DENVER, Oct. 31,
2024 /CNW/ - Energy Fuels Inc. (NYSE
American: UUUU) (TSX: EFR) ("Energy Fuels" or the
"Company"), an industry leader in uranium and rare earth
elements ("REE") production, today reported its financial
results for the quarter ended September 30, 2024. The Company
previously announced details for its upcoming November 1,
2024, earnings call, which are also included in this news
release.
"Uranium drives our current financial outlook, while rare earth
elements and heavy mineral sand products are significantly adding
to our long-term value and growth strategy," said Mark Chalmers, Energy Fuels' President and Chief
Executive Officer. "This quarter, we maintained our clean balance
sheet while adding a new long-term U.S. utility customer,
completing another spot sale of U3O8, and
commencing processing of the large inventory stockpile of uranium
feedstock at the White Mesa Mill, which is expected to continue
well into 2025 and beyond. Uranium production is, and will remain,
the core of the Energy Fuels' business, as we leverage our unique
permits, facilities and expertise to process uranium-bearing
materials to produce a variety of critical materials that advance
the global energy transition through an American-based supply
chain. We have long been a leading U.S. uranium producer, and we
have now proven our ability to produce important rare earth
materials at commercial scale with the completion and successful
commissioning of our REE separation circuit this quarter. We are
also aggressively moving forward with our plans to secure rare
earth feedstocks globally and expand our processing capacity
domestically in order to capture market share and achieve
profitability. Our acquisition of Base Resources Limited and its
world-class Toliara heavy mineral sands/monazite project in
Madagascar on October 2, 2024 is an exciting step in achieving
these objectives.
"We invite all stakeholders to join us in our upcoming
November 1, 2024, earnings call, details of which are below,
to learn more about these exciting achievements."
Q3-2024 Highlights
Unless noted otherwise, all dollar amounts are in U.S.
dollars.
- Robust Balance Sheet with Over $180
million of Liquidity and No Debt: As of September 30, 2024, the Company had $183.16 million of working capital including
$47.46 million of cash and cash
equivalents, $101.15 million of
marketable securities (interest-bearing securities and uranium
stocks), $35.91 million of inventory,
and no debt.
- Over $10 Million of Additional
Liquidity from Market Value of Inventory: At October 28, 2024 commodity prices, the Company's
product inventory has a market value of approximately $23.79 million, while the balance sheet reflects
product inventory carried at cost of $13.38
million.
- Incurred Net Loss of $12
Million: During the three months ended September 30, 2024, the Company incurred a net
loss of $12.08 million, or
$0.07 per common share, primarily due
to transaction and integrations costs related to the Donald Project
joint venture (described below), the acquisition of Base Resources
(described below) and recurring operating expenses, partially
offset by sales of natural uranium concentrates
("U3O8").
- Uranium Continues to Drive Revenue: The Company sold
50,000 pounds of U3O8 on the spot market at a
realized sales price of $80.00 per
pound of U3O8 for total proceeds of
$4.00 million, which resulted in a
gross profit of $2.15 million and a
gross margin of 54%.
- New Long-Term Uranium Sales Contract with U.S. Utility:
The Company added a fourth long-term uranium sales contract to its
existing portfolio. Under the contract, the Company expects to
deliver a total of 270,000 to 330,000 pounds of uranium between
2026 and 2027, and potentially an additional 180,000 to 220,000
pounds until 2029, under a "hybrid" pricing formula, subject to
floor and ceiling prices, that maintains exposure to further
uranium market upside and protection from inflation.
- "Phase 1" REE Separation Circuit Successfully
Commissioned: Final commissioning of the Phase 1 REE separation
circuit at the Company's White Mesa Mill (the "Mill") was
successfully completed during the quarter resulting in the
production of approximately 38 tonnes of 'on-spec' separated
NdPr.
- Samples of NdPr Actively Being Qualified by Potential
Customers: NdPr produced at the Mill is currently being
qualified with permanent magnet manufacturers and other potential
customers to set the stage for potential offtake in the
future.
- Well-Stocked to Capture Market Opportunities: As of
September 30, 2024, the Company held
235,000 pounds of finished U3O8 and 805,000
pounds of U3O8 in ore and raw materials and
work-in-progress inventory for a total of 1,040,000 pounds of
U3O8 in inventory. This inventory increased
from last quarter due to Pinyon Plain, La Sal and Pandora mine ore
production and additional alternate feed materials received,
partially offset by our spot sale during Q3-2024. The Company
expects these uranium inventories to continue increasing as we
continue to mine additional ore. The Company also held 905,000
pounds of finished vanadium ("V2O5"),
38 tonnes of finished separated neodymium praseodymium
("NdPr") and 9 tonnes of finished high purity, partially
separated mixed rare earth carbonate ("RE Carbonate") in
inventory.
Capitalizing on Strong Uranium Pricing:
- Due to uranium market tailwinds and upcoming commitments in
long-term contracts with U.S. nuclear utilities, the Company is
currently mining and stockpiling uranium ore from its Pinyon Plain,
La Sal and Pandora mines and plans to ramp up to a production
run-rate of approximately 1.1 to 1.4 million pounds of
U3O8 per year by late-2024.
- The Company expects to produce a total of 150,000 to 200,000
pounds of finished U3O8 during 2024 from
stockpiled alternate feed materials and newly mined ore, which is
at the lower end of our previous guidance of 150,000 to 500,000
pounds of finished U3O8 during 2024, due to
delays in transporting ore from the Pinyon Plain mine to the White
Mesa Mill, which is expected to be resolved in Q4-2024. Mining
continues at the Pinyon Plain mine, with mined ore being stockpiled
at the mine site, containing approximately 180,000 pounds of
U3O8 at September 30,
2024, which is expected to be processed at the Mill later in
2024 or in early 2025.
- During Q3-2024, the Company received positive results from
drill holes during ongoing preparations at its Nichols Ranch in situ recovery
("ISR") Project in Wyoming.
Both the Nichols Ranch Project and Whirlwind Mine in Colorado are being prepared for production and
are within one year of a "go" decision, as market conditions
warrant. Production from these mines, when combined with alternate
feed materials, uranium from monazite, and 3rd party
uranium ore purchases, would be expected to increase the Company's
production run-rate to roughly two million pounds per year by as
early as 2026.
- The Company continued advancing permitting and other
pre-development activities on its large-scale Roca Honda, and Bullfrog uranium projects in
Q3-2024, which together with its Sheep Mountain Project, have the
potential to expand the Company's uranium production to a run-rate
of up to five million pounds of U3O8 per year
in the coming years.
- As of October 28, 2024, the spot
price of U3O8 was $81.00 per pound and the long-term price of
U3O8 was $82.00
per pound, according to data from TradeTech.
Rare Earth Element Production Milestones:
- The Company produced about 38 tonnes of separated NdPr from its
newly commissioned Phase 1 REE separation circuit at the Mill in
Q2- and Q3-2024.
- Samples of the Company's NdPr product have been sent to
permanent magnet and other companies around the world for product
qualification, and initial testing responses have been
positive.
- The Company is currently in the process of updating the White
Mesa Mill's AACE International ("AACE") Class 4
Pre-Feasibility Study (not a Pre-Feasibility Study subject to or
intended to be compliant with NI 43-101 or S-K 1300), originally
released in Q2-2024 to increase throughput to a total of 60,000 tpa
of monazite, producing roughly 6,000 tpa of NdPr, 150 to 225 tpa of
Dy, and 50 to 75 tpa of Tb, of which the existing commissioned
Phase 1 circuit will constitute about 17% of this amount (10,000
tpa of monazite). The Mill PFS referenced above can be viewed on
the Company's website, www.energyfuels.com.
Heavy Mineral Sands:
- On October 2, 2024, the Company
announced it completed its previously announced acquisition of all
the issued and outstanding shares of Base Resources Ltd. ("Base
Resources"), which is expected to transform the Company into a
global leader in critical minerals production, including HMS
(titanium and zirconium), REEs and uranium. The acquisition of Base
includes the advanced, world-class Toliara HMS project in
Madagascar. In addition to its
stand-alone, ilmenite, rutile (titanium) and zircon (zirconium)
production capability, the Toliara Project also contains a
long-life, high-value and low-cost monazite (REEs) stream, produced
as a byproduct of primary titanium and zirconium production.
Toliara's monazite is expected to be processed at the Mill into
separated REE products, along with uranium, at globally competitive
capital and operating costs. The Toliara Project is subject to
negotiation of fiscal terms with the Madagascar government and the receipt of
certain Madagascar government
approvals and actions before a current suspension on activities at
the Toliara Project will be lifted and development may occur. The
transaction also includes Base's management, mine development and
operations teams, who have a successful track-record of designing,
constructing, and profitably operating a world-class HMS operation
in Kenya.
- The Company continued to advance the Donald Project (the
"Donald Project"), a large monazite-rich HMS project in
Australia, pursuant to its joint
venture with Astron Corporation limited, announced in Q2-2024. The
Company expects that a final investment decision ("FID")
will be made on the Donald Project as early as 2025.
- During Q3-2024, the Company also continued to advance its
wholly owned Bahia HMS project in Brazil (the "Bahia Project") with its
Phase 2 drilling campaign, which is expected to continue through
the rest of the year. Additionally, the Company completed bulk test
work on a 2.5 tonne sample in March
2024, and recently shipped a larger 15 tonne sample to the
U.S. for additional process test work. The Company expects to
complete a U.S. Subpart 1300 of Regulation S-K ("S-K 1300")
and Canadian National Instrument 43-101 ("NI 43-101")
compliant mineral resource estimate on the Bahia Project during
2024.
Vanadium Highlights:
- The Company chose not to execute any vanadium sales during
Q3-2024 and holds about 905,000 pounds of
V2O5 in inventory.
- As of October 28, 2024, the spot
price of V2O5 was $5.25 per pound, according to data from
Fastmarkets.
Medical Isotope Highlights:
- On August 19, 2024, the Company
announced it acquired RadTran LLC ("RadTran"), a private
company specializing in the separation of critical radioisotopes,
to further the Company's plans for development and production of
medical isotopes used in cancer treatments. RadTran's expertise
includes separation of radium-226 ("Ra-226") and radium-228
("Ra-228") from uranium and thorium process streams. This
acquisition is expected to significantly enhance Energy Fuels'
planned capabilities to address the global shortage of these
essential isotopes used in emerging targeted alpha therapies
("TAT") for cancer treatment.
- The Company continues to utilize its research and development
("R&D") license for the recovery of R&D quantities
of Ra-226 at the Mill. Activities to set up the pilot facility at
the Mill continued in Q3-2024 and are expected to progress through
the end of the year, with the goal of producing R&D quantities
of Ra-226 for testing by end-users of the product in late 2024 or
early 2025.
Mr. Chalmers continued:
"During the quarter, we achieved numerous additional milestones
to bring the Energy Fuels' vision to fruition for our innovative,
low-cost, U.S.-centered critical mineral supply chain. As
previously announced, shortly after the close of the quarter, we
successfully completed our acquisition of Base Resources. This is a
major piece of our strategic puzzle, bringing to the Company the
Base Resources management and operations team and the world-class
Toliara Project in Madagascar,
which is considered by industry experts to be one of the best HMS
projects in the world. With the Toliara Project, our joint venture
on the Donald Project in Australia, and our 100% ownership of the Bahia
Project, we have secured a leading position in the titanium and
zirconium mineral industry, in addition to a low-cost source of REE
feedstock that will be processed in the
United States.
"These developments have the potential to transform Energy Fuels
into a world leader in titanium, zirconium, and rare earth elements
production, while maintaining our position as a U.S. leader in
uranium and vanadium production. All these materials are critical
to the global energy transition and to our vision of creating a
leading diversified critical minerals company."
Conference Call and Webcast at 10:00
AM MT (12:00 pm ET) on
November 1, 2024:
Conference call access with the ability to ask
questions:
To instantly join the conference call by phone, please use the
following link to easily register your name and phone number. After
registering, you will receive a call immediately and be placed into
the conference call
- Rapid Connect URL: https://emportal.ink/3Xq8rHH
or
Alternatively, you may dial in to the conference call where you
will be connected to the call by an Operator.
- North American Toll Free: 1-800-510-2154
To view the webcast online:
Audience URL: https://app.webinar.net/5kM3dkJ6D4A
Conference Replay
- Conference Replay Toronto: 1-289-819-1450
- Conference Replay North American Toll Free: 1-888-660-6345
- Conference Replay Entry Code: 53463 #
- Conference Replay Expiration Date: 11/15/2024
The Company's Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q has been filed with
the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission ("SEC") and may
be viewed on the Electronic Document Gathering and Retrieval System
("EDGAR") at www.sec.gov/edgar, on the System for Electronic
Data Analysis and Retrieval + ("SEDAR+") at
www.sedarplus.ca, and on the Company's website at
www.energyfuels.com. Unless noted otherwise, all dollar amounts are
in U.S. dollars.
Selected Summary Financial Information:
|
Three Months Ended
September 30,
|
(In thousands,
except per share data)
|
2024
|
|
2023
|
Results of
Operations:
|
|
|
|
Uranium concentrates
revenues
|
$
4,000
|
|
$
10,473
|
RE Carbonate
revenues
|
—
|
|
288
|
Total
revenues
|
4,047
|
|
10,987
|
Gross profit
|
2,200
|
|
5,439
|
Operating
loss
|
(11,913)
|
|
(6,944)
|
Net income (loss)
attributable to the company
|
(12,060)
|
|
10,563
|
Basic net income (loss)
per common share
|
(0.07)
|
|
0.07
|
Diluted net income
(loss) per common share
|
(0.07)
|
|
0.07
|
(In
thousands)
|
September 30,
2024
|
|
December 31,
2023
|
|
Percent
Change
|
Financial
Position:
|
|
|
|
|
|
Working
capital
|
$
183,155
|
|
$
222,335
|
|
(18) %
|
Current
assets
|
193,923
|
|
232,695
|
|
(17) %
|
Mineral properties,
net
|
124,856
|
|
119,581
|
|
4 %
|
Property, plant and
equipment, net
|
43,548
|
|
26,123
|
|
67 %
|
Total assets
|
400,404
|
|
401,939
|
|
— %
|
Current
liabilities
|
10,768
|
|
10,360
|
|
4 %
|
Total
liabilities
|
23,717
|
|
22,734
|
|
4 %
|
ABOUT ENERGY FUELS
Energy Fuels is a leading US-based critical minerals company,
focused on uranium, REEs, HMS, vanadium and medical isotopes. The
Company has been the leading U.S. producer of natural uranium
concentrate for the past several years, which is sold to nuclear
utilities that process it further for the production of carbon-free
nuclear energy and owns and operates several conventional
and in situ recovery uranium projects in the
western United States. The Company also owns the White Mesa
Mill in Utah, which is the only fully licensed and operating
conventional uranium processing facility in the United States. At the Mill, the Company also
produces advanced REE products, vanadium oxide (when market
conditions warrant), and is preparing to begin pilot-scale recovery
of certain medical isotopes from existing uranium process streams
needed for emerging cancer treatments. The Company also owns the
operating Kwale HMS project in Kenya which is nearing the
end of its life and is developing three (3) additional HMS
projects, including the Toliara Project in Madagascar, the
Bahia Project in Brazil, and the Donald Project
in Australia in which the Company has the right to earn
up to a 49% interest in a joint venture with Astron Corporation
Limited. The Company is based in Lakewood, Colorado, near Denver, with its heavy
mineral sands operations managed from Perth, Australia. The primary trading market for
Energy Fuels' common shares is the NYSE American under the trading
symbol "UUUU," and the Company's common shares are also listed on
the Toronto Stock Exchange under the trading symbol "EFR." For
more information on all we do, please visit
http://www.energyfuels.com
Cautionary Note Regarding Forward-Looking
Statements: This news release contains certain
"Forward Looking Information" and "Forward Looking Statements"
within the meaning of applicable United
States and Canadian securities legislation, which may
include, but are not limited to, statements with respect to: any
expectation that the Company will maintain its position as a
leading U.S.-based critical minerals company or as the leading
producer of uranium in the U.S.; any expectation with respect to
timelines to production; any expectation as to rates or quantities
of production; any expectation as to costs of production or gross
profits or gross margins; any expectation as to future sales or
sales prices; any expectation that the Company will be profitable;
any expectation that the Company's permitting efforts will be
successful and as to any potential future production from any
properties that are in the permitting or development stage; any
expectation with respect to the Company's planned exploration
programs; any expectation that the Company will achieve its
business objective of becoming a long-term, profitable U.S.
critical minerals company; any expectation that Energy Fuels will
be successful in expanding its U.S. separation, or other
value-added U.S. REE production capabilities at the Mill, or
otherwise, including the timing of any facilities or other
initiatives and the expected production capacity associated with
any such production capabilities; any expectation that the Mill's
REE products will meet commercial expectations or result in
commercial offtake agreements; any expectation that the Company
will update the Mill PFS to increase throughput of the planned
Phase 2 separation circuit; any expectation that the Company's
planned Phase 2 separation facility will complete engineering
design and will receive all required permits and licenses on a
timely basis or at all; any expectation that the Company is
well-stocked to capture market opportunities; any expectation that
the Bahia Project, Donald Project and/or Toliara Project will be
low-cost sources of monazite feed for the Mill and/or also
potentially produce significant standalone cashflow from the sale
of ilmenite, rutile, zircon and other minerals; any expectation as
to the exploration program to be conducted at the Bahia Project
during 2024; any expectation that the Company will complete an S-K
1300 and NI 43-101 compliant mineral resource estimate for the
Bahia Project during 2024, or otherwise; any expectation that a FID
will be made on the Donald Project or that the Company will earn
its full 49% interest in the Donald JV; any expectation that any
production at the Bahia Project, Donald Project and/or Toliara
Project or Mill will be world or globally competitive; any
expectation that the Base Resources team will continue to have a
successful track-record of designing, constructing, and profitably
operating any of the Company's HMS projects; any expectation that
Energy Fuels will be successful in agreeing on fiscal terms with
the Government of Madagascar or in
achieving sufficient fiscal and legal stability for the Toliara
Project; any expectation that the current suspension relating to
the Toliara Project will be lifted in the near future or at all;
any expectation that the additional permits for the recovery of
Monazite at the Toliara Project will be acquired on a timely basis
or at all; any expectation that the Toliara Project will become a
world-class HMS project; any expectation about the long-term
opportunity in REEs; any expectation that the Company will be
globally competitive in its markets; any expectation that the
Company will complete engineering on its R&D pilot facility for
the production of Ra-226 at the Mill, will set up the first stage
of the pilot facility, and produce R&D quantities of Ra-226 at
the Mill for testing by end-users of the product or at all; any
expectation that the Company's evaluation of radioisotope recovery
at the Mill will be successful; any expectation that any
radioisotopes that can be recovered at the Mill will be sold on a
commercial basis; any expectation as to the quantities to be
delivered under existing uranium sales contracts; any expectation
that the Company will be successful in completing any additional
contracts for the sale of uranium to U.S. utilities on commercially
reasonable terms or at all; and any expectation as to future
uranium, vanadium, HMS or REE prices or market conditions.
Generally, these forward-looking statements can be identified by
the use of forward-looking terminology such as "plans," "expects,"
"does not expect," "is expected," "is likely," "budgets,"
"scheduled," "estimates," "forecasts," "intends," "anticipates,"
"does not anticipate," or "believes," or variations of such words
and phrases, or state that certain actions, events or results
"may," "could," "would," "might" or "will be taken," "occur," "be
achieved" or "have the potential to." All statements, other than
statements of historical fact, herein are considered to be
forward-looking statements. Forward-looking statements involve
known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors which may
cause the actual results, performance or achievements of the
Company to be materially different from any future results,
performance or achievements express or implied by the
forward-looking statements. Factors that could cause actual results
to differ materially from those anticipated in these
forward-looking statements include risks associated with: commodity
prices and price fluctuations; engineering, construction,
processing and mining difficulties, upsets and delays; permitting
and licensing requirements and delays; changes to regulatory
requirements; legal challenges; the availability of feed sources
for the Mill; competition from other producers; public opinion;
government and political actions; the failure of the Government of
Madagascar to agree on fiscal
terms for the Toliara Project or provide the approvals necessary to
achieve sufficient fiscal and legal stability on acceptable terms
and conditions or at all; the failure of the current suspension
affecting the Toliara Project to be lifted on a timely basis or at
all; the failure of the Company to obtain the required permits for
the recovery of Monazite from the Toliara Project; the failure of
the Company to provide or obtain the necessary financing required
to develop the Toliara Project, the Donald Project, the Bahia
Project and/or its expanded REE separations capacity; available
supplies of monazite; the ability of the Mill to produce RE
Carbonate, REE oxides or other REE products to meet commercial
specifications on a commercial scale at acceptable costs or at all;
market factors, including future demand for REEs; actual results
differing from estimates and projections; the ability of the Mill
to recover radium or other radioisotopes at reasonable costs or at
all; market prices and demand for medical isotopes; and the other
factors described under the caption "Risk Factors" in the Company's
most recently filed Annual Report on Form 10-K, which is available
for review on EDGAR at www.sec.gov/edgar, on SEDAR+
at www.sedarplus.ca, and on the Company's website
at www.energyfuels.com. Forward-looking statements
contained herein are made as of the date of this news release, and
the Company disclaims, other than as required by law, any
obligation to update any forward-looking statements whether as a
result of new information, results, future events, circumstances,
or if management's estimates or opinions should change, or
otherwise. There can be no assurance that forward-looking
statements will prove to be accurate, as actual results and future
events could differ materially from those anticipated in such
statements. Accordingly, the reader is cautioned not to place undue
reliance on forward-looking statements. The Company assumes no
obligation to update the information in this communication, except
as otherwise required by law.
1 The information relating to the Donald
Project's estimated monazite production is based on the Donald DFS
prepared on June 27, 2023. This study
constituted a "Feasibility Study" for the purposes of JORC, and the
Ore Reserves underpinning this study were estimated in accordance
with JORC. The results from this study may not be comparable to (as
the case may be) data or estimates under either NI 43-101 or S-K
1300– see disclosure under "Technical Information."
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SOURCE Energy Fuels Inc.