Clean Energy Fuels CEO Discusses Q3 2010 Results - Earnings Call Transcript

Clean Energy Fuels Corp. (CLNE)

Q3 2010 Earnings Call Transcript

November 8, 2010 4:30 pm ET

Executives

Ina McGuinness – IR

Andrew Littlefair – President and CEO

Rick Wheeler – CFO

Analysts

Rob Brown – Craig-Hallum

Graham Mattison – Lazard Capital Markets

Eric Stine – Northland Capital Markets

Jake Greenblatt – Barclays Capital

Rupert Merer – National Bank Financial

Cory Garcia – Raymond James

Presentation

Operator

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Greetings and welcome to the Clean Energy Fuels third quarter 2010 earnings conference call. (Operator Instructions) As a reminder, this conference is being recorded.

It is now my pleasure to introduce your host, Ina McGuinness. Thank you, Ms. McGuinness. You may begin.

Ina McGuinness

Thank you, operator. Earlier this afternoon, Clean Energy released financial results for the third quarter ended September 30, 2010. If you did not receive the release it’s available on the Investor Relations section of the company's website at www.cleanenergyfuels.com. And this call is being webcast and the replay will be available on the website for 30 days.

Before we begin, we would like to remind you that some of the information contained in the news release and on this conference call contains forward-looking statements that involve risks, uncertainties and assumptions that are difficult to predict. Words of expression reflecting optimism, satisfaction with current prospects, as well as words such as believe, intend, expect, plan, anticipate and similar variations identify forward-looking statements, but their absence does not mean that the statement is not forward looking. Such forward-looking statements are not a guarantee of performance and the company's actual results could differ materially from those contained in such statements. Several factors that could cause or contribute to such differences are described in detail in the Risk Factors section of Clean Energy's Form 10-K filed on March 10, 2010 and its 10-Q filed later – that will be filed later today or tomorrow.

These forward-looking statements speak only as of the date of this release and the company undertakes no obligation to publicly update any forward-looking statements or supply new information regarding circumstances after the date of this release. The company's non-GAAP EPS and adjusted EBITDA will be reviewed on this call and it excludes certain expenses that the company's management does not believe are indicative of the company's core business operating results. Non-GAAP financial measures should be considered an addition to results prepared in accordance with GAAP and should not be considered as a substitute for or superior to GAAP results. The direct comparable GAAP information, reasons why management uses non-GAAP information, a definition of non-GAAP EPS and adjusted EBITDA and a reconciliation between the non-GAAP and GAAP figures is provided in the company's press release, which has been furnished to the SEC on Form 8-K today.

Participating on today's call from the company is President and Chief Executive Officer, Andrew Littlefair and Chief Financial Officer, Rick Wheeler. And with that, I will turn the call over to Andrew.

Andrew Littlefair

Thank you, Ina. Thank you and good afternoon, everyone. Today, we reported another good growth quarter, making substantial progress in advancing our leadership position in the industry. Revenues were $45.7 million up 46% from $31.2 million a year ago. And volume increased to 31.3 million gallons during the quarter. Our business is doing well and we've added some important components to our operations.

Let me kick off our call by discussing a very big win for us. Recently, in Los Angeles, we were awarded overall responsibility to operate and maintain all 10 of LA County Metropolitan Transportation Authority or Metro, CNG bus fueling facilities. It is very significant that we will soon be the sole station operator for Metro's entire fleet of 2500 CNG buses. This is the largest CNG fleet and the largest consumer of CNG fuel in the United States.

Last quarter, we had the honor of being awarded an additional 9 million gallons, which brought us to 25 million gallons. And with this new contract, we've added another 15 million gallons for a total of about 40 million gallons annually. You know, transit agencies have to roll out their fleet every day with a great degree of precision. And at the scale at which LA MTA operates, this is an impressive operation. We're very proud to be rewarded for doing a good job and that upholds their high standards

So besides adding a tremendous amount of volume for us, we view this award as a testament to the high quality and efficiency of our operations. One of the most significant accomplishments of this period was our agreement with Pilot Flying J. Pilot is the largest truck fueling station operator in the country they have more than 550 travel centers and have the highest fuel sales volumes in North America. This exclusive arrangement provides us with a clear roadmap for deploying corridors of LNG stations for heavy-duty trucks.

As national fleets consider adoption of LNG, they will be able to continue to fuel at the same truck stops they are already using. With this agreement, we have made it much easier for fleet managers to say yes to LNG. Our Pilot Flying J relationship answers the question that many people have been asking us as our business has ramped up and that is, how are you going to build out the infrastructure for fueling and major goods movement corridors across the nation? The answer is here, where trucking goes, Pilot and Flying J is and so will be Clean Energy.

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