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More good money flushed down the toilet.

Fortescue’s British battery maker slumps to $152m loss​


Fortescue’s British battery making business has reported spiralling losses and has now soaked up close to $1 billion in funding from the Perth-headquartered iron ore mining giant since its acquisition three years ago.

The company formerly known as Williams Advanced Engineering lost £72.6 million ($151.6 million) in the 12 months to June 30 last year, according to filings with corporate regulators in the United Kingdom.

The result was more than triple the £22.3 million loss recorded in the previous year as it invested heavily in research, development and the fit-out of new manufacturing premises in the country. Administrative expenses more than doubled from £35.7 million to £83.2 million in the year.
Originally named after Formula 1 motorsport legend Sir Frank Williams, the company was rebranded Fortescue Zero after the iron ore miner acquired it in January 2022. Fortescue first engaged with the British company in 2021 as a customer, hiring Williams to work on a battery-powered truck.
Williams Advanced Engineering was a subsidiary of the Williams F1 team, which now has Australian technology giant Atlassian as its major sponsor.

Fortescue paid $US223 million ($311 million) to acquire Williams, in the belief it would spend large sums buying equipment from the British company in future to reduce emissions at its West Australian mines.
Explaining the deal in January 2022, then-Fortescue chief executive Elizabeth Gaines said the deal was priced on a “revenue multiple” rather than an earnings multiple, which she said was common for tech companies.
Williams’ revenue was £42.5 million in 2020 and rose to £112.6 million in the year to the end of June 2023, with sales to Fortescue part of the reason for the revenue surge. But revenue did not grow in the 12 months to June 30 last year and instead fell by close to 1 per cent to £111.7 million.

Aside from selling to Fortescue, the British company also has a contract to supply batteries to the global electric vehicle racing competition, Formula E.
“The future for the company is bright, with a strong order book, a committed and well-funded parent company and a clear strategic vision,” said the company in accounts filed last week.
Fortescue has pumped £252.5 million of cash into the British company over the past 24 months. Combined with the original acquisition price, Fortescue has now spent more than $1 billion on the battery manufacturer.

Among the products the British company has made for Fortescue’s mining division is a 240-tonne battery-electric haul truck prototype called the “roadrunner”. Fortescue says the truck battery can be recharged in 30 minutes using one of its proprietary fast chargers.
Fortescue hopes the roadrunner and other low-emissions trucks can help it reduce its diesel consumption, which stood at 631 million litres in the year to June 2024. The company has vowed to reduce the emissions of its iron ore mines to “real” zero by 2030 without relying on carbon offsets.

The “real zero” target will be difficult to achieve, given Fortescue’s emissions were still rising the last time they were reported to market. Fortescue’s mines generated 2.72 million tonnes of greenhouse gas in the year to the end of June 2024, up from 2.55 million tonnes the previous year.
Fortescue’s executive chairman Andrew Forrest has long hoped to turn the miner into an energy business, working on dozens of projects around the world under the now defunct Fortescue Future Industries banner. Last year, the company said it would cut 700 jobs and slow its push into green hydrogen after concluding buyers would not spend more for the fuel.
 
TimeISmoney said:
More good money flushed down the toilet.

Fortescue’s British battery maker slumps to $152m loss​


Fortescue’s British battery making business has reported spiralling losses and has now soaked up close to $1 billion in funding from the Perth-headquartered iron ore mining giant since its acquisition three years ago.

The company formerly known as Williams Advanced Engineering lost £72.6 million ($151.6 million) in the 12 months to June 30 last year, according to filings with corporate regulators in the United Kingdom.

The result was more than triple the £22.3 million loss recorded in the previous year as it invested heavily in research, development and the fit-out of new manufacturing premises in the country. Administrative expenses more than doubled from £35.7 million to £83.2 million in the year.
Originally named after Formula 1 motorsport legend Sir Frank Williams, the company was rebranded Fortescue Zero after the iron ore miner acquired it in January 2022. Fortescue first engaged with the British company in 2021 as a customer, hiring Williams to work on a battery-powered truck.
Williams Advanced Engineering was a subsidiary of the Williams F1 team, which now has Australian technology giant Atlassian as its major sponsor.

Fortescue paid $US223 million ($311 million) to acquire Williams, in the belief it would spend large sums buying equipment from the British company in future to reduce emissions at its West Australian mines.
Explaining the deal in January 2022, then-Fortescue chief executive Elizabeth Gaines said the deal was priced on a “revenue multiple” rather than an earnings multiple, which she said was common for tech companies.
Williams’ revenue was £42.5 million in 2020 and rose to £112.6 million in the year to the end of June 2023, with sales to Fortescue part of the reason for the revenue surge. But revenue did not grow in the 12 months to June 30 last year and instead fell by close to 1 per cent to £111.7 million.

Aside from selling to Fortescue, the British company also has a contract to supply batteries to the global electric vehicle racing competition, Formula E.
“The future for the company is bright, with a strong order book, a committed and well-funded parent company and a clear strategic vision,” said the company in accounts filed last week.
Fortescue has pumped £252.5 million of cash into the British company over the past 24 months. Combined with the original acquisition price, Fortescue has now spent more than $1 billion on the battery manufacturer.

Among the products the British company has made for Fortescue’s mining division is a 240-tonne battery-electric haul truck prototype called the “roadrunner”. Fortescue says the truck battery can be recharged in 30 minutes using one of its proprietary fast chargers.
Fortescue hopes the roadrunner and other low-emissions trucks can help it reduce its diesel consumption, which stood at 631 million litres in the year to June 2024. The company has vowed to reduce the emissions of its iron ore mines to “real” zero by 2030 without relying on carbon offsets.

The “real zero” target will be difficult to achieve, given Fortescue’s emissions were still rising the last time they were reported to market. Fortescue’s mines generated 2.72 million tonnes of greenhouse gas in the year to the end of June 2024, up from 2.55 million tonnes the previous year.
Fortescue’s executive chairman Andrew Forrest has long hoped to turn the miner into an energy business, working on dozens of projects around the world under the now defunct Fortescue Future Industries banner. Last year, the company said it would cut 700 jobs and slow its push into green hydrogen after concluding buyers would not spend more for the fuel.
Click to expand...
I wouldn’t say it’s wasted money, they are designing and building the battery factory that are going to supply Fortescue with the batteries for its trucks.

Fortescue could easily make the company super profitable by paying more for the services it gets, but what is the point of that?

It’s a bit like if Netflix wanted to make its film production studio subsidiary more profitable, it could get its streaming service business to pay more for the movies it buys from its studio. But what’s the point, it’s like taking $1 out of your left pocket and putting it in your right pocket.
 
Value Collector said:
I wouldn’t say it’s wasted money, they are designing and building the battery factory that are going to supply Fortescue with the batteries for its trucks.

Fortescue could easily make the company super profitable by paying more for the services it gets, but what is the point of that?

It’s a bit like if Netflix wanted to make its film production studio subsidiary more profitable, it could get its streaming service business to pay more for the movies it buys from its studio. But what’s the point, it’s like taking $1 out of your left pocket and putting it in your right pocket.
Click to expand...

I think that Williams engineering is also supposed to sell its products to other companies. Fair to talk of extensive R&D and the development of new production systems. But then Twiggy and FMG shareholders would want to see sales that return on the investment.

It may be the case that it is too soon to expect large external sales. However the opportunity to supply FMG requirements is already on the table. As VC points out the sale price to a related party could be very flexible
 
TimeISmoney said:
More good money flushed down the toilet.

Fortescue’s British battery maker slumps to $152m loss​


Fortescue’s British battery making business has reported spiralling losses and has now soaked up close to $1 billion in funding from the Perth-headquartered iron ore mining giant since its acquisition three years ago.

The company formerly known as Williams Advanced Engineering lost £72.6 million ($151.6 million) in the 12 months to June 30 last year, according to filings with corporate regulators in the United Kingdom.

The result was more than triple the £22.3 million loss recorded in the previous year as it invested heavily in research, development and the fit-out of new manufacturing premises in the country. Administrative expenses more than doubled from £35.7 million to £83.2 million in the year.
Originally named after Formula 1 motorsport legend Sir Frank Williams, the company was rebranded Fortescue Zero after the iron ore miner acquired it in January 2022. Fortescue first engaged with the British company in 2021 as a customer, hiring Williams to work on a battery-powered truck.
Williams Advanced Engineering was a subsidiary of the Williams F1 team, which now has Australian technology giant Atlassian as its major sponsor.

Fortescue paid $US223 million ($311 million) to acquire Williams, in the belief it would spend large sums buying equipment from the British company in future to reduce emissions at its West Australian mines.
Explaining the deal in January 2022, then-Fortescue chief executive Elizabeth Gaines said the deal was priced on a “revenue multiple” rather than an earnings multiple, which she said was common for tech companies.
Williams’ revenue was £42.5 million in 2020 and rose to £112.6 million in the year to the end of June 2023, with sales to Fortescue part of the reason for the revenue surge. But revenue did not grow in the 12 months to June 30 last year and instead fell by close to 1 per cent to £111.7 million.

Aside from selling to Fortescue, the British company also has a contract to supply batteries to the global electric vehicle racing competition, Formula E.
“The future for the company is bright, with a strong order book, a committed and well-funded parent company and a clear strategic vision,” said the company in accounts filed last week.
Fortescue has pumped £252.5 million of cash into the British company over the past 24 months. Combined with the original acquisition price, Fortescue has now spent more than $1 billion on the battery manufacturer.

Among the products the British company has made for Fortescue’s mining division is a 240-tonne battery-electric haul truck prototype called the “roadrunner”. Fortescue says the truck battery can be recharged in 30 minutes using one of its proprietary fast chargers.
Fortescue hopes the roadrunner and other low-emissions trucks can help it reduce its diesel consumption, which stood at 631 million litres in the year to June 2024. The company has vowed to reduce the emissions of its iron ore mines to “real” zero by 2030 without relying on carbon offsets.

The “real zero” target will be difficult to achieve, given Fortescue’s emissions were still rising the last time they were reported to market. Fortescue’s mines generated 2.72 million tonnes of greenhouse gas in the year to the end of June 2024, up from 2.55 million tonnes the previous year.
Fortescue’s executive chairman Andrew Forrest has long hoped to turn the miner into an energy business, working on dozens of projects around the world under the now defunct Fortescue Future Industries banner. Last year, the company said it would cut 700 jobs and slow its push into green hydrogen after concluding buyers would not spend more for the fuel.
Click to expand...

I think the comments about FMG's achievement in reducing energy emissions are very misleading. They have always been clear about the plans and timeline for making the iron ore business net zero. The development of massive solar and battery installations takes time. Ditto the development of electric dump trucks, excavators etc. Same goes for ammonia powered shipping and the infinity iron or train (which is in the country now)

These are all in progress and over the next 5 years will replace their fossil fuel usage with renewable energy.

Climate Transition Plan

This detailed timeline and clear action plan sets out how Fortescue will stop burning fossil fuels across its Australian iron ore operations by 2030.
ctp.fortescue.com ctp.fortescue.com
climate-transition-plan - 12.png
 
basilio said:
I think the comments about FMG's achievement in reducing energy emissions are very misleading. They have always been clear about the plans and timeline for making the iron ore business net zero. The development of massive solar and battery installations takes time. Ditto the development of electric dump trucks, excavators etc. Same goes for ammonia powered shipping and the infinity iron or train (which is in the country now)

These are all in progress and over the next 5 years will replace their fossil fuel usage with renewable energy.

Climate Transition Plan

This detailed timeline and clear action plan sets out how Fortescue will stop burning fossil fuels across its Australian iron ore operations by 2030.
ctp.fortescue.com ctp.fortescue.com
View attachment 203309
Click to expand...
I hope it works out because if it doesn't, it's going to be another hydrogen story with huge losses.
 
basilio said:
I think that Williams engineering is also supposed to sell its products to other companies. Fair to talk of extensive R&D and the development of new production systems. But then Twiggy and FMG shareholders would want to see sales that return on the investment.
Click to expand...
I think the largest part of that will come later, they are building the factory at the moment and setting up getting ready to build the batteries to sell to FMG.
 
TimeISmoney said:
I hope it works out because if it doesn't, it's going to be another hydrogen story with huge losses.
Click to expand...
Also remember it wasn't that long ago that Fortescue was the first to empty driverless dump trucks, now they have all sorts of autonomous equipment. driverless trucks seemed cutting edge, now they are just routine, I think electric trucks will be the same, its probably easier actually.

 
TimeISmoney said:
I hope it works out because if it doesn't, it's going to be another hydrogen story with huge losses.
Click to expand...
You can also think of it this way, Mining and oil companies routinely spend billions of dollars on exploration to find and develop new resources, or a drug company trying to develop a new drug. Not all of these exploration activities end in finding viable resources.

If FMG loses some money here and there in the process of trying to find new energy solutions, it can be thought of as like an oil company drilling to find a new oil field that turned out to be a dud. The cost is offset by the areas that do work out.
 
FMG on decent run in the past few weeks. Closed at $19. Was down to $14.31 on June 23rd. Be interesting to see how the divvie pays out.

Quarterly Production figures out. Record sales /delivery of ore. Costs contained. Couple of the hydrogen projects killed.
Focus on producing Green Steel for Chinese buyers.

1753339929522.png

icon-pdf.png
June 2025 Quarterly Production Report (PDF 280.0 KB)
 

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