Origin Materials: Saturday Night Update, 4/8/23

Nothing about the following blog post constitutes financial advice. It is being shared for informational purposes only. I am not a financial advisor, just a rocket enthusiast. Always perform your own due diligence and carefully consider risks before investing.

It has been a few weeks since I've published anything on Origin Materials. The stock has continued to fall since my last post on the company, but the developments have not stopped. As far as official company updates, please refer to the following:

• Origin Materials and Hyosung Partner to Produce Batteries, Automotive Parts, and Apparel from Carbon-Negative Materials

• Origin Materials’ Sustainable Carbon Black Blends Meet or Exceed Fossil-Based N660 Performance for Tires and Mechanical Rubber Goods

• Origin Materials Announces Two New Appointments to Board of Directors

• Origin Materials Co-Founder and Co-CEO to Participate in Credit Suisse Carbon Negative Conference 3.0

As usual, in addition to the official company updates, I scour the interwebs for additional information related to the company. Here are those recent tidbits I've stumbled upon, or have been shared with me by other investors.

John Bissell Takes Twitter Engagement Up a Notch

CEO John Bissell has been very active on Twitter over the past few days, actively engaging with those who have been asking him questions on the platform. Of the increased responses, he said:

When I have time I’ll keep doing it. Happened to have a week solid in Sacramento for just about the first time this year, so I’m a little more capable of engaging. Can’t promise I’ll keep it up, but I’ll try!

In order to keep things simple and organized, I have arranged the Twitter questions posed to Bissell and his responses by subject:

• Origin's potential use of AI for product development

• On the mineral content of wood biomass feedstock

• On the recyclability of products made from CMF and HTC

• On ROIC projections, updated economics, and a future OM2 update

And the now infamous "hold onto your butts" Tweet:

The "dual train" reference is in regards to the additional revenue potential should the Origin 2 facility and beyond be dual train. Think double production capacity.

O1 Construction Anecdotes on the Sarnia Subreddit

Take these with a grain of salt, but several Redditors have posted on r/Sarnia about the construction of the Origin 1 facility. The juiciest replies are featured in this snazzy collage:

Origin Materials Highlighted on White House's IIA Fact Sheet for Louisiana

Origin Materials is developing a $750 million sustainable materials manufacturing facility in Ascension Parish, producing innovative plant-based plastics used in packaging, textiles, garments, and other products.

Shane O'Toole Speaks at NC State's Sustainability in Textiles Event

Senior Manager of Product Development Shane O'Toole spoke at his alma mater this past week, representing Origin Materials. It was more of a "shop talk" discussion, but he stated that the company should start producing some intermediaries soon, as they are very busy with partners and a ton of demand. The process improvements at Origin 1 create a situation where the O2 facility can be successful with or without carbon credits.

The full video replay of the event is here:

Hiring Pace Continues to Be Slowed

As I have previously written on, the pace of hiring at the company has slowed down for the time being. While the company maintains three active job listings on their LinkedIn, the total headcount (again, according to LinkedIn so it's an unofficial number) remains at 193. This is flat from the last time I checked it about a month ago.

All of their jobs listings have plenty of applicants: over 200 for the Logistics Manager, 49 for the Product Stewardship Specialist, and 13 for the Analytical Scientist position.

Spoiler Alert - So Hot Right Now

Stock - Not So Hot Right Now

The stock could definitely use a "hold onto your butts" catalyst any day now, as it site just above its most recently set all-time low. The most recent close of $3.89 is well below both 200 and 50 day moving averages.