SANTIAGO, Chile, Aug. 19, 2021 /PRNewswire/ --
Highlights
- SQM reported net income for the six months ended June 30, 2021 of US$157.8
million.
- Earnings per share totaled US$0.55 for the first half of 2021, higher than
the US$0.36 reported for the first
half of 2020.
- Revenues for the first half of 2021 were US$1,116.5 million.
- Published our audited Annual Sustainability Report.
SQM will hold a conference call to discuss these results on
Thursday, August 19, at 12:00pm ET (12:00pm
Chile time).
Participant Dial-In (Toll Free):
1-855-238-1018
Participant International Dial-In: 1-412-542-4107
Webcast: https://services.choruscall.com/links/sqm210819.html
Sociedad Química y Minera de Chile S.A. (SQM) (NYSE: SQM;
Santiago Stock Exchange: SQM-B, SQM-A) today reported earnings for
the six months ended June 30, 2021 of
US$157.8 million (US$0.55(2) per share), a 64.7%
increase from US$95.8 million
(US$0.36 per share) reported for the
six months ended June 30, 2020. Gross
profit reached US$322.5 million
(28.9% of revenues) for the six months ended June 30, 2021, 36.9% higher than US$235.6 million (27.7% of revenues) recorded for
the six months ended June 30, 2020.
Revenues totaled US$1,116.5 million
for the six months ended June 30,
2021, representing an increase of 31.3% compared to
US$850.5 million reported for the six
months ended June 30, 2020.
The Company also announced earnings for the second quarter of
2021 of US$89.8 million (US$0.31(2) per share), an increase of
approximately 76.7% compared to US$50.8
million (US$0.19(2)
per share) for the second quarter of 2020. Gross profit for the
second quarter of 2021 reached US$185.9
million, 45.4% higher than the US$127.8 million recorded for the second quarter
2020. Revenues totaled US$588.0
million for the second quarter 2021, an increase of
approximately 28.3% compared to US$458.5
million for the second quarter of 2020.
SQM's Chief Executive Officer, Ricardo
Ramos, stated: "Our earnings during the second quarter 2021
were over 76% higher than earnings reported during the same period
last year. This was a result of significantly higher sales volumes
across almost all of our business lines. Our strong results were
particularly led by lithium and iodine sales volumes, which
increased over 90% and almost 40%, respectively. At the same time,
our average prices in the fertilizer markets increased
approximately 6% in the SPN business line and over 7% in the
potassium chloride and sulfate business line when compared to the
first quarter of 2021; we expect prices in these business lines to
continue increasing during the second half of the year. Our average
lithium prices during the second quarter of 2021 were almost 20%
higher compared to the first quarter of 2021, as sales contracts
signed last year are expiring and a higher percentage of our sales
are invoiced based on the current pricing scenario. Our average
prices during the second half of the year are expected to increase
further as the market continues to tighten and the 2020 contracts
continue to expire".
He continued by saying, "In the lithium business, market and
price growth continue to exceed our expectations. We believe that
global demand could increase more than 40% annually when compared
to last year, as sales of electric vehicles during the first half
of the year grew more than 150% when compared to the same period
last year. We now believe that total global demand could surpass 1
million tons in 2025. Accordingly, our sales volumes could reach
over 95,000 metric tons this year, as we work diligently to help
meet our customers' growing demand".
"We believe that the positive market conditions we are seeing in
all of our business lines will lead to stronger results being
reported during the second half of 2021 when compared to the first
half of the year led mostly by higher lithium and fertilizer sales
prices, and higher lithium and iodine sales volumes. We
remain cognizant of the global logistics and container issues being
seen around the world and are working to mitigate any potential
impacts it could have on our expected second half sales
volumes."
Mr. Ramos finished by saying, "We were extremely pleased with
the capital increase process that we completed in April this year
through which the company raised approximately US$1.1 billion to help finance growth and
expansions projects."
Sustainable Development
We continue to maintain sustainability as a core value that
constantly urges us to assume new challenges and commitments,
aligned with the aspirations of the surrounding communities, our
workers, clients, collaborators, and the different stakeholders
with whom we interact.
We recently published our annual sustainability report. We have
been reporting in accordance with the Global Reporting Initiative
(GRI) principles for 11 years, and we meet the requirements of the
Global Compact Communication on Progress (COP). An external
assurance review of the report was conducted for the second time
based on new international requirements and internal goals.
In May 2021, we partnered with the
U.S. Department of Energy's Argonne National Laboratory, a leading
scientific research institution, to collaborate on a study to
better understand the sustainability challenges, including a closer
look at our carbon emissions, water and energy consumption related
to our lithium products, and see how it affects the rest of the
value chain. The results of the study were published in June this
year and were positive in showing that lithium produced from the
Salar de Atacama has a lower carbon, water and energy footprint
compared to lithium produced from other sources. This is not only
important for us as lithium producer, but also throughout the
supply chain.
We invite you to read our Sustainability Report available on our
website (www.sqm.com) to learn more about all of sustainability
goals and social outreach.
About SQM
SQM is a global company that is listed on the New York Stock
Exchange and the Santiago Stock Exchange (NYSE: SQM; Santiago Stock
Exchange: SQM-B, SQM-A). SQM develops and produces diverse products
for several industries essential for human progress, such as
health, nutrition, renewable energy and technology through
innovation and technological development. We aim to maintain our
leading world position in the lithium, potassium nitrate, iodine
and thermo-solar salts markets by:
- Ensuring access to the best assets related to our current
business lines by expanding our global presence;
- Actively searching for attractive minerals allowing us
diversification opportunities to replicate and expand our existing
mining capacities;
- Strengthening our operational, logistical and commercial
excellence process from beginning to end, while looking to be a
cost leader; and
- Maintaining a conservative financial policy which allows us to
successfully endure economic cycles that could impact the markets
in which we sell.
We are a dynamic company. In pursuit of our objectives, we
expect to acquire and develop projects and interests that are
consistent with our existing and new businesses, either alone or
with joint venture partners. We may also divest, spin-off or
sell-down interests that we have acquired to deploy funds for other
investments or other purposes in pursuit of our objectives to
adjust risk or diversify our asset base.
We are a company built and managed by a culture based on
excellence, safety, sustainability and integrity. We work every day
to expand this culture through the attraction, retention and
development of talent as well encouraging an inclusive and diverse
work environment ensuring the unique knowledge and innovation
needed to sustain our business. We strive for safe and
accident-free operations by promoting conduct that favors the
physical safety and psychological well-being of everyone who works
directly and indirectly with the Company.
We position ourselves as a leader in sustainability and commit
to a sustainable future where we constantly work to
responsibly manage natural resources, protect human rights, care
for the environment, form close and trusting relationships with our
neighboring communities and create value. Within these communities,
we support projects and activities with a focus on education,
business development, and protection of the environment and
historical heritage. We create value for our clients through
established commercial models and the production and development of
differentiated products that respond to their industry and market
specific needs, constantly creating and providing a sustainable
improvement in the quality of life. We will continue to create
value for all of our stakeholders through responsible management of
natural resources, sustainable expansion projects and improvement
of our existing operations, with a focus on minimizing our
environmental impacts by reducing our carbon, energy and water
footprints and working together with our shareholders, employees,
customers, suppliers and communities.
For further information, contact:
Gerardo Illanes 56-2-24252022 /
gerardo.illanes@sqm.com
Kelly O'Brien 56-2-24252074 /
kelly.obrien@sqm.com
Irina Axenova 56-2-24252280 /
irina.axenova@sqm.com
For media inquiries, contact:
Maria Ignacia Lopez /
ignacia.lopez@sqm.com Pablo Pisani / pablo.pisani@sqm.com
Cautionary Note Regarding Forward-Looking Statements
This news release contains "forward-looking statements" within
the meaning of the safe harbor provisions of the U.S. Private
Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Forward-looking
statements can be identified by words such as: "anticipate,"
"plan," "believe," "estimate," "expect," "strategy," "should,"
"will" and similar references to future periods. Examples of
forward-looking statements include, among others, statements we
make concerning the Company's capital expenditures, financing
sources, Sustainable Development Plan, business and demand outlook,
future economic performance, anticipated sales volumes,
profitability, revenues, expenses, or other financial items,
anticipated cost synergies and product or service line growth.
Forward-looking statements are neither historical facts nor
assurances of future performance. Instead, they are estimates that
reflect the best judgment of SQM management based on currently
available information. Because forward-looking statements relate to
the future, they involve a number of risks, uncertainties and other
factors that are outside of our control and could cause actual
results to differ materially from those stated in such statements,
including our ability to successfully implement the Sustainable
Development Plan. Therefore, you should not rely on any of these
forward-looking statements. Readers are referred to the documents
filed by SQM with the United States Securities and Exchange
Commission, including the most recent annual report on Form 20-F,
which identifies other important risk factors that could cause
actual results to differ from those contained in the
forward-looking statements. All forward-looking statements are
based on information available to SQM on the date hereof and SQM
assumes no obligation to update such statements, whether as a
result of new information, future developments or otherwise, except
as required by law.
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SOURCE Sociedad Quimica y Minera de Chile, S.A. (SQM)