Good morning, ladies and gentlemen, and welcome to MDA's Q3 2022 Conference Call and webcast. This call is being recorded on 11th November 2022 at 8:30 A.M. Eastern Time. Following the presentation, we will conduct a question and answer session. Instructions will be provided at that time for you to queue up for questions. If anyone has difficulties hearing the conference, please Press Star followed by zero for operator assistance at any time. I would like to turn the call over to Shereen Zahawi, Senior Direc`tor of Investor Relations at MDA. Please go ahead.
Thank you, operator. Good morning and welcome to MDA's Q3 2022 earnings call. Mike Greenley, our CEO, and Vito Culmone, our CFO, will lead today's call and share some prepared remarks before taking your questions. Before we begin, I would like to remind you that today's call will include estimates and other forward-looking information which may differ from actual results. Please review the cautionary language in today's press release at public filings regarding various factors, assumptions, and risks that could cause actual results to differ. In addition, during this call, we will refer to certain non-IFRS financial measures. Although we believe these measures provide useful supplemental information about our financial performance, these measures do not have any standardized meaning under IFRS, and our approach in calculating these measures may differ from that of other issuers and therefore may not be directly comparable.
Please see the company's quarterly report and other public filings for more information about these measures, including reconciliations to the nearest IFRS measures. With that, it's my pleasure to turn the call over to Mike.
Thank you, Shereen. Good morning, and thank you to those joining us today to discuss our third quarter 2022 financial results. Before I get into the business results, I'd just like to take a minute to recognize that today is Remembrance Day, and to remember that we live freely and have the opportunity to be able to discuss our business activity because of the sacrifices of those who have served and those who are serving to protect our freedoms. Here at MDA, this was another quarter of strong performance and execution by our team, and I'd like to thank our employees for their dedication and commitment to delivering for our customers as we approach the end of a meaningful growth year at MDA.
We remain laser-focused on executing on our growth strategies across our end markets, and we were pleased to announce a number of new wins this quarter, including contract awards to support York Space Systems and Airbus OneWeb Satellites by providing Ka-band steerable antennas for U.S. government programs. We also secured our second commercial sale to Axiom Space of robotic products derived from Canadarm3, the new generation of robotic technologies we are developing for NASA's Artemis program. These awards demonstrate the momentum in our business and our ability to gain traction with new customers and in new markets by leveraging our innovative technologies. Our backlog at quarter end stood at CAD 1.4 billion, a healthy level for the company, and we continue to see a significant growth pipeline across our businesses.
The majority of our programs are ramping up in line with our expectations, and the team's execution has been strong and steady. Today, we are reaffirming our full-year 2022 revenue guidance of CAD 630 million-CAD 650 million and raising our adjusted EBITDA guidance to CAD 130 million-CAD 135 million from a hundred and twenty to a hundred and thirty million previously. We see revenues growing by approximately 30%-35% year-over-year in 2022 and expect adjusted EBITDA margins to remain at the previously communicated range of 19%-20%, both very healthy metrics for MDA.
We're also narrowing our capital expenditure range to $180 million-$195 million from the previous $180 million-$220 million dollar range as we continue to invest in initiatives to drive future growth. From a strategy perspective, we remain focused on executing on the priorities we've outlined for our three business areas to capitalize on the growth opportunities we see in our end markets. In satellite systems, we are investing in new technologies and capabilities to accelerate our transition from analog to digital payloads and building up our high-volume satellite manufacturing capability to strengthen our position as more low Earth orbit or LEO constellations opportunities come to market.
Our Globalstar award, where MDA was selected as a prime contractor for 17 LEO satellites to support satellite direct-to-handset functionality and work to support the U.S. Space Development Agency LEO constellations, showcase our strategy in action. In robotics and space operations, we are leveraging our global leadership in space robotics innovation and long history of success with Canadarm to win follow-on space agency work and engage with a full slate of new and exciting commercial opportunities as they emerge to provide both proven technology solutions and on-orbit operational services. As I mentioned, our recent awards from Axiom Space, which is one of a number of commercial players constructing a commercial space station, is an important win as we start to commercialize the Canadarm3 robotic technology.
In our geo-intelligence business, we continue to see robust demand for our Earth observation data and analytics, and are advancing work on MDA's next-generation Earth observation constellation, Chorus, which will provide even greater imaging capabilities and actionable insights for our customers. I'll now quickly step through the financial highlights for the quarter, give you a view on the industry, an update on MDA's three business areas, and then pass it to Vito for a deep dive on the financials. For the third quarter, MDA delivered revenues of CAD 172 million, up 55% year-over-year. Our backlog at quarter end stood at CAD 1.4 billion, up 70% year-over-year, driven by sizable awards in the first half of the year. Adjusted EBITDA was CAD 38.8 million, representing a solid EBITDA margin of 22.6%.
We ended the quarter with a healthy balance sheet, which gives us the financial flexibility to run the business and invest in our growth initiatives. This was another strong quarter for MDA and directly attributable to the dedication of our team, which has done a tremendous job of supporting our customers and capitalizing on new business opportunities.
Next, I'd like to update you on developments within the broader space market and the opportunity we see for MDA as we look ahead. Despite the macro challenges we are seeing globally, activity in the space sector remained robust in Q3. Taking our customary tour around the world, a few items worth highlighting include increased adoption of satellite constellations in mobile communications.
During the quarter, we saw a number of mobile network operators and cell phone manufacturers announce partnerships with satellite operators in a push to enable messaging and emergency SOS functionality in geographic areas not typically reachable by traditional cell signals. In September, Globalstar disclosed that it will be utilizing its network, including the recently announced enhancement via the 17 additional LEO satellites that MDA is working on, to support new satellite-enabled services for certain of Apple's products. We also saw similar announcements from T-Mobile and Starlink, which are working to add coverage for T-Mobile customers across the U.S. In October, AT&T confirmed that it is working with AST SpaceMobile to utilize the latter's satellite network to provide coverage in hard-to-reach areas of the U.S.
The increased interest in satellite-to-cell offerings is an exciting development for the industry and has the potential to enhance connectivity for customers in remote areas around the globe. Across the pond, we saw the U.K. Space Agency take steps with its space strategy, including its commitments to deliver capabilities to track objects in space and reduce debris.
This fall, the agency awarded contracts to two U.K. ased companies, Astroscale and ClearSpace, to design missions to remove existing pieces of space debris from low Earth orbit. The two selected companies are working with a consortium of industry partners, including MDA U.K., which is supporting both missions. South of the border, we saw the Federal Communications Commission adopt a new rule that will shorten the time for satellite operators to de-orbit low Earth orbit satellites from 25 years- 5 years.
The rule is intended to address growing debris in LEO and replaces a long-standing guideline that called for de-orbiting satellites up to 25 years after the end of their mission. These developments highlight work underway to safeguard space activities and make them more sustainable as our reliance on space technology increases. In terms of space infrastructure, spacecraft launch activity continued to unfold at a record pace.
In Q3 of this year, a total of 808 spacecraft launched globally, more than triple the number we saw in Q3 2021, with 91% of those spacecraft operated by commercial players and the majority comprised of communication satellites. From January to September of this year, a total of 2,000 spacecraft has launched, representing a 30% increase over the same period in 2021 and surpassing the total number of spacecraft launched in the full year of 2021.
The higher activity levels are driven primarily by growth in the commercial low Earth orbit or LEO constellation market. On the space exploration front, Saudi Arabia was the latest country to sign on to NASA's Artemis Accords, signaling their national commitment to safe, long-term, and ethical space exploration. The latest entry brings the group size to 21 nations.
The accords, which were unveiled in October 2020 to align nations on a common set of principles for space exploration, have doubled in size over the last two years, with interest from many non-traditional spacefaring nations, which are now building their own national space programs. All of this activity bodes well for MDA and our future opportunity funnel, which we would characterize as very healthy. Now I'll spend a few minutes and turn to our 3 business areas.
In satellite systems, our opportunity funnel remains strong and we continue to see good activity levels. Our teams are advancing multiple requests for communication satellite solutions for a growing number of constellation projects, particularly in the low Earth orbit segment of the market. This quarter, we announced two awards from U.S.-based customers to support space security and communication satellites in line with our strategy of growing our presence south of the border.
Our contract with York Space Systems will see MDA design and build Ka-band steerable antennas for satellites to be produced by York. The Airbus OneWeb Satellites contract involves the design and build of Ka-band steerable antennas, which will be integrated into the portfolio of aero commercial small satellites manufactured by Airbus OneWeb. The antennas will be built, assembled, and tested at MDA's state-of-the-art high-volume satellite production facility in Montreal.
The team also continues to make good progress ramping up on the Globalstar program and advancing the design work. We announced the $415 million award from Globalstar in Q1 of 2022, where MDA was selected as the prime contractor to enhance Globalstar's LEO constellation. We view this as an important award for MDA, reflecting our strategy to expand our offerings, move up the value chain, and provide advanced payload capabilities and systems engineering as well as high-volume manufacturing.
Moving to our geointelligence business, customer demand from our Earth observation offerings remains robust. We are seeing increased recognition of the role that commercial Earth observation satellites can play to provide near real-time data and analytics to governments and private enterprise.
We continue to advance work on our next generation Earth observation constellation, CHORUS, which will include C-band and X-band SAR satellites, and are actively engaged in preliminary discussion with customers interested in acquiring CHORUS data and analytics. Work on the Canadian Surface Combatant program, or CSC, one of our long-term government programs, continues to progress in line with the cadence we saw in the previous quarter.
The next significant milestone is the preliminary design review for the vessels, which begins to finalize the overall configuration of the ship. This is expected to be completed by the end of the year. Our teams are working closely with the customer to advance work ahead of the preliminary design reviews.
MDA is responsible for the design and integration of the electronic warfare system for the ships, which comprises a suite of sensors, including laser warning and electronic system technologies, used to detect aerial threats to help protect the men and women of the Royal Canadian Navy. Moving to our robotics and space operations business, we are seeing good traction and activity levels on both the government and commercial fronts. On the government side, we continue to ramp up work on phase B of the Canadarm3 contract, which MDA was awarded in Q1 that will see us completing the preliminary design of Canadarm3 robotic systems to be used aboard the NASA-led Lunar Gateway.
Following some subcontractor onboarding delays in Q2, program activity is ramping up in line with our expectations, and the team is making good progress in bringing on subcontractors and working towards the system design review milestone expected in the first half of 2023. During the quarter, we also announced our second commercial sale of space robotics technology derived from Canadarm3 to Axiom Space. MDA is delivering 62 payload interface pairs for Axiom Space's Axiom Station.
The interfaces will provide mechanical, electrical, and data connections for payloads that are externally mounted on the Axiom Station to perform activities including scientific research, earth observation, communications, and a host of other applications. The Axiom Station, which is now under construction, will initially be attached to the International Space Station and subsequently separate from the ISS when the ISS partners decommission it at the end of the decade.
This is another exciting development for MDA that reinforces an emerging shift in the commercial landscape for robotics as more non-government entities look to establish a foothold and hub in low Earth orbit for a variety of activities, including in-space manufacturing, human space flight missions to LEO, and deep space exploration. Shifting to operations. To support the anticipated revenue ramp-up, we added more than 700 new hires in the first nine months of 2022. This is in addition to the 670 people hired in 2021. We're also keeping a close eye on our supply chain for potential business disruptions, and so far, these have been manageable. We continue to deploy a number of proactive measures that have served us well.
These include designing around known shortages, finding alternates that are more readily available, ordering materials as early as possible, and building up inventory for some components. For new programs, we are ensuring that our supply chain organization has full visibility early in the process to ensure orders are placed promptly and monitored constantly to mitigate delay risks. To recap, we are pleased with our performance this quarter.
With momentum building across our operations, our team is energized and we remain laser-focused on our priorities. Strongly focused on execution, converting opportunities in our funnel, and expanding our leadership in core markets while maintaining strong profitability and a healthy balance sheet to help us fund our growth initiatives. With that, I'll hand it over to Vito to walk us through the detailed financials.
Thank you, Mike, and good morning, everyone. For my update, I'll walk through our Q3 2022 financial results and provide more color on our outlook update. Overall, Q3 was a strong quarter for MDA, and we're pleased with how the team is executing. In the quarter, we saw strong revenue growth with revenues up 55% year-over-year, slightly ahead of our guidance for the quarter. Adjusted EBITDA margin of 22.6% exceeded our 19%-20% guidance range, and backlog at the end of the quarter stood at a healthy CAD 1.4 billion. Total revenues for the third quarter were CAD 172 million. This represents a CAD 61 million or a 55% increase over the same period last year.
The year-over-year increase is driven by higher revenues across our businesses with strong contributions from our satellite systems and Robotics and Space Operations businesses. By business area, revenues in our Geointelligence business of CAD 45.5 million represent an increase of CAD 4.8 million or 12% compared to Q3 2022, driven by higher volumes in our EO business and modest ramp-up on the CSC program.
In Robotics and Space Operations, we saw healthy year-over-year growth with revenues of CAD 54.6 million in the latest quarter, representing CAD 21.5 million or 65% increase versus Q3 of last year. Growth is largely attributable to higher volume of work performed on the Canadarm3 program. Revenues in satellite systems of CAD 71.9 million in the third quarter were CAD 34.4 million or 92% higher compared to the same quarter in 2021.
Strong showing here was driven by higher work volume as new programs ramped up, including the Globalstar program, which was awarded in Q1 of 2022. Moving on to gross profit, and as a reminder, gross profit represents our revenue, less our cost of revenue, which includes material credits and depreciation. Our Q3 gross profit was at CAD 56.4 million, representing a CAD 17 million or 43% increase over the same period last year. Gross margin in Q3 2022 was 32.8%, and that compares to 35.4% for the same period in 2021. That's a result of MDA's evolving program mix and in line with our expectations. As discussed in previous quarters, we do anticipate the mix of the programs in 2022 to cause a slight drop in gross margins as we make our way throughout the year. Operating expenses.
Q3 operating expenses of $38.6 million were in line with last year's metric of $38.8 million, reflecting good cost control and a steady pace of R&D investment as we advance our development work on CHORUS, our next-generation Earth observation constellation and other proprietary technology initiatives. Adjusted EBITDA in the latest quarter was $38.8 million, compared to $31.8 million in Q3 2021, reflecting higher work volumes across the business. Adjusted EBITDA margin was 22.6% in Q3 2022, compared with 28.6% in the same period last year. Decline in adjusted EBITDA margin is primarily attributable to the elimination of government grant income related to the Canada Emergency Wage Subsidy income in 2022.
In Q3 of 2022, there was no CEWS income recognized, compared to CAD 9.1 million, which was recognized over the same period last year. If you exclude the impact of CEWS income contribution, adjusted EBITDA in Q3 of 2022 was CAD 38.8 million, compared to CAD 22.7 million in Q3 of 2021. Adjusted EBITDA margin excluding CEWS income was 22.6% in Q3 2022 compared to 20.4% in Q3 2021, again reflecting strong execution and operating performance. We ended the quarter with CAD 1.4 billion in backlog, representing an increase of 70% year-over-year and 63% on a year-to-date basis. The growth in backlog was driven by the addition of a number of sizable awards in the first half of this year, including Canadarm3 and Globalstar. Moving on to CapEx.
We remain focused on making the right investments in the business to support our strategic growth initiatives. In Q3 of 2022, we spent CAD 40.9 million on gross capital expenditures, up from CAD 30.3 million last year as we ramp up our development on CHORUS and other growth initiatives. Growth CapEx was CAD 35 million in the latest quarter, up from CAD 26 million in Q3 of 2021. Consistent with our plan, we expect to see year-over-year growth in CapEx spend as we advance CHORUS and invest in initiatives to support our growing business, including expanding and modernizing our physical infrastructure. Cash from operations during the quarter was a generation of CAD 7 million, compared to cash usage of CAD 0.05 million in Q3 of 2021.
The year-over-year increase was driven by higher net income and the timing of working capital requirements in Q3 2022 versus the prior quarter. Free cash flow was -CAD 34 million in the latest quarter. Free cash flow after adjusting out growth CapEx investments was CAD 1 million in Q3 2022. Finally, cash from financing activities was a generation of CAD 23.5 million, compared to a usage of CAD 2.2 million in Q3 2021. Moving on to our balance sheet. We ended the quarter with a strong financial position, with net debt of CAD 194.6 million, available liquidity of over CAD 383 million, and net debt to trailing twelve months adjusted EBITDA ratio of 1.3x.
In summary, the team executed well this quarter, and we're seeing positive inflection in our top line as we execute on our backlog. Turning to outlook, as Mike noted, we are updating our 2022 outlook to reflect greater visibility and solid operating performance. We are reaffirming our 2022 revenue target of CAD 630 million-CAD 650 million, which represents year-over-year growth of approximately 30%-35%. We are raising our 2022 adjusted EBITDA target to CAD 130 million-CAD 135 million, up from CAD 120 million-CAD 130 million previously to reflect continued strong execution and operating performance. The adjusted EBITDA forecast excludes the CAD 16.8 million amount reported in Q1 of 2022 related to the resolution of historical IDC claims.
We're also narrowing our 2022 capital expenditure range to CAD 180 million-CAD 195 million from the prior guidance of CAD 180 million-CAD 220 million. CapEx is primarily comprised of growth investments to support CHORUS and the previously outlined growth initiatives across our business areas. With a large number of programs now in backlog, our book of business is strong. We remain focused on executing well on our customer commitments and leveraging our capabilities and technologies to grow profitably in core and emerging markets in line with our long-term plan. Mike, with that, I'll turn it back to you.
Thank you, Vito. With that, we will open it up for questions.
Thank you, sir. Ladies and gentlemen, we will now begin question and answer session for analysts. If you would like to ask a question, please press star followed by one on your touch tone phone. You will then hear a three-tone prompt acknowledging your request. If you would like to withdraw from the question queue, please press star followed by two. If you're using a speaker phone, we do ask that you please lift the handset before pressing any keys. If you're an analyst, please go ahead and press star one now for your question. First will be Doug Taylor at Canaccord Genuity. Please go ahead.
Thank you. Good morning.
Good morning, Doug.
Telesat provided an update that they now expect to reach some sort of conclusion with respect to financing and supply chain by the end of this year. I thought I'd get you to refresh your own views on the prospects for that program. You know, as a hypothetical, assuming that their updated timetable is correct, could you maybe speak to what 2023 would look like for Lightspeed for MDA, assuming that, you know, they do conclude the financing by the end of the year?
Okay, Doug. Thanks. As you know, we've taken Lightspeed out of our sort of forecast, moving forward. We continue to work it as an opportunity in our pipeline. Certainly, in our observation of the community, Lightspeed continues to advance its efforts to arrange its financing and get its contracts in place, as they indicated in their earnings call, as you said.
We will continue to watch that. I say that we've been here before, so you know, we continue to watch their current status, and we will respond as that program continues to advance. It is like many other opportunities in our pipeline that we, you know, continue to bid on and wait for contract award to be able to talk about it. Make sense?
Yeah, it does make sense. Thank you. The implications are for a pretty significant step down in margins in Q4 from the Q3 level. Just wanted to ask, is that simply related to the mix of programs that you're expecting to roll through your, you know, your P&L in Q4? Is there some inflationary pressure or otherwise that you're seeing that's being factored in there?
Hi, Doug. It's Vito. No, nothing systemic. I mean, you got to remember Q4, we do have some of the seasonal shutdowns. In addition to the program mix that you're referencing, where some of those lower margin programs have a higher proportion of our overall volume in Q4, you're absolutely right with that. Second factor I would just cite there is typically Q4, we have lower absorption rates, a lower overhead absorption rate, and that impacts the margin as well. Overall, feeling very, very positive about our operating performance.
All right. One last one for me. Vito, maybe I could get you to refresh us on where you stand now with the spending on each of the key growth CapEx initiatives, you know, Chorus built out in Montreal, and other items. That'd be helpful. Thank you.
Yeah. You would have seen, Doug, we've updated our guidance there to narrow into the full year here from CAD 180-CAD 195. Substantially all of that is what we call growth CapEx. One of the, you know, wonderful things in this business is that as we make our way through these growth CapEx initiatives that we truly believe have, you know, long-term value creation opportunities for our organization, the maintenance CapEx is relatively modest. So as you look at our full year CapEx requirements, those are largely growth CapEx. The biggest component of our 2022 is in fact CHORUS. No substantive changes there.
It's, you know, our growth CapEx is focused primarily on CHORUS, supporting the satellite initiatives in Montreal with substantial growth and RSO with robotics. No changes overall in the strategic initiatives that those growth CapEx expenditures are supporting.
Is the change there simply CapEx getting pushed into a different period, or is there some savings that you found?
No.
Relative? Go ahead.
Yeah, just normal timing related items. No substantive changes overall in program anticipated spend.
Okay. I'll pass along. Thank you.
Thank you.
Thank you. Next question will be from Thanos Moschopoulos at BMO Capital Markets. Please go ahead, sir.
Hi. Good morning. Mike, we're obviously in a tougher financing climate than was the case three or six months ago. Just curious, as you look at the opportunities in your funnel, to what extent is that or is that not having an impact? You know, do most of your commercial opportunities involve customers that have, you know, financing in place or is there some kind of lingering uncertainty, I guess, notwithstanding the whole Telesat discussion?
Yeah, look, I think the pipeline for us is very, very solid and stable. We have a good mix of government customers, commercial customers that have no financing issues. They've got all the money that they would need. A couple of commercial customers out there that are, you know, are raising their financing, like the Telesat conversation. We definitely see a mix across the pipeline, but we're very encouraged by what we're seeing across the board, and have a very robust pipeline, is the way we describe it.
Okay, great. Just want to get your perspective. I mean, obviously, interesting development with Globalstar and Apple. Just curious in terms of your thoughts as to whether inevitably, you know, over time, we might start to see, you know, consumer mobile devices using satellite connectivity for non-emergency applications or whether there might be some cost or technical hurdles that the industry will have to overcome before we get to that point in the coming years.
Yeah, I think that, you know, like any other advances that we've seen in, communication technology over the years, the, you know, markets start small and, work on technology solutions and try to advance them. If you look at the announcements from the different players that have, spoken up about that over the last, quarter, you know, we see people that, you know, starting to talk about emergency services in a number of the different groups, and then some folks looking at, you know, trying to push their technology to do more. I think it will just emerge over time as people gain confidence each step of the way.
Great. One last one for Vito. Obviously, non-cash working capital was a bit of a drag on cash flow the last couple of quarters. How do we think about that dynamic in the near term?
Yeah, Thanos, you know, that, we're really pleased with how our working capital over the CHORUS of the last several quarters has developed. I think what you're seeing in Q3 obviously reflects that, Globalstar receivable that's extended into Q4, and we expect that to come back into line with, as they continue to pursue their financing options, which is progressing well from what we understand.
Okay, great. Pass the line. Thanks.
Thank you.
Thank you. Next question will be from Kristine Liwag at Morgan Stanley. Please go ahead.
Hey, thanks. Vito, thanks for the color on the Globalstar cash. You know, taking a broader cash question, EBITDA is set up in the quarter, but operating cash is still pretty light. Can you provide more color on how we should think about revenue recognition and operating cash generation and what are milestones for cash we could follow? And then also, you know, how do you think about having cash in the balance sheet versus available liquidity?
Yeah. Thank you, Kristine. Well, first of all, maybe I'll take the second one first. You know, we have ample liquidity and, with the great efforts of our treasury group, we obviously minimize cash on balance sheet, because we can turn around on 24 hours notice and grab the cash from our revolver requirements. So that's really a interest minimization mechanics. That's what you're seeing there, and accrues to the bottom line. So no issue there with respect to quote-unquote, "cash on the balance sheet" versus available liquidity. It's, that's all just active treasury cash management. In respect to your first point, you know, our cash operations are tracking very much in line with our expectations and will continue to do.
The one item I've already referenced to is of CHORUS, the Globalstar financing that we've agreed to revise the vendor financing terms there. To that end, I should make a note, as part of that, we agreed to a couple of installment payments here in the early part of the quarter from the first one, which has been made by Globalstar. We appreciate that. No substantive changes to our guidance there, Kristine. I think, you know, when we look at your operating cash flow, we've guided to sort of a 60% conversion, and the timing differences that you see working our way from adjusted EBITDA to cash from operations, primarily working capital is one of those.
On a year-over-year basis, we don't anticipate working capital requirements as we increase the revenue in this business. The other one is ITCs. The ITCs can bump around with some volatility from quarter-over-quarter, and that's obviously substantially a non-cash item. Overall, we've guided to a 60% conversion there on the operating cash flow, and we'll stick with that for a while, for the next little bit. I expect that number to grow as our business grows.
Thanks, Vito. You know, with the capital markets kind of a little bit more volatile, you know, would you guys choose going forward to have a higher cash balance in the balance sheet?
Well, like I said, Kristine, I think it's really, really important that you recall that the liquidity is available to us on 24 hours notice. When I think about the available liquidity to us, which is almost CAD 400 million right now, we're very, very comfortable with that. Leverage, quarter leverage at the end of the quarter, 1.3. As we make our way through 2023, and we'll provide guidance in 2023 with our Q4 call, both on the revenue and the capital side, we're incredibly comfortable with the available liquidity that we currently have in the business, not only at this point in time, but as we make our way through 2023 as well.
Thanks, Vito. Maybe if I could add another one. Mike, you highlighted in your prepared remarks, look, the environment for space is pretty robust. You do have a few players having a lot more activity in the U.S. with the government, international, and also with the new commercial players. So with this backdrop, do we expect book-to-bill to exceed 1x in the fourth quarter? Also, you know, book-to-bill above 1x also what we should expect for 2023?
Sorry, I missed your question about the fourth quarter. I apologize. Could you repeat that?
Book-to-bill for Q4 and FY 2023, will they both exceed 1x?
Okay. When we look at backlog and we think about that, we definitely think about it on an annual basis. We're chasing some bigger fish and when we catch them, it you know we build a backlog with a bigger catch. We won't look at that on a monthly or quarterly basis in our thoughts. You know, you're seeing us right now with you know a CAD 1.4 billion backlog on a CAD 600 million year. You know, greater than two times. That's how we would view our 2022 year.
As we go forward into 2023, as Vito said, when we do our Q4 results, we'll talk about the year and sort of what our thinking is at the time. With an active pipeline, you know, I would expect this to keep filling up that backlog hopper moving forward.
Great. Thank you, guys.
Sure.
Thank you. Once again, ladies and gentlemen, as a reminder, if you would like to ask a question, please press Star followed by one on your touchtone phone. Your next question will be from Mark Neville at Scotiabank. Please go ahead.
Hey, good morning. Just to be clear, does all that Global star cash come back in Q4 that's tied in with Earthstar working cap?
Mark, that's the expectations that in December, we'll settle up.
Okay. I guess just on the liquidity discussion, the CAD 400 million or CAD 380, CAD 390, that's fully available. Like, is there any tests or sort of anything that sort of at some point would perhaps change what's available?
No, not at all. I mean, obviously we've got covenants, but we're well within the boundaries of those covenants. The number that I described reflects all those considerations.
Right. Okay. Yeah, no, thanks. On the, just on the CSC contracts, I'm not fully clear how quickly it's ramping, but if there was delays on the final design, I mean, is there risk to MDA where work would need to stop or significantly slow?
I don't think so. I think it's a long, steady road as these projects start up. I think that what you're seeing in CSC is throughout the year 2022, you know, at the top level, at the ship level, there's been a lot more studies and considerations going on as they've been working on the resolution of what they call the requirements reconciliation phase and starting to, you know, then gradually get into the preliminary design. We just gradually ramp up with it as it gradually ramps up. It's just taking longer as at the ship level they're doing, you know, more considered reviews.
Our plans and expectations, you know, we just constantly adjust those based on the ramp up that we're seeing in the project, and we'll reflect that in any guidance or thinking that we have about the future.
Okay. I guess final question, I don't wanna spend too much time on Telesat, but if they were to obtain financing, would there be any risk that you would need to rebid anything or material changes to the contract that you signed?
I think that, like, as we go, like, I mean, when you go through these processes, each member of the supply chain is keeping their quotes and estimates into Telesat up to date, as we go through the process. If and when Telesat got to the point where all their financing was arranged and it was time to, you know, turn on all those contracts at full steam, then, you know, that would be based on all the updated bids and quotes that we've all submitted.
Got it. Thanks for the time. Appreciate it.
Okay, thanks.
Thank you. At this time, we have no further questions registered. Please proceed with your closing remarks.
Okay. Well, thank you very much for your time this morning. As a team, we look forward to updating you on our progress during our next Earnings Call. Have a great day, and stay safe. Thank you.
Thank you, sir. Ladies and gentlemen, this does indeed conclude your Conference Call for today. Once again, thank you for attending. At this time, we do ask that you please disconnect your lines. Have a good weekend.