Geelong’s Carbon Revolution hits the ground running after Nasdaq listing

Geelong-based automotive technology company Carbon Revolution has hit the ground running following its debut on the Nasdaq last month by announcing record revenue in the September quarter as it heads towards tripling revenue year-on-year in FY24.

Carbon Revolution (Nasdaq: CREV), a company inspired by a team of engineering students looking to create more efficient automotive vehicles nearly two decades ago, is a Tier 1 OEM (original equipment manufacturer) supplier of lightweight carbon-fibre composite wheels to the global automotive industry.

Ford, Ferrari, Renault, General Motors and Jaguar Land Rover are among its growing list of clients.

Carbon Revolution CEO and co-founder Jake Dingle says with several program wins over the past year now moving into production, the company has posted record revenue of US$11.3 million ($17.2 million) in the September quarter, up 56 per cent from a year earlier.

“Our commercial momentum is extremely strong, with five program wins in 2023 more than doubling our backlog,” Dingle says.

“In less than a year, we have increased our awarded programs to 18 with six global OEMs.”

Carbon Revolution’s technology, which has managed to halve the weight of conventional wheels used in automotive manufacturing, is gaining increased market traction, particularly in the electric vehicle (EV) market.

Dingle reveals that with new contract wins over the past year, Carbon Revolution has a backlog of work totalling US$730 million ($1.11 billion) with about half of this dedicated to the EV market.

“We continue to make strong progress on our expansion, including commissioning of the first phase of the mega-line, along with record production of wheels,” he says.

“Importantly, we have also raised significant capital to fund our growth and execute on our vision to be the global leader in lightweight wheels.”

Carbon Revolution’s expansion plans include a future North American production facility, possibly in Mexico, building on its existing purpose-built factory located in the Advanced Manufacturing Precinct at the Deakin University campus in Geelong.

The company this year commissioned its first mega-line at Geelong to increase production capacity and efficiency. But it is also looking to secure production partners globally to help it scale production to meet demand.

“We are incredibly excited about the opportunity ahead and remain focused on achieving profitable growth in the future, which we believe will be achieved through the automation of our production and driving greater fixed-cost leverage as volumes ramp,” Dingle says.

“Looking forward, we expect robust growth to continue in the fiscal second quarter. At the midpoint of our outlook, we expect revenue to increase more than 25 per cent sequentially and nearly triple year-over-year.”

Carbon Revolution estimates that revenue in the December quarter will land between US$14 million ($21.3 million) and US$14.5 million ($22.1 million).

Carbon Revolution plc is the listed entity on the Nasdaq and the parent company of the Australian-based Carbon Revolution Limited – a company founded by Dingle and his brother Matt who had initially worked on the technology with a founding group of graduate engineers in 2007.

When the company debuted on the Nasdaq on 3 November this year, Dingle noted the company’s evolution since then from a startup in a garage to a company growing its share of a multibillion-dollar global industry.

The Nasdaq listing, he said, would provide the group with access to deeper capital marks in the US as it expands operations globally.

Carbon Revolution is currently valued at US$59.4 million ($90.5 million).