GREENWOOD VILLAGE, Colo., April 15, 2015 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Siemens AG ("Siemens") has selected Molycorp, Inc. (NYSE:MCP) ("Molycorp") to supply rare earth materials over the next 10 years from its Mountain Pass, California facility for incorporation into Siemens' high-efficiency, direct drive wind turbine generators. Molycorp will supply rare earth materials to Shin-Etsu Chemical Co., Ltd. ("Shin-Etsu"), which will produce the rare earth magnets Siemens intends to utilize in its wind turbines.
Siemens officials noted that key factors in choosing Molycorp were Molycorp's ability to provide greater global diversification and reliability to its supply chain, as well as the environmental and process innovations Molycorp has built into its Mountain Pass rare earth facility. Among those innovations are the facility's ability to recycle water, regenerate the chemical reagents needed in rare earth production, generate power from a high-efficiency natural gas cogeneration power plant, and dispose of mine tailings through an innovative paste tailings system.
Siemens officials said that the magnets to be used in its direct drive wind turbines will contain reduced levels of heavy rare earth elements (HREEs), such as dysprosium. In collaboration with Siemens Wind Power, Molycorp and Shin-Etsu will improve the magnet material to reach zero HREEs, Siemens said. At the same time, Siemens added, supply chain reliability will be increased and costs will be reduced.
"The contract with Shin-Etsu and Molycorp is an important step for us in sourcing magnet materials for our direct drive wind turbines," said Morten Rasmussen, Head of Technology at Siemens Wind Power and Renewables Division. "We strive for diversification in the sourcing of these components to improve independency from specific markets."
"We are very pleased to have been selected to supply Siemens and Shin-Etsu with rare earth magnetic materials for this important clean energy supply chain project," said Geoff Bedford, Molycorp's President and Chief Executive Officer. "This agreement underscores Molycorp's commitment to partner with our customers to support their product development efforts and serve as an integrated, long-term provider of reliable rare earth supply."
More information on Siemens' direct drive wind turbines can be seen here:
ABOUT MOLYCORP
Molycorp is the only advanced material manufacturer in the world that both controls a world-class rare earth resource and can produce high-purity, custom engineered rare earth products to meet increasingly demanding customer specifications. With production facilities on three continents, the Company produces a wide variety of specialized products from rare earth elements and five rare metals (Gallium, Indium, Rhenium, Tantalum and Niobium). The Company produces rare earth magnetic materials through its Molycorp Magnequench subsidiary, including neodymium-iron-boron (NdFeB) magnet powders, used to manufacture bonded NdFeB permanent rare earth magnets. The Company also markets and sells a line of rare earth-based water treatment products. For more information please visit http://www.molycorp.com.
SAFE HARBOR STATEMENT REGARDING FORWARD-LOOKING STATEMENTS
This release contains forward-looking statements that represent Molycorp's beliefs, projections and predictions about future events or Molycorp's future performance. Forward-looking statements can be identified by terminology such as "may," "will," "would," "could," "should," "expect," "intend," "plan," "anticipate," "believe," "estimate," "predict," "potential," "continue" or the negative of these terms or other similar expressions or phrases. These forward-looking statements are necessarily subjective and involve known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other important factors that could cause Molycorp's actual results, performance or achievements or industry results to differ materially from any future results, performance or achievement described in or implied by such statements.
Factors that may cause actual results to differ materially from expected results described in forward-looking statements include, but are not limited to: Molycorp's ability meet the standards necessary to maintain its listing on the New York Stock Exchange or other stock exchange, including its ability to cure any non-compliance with such listing standards; the need to secure additional capital to implement Molycorp's business plans, and Molycorp's ability to successfully secure any such capital, including the ability to successfully access the remaining commitment under the financings with certain funds managed by Oaktree Capital Management, L.P.; Molycorp's ability to make interest payments on its existing debt; Molycorp's ability to repay its debt, whether at maturity, pursuant to any acceleration, or otherwise; Molycorp's ability to optimize and ramp up production at its Mountain Pass rare earth mine and processing facility, which we refer to as the Mountain Pass facility, and the ability to develop internal and external demand for REO and other downstream products, including the ability to operate at commercial production rates and competitive cash production costs, in each case within the projected time frame; Molycorp's ability to economically produce chemical reagents from waste water at the Mountain Pass facility on a consistent basis; the success of Molycorp's cost mitigation efforts in connection with the optimization and ramp up of the Mountain Pass facility, which, if unsuccessful, might cause its costs to exceed budget; the final costs of Molycorp's planned capital projects, which may differ from estimated costs; Molycorp's ability to achieve fully the strategic and financial objectives related to its acquisitions, including in respect of Molycorp's financial condition and results of operations; risks and uncertainties associated with intangible assets, including any future goodwill impairment charges and the ability to develop and protect intellectual property related to products and operations; risks associated with Molycorp's ability to protect its intellectual property, including the infringement of intellectual property of third parties; market conditions, including prices and demand for Molycorp's products; Molycorp's ability to control its working capital needs; foreign exchange rate fluctuations; the development and commercialization of new products; unexpected actions of domestic and foreign governments; various events which could disrupt operations, including natural events and other risks; uncertainties associated with Molycorp's reserve estimates and non-reserve deposit information, including estimated mine life and annual production; uncertainties related to feasibility studies that provide estimates of expected or anticipated costs, expenditures and economic returns, REO prices, production costs and other expenses for operations, which are subject to fluctuation; uncertainties regarding global supply and demand for rare earths materials; uncertainties regarding the results of Molycorp's exploration programs; Molycorp's ability to enter into definitive agreements with its customers, its ability to supply such customers, and its ability to maintain customer relationships; Molycorp's ability to maintain appropriate relations with unions and employees; Molycorp's ability to attract and retain employees with the necessary experience, skills and training; Molycorp's ability to successfully implement its vertical integration strategy; environmental laws, regulations and permits affecting Molycorp's business, directly and indirectly, including, among others, those relating to mine reclamation and restoration, climate change, emissions to the air and water and human exposure to hazardous substances used, released or disposed of by Molycorp; and uncertainties associated with unanticipated geological conditions related to mining; and the outcome of the current stockholder class action litigation and derivative litigation, including any actions taken by government agencies in connection therewith.
For more information regarding these and other risks and uncertainties that Molycorp may face, see the section entitled "Risk Factors" of the Company's Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2014 and of the Company's Quarterly Reports on Form 10-Q. Any forward-looking statement contained in this release or the Annual Report on Form 10-K or the Quarterly Reports on Form 10-Q reflects Molycorp's current views with respect to future events and is subject to these and other risks, uncertainties and assumptions relating to Molycorp's operations, operating results, growth strategy and liquidity. You should not place undue reliance on these forward-looking statements because such statements speak only as to the date when made. Molycorp assumes no obligation to publicly update or revise these forward-looking statements for any reason, or to update the reasons actual results could differ materially from those anticipated in these forward-looking statements, even if new information becomes available in the future, except as otherwise required by applicable law.
CONTACT: Company Contacts:
Jim Sims, +1 (303) 843-8062
Vice President Corporate Communications
[email protected] Brian Blackman, +1 (303) 843-8067
Vice President Investor Relations
[email protected]
Molycorp, Inc.