Natural gas engine manufacturer Westport Innovations said orders almost doubled in the second quarter of its 2005 fiscal year compared to last year, allowing it to reduce its red ink, if slightly.
Wesport said revenues doubled to $8.8 million in its second fiscal quarter of 2005, though it lost $6.9 million compared to losses of $8.3 million in the same period of fiscal 2004.
Its heavy duty engine division, Cummins Westport Inc. (CWI) – a joint venture with diesel engine maker Cummins -- said revenues increased by 86% to $6.3 million in the second fiscal quarter. Shipments almost doubled to 352 units, compared with 181 shipped the same quarter in fiscal 2004.
“We are pleased … in particular [with] the strong overall cyclical and geographical growth in CWI product revenues in what has traditionally been a slow quarter,” said David Demers, Westport’s president and CEO.
“Although CWI's cash usage is up this quarter compared to last quarter, this investment rate is appropriate given the costs of completing development of the new L Gas Plus engine, which will deliver incremental cash flow later this year,” he said. “We expect to continue to see variability in our shipments and cash usage within CWI this year, but our overall goal of CWI breakeven for the fiscal year still appears reasonable.”
Westport noted it has several major engine orders in hand as well, including: 150 C-Gas Plus engines with an option for another 600 from Washington Metro Area Transit Authority in the U.S.; 150 B-series natural gas engines from Beijing Public Transit in China; 78 B Plus Gas and C Plus Gas engines from Ponticelli for use in refuse trucks in Paris, France; 52 C-Gas Plus engines from Big Blue Bus of Santa Monica, CA.
