EHang - Q4 2022

Transcript

Operator (participant)

Good day ladies and gentlemen. Thank you for standing by and welcome to the EHang fourth quarter 2022 and fiscal year 2022 earnings conference call. As a reminder, we are recording today's call. Now I will turn over the conference to Anne Ji, EHang's Senior Director of Investor Relations. Miss Anne, please proceed.

Anne Ji (Senior Director of Investor Relations)

Hello, everyone. Thank you for joining us on today's conference call to discuss the company's financial results for the fourth quarter and fiscal year of 2022. The earnings release is available on the company's IR website. Please note that the conference call is being recorded and the audio replay will be posted on the company's IR website. On the call today, we have Mr. Huazhi Hu, our Founder, Chairman, and Chief Executive Officer, Mr. Xin Fang, Chief Operating Officer, Mr. Richard Liu, Chief Financial Officer, and Nick Yang, an Independent Director of the Board. The management team will successively give prepared remarks. Remarks delivered in Chinese will be followed by English translations. All translation is for convenience purpose only. In case of any discrepancy, management's statement in the original language will prevail. A Q&A session will follow afterwards.

Before we continue, please note that today's discussion will contain forward-looking statements made pursuant to the safe harbor provisions of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Forward-looking statements involve inherent risks and uncertainties. As such, the company's actual results may be materially different from the expectations expressed today. Further information regarding these and other risks and uncertainties is included in the company's public filings with the SEC. The company does not assume any obligation to update any forward-looking statements except as required under applicable law. Also, please note that all numbers presented are in RMB and are for the fourth quarter and fiscal year of 2022, unless stated otherwise. With that, let me now turn the call over to our CEO, Mr. Huazhi Hu. Please go ahead, Mr. Hu.

Huazhi Hu (Founder, Chairman, and CEO)

谢 谢 安 妮 。 大 家 好 ， 感 谢 各 位 参 加 我 们 今 天 的 电 话 会 议 。 回 顾 2022 年 ， 对 于 亿 航 来 说 是 机 遇 和 挑 战 并 存 的 一 年 。 在 风 云 变 化 的 宏 观 经 济 、 政 治 、 疫 情 的 背 景 下 ， 我 们 坚 持 自 身 战 略 ， 重 点 放 在 适 航 认 证 、 业 务 发 展 和 生 态 体 系 构 建 等 方 面 ， 并 取 得 了 诸 多 成 果 ， 不 仅 增 强 了 公 司 长 足 发 展 的 韧 性 ， 也 进 一 步 扩 大 了 亿 航 在 全 球 城 市 空 中 交 通 领 域 的 领 先 优 势 。 去 年 四 季 度 ， 亿 航 216S 型 号 合 格 审 定 项 目 顺 利 进 入 了 最 后 的 符 合 性 验 证 阶 段 。 但 中 国 的 疫 情 从 防 控 到 放 开 后 的 大 规 模 传 染 ， 直 至 今 年 的 中 国 春 节 假 期 ， 一 定 程 度 上 耽 误 了 相 关 验 证 工 作 的 进 展 。 不 过 ， 我 们 在 云 浮 生 产 基 地 顺 利 完 成 适 航 验 证 专 用 机 型 的 制 造 ， 通 过 了 整 机 的 制 造 符 合 性 检 查 ， 并 在 广 州 、 贺 州 等 飞 行 基 地 开 展 各 项 符 合 性 验 证 试 飞 。 今 年 2 月 ， 中 国 民 航 局 总 工 程 师 、 适 航 审 定 司 、 飞 标 司 、 空 管 办 和 中 南 局 等 局 方 领 导 与 适 航 审 查 组 的 专 家 一 同 视 察 贺 州 的 飞 行 基 地 。 各 方 合 力 集 中 办 公 ， 不 仅 有 效 加 速 了 EH216-S 验 证 试 飞 等 最 后 阶 段 的 TC 审 查 工 作 ， 同 时 对 我 们 下 一 步 的 运 行 工 作 进 行 了 有 效 的 布 置 和 安 排 ， 更 加 强 了 我 们 证 后 运 行 的 信 心 。 直 至 今 天 ， 基 于 与 中 国 民 航 局 达 成 一 致 的 符 合 性 验 证 方 法 ， 我 们 正 在 积 极 有 序 地 开 展 各 项 符 合 性 验 证 工 作 ， 包 括 试 验 大 纲 的 提 交 、 实 验 室 试 验 、 地 面 试 验 和 检 查 、 飞 行 试 验 等 。 目 前 我 们 已 经 完 成 和 即 将 完 成 签 字 的 符 合 性 验 证 项 目 数 量 已 经 超 过 了 百 分 之 七 十 ， 这 意 味 着 亿 航 EH216-S 适 航 审 定 项 目 的 全 部 进 程 的 完 成 度 已 经 超 过 了 百 分 之 九 十 。 在 全 球 范 围 内 为 数 不 多 的 被 民 航 局 正 式 受 理 的 eVTOL 适 航 审 定 项 目 中 ， 亿 航 的 进 度 遥 遥 领 先 。 这 个 新 生 事 物 的 适 航 取 证 工 作 难 度 非 常 之 大 ， 但 我 为 我 们 的 团 队 在 过 去 数 年 的 不 懈 努 力 以 及 取 得 的 开 创 性 成 果 感 到 骄 傲 。 同 时 ， 我 们 非 常 感 谢 中 国 民 航 局 政 策 监 管 方 对 创 新 型 无 人 驾 驶 航 空 器 的 全 力 支 持 和 高 度 重 视 。 我 们 相 信 在 不 久 之 后 能 够 给 大 家 带 来 期 待 已 久 的 好 消 息 。 因 此 ， 我 们 相 信 2023 年 亿 航 所 引 领 的 空 中 交 通 将 迈 入 新 纪 元 ， 有 望 见 证 全 球 UAM 行 业 划 时 代 的 里 程 碑 。 值 得 一 提 的 是 ，eVTOL 行 业 的 领 头 羊 不 仅 是 亿 航 ， 更 是 我 们 根 植 的 中 国 市 场 ， 这 个 全 球 最 具 城 市 空 中 交 通 发 展 潜 力 的 巨 大 市 场 ， 根 据 摩 根 斯 坦 利 预 测 ， 约 占 全 球 UAM 市 场 总 量 的 百 分 之 三 十 。 近 年 来 ， 从 中 央 到 各 地 政 府 ...一 系 列 支 持 无 人 驾 驶 民 用 航 空 、 电 动 航 空 、 低 空 经 济 、 城 市 立 体 交 通 、 航 空 旅 游 等 新 兴 领 域 的 支 持 政 策 层 出 不 穷 ， 为 我 们 提 供 了 良 好 的 政 策 红 利 ， 市 场 环 境 更 带 来 了 不 断 增 长 的 政 府 和 企 业 客 户 。 稍 后 我 们 的 COO 方 鑫 先 生 会 向 大 家 详 细 介 绍 。 另 一 方 面 ， 中 国 的 全 球 领 先 的 无 人 机 上 下 游 产 业 链 和 专 业 人 才 方 面 的 深 厚 积 淀 ， 以 及 高 性 价 比 、 高 交 付 效 率 的 供 应 链 优 势 ， 为 我 们 的 产 品 研 发 、 制 造 和 交 付 提 供 优 质 的 保 障 。 放 眼 全 球 ， 一 航 作 为 EVTOL 行 业 先 行 者 ， 我 们 也 将 继 续 积 极 投 身 亚 洲 市 场 的 开 拓 ， 以 及 欧 洲 的 多 个 空 中 交 通 项 目 ， 协 同 当 地 客 户 、 合 作 伙 伴 与 政 府 ， 共 同 探 索 安 全 、 智 能 、 高 效 、 可 持 续 的 UAM 运 行 体 系 。 迄 今 ，EH216 系 列 AAV 已 经 在 亚 洲 、 欧 洲 、 美 洲 等 十 二 个 国 家 的 无 人 驾 驶 飞 行 累 计 超 过 三 万 四 千 架 次 ， 这 是 全 球 EVTOL 行 业 首 屈 一 指 的 飞 行 记 录 。 我 们 期 待 把 安 全 、 自 动 、 环 保 、 高 效 的 一 航 AAV 解 决 方 案 和 飞 行 体 验 带 给 越 来 越 多 国 家 的 客 户 、 合 作 伙 伴 和 乘 客 。 在 去 年 十 二 月 ， 我 们 很 高 兴 迎 来 杨 宁 先 生 作 为 独 立 董 事 加 入 公 司 董 事 会 。 虽 然 是 一 位 新 董 事 ， 其 实 是 我 们 的 老 朋 友 。 杨 宁 是 一 航 的 早 期 投 资 人 之 一 ， 多 年 来 一 直 关 注 并 见 证 了 一 航 的 成 长 和 UAM 行 业 的 发 展 ， 并 且 他 有 二 十 多 年 的 丰 富 投 资 经 验 和 多 家 上 市 公 司 的 创 业 经 验 。 我 相 信 杨 宁 的 加 入 给 一 航 新 阶 段 的 增 长 提 供 更 多 的 助 力 。 今 天 我 们 也 邀 请 了 杨 宁 一 起 参 加 我 们 的 会 议 ， 稍 后 问 答 环 节 有 机 会 与 大 家 在 线 交 流 。 下 面 交 给 我 们 的 首 席 运 营 官 方 鑫 先 生 ， 谢 谢 。

Anne Ji (Senior Director of Investor Relations)

This is the English translation of Mr. Hu's remarks. Hello everyone, thank you for joining our earnings conference call today. 2022 was a year of opportunities and challenges for EHang. Against the ever-changing backdrops of a macroeconomic volatilities, political uncertainties and pandemic, we remained committed to our strategies and continued to make meaningful progress during the year in our main priorities of airworthiness certification, business development and ecosystem establishment. This not only strengthens our resilience for long-term development, but also reinforce our leadership in the global urban air mobility industry. In the fourth quarter of last year, the EH216-S type certification successfully entered the final phase of the demonstration and verification of compliance. Due to the massive infections after China lifted the COVID control policies, until this year's Chinese Spring Festival holiday, the relevant TC progress was delayed to a certain extent.

Now we have manufactured the conforming aircraft for the purpose of airworthiness verification at our Yunfu production facility. Passed the aircraft manufacturing conformity inspection and are conducting compliance tests at flight bases in Guangzhou, Hezhou and other locations. In February this year, the CAAC Chief Engineer and officials from the Department of Aircraft Airworthiness Certification, the Flight Standards Department, the Office of Air Traffic Regulation, the Central and Southern Regional Administration, as well as the experts from the TC team inspected the flight base in Hezhou. We worked together effectively. The joint efforts of all parties not only accelerated the compliance flight test and other review process in the final stage, but also made plans and arrangements for the next steps, which boost our confidence in post certification operations.

As of today, we have been actively carrying out the work for demonstration and verification of compliance based on the means of compliance agreed by the CAAC. Our work includes submission of compliance test plans, laboratory tests, ground tests and inspections, flight tests, etc. At present, over 70% of compliance tests has been either completed or to be signed soon. It means we have substantially completed over 90% of the entire type certification process. We believe EHang is leading among the few eVTOL type certification projects that have been officially accepted by civil aviation regulators worldwide. Although the TC process for such a new innovative aircraft is full of difficulties, I'm proud of our team's unwavering efforts and groundbreaking achievements over the past few years.

At the same time, we are very grateful to China Civil Aviation Regulator, the CAAC, for their full support and high attention to this innovative AAV. We believe we will bring the expected good news in the near future. We believe EHang will take a lead in entering the new year of air mobility in 2023 and anticipate witnessing and record-making milestone in a global UAM industry. What is worth mentioning other than EHang being the eVTOL industry leader is the large Chinese market that we are rooted in, and its huge potential for the UAM development. According to Morgan Stanley's forecast, China is expected to account for about 30% of the global UAM market.

In recent years, Chinese central and local governments have introduced a series of supportive policies for emerging sectors related to unmanned civil aviation, electric aviation, low altitude economy, urban three-dimensional transportation, aviation tourism and so on. This has provided us with beneficial policies, a favorable market environment, and a growing demand from government and enterprises customers. Our CEO, Mr. Xin Fang, will talk more about it later. On the other hand, China has been a leader in the global UAV industry. It has accumulated a profound expertise in aspects of upstream and downstream industry chain and professional talents. Besides, China has the supply chain advantages of higher cost effectiveness and delivery efficiency. These lead a solid foundation for our product R&D, manufacturing and product delivery. In overseas market, we are committed to actively engaging in Asian market and participating in multiple air mobility projects in Europe as an eVTOL pioneer.

We will continue collaborating with local customers, partners and governments to jointly explore a safe, intelligent, efficient and sustainable UAM operational system. To date, the EHang 216 series of AAVs have successfully completed over 34,000 autonomous flights across 12 countries in Asia, Europe and Americas, which is the top flight record in the global eVTOL industry. Looking ahead, we will remain dedicated to expanding our reach and bring our AAV solutions and flight experiences to more customers, partners and passengers worldwide. In December last year, we are thrilled to welcome Mr. Nick Yang join our board of directors as an independent director. Although he is a new member of the board, he is also our old friend as one of the EHang's early investors who has been following the company's growth and the development of the UAM industry for many years.

With over 20 years of capital market experience and entrepreneurial experience in multiple listed companies, I believe that Nick will bring strong support to EHang's growth in our new stage. Today, we also have Nick with us on the call, and he will be available to communicate with everyone in a Q&A session later. I will turn over the call to our Chief Operating Officer, Mr. Xin Fang. Thank you.

Xin Fang (COO)

谢 谢 吴 总 。 各 位 好 ，2022 年 第 四 季 度 以 来 ， 亿 航 216-S 的 市 场 审 批 项 目 仍 然 是 公 司 工 作 的 重 中 之 重 。 我 们 很 高 兴 目 前 已 经 到 了 最 后 的 冲 刺 阶 段 。 为 保 障 取 证 后 的 业 务 长 期 可 持 续 增 长 ， 我 们 凭 借 领 先 的 先 发 优 势 ， 在 国 内 外 市 场 持 续 开 拓 ， 在 与 空 中 交 通 和 低 空 经 济 相 关 联 的 全 产 业 链 拓 展 业 务 与 合 作 机 会 ， 积 累 订 单 需 求 ， 增 强 艺 行 的 合 作 伙 伴 网 络 ， 以 增 加 协 同 效 应 ， 为 取 证 后 的 商 业 交 付 与 运 营 服 务 夯 实 基 础 。 在 中 国 ， 今 年 随 着 疫 情 防 控 政 策 的 放 开 ， 此 前 深 受 影 响 的 旅 游 业 迎 来 快 速 复 苏 。 根 据 中 国 旅 游 研 究 院 预 测 ， 预 计 2023 年 国 内 旅 游 人 数 约 四 十 五 点 五 亿 人 次 ， 同 比 增 长 约 百 分 之 八 十 ， 国 内 旅 游 收 入 约 四 万 亿 元 ， 同 比 增 长 约 百 分 之 九 十 五 。 这 无 疑 为 我 们 取 证 后 计 划 率 先 切 入 的 低 空 旅 游 商 业 应 用 ， 以 及 我 们 的 旅 游 业 客 户 带 来 良 好 的 发 展 机 遇 。 去 年 以 来 ， 我 们 持 续 深 耕 中 国 市 场 ， 在 各 地 如 火 如 荼 地 发 展 低 空 旅 游 和 低 空 经 济 、 构 建 现 代 化 综 合 交 通 运 输 体 系 、 新 型 智 慧 城 市 的 宏 观 政 策 背 景 下 ， 我 们 进 一 步 相 继 在 广 西 桂 港 、 湖 南 吉 首 、 湖 南 长 沙 、 安 徽 黄 山 、 山 东 青 岛 、 江 西 赣 州 、 江 西 九 江 、 陕 西 西 安 、 广 西 河 池 、 新 疆 、 广 东 深 圳 等 多 个 省 市 ， 与 当 地 政 府 、 旅 游 及 航 空 领 域 企 业 达 成 广 泛 且 深 入 的 业 务 合 作 和 产 业 布 局 。 迄 今 ， 在 中 国 ， 亿 航 216 系 列 AAV 在 手 订 单 和 即 将 签 署 的 订 单 累 计 超 百 架 ， 这 些 订 单 预 计 将 在 取 证 后 的 一 至 三 年 内 陆 续 交 付 。 此 外 ， 随 着 取 证 在 即 ， 来 自 全 国 各 地 新 订 单 的 询 盘 和 洽 谈 显 著 在 扩 大 和 增 长 。 近 日 ， 新 疆 旅 游 龙 头 企 业 、 深 交 所 上 市 公 司 西 域 旅 游 宣 布 拟 与 我 们 签 订 合 作 框 架 协 议 ， 计 划 设 立 合 资 公 司 ， 拟 在 未 来 五 年 运 营 数 量 不 低 於 一 百 二 十 架 亿 航 216-S 或 同 类 载 人 级 自 动 驾 驶 飞 行 器 ， 在 天 山 、 天 池 等 新 疆 各 大 景 区 开 展 低 空 旅 游 项 目 。 例 如 今 年 三 月 ， 西 安 航 通 与 我 们 达 成 战 略 合 作 意 向 采 购 协 议 ， 计 划 三 年 内 采 购 二 十 架 亿 航 216， 打 造 西 北 地 区 智 慧 空 中 城 市 和 低 空 飞 行 示 范 区 。 与 此 同 时 ， 我 们 积 极 拥 抱 愿 意 与 亿 航 长 期 携 手 成 长 的 战 略 投 资 者 。 例 如 去 年 十 二 月 ， 青 岛 西 亚 航 空 兴 趣 与 我 们 达 成 投 资 与 业 务 层 面 的 长 期 战 略 合 作不 久 提 供 了 一 千 万 美 元 投 资 还 将 推 动 当 地 相 关 政 府 部 门 应 用 一 航 的 全 系 列 产 品 预 计 未 来 两 年 产 品 需 求 可 达 到 一 亿 元 人 民 币 的 水 平 并 且 为 我 们 在 当 地 的 商 业 运 营 、 销 售 与 服 务 、 生 产 、 基 础 设 施 建 设 等 提 供 全 方 位 支 持 致 力 将 青 岛 打 造 成 世 界 级 的 城 市 空 中 交 通 示 范 应 用 明 星 试 点 区 域 。 未 来 ， 我 们 计 划 采 取 运 售 并 举 、 三 位 一 体 的 商 业 策 略 即 为 政 府 和 企 业 客 户 提 供 产 品 销 售 和 运 营 服 务 以 安 全 第 一 、 高 标 准 、 低 成 本 、 高 效 率 的 原 则 通 过 一 整 套 AAV 指 挥 调 度 系 统 平 台 和 UAM 运 营 体 系 支 撑 我 们 在 空 中 交 通 、 智 慧 城 市 管 理 和 空 中 媒 体 三 大 业 务 板 块 的 开 展 与 落 地 从 而 满 足 客 户 在 低 空 旅 游 、 城 市 交 通 、 空 中 物 流 、 消 防 应 急 、 医 疗 救 援 、 智 慧 城 市 管 理 、 空 中 媒 体 等 领 域 的 多 维 度 应 用 需 求 。 过 去 两 年 来 在 中 国 民 航 局 先 行 先 试 、 审 运 结 合 的 指 导 方 针 下 我 们 也 在 国 内 十 六 座 城 市 的 十 八 个 网 点 开 展 低 空 旅 游 场 景 的 试 运 行 累 计 完 成 八 千 两 百 国 家 级 的 一 航 216 安 全 运 行 试 飞 在 这 过 程 中 我 们 培 养 出 一 支 经 验 有 素 的 AAV 专 业 运 营 团 队 开 发 出 一 套 数 字 化 的 UAM 运 营 管 理 和 服 务 平 台 并 总 结 积 累 了 丰 富 的 、 可 行 的 、 可 复 制 的 试 运 行 经 验 因 此 ， 在 取 证 并 启 动 商 业 运 营 后 我 们 有 信 心 和 能 力 未 来 与 客 户 和 合 作 伙 伴 一 起 共 同 创 造 出 可 观 的 UAM 飞 行 服 务 价 值 这 也 是 我 们 长 期 积 累 领 先 行 业 其 他 公 司 的 先 发 优 势 和 运 营 门 槛 此 外 我 们 也 在 积 极 努 力 拓 展 UAM 上 下 游 产 业 链 的 合 作 以 及 生 态 体 系 的 布 局 例 如 去 年 十 月 我 们 很 高 兴 携 手 太 古 集 团 旗 下 的 港 机 集 团 致 力 共 同 搭 建 一 航 AAV 的 售 后 维 修 服 务 体 系 为 我 们 遍 布 各 地 的 客 户 提 供 更 加 高 质 量 、 高 效 的 维 修 服 务 同 时 助 力 一 航 216-S 适 航 认 证 后 的 持 续 适 航 。 在 亚 洲 海 外 市 场 去 年 我 们 积 极 开 拓 日 本 、 马 来 西 亚 、 印 度 尼 西 亚 、 泰 国 等 市 场 累 计 输 货 了 两 百 多 架 一 航 A6 系 列 产 品 的 预 订 单 并 与 当 地 合 作 伙 伴 共 同 围 绕 低 空 游 览 、 跳 岛 交 通 、 物 流 运 输 等 AAV 应 用 场 景 开 展 本 地 试 飞 今 年 二 月 我 们 在 日 本 成 功 实 现 了 一 航 216 在 海 外 开 放 空 域 的 载 人 首 飞 这 也 是 日 本 境 内 首 次 自 动 驾 驶 以 微 托 的 货 批 载 人 飞 行 。 在 欧 洲 去 年 第 四 季 度 一 航 216-S 完 成 了 西 班 牙 首 飞 助 力 欧 盟 AMD-LEB 项 目 圆 满 验 证 UAM 运 行 概 念 我 们 加 入 了 欧 盟 航 天 计 划 机 构 发 起 的 SAMVA 项 目 共 同 探 索 无 人 驾 驶 航 空 器 系 统 的 交 通 管 理 理 念 我 们 协 助 西 班 牙 国 家 警 察 总 局 实 现 了 一 航 216 试 运 行 的 首 飞 。 就 如 刚 才 胡 董 所 言 2023 年 是 一 航 至 关 重 要 的 一 年 随 着 适 航 取 证 的 拐 点 临 近 一 航 乃 至 整 个 UAM 行 业 即 将 迎 来 真 正 意 义 上 的 商 业 化 元 年 我 们 有 准 备 ， 有 信 心 也 有 责 任 做 好 全 球 以 微 托 商 业 化 的 先 行 者 我 们 计 划 在 完 成 适 航 认 证 后 再 公 布 业 绩 指 引 。 下 面 请 我 们 的 首 席 财 务 官 Lisa Liu 介 绍 财 务 情 况 ， 谢 谢 。

Anne Ji (Senior Director of Investor Relations)

This is the English translation of Mr. Fang's remarks. Thank you, Mr.

Hu. Hello, everyone. Since the fourth quarter of last year, our top priority remained the TC project. We are pleased to report that we are now in the final sprint in preparation for post-certification sustainable long-term growth. We are capitalizing our leading first-mover advantages to explore both domestic and overseas markets. We have been extending our business and cooperation opportunities throughout the entire industry chain related to air mobility and the low-altitude economy. By building up order demand, enhancing our partnership and collaborations, we are laying a solid foundation for commercial delivery and operational services following certification. In China, the tourism industry, which had seen heavy impact from COVID, has rapidly recovered this year as the control policies were lifted. The China Tourism Academy predicts that in this year the number of domestic tourists will reach 4.55 billion, up 80% compared to last year. The domestic tourism revenues will reach RMB 4 trillion RMB, about $580 billion, an increase of 95% compared to last year. This presents excellent development opportunities for the low-altitude tourism, the first market where we plan to launch commercial operations after certification, as well as for our tourism industry customers. Since last year, we have been dedicated to developing our domestic market in China. Against the backdrop of macro-policies promoting low-altitude tourism and economy, building a modern, integrated transportation system and developing new smart cities, we have continued extensive and deep business cooperations and industry layout with local governments, tourism and aviation enterprises in many provinces and cities, such as Guigang in Guangxi, Jishou and Changsha in Hunan, Huangshan in Anhui, Qingdao in Shandong, Ganzhou and Jiujiang in Jiangxi, Xi'an in Shaanxi, Hechi in Guangxi, Xinjiang, Shenzhen in Guangdong, etc. To date, we have received orders for over 100 units of the EH216 series AAVs in China.

These orders are expected to be fulfilled within one to three years after the TC process is completed. Additionally, with the approach of TC completion, there has been a significant growth in our customers' inquiries and a demand for new orders from all over China. For example, most recently, Xiyu Tourism, a leading tourism company in Xinjiang and listed on Shenzhen Stock Exchange, announced its intention to sign a cooperation framework agreement with us. It plans to establish a joint venture and operates a minimum of 120 units of EH216-S or our comparable passenger grade AAVs in five years for conducting low altitude sightseeing tourism projects in key scenic locations in Xinjiang, such as the Heavenly Lake of Tianshan. Another example, in March this year, Xi'an Aerospace Investment Company signed a strategic partnership agreement and an indicative purchase order with us.

They plan to buy 20 units of EH216 aircraft within three years in order to develop a smart air city and a low altitude flight demonstration area in northwest China. Meanwhile, we welcome partnerships with strategic investors who are willing to cooperate with EHang for long-term growth. For example, last December, Qingdao West Coast New Area reached a long-term strategic partnership with us over investment and business. It has not only provided $10 million investment, but will also facilitate the local government's applications of our entire product portfolio, which is expected to generate product demand worth over RMB 100 million, about $15 million within the next two years.

They will also provide full support to our local business operations, sales and services, production, and infrastructure constructions, among other things, with the goal of building Qingdao City into an outstanding world-class pilot zone for UAM demonstration and applications. In the future, we plan to adopt an integrated business strategy by both selling products and providing operational services for government and enterprises customers. Based on the principles of safety first, high standard, low cost, and high efficiency, we will utilize a complete set of AAV command and control system platform and a UAM operation system to support our three major businesses, which are air mobility, smart city management, and aero media. We are able to meet our customers' demand for diversified applications in low altitude tourism, urban transportation, aero logistics, firefighting emergency, medical rescue, smart city management, and aero media, et cetera.

In the past two years, under the CAAC's guidance, we have been taking a lead in carrying out trial operations while conducting type certification. To date, we have developed 18 operation spots for aero sightseeing in 16 Chinese cities. More than 8,200 safe operational trial flights have been completed with EH216 AAVs. During this process, we have cultivated a professional and well-trained AAV operation team, developed a digital platform for AAV operation management and services, and accumulated rich, feasible, and replicable trial operation experience. All of these give us ample confidence and ability to create a considerable UAM flight service values together with our customers and partners in the future upon obtaining certification and beginning commercial operations. This is also our first-mover advantages and operation benchmarks that we have built over the long term and ahead of other companies in the industry.

Additionally, we have been actively working on expanding cooperation across the UAM upstream and downstream industry chains, as well as building the ecosystem. For example, we are very pleased to partner with HAECO Group, a subsidiary of Swire Group, in last October. This partnership tends to build an after-sales maintenance service system for EHang AAVs to provide our customers worldwide with more high-quality and efficient maintenance service while empowering our continued airworthiness following certification. In overseas markets such as Asia, last year, we actively explored markets in Japan, Malaysia, Indonesia, and Thailand, secured more than 200 units of pre-orders for EHang 216 series, and established collaborations with local partners to carry out local trial flights surrounding AAV application scenarios such as low-altitude sightseeing tours, island-hopping mobility, and logistics transportation.

This February, we successfully conducted the first passenger-carrying EH216 demo flights in an open airspace overseas in Japan. This is also the first-ever passenger-carrying flight of an autonomous eVTOL in Japan with the approval. In Europe, in the fourth quarter of last year, we completed the 126 first flight in Spain. They used AMU-LED project to successfully verify the UAM concepts of operations. We also joined the EU SAMVA project to explore unmanned aircraft system traffic management. In addition, we assisted the Spanish National Police to complete the 126 maiden flight for their trial operations. As noted by Mr. Hu, 2023 is a crucial year for us, as the turning point of airworthiness certification approaches, EHang and even entire UAM industry are about to enter into commercialization.

We are prepared and confident and feel responsible to be a pioneer for commercialization in a global eVTOL industry. We plan to provide earnings guidance after certification. I will now turn the call over to our CFO, Mr. Richard Liu, for financial results. Richard, please go ahead. Thank you.

Richard Liu (CFO)

Thank you, Xin. Hello, everyone. Before I go into details, please know that all numbers presented are in RMB and are for the fourth quarter and the fiscal year of 2022, unless stated otherwise. All % changes are on a quarter-over-quarter basis, unless otherwise specified. Detailed analysis are contained in our earnings press release, which is available on our IR website. I will now highlight some of the key points here. Despite numerous uncertainty and challenges in 2022, we not only moved to the final phase of type certification, but also achieved significant progress in developing business and building an AAV ecosystem for post-certification growth. Meanwhile, we further enhanced our cost management, operational efficiency and financial soundness. We are optimistic to see a turning point for the expected expansion of our commercial operations and a new era for our company and the UAM industry.

In Q4, total revenues were $15.7 million, an increase of 90.7% from RMB 8.2 million in Q3. The EH216 series of AAV deliveries in Q4 were six units, up 50% from four units in Q3. For the fiscal year 2022, total revenues were RMB 44.3 million, compared with RMB 56.8 million in 2021. The EH216 series of AAV deliveries in 2022 were 21 units, compared with 30 units in 2021. Gross margin was 66.1% in Q4, a slight increase of 0.2 percentage points from 65.9% in Q3.

Gross margin was 65.9% in 2022, representing an increase of 2.5 percentage points from 63.4% in 2021, mainly attributed to the higher average selling price of EH216 AAVs. This represent the continued high gross margin levels compared to those of other electrically powered mobility products, such as electric vehicles, as a result of our competitive strengths and first-mover advantages in the global UAM and eVTOL industries. In Q4, our adjusted operating expenses, which are operating expenses excluding share-based compensation expenses, were RMB 73.2 million, compared with RMB 59.7 million in Q3.

The increase was mainly driven by the non-cash item of additional proven provisions for receivables in response to the impact of COVID into customers, and more expenditure on aircraft conformity for EH216-S in its verification process for type certification, with reductions in travel and marketing expenses and professional service expenses, et cetera. On an annual basis, the adjusted operating expenses were RMB 242.4 million in 2022, compared with RMB 246.6 million in 2021. As a result, our adjusted operating loss in Q4 was $61.3 million, compared with RMB 52.9 million in Q3. Adjusted net loss in Q4 was RMB 59.4 million, compared with RMB 55.1 million in Q3.

For the fiscal year, adjusted net loss was RMB 206.2 million in 2022, compared with RMB 192.8 million in 2021. Moreover, our cash balance remains solid as we have been proactively managing our cash position and assessing our liquidity. As of the end of Q4, we had $249.3 million of cash equivalents, restricted cash and short-term investments, compared with RMB 208.8 million as of the end of Q3. In December, we formed a strategic partnership with Qingdao West Coast New Area, one of China's national new areas in Shandong Province. This partnership comes with a RMB 10 million equity investment into the company and a potential additional investment of RMB 10 million in the future. This serves as additional liquidity support for operations and growth.

That concludes our prepared remarks. Let's now open the call for questions. Operator, please go ahead.

Operator (participant)

Thank you. To ask a question, you will need to press star one and one on your telephone and wait for your name to be announced. To withdraw your question, you can please press star one and one again. Once again, to register for question, please press star one and one on your telephone and wait for your name to be announced. Please stand by while we compile the Q&A roster. This will take a few moments. We are now going to proceed with our first question. The questions come from the line of Verena Jeng from Goldman Sachs. To ask your question, your line is opened.

Verena Jeng (Executive Director)

Thank you for taking my question. I have two questions. First of all, it's about the TC progress. Could you share when we expect to get a TC? And how should we think about the timeline for the mass production delivery and also prognosis for revenues? Is it like after one-two months we get a TC, or we will have the revenues and also the cash flow? Do we have enough time to hire the people for the mass production? The second question is about the responsibility. Could you share if the failure happens, is there a clear line of who to take the responsibility? For example, the users, if they do not operate properly or the component makers if it is caused by the certain component failure.

It could be really hard to prove, what reasons caused the failure, and eventually we will need to take all the responsibility. Thank you.

Nick Yang (Independent Director)

Hello. Yeah, this is Nick. Hi. As Mr. Hu had mentioned earlier, the TC process has completed over 90%. It's just a matter of time, and it's near the end now. If you compare with other eVTOL companies' progress, I think EHang is far ahead. Most importantly, EH216-S... Can anybody hear me? Hello?

Verena Jeng (Executive Director)

Yes, I can hear.

Nick Yang (Independent Director)

Hello. Yes.

Verena Jeng (Executive Director)

Yes.

Nick Yang (Independent Director)

Am I connected? Hello?

Operator (participant)

Yes, we can hear you.

Nick Yang (Independent Director)

Okay. Okay, hi.

Operator (participant)

Please stay on the line. I think we've just lost the line for Nick Yang. Thank you.

Nick Yang (Independent Director)

Hello? yes. Can anybody hear me? I disconnected.

Operator (participant)

We can hear you, Nick. Thank you.

Nick Yang (Independent Director)

Okay. Sorry about that. Yes, as Mr. Hu has mentioned earlier, the TC process has completed over 90%. It's just a matter of time that we complete the entire process, and it's near the end right now. If you compare this to other eVTOL companies' progress, I think EHang is very far ahead. Most importantly, EH216-S is the only autonomous one among all eVTOL TC projects, as you know, while other ones are all piloted. For details, EHang has published the illustration about the entire TC process and the checklist of key milestones it has accomplished. We want to bring clarity to the process, and we'll update very timely. This will act as a status bar, and it's very available on the IR website.

Regarding to the post TC production and delivery, I think it won't take much time or concern to generate revenue soon because the company has prepared for it all along by collecting more and more pre-orders beforehand. Also getting the Yunfu production facility established and operational for almost two years, and it procured stocks of key components from suppliers. All these efforts can shorten our lead time to delivery. For cost control reasons, we have over 100 workers in our manufacturing facilities. That's enough for the near term. If needed, the company is very able to hire more local staff in the future. Okay?

Verena Jeng (Executive Director)

Okay.

Nick Yang (Independent Director)

Does that answer your question?

Anne Ji (Senior Director of Investor Relations)

The second question will be answered by our CEO, Mr. Xin Fang, and followed by English translation.

Xin Fang (COO)

In production process, we strictly adhere to supplier and production process management. According to CAAC's requirements, we have implemented high-standard production and supplier management, with related responsibilities tracked from beginning to end. In operations, we have standardized operational body responsibilities, trained staff, and ensured operational safety throughout the entire process. In addition, we also provide product and passenger liability insurance for EHang's products and passengers, including product liability insurance, passenger liability insurance, and third-party liability insurance. Thank you.

Anne Ji (Senior Director of Investor Relations)

Okay. Thank you for your questions. Firstly, on general locations, aviation accidents have caused by the multiple factors, determinative responsibility for aircraft accidents requires specialized investigation by relevant regulatory authorities, which is a complex process. This investigation is required to identify various reasons and factors related to the accident before a final liability determination can be made. In order to ensure safety and prevent accidents, we have adopted a redundancy method in the tech design and the structural safety and communication of the EH216 AAVs. This ensures there is no single point of a failure. Since our AAV is autonomous, the passengers on board do not need to pilot it. As a result, there is no safety hazard caused by the passenger miscontrolling of the vehicle during the flight.

We will also create operation rules and provide safety instructions to passengers to ensure their safety. In the terms of production and manufacturing, we strictly manage our suppliers and the production procedures with the high quality standards in accordance with the requirements of the CAAC, and ensuring that we can trace the original sources while determining the safety responsibility. In the terms of operations, we will also set our standard for operators and conduct personnel training, so as to ensure the operation safety throughout the process. At last, we provide liability insurance coverage for our aviation products and passengers, as well as the relevant third parties. That is the answer to your second question. Thank you.

Operator (participant)

Once again, as a reminder, to ask a question, please press star one and one on your telephone and wait for your name to be announced. To withdraw your question, you can please press star one and one again. Once again, it's star one and one if you have any questions or comment at this time. Thank you. We are now going to proceed with our next question. The next questions come from the line of Di Wu from Tianfeng Securities. Please ask your question.

Di Wu (Equity Research Analyst)

Hi. Hi. Thank you for the management team to take my question. I have two questions as well. First is, as EHang is more focusing on China market, you talk about an increasing customer demand in China, could you share more color over the total revenue in your EH216 pipeline orders? Can you deliver these order without type certificate obtained? My second question is, our company has secured a significant number of pre-order in Asia, I mean, excluding China. Do these pre-orders also have, need type certifications in respective countries? Will your progress of type certification in China help these foreign type certification or is it like a whole new process all over again? Thank you so much.

Richard Liu (CFO)

Yes. I'll take it. Thank you, Di. This is Richard. Let me take your questions. First of all, as discussed earlier, we currently have an order pipeline of 100+ units of EH216 in China. This order pipeline has been growing, with increasing inquiries, discussions from more potential customers in China, especially from the tourism sectors. The related total contract value would amount to around RMB 200 million or more. If you factor the VAT in China, you can get the corresponding revenue estimate roughly around RMB 177 million something.

As put in our earnings release, most of these partner orders in China are conditional upon the TC and are expected to be fulfilled in one to three years after that. However, there are indeed some customers in China who are more sophisticated and understand that the TC is to be obtained soon, and thus do not require that before deliveries. In respect of your second question, those pre-orders in other Asian countries usually require the local TCs. We have been working with our local partners in communicating with the local aviation authorities. What we have been experiencing is that the authorities in those Asian countries are open-minded to this type of innovative aerial vehicles. It's practically interested in the uses in tourism, which an important industry in their respective economies.

After we obtain the certification in China, it will provide a base for us to apply for the local certifications with the local aviation authorities. We will not have to go from zero. To give an example, in those Southeast Asian countries like Indonesia, we could apply for the local TCs through a called VTC process, namely validation of type certificate with the local aviation authorities, and it is expected to be a simplified process. Given still, it would help shorten the time and be more efficient for us to establish and further extend our market presence in those countries.

Operator (participant)

We are now going to proceed with our question. The questions come from the line of Cindy Huang from Morgan Stanley. Please ask your question. Your line is open.

Cindy Huang (Research Analyst)

Hi. Hi, management team. Thank you for taking my questions. I only have one question on margin. EHang currently has quite good gross margin at around 60%. How should we think about the gross margin this year and over time, especially after we kick off commercial operations? Thank you.

Richard Liu (CFO)

Hi, Cindy Huang. This is Richard Liu. I will take your question. The current 60% gross GP margin is actually a comprehensive GP margin, covering our vehicle hardware and software products and services. At the core of the company, the technology advantage actually lies in our software. To some extent, EHang can be regarded as a software-based technology company that integrates intelligent aerial vehicle products. Software product usually entails high GP margins. In addition, as the TC for EH216-S is expected to be obtained soon. After that, we will probably be the only eVTOL company with a TC in the market, especially in China, for quite some time. As you can tell, we would have some more pricing power on the demand end.

Further, as our sales, are expected to scale up after TC, it is also anticipated, we would also have more negotiation power with our suppliers, to control our procurement costs. It is expected that, we will continue to maintain, this 60% GP margin level.

Operator (participant)

Due to time constraint, we will end the Q&A session here, and I would like now to turn the call back to Nissan for closing remarks.

Anne Ji (Senior Director of Investor Relations)

Thank you, operator. Thank you all for participating on today's call. If you have further questions, please contact our team by email or participate in our following investor events through the calendar information provided on our website. We appreciate your interest and we look forward to our next earnings call. Thank you.

Operator (participant)

Thank you all again. This concludes the conference call today. You may now disconnect your lines. Thank you.