BorgWarner Inc. (NYSE:BWA) Q4 2022 Earnings Call Transcript

John Murphy: And maybe just lastly, I mean to kind of put this all together, I mean, it looks like the margins on the ICE business in ’23 will be 12% to 13%, maybe even there as we think about the aggregate margins being in the 10% range, do you think we’re at a point where those ICE margins may improve even a bit over time and that this transition is kind of hitting sort of a low point on margins and returns in ’23? Or do you think that’s still in front of us? Because I mean, you match part that we show on the EV business getting a breakeven sometime between ’23 and ’24 roughly, kind of indicates that we may be hitting the low point and that as we get through ’24, things may actually sort of on an average basis far to improve. I know we’re kind of looking far out, but people are just trying to really understand what this transition between EV to return?

Frederic Lissalde: John, our product leadership and scale in the foundational product is very, very strong. And I would say the margin will remain top quartile and strong as you’ve seen in the past. Also, don’t forget that the foundational products that we have an impact on our EV growth and one of the announcements that we made this morning around the battery cooling plates is a great example of that. We’re leveraging product foundational know-how with cooler applications in the world of combustion. We are leveraging processes, know-how around brazing around leakage control from our proving technology into the battery cooling plate. So this is a great example of losing foundational know-how to create a new organically developed product for the EV world.

John Murphy: Okay. But, is it fair to say, I mean, given the volatility that’s going into the markets right now and this transition and just kind of being the last year where you might be using money based on what you’re showing on an operating basis that we may be looking at a sort of a point in time or ’23. I know it’s hard to say, but just in the transition conceptually may mark one of the — it may mark a low water mark in margins that’s going through this transition all else equal?

Frederic Lissalde: John, we are approaching breakeven. Is it end of ’23? Is it beginning ’24? I mean it’s tough to say. But it is absolutely clear that now the turning point both from a revenue and a path to breakeven, that’s absolutely pretty visible.

Operator: And we’ll take our next question from Luke Junk with Baird.

Luke Junk: Fred or Kevin, it’d be great to just get your perspective on what you’re seeing industry-wide in terms of the push and pull between 400-volt and 800-volt architectures. Do you think the consensus, if you will, is moving more towards 800-volt? And just curious with what happened with the customer award that you mentioned today? Does that animate this industry-wide dynamic at all?

Frederic Lissalde: Look, the two voltages will leave and have a space in the market. 800 volts leads to a few efficiency improvements, but also comes with additional features and cost and we believe that depending on the end application, the vehicle type and the price point that OE wants to set the vehicle and both technologies will remain active. And what we’re doing at BorgWarner is really focusing on the module design of those inverters so that we have building blocks depending on level of voltages or silicon, silicon carbide level of output necessary so that we are using a modular approach that will be pretty agnostic to the voltages.

Luke Junk: Good. Appreciate that. And then for my follow-up, I was just hoping you could comment on the Wolfspeed partnership that you announced in November, specifically around your ability compete incrementally and ensure supply for and after that partnership? And most importantly, to what extent you think your supply chain position now could be advantaged versus peers in silicon carbide?