Solid Power Q3 2025 Earnings Call - Strategic Collaborations and Manufacturing Milestones Drive Solid-State Battery Progress
Summary
Solid Power’s Q3 2025 earnings call reveals a tapestry of progress and challenges as the company advances its solid-state battery agenda. The big headlines revolve around new strategic collaborations with Samsung SDI and BMW, a clear vote of confidence in Solid Power’s sulfide-based electrolyte technology. Meanwhile, key manufacturing milestones approach with site acceptance testing for SK On’s pilot line on track for year-end completion and detailed design underway for a continuous electrolyte pilot line set for 2026 commissioning. Financials show revenue dipping sequentially to $4.6 million but up year-over-year to $18.1 million. Operating expenses fell as CapEx remained subdued. The company stays well capitalized with $300 million liquidity and revises full-year cash investment guidance to $85-$95 million, signaling disciplined capital deployment even as operating losses mount. Solid Power’s solid-state battery vision moves forward, but the path remains a marathon rather than a sprint.
Key Takeaways
- Solid Power announced a strategic collaboration with Samsung SDI and BMW to supply sulfide-based solid electrolyte for solid-state battery cell evaluation, aiming at next-generation vehicle integration.
- The collaboration validates Solid Power’s technology and aligns with focus on securing long-term customers through electrolyte sampling efforts.
- Site acceptance testing of SK On’s pilot production line remains on track for completion by year-end 2025, marking a key milestone under their line installation agreement.
- Progress continues on the electrolyte development roadmap, with detailed design of a continuous manufacturing pilot line for sulfide electrolyte production expected to complete late 2025 and commissioning targeted for 2026.
- Third quarter 2025 revenue declined sequentially to $4.6 million from $7.5 million in Q2 but rose year-to-date to $18.1 million, driven primarily by SK On agreements and government contracts.
- Operating expenses decreased to $29 million in Q3 from $33.4 million in Q2, reflecting a shift from equipment-heavy to labor-focused activities under the SK On program.
- Year-to-date operating loss was $74.3 million with a net loss of $66.4 million or $0.37 per share, underscoring ongoing investment in technology development and scale-up.
- Capital expenditures were modest at $0.6 million, mainly related to the electrolyte pilot line construction.
- Cash used in operations and capital expenditures totaled $14.9 million during the quarter, with total liquidity rising to $300.4 million as of September 30, 2025, fueled by at-the-market equity offerings and government contract proceeds.
- Solid Power revised its expected 2025 cash investment to a range of $85-$95 million, reflecting financial discipline and efficiency initiatives amid technology scale-up.
- The company remains focused on operational milestones and strategic objectives with cautious optimism about solid-state battery technology commercialization timelines.
Full Transcript
Conference Operator: Good day and welcome to the Solid Power third quarter 2025 earnings conference call. All participants will be in listen-only mode. Should you need assistance, please signal a conference specialist by pressing the star key followed by zero. After today’s presentation, there will be an opportunity to ask a question. To ask a question, you may press star then one on a touch-tone phone. To draw your question, please press star then two. Please note this event is being recorded. I would now like to turn the conference over to Charlie Van Goetz, Investor Relations. Please go ahead.
Charlie Van Goetz, Investor Relations, Solid Power: Thank you, Operator. Welcome, everyone, and thank you for joining us today. I’m joined on today’s call by Solid Power’s President and Chief Executive Officer John Van Scoter and Chief Financial Officer Linda Heller. A copy of today’s earnings release is available on the Investor Relations section of Solid Power’s website, www.SolidPowerBattery.com. I’d like to remind you that parts of our discussion today will include forward-looking statements as defined by U.S. securities laws. These forward-looking statements are based on management’s current expectations and assumptions about future events and are based on currently available information as to the outcome and timing of future events. Except as otherwise required by applicable law, Solid Power disclaims any duty to update any forward-looking statements to reflect future events or circumstances.
For a discussion of the risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from those expressed in today’s forward-looking statements, please see Solid Power’s most recent filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission, which can be found on the company’s website at www.SolidPowerBattery.com. With that, let me turn it over to John Van Scoter.
John Van Scoter, President and Chief Executive Officer, Solid Power: Thank you, Charlie, and thank you all for joining us today. I am pleased to provide an update on our 2025 operational goals since our last earnings call. First, we recently announced a strategic collaboration with Samsung SDI and BMW under a joint evaluation agreement. We believe this collaboration represents a vote of confidence in our technology and the potential of solid-state batteries. Under this arrangement, Solid Power will supply sulfide-based solid electrolyte to Samsung SDI, which Samsung SDI will integrate into separator and/or catholyte and use to build cells, in each case subject to achievement of technical requirements. These cells will be evaluated based on performance parameters and requirements to be agreed between Samsung SDI and BMW Group. Ultimately, Solid Power, Samsung SDI, and BMW aim to develop and supply all solid-state battery cells for integration into a next generation of evaluation vehicles.
Together with Samsung SDI and BMW, we look forward to driving innovation in all solid-state battery technology. In addition, we believe this agreement underscores our electrolyte sampling efforts and our focus on identifying long-term customers. This quarter, we continue to execute on our agreements with SK On. We conducted site acceptance testing of the SK On pilot line, which remains on target for completion by the end of this year and is another key milestone under our line installation agreement with SK On. During the quarter, we also made progress on our electrolyte development roadmap. We continued detailed design work for the planned installation of a continuous manufacturing pilot line for sulfide electrolyte production at SB2. We expect detailed design to be substantially complete later this year, with commissioning on track for 2026.
With that, I’ll turn it over to Linda to review our financial results and provide an update on our progress towards achieving our financial discipline goal. Linda.
Linda Heller, Chief Financial Officer, Solid Power: Thank you, John. I’ll start with Q3 and year-to-date results, beginning with revenue. During the third quarter of 2025, we generated revenue of $4.6 million compared to our Q2 2025 revenue of $7.5 million. Revenue recognized this quarter was driven primarily by our SK On agreements as well as our government contracts. This brings revenue year-to-date to $18.1 million and an increase of $2.4 million over the same period in 2024. Operating expenses for the third quarter were $29 million, a decrease of $4.4 million compared to our second quarter of 2025 at $33.4 million. The reduction in expenses for the third quarter was primarily due to the nature of the work performed under our SK On agreement. The third quarter was labor-focused in preparation for site acceptance testing, whereas the second quarter included significant equipment purchases for factory acceptance testing.
Operating loss year-to-date was $74.3 million, and year-to-date net loss was $66.4 million or $0.37 per share. Capital expenditures totaled $0.6 million, primarily representing costs for the construction of our continuous electrolyte production pilot line. Turning to our balance sheet and liquidity during the quarter, our cash used for operations and capital expenditures was $14.9 million. This brings our total year-to-date cash investment to $61.2 million. Total liquidity increased to $300.4 million as of September 30, 2025. This was primarily driven by proceeds from our at-the-market offering program as well as cash received from our government contracts. In addition, contract assets and contract receivables totaled $7.2 million, and total current liabilities were $16.6 million. During Q3, we remained fiscally disciplined, focused on realizing efficiencies and reducing operating costs while driving technology development and innovation.
As a result of these efforts, we are revising our expected cash investment to $85-$95 million in 2025. I will now turn it back to John for some final thoughts.
John Van Scoter, President and Chief Executive Officer, Solid Power: Thank you, Linda. In closing, we’re making progress towards our strategic objectives, and I’m excited about the potential of all solid-state battery technology. I want to sincerely thank our employees, partners, and stakeholders for their continued dedication and support. We will now take your questions. Operator.
Conference Operator: Thank you. We will now begin the question and answer session. To ask a question, you may press star then one on your touch-tone phone. If you are using a speakerphone, please pick up your handset before pressing the keys. If at any time your question has been addressed and you would like to withdraw your question, please press star then two. At this time, we will pause momentarily to assemble our roster. This concludes our question and answer session. I would like to turn the conference back over to John Van Scoter for any closing remarks.
John Van Scoter, President and Chief Executive Officer, Solid Power: Thank you for joining the call today and for your interest in Solid Power. We look forward to updating you again next quarter.
Conference Operator: Thank you. The conference has now concluded. Thank you for attending today’s presentation. You may now.
