Ashtead Group PLC Capital Markets Day Transcript

The following is excerpted from the question-and-answer section of the transcript.

Question: Andrew J. Wilson - JPMorgan Chase & Co, Research Division - Analyst : A couple of questions, please. On the ESG agenda, I was kind of interested by some of the discussions you were talking about in terms of the fleet and potentially the sort of energy transition of the fleet. And just kind of, I guess, would like a little bit more in terms of sort of how advanced are we in terms of the types of conversations that you're having with customers around both shifting, I guess, some kind of traditional diesel products mostly into potentially electric variants. And I guess their appetite to invest in that, their appetite maybe to use you guys more for that. And just REFINITIV STREETEVENTS | www.refinitiv.com | Contact Us consent of Refinitiv. 'Refinitiv' and the Refinitiv logo are registered trademarks of Refinitiv and its affiliated companies. APRIL 20, 2021 / 12:00PM, AHT.L - Ashtead Group PLC Capital Markets Day how close are we to seeing that be a meaningful driver in the market? Or is this still something which we might expect to happen, but we're not really seeing on the ground yet?

Question: Andrew J. Wilson - JPMorgan Chase & Co, Research Division - Analyst : Yes. I guess that's kind of -- I guess that's what I was -- the risk is kind of asking a leading question. It just feels like whether you're looking in terms of share or penetration, it would feel like this can be a genuinely meaningful driver, whether it's by 2024 or over the longer term. And I guess what you're telling us is that you are beginning to see the benefits of that already?

Question: Andrew J. Wilson - JPMorgan Chase & Co, Research Division - Analyst : And maybe -- sorry, to -- my second question was slightly different. But just it's kind of a question around specialty. And so I guess, think about it in a slightly different way, but you sort of mentioned that looking at this white space and looking at different markets and sort of these pilot projects, if you like, to sort of explore where the opportunities are. I guess I'm interested in, in the areas where the specialty model has failed, why has it failed? What is it about those markets, which doesn't lend itself? Or have you not failed, I guess? I'm just interested as to sort of -- it's clearly been a great success story. I'm interested as to when it doesn't work, why doesn't it work?

Question: Andrew J. Wilson - JPMorgan Chase & Co, Research Division - Analyst : No, that was very clear, unlike obviously, my accent.

Question: Andrew Nussey - Peel Hunt LLP, Research Division - Analyst : A couple of questions around the tech presentations, please. First of all, in terms of dynamic pricing, which is potentially one of the biggest changes in the rental industry we've seen over many, many years. I mean, do you think customers are going to be willing to accept the change towards dynamic pricing? And as this is rolled out, I presume you sort of expect the rate benefits to be towards the back end of the 3.0 time line? And thirdly, in terms of the tech development, which obviously seems to be largely initially in the U.S., how quickly is that then rolled out to Canada and the U.K., please?

Question: Andrew Nussey - Peel Hunt LLP, Research Division - Analyst : Got it. Yes -- no, got it. Great.

Question: Karl Green - RBC Capital Markets, Research Division - Analyst : Just a couple of questions from me. Firstly, back on the ESG topic and the transition to potentially the electric fleet, do you think that down the line, the lack of access to grid power could be a hindrance for the deployment of those kind of assets? And I suppose following on from that, do you think that there's a chance that fleet actually leapfrogs to hydrogen solutions? I suppose following on from that as well is, do you see yourself providing rental equipment to support those new technologies beyond the new -- the fleet side, so things like micro grids or hydrogen refueling technology? That's the sort of first question. And the second one, just sort of much smaller, is just around Chronos and the procurement opportunities, which was described as one of the continuous improvement initiatives. Have you spoken to the OEMs about how they feel about the idea of AI-driven systems making fleet or equipment orders and purchases? I mean, just given your comments about there's very long lead times you're seeing at the moment. So I was just intrigued as to how that might work in practice.