harbor Statement
This press release contains forward-looking statements within
the meaning of Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933, as
amended, and Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as
amended, including statements about, among other things, our fiscal
2022 outlook, our volume growth, customer expansion, production
sources, joint ventures, and the benefits of our fuels.
Forward-looking statements are statements other than historical
facts and relate to future events or circumstances or the Company’s
future performance, and they are based on the Company’s current
assumptions, expectations and beliefs concerning future
developments and their potential effect on the Company and its
business. As a result, actual results, performance or achievements
and the timing of events could differ materially from those
anticipated in or implied by these forward-looking statements as a
result of many factors including, among others: the COVID-19
pandemic and the measures taken to prevent its spread and the
related impact on our operations, liquidity and financial
condition; the willingness of fleets and other consumers to adopt
natural gas as a vehicle fuel, and the rate and level of any such
adoption; the Company’s ability to capture a substantial share of
the market for alternative vehicle fuels and vehicle fuels
generally and otherwise compete successfully in these markets; the
potential adoption of government policies or programs or increased
publicity or popular sentiment in favor of other vehicle fuels; the
market’s perception of the benefits of RNG and conventional natural
gas relative to other alternative vehicle fuels; natural gas
vehicle and engine cost, fuel usage, availability, quality, safety,
convenience, design, performance and residual value, as well as
operator perception with respect to these factors, in general and
in the Company’s key customer markets, including heavy-duty
trucking; the Company’s ability to manage and grow its RNG
business, including its ability to procure adequate supplies of RNG
and generate revenues from sales of such RNG; the Company and its
suppliers’ ability to successfully develop and operate projects and
produce expected volumes of RNG; the potential commercial viability
of livestock waste and dairy farm projects to produce RNG; the
Company’s history of net losses and the possibility the Company
incurs additional net losses in the future; the Company’s and its
partners’ ability to acquire, finance, construct and develop other
commercial projects; the Company’s ability to invest in hydrogen
stations or modify its fueling stations to reform its RNG to fuel
hydrogen and electric vehicles; the Company’s ability to realize
the expected benefits from the commercial arrangement with Amazon
and related transactions; future supply, demand, use and prices of
crude oil, gasoline, diesel, natural gas, and other vehicle fuels,
including overall levels of and volatility in these factors;
changes in the competitive environment in which we operate,
including potentially increasing competition in the market for
vehicle fuels generally; the Company’s ability to manage and grow
its business of transporting and selling CNG for non-vehicle
purposes via virtual natural gas pipelines and interconnects, as
well as its station design and construction activities;
construction, permitting and other factors that could cause delays
or other problems at station construction projects; the Company’s
ability to execute and realize the intended benefits of any
acquisitions, divestitures, investments or other strategic
relationships or transactions; future availability of and our
access to additional capital, which may include debt or equity
financing, in the amounts and at the times needed to fund growth in
the Company’s business and the repayment of its debt obligations
(whether at or before their due dates) or other expenditures, as
well as the terms and other effects of any such capital raising
transaction; the Company’s ability to generate sufficient cash
flows to repay its debt obligations as they come due; the
availability of environmental, tax and other government
regulations, programs and incentives that promote natural gas, such
as AFTC, or other alternatives as a vehicle fuel, including
long-standing support for gasoline- and diesel-powered vehicles and
growing support for electric and hydrogen-powered vehicles that
could result in programs or incentives that favor these or other
vehicles or vehicle fuels over natural gas; the Company’s ability
to comply with various registration and regulatory requirements
related to its RNG projects; the effect of, or potential for
changes to greenhouse gas emissions requirements or other
environmental regulations applicable to vehicles powered by
gasoline, diesel, natural gas or other vehicle fuels and crude oil
and natural gas fueling, drilling, production, transportation or
use; the Company’s ability to manage the safety and environmental
risks inherent in its operations; the Company’s compliance with all
applicable government regulations; the impact of the foregoing on
the trading price of the Company’s common stock; and general
political, regulatory, economic and market conditions.
The forward-looking statements made in this press release speak
only as of the date of this press release and the Company
undertakes no obligation to update publicly such forward-looking
statements to reflect subsequent events or circumstances, except as
otherwise required by law. The Company’s periodic reports filed
with the Securities and Exchange Commission (www.sec.gov),
including its Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q for the quarter ended
March 31, 2022 that the Company expects to file with the Securities
and Exchange Commission on or about May 5, 2022, contain additional
information about these and other risk factors that may cause
actual results to differ materially from the forward-looking
statements contained in this press release, and such risk factors
may be amended, supplemented or superseded from time to time by
other reports the Company files with the Securities and Exchange
Commission.
Clean Energy Fuels Corp. and
Subsidiaries
Condensed Consolidated Balance
Sheets
(In thousands, except share
and per share data; Unaudited)
December 31,
March 31,
2021
2022
Assets
Current assets:
Cash and cash equivalents
$
99,448
$
107,970
Short-term investments
129,722
120,565
Accounts receivable, net of allowance of
$1,205 and $1,189 as of December 31, 2021 and March 31, 2022,
respectively
87,433
83,024
Other receivables
24,447
11,447
Inventory
31,302
32,322
Prepaid expenses and other current
assets
37,584
57,247
Total current assets
409,936
412,575
Operating lease right-of-use assets
42,537
42,604
Land, property and equipment, net
261,761
256,509
Restricted cash
7,008
—
Notes receivable and other long-term
assets, net
56,189
42,941
Investments in other entities
109,811
108,274
Goodwill
64,328
64,328
Intangible assets, net
5,500
5,500
Total assets
$
957,070
$
932,731
Liabilities and Stockholders'
Equity
Current liabilities:
Current portion of debt
$
12,845
$
10,033
Current portion of finance lease
obligations
846
859
Current portion of operating lease
obligations
3,551
3,606
Accounts payable
24,352
25,603
Accrued liabilities
75,159
62,352
Deferred revenue
7,251
8,052
Derivative liabilities, related party
1,900
4,379
Total current liabilities
125,904
114,884
Long-term portion of debt
23,215
25,615
Long-term portion of finance lease
obligations
2,427
2,278
Long-term portion of operating lease
obligations
39,431
39,299
Long-term portion of derivative
liabilities, related party
2,483
4,187
Other long-term liabilities
8,199
8,138
Total liabilities
201,659
194,401
Commitments and contingencies
Stockholders’ equity:
Preferred stock, $0.0001 par value.
1,000,000 shares authorized; no shares issued and outstanding
—
—
Common stock, $0.0001 par value.
454,000,000 shares authorized; 222,684,923 shares and 222,759,688
shares issued and outstanding as of December 31, 2021 and March 31,
2022, respectively
22
22
Additional paid-in capital
1,519,918
1,527,164
Accumulated deficit
(771,242
)
(795,433
)
Accumulated other comprehensive loss
(1,622
)
(1,373
)
Total Clean Energy Fuels Corp.
stockholders’ equity
747,076
730,380
Noncontrolling interest in subsidiary
8,335
7,950
Total stockholders’ equity
755,411
738,330
Total liabilities and stockholders’
equity
$
957,070
$
932,731
Clean Energy Fuels Corp. and
Subsidiaries
Condensed Consolidated
Statements of Operations
(In thousands, except share
and per share data; Unaudited)
Three Months Ended
March 31,
2021
2022
Revenue:
Product revenue
$
67,692
$
72,507
Service revenue
9,451
10,990
Total revenue
77,143
83,497
Operating expenses:
Cost of sales (exclusive of depreciation
and amortization shown separately below):
Product cost of sales
44,808
57,615
Service cost of sales
5,593
6,622
Selling, general and administrative
21,441
27,927
Depreciation and amortization
11,735
11,390
Total operating expenses
83,577
103,554
Operating loss
(6,434
)
(20,057
)
Interest expense
(1,436
)
(3,077
)
Interest income
254
264
Other income, net
678
20
Loss from equity method investments
(426
)
(1,677
)
Loss before income taxes
(7,364
)
(24,527
)
Income tax expense
(83
)
(49
)
Net loss
(7,447
)
(24,576
)
Loss attributable to noncontrolling
interest
278
385
Net loss attributable to Clean Energy
Fuels Corp.
$
(7,169
)
$
(24,191
)
Net loss attributable to Clean Energy
Fuels Corp. per share:
Basic
$
(0.04
)
$
(0.11
)
Diluted
$
(0.04
)
$
(0.11
)
Weighted-average common shares
outstanding:
Basic
198,995,453
222,559,648
Diluted
198,995,453
222,559,648
View source
version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20220504006337/en/
Investor Contact: investors@cleanenergyfuels.com
News Media Contact: Raleigh Gerber Director of Corporate
Communications 949.437.1397
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