Andrew Fox: There are many players in this fragmented space that we are competing against. We win with our big auto experience, our relationship with dealers, and our educational white glove approach with our clients.
Operator: We will now go to questions sent by Tate Sullivan with Maxim.
Tate Sullivan : Andrew, can you describe why car dealerships need a large amount of EV charging infrastructure?
Andrew Fox: Switching from ICE to EV is a tremendous pivot for dealerships. In order to sell and service EVs, they need the cars charged up and ready for customers. OEMs are mandating the levels of investment and timelines. For example, Ford has announced publicly their requirements, their highest level of spend at a Ford dealership could reach 1.2 million to receive inventory and compete. Dealerships have no other choice, and so we’re here to help build them.
Tate Sullivan : How often do EVs and dealership lots need to be cycled through the Chargers?
Andrew Fox: It’s early, so we don’t have a lot of history yet, but we are experiencing that as new generations of technology come out, systems will need to be replaced every few years, and as better equipment becomes available, dealers will want to upgrade. As an example of this, we have already seen some dealers who now have level two s wanting to upgrade DC fast chargers. Again, we’re in the early stages, so most of this equipment on site is fairly new.
Tate Sullivan : Do any of your dealership customers plan to open EV charging stations to the general public?
Andrew Fox: We can’t speak on behalf of our dealership partners as to what their plans are with their EV charging stations going forward. Today, we see their focus, meaning the OEM mandates in a time acquired.
Tate Sullivan : Can you talk about how many electricians CRGE employees full-time today compared to a year ago?
Andrew Fox: Well, as of the end of €˜22, we have 385 team members, 317 were within our infrastructure segments. We hire opportunistically have a subcontractor network, which we are continually growing and have access to union labor in certain areas. Through these channels, we’re able to staff properly. The labor market is still tight, but it hasn’t slowed us down.
Operator: Our last set of questions are from Poe Fratt with Alliance Global Partners.
Poe Fratt : How will the turnkey agreement or alliance with Alltel Energy work from an economic standpoint? Page 15 of the company’s March 1 presentation indicates that average CapEx is $365,000 and average OpEx is approximately $34,000 a year. Will any of this revenue potential be shared with Alltel Energy or will they benefit from the electrical vehicle supply equipment? EVSE. Does the agreement cover only auto dealers and our specific geographic area, and also will charge need other partners to fully cover the 18,000 U.S. auto dealers.
Andrew Fox: Octa is the EV and will benefit directly from the sale of their cutting-edge hardware. The economics would be similar to any of our other projects where we earn revenue off the project management, design, engineering, install, and maintenance. This is not an exclusive arrangement, however, this arrangement allows us to provide yet another turnkey solution to many of our dealers with a very reputable company that has a wide variety of EV charging hardware to offer an over 18 years’ experience in the auto sector manufacturing vehicle diagnostic equipment. The average CapEx and OpEx referenced on page 15 in the March 1st presentation does not include the hardware costs, but does refer to the economics charge and joys from consulting and educating, designing, engineering and installation along with our future ongoing maintenance and repair.
The agreement is not exclusive to auto dealers. There is no geographic or industry segment restriction. Charge works with many EV SEs on behalf of our customers and will continue to do so.
Poe Fratt : What is the revenue potential of the agreement to evaluate, recommend and install the electric vehicle solutions at 600 Baltimore Washington Conference of United Methodist Churches.