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| November 3, 2009 |
| HudBay Minerals Releases Third Quarter 2009 Results
For a full explanation of results, the unaudited interim Consolidated Financial Statements, Management's Discussion and Analysis, and mine statistics, please visit the company's website, www.hudbayminerals.com.
Q3 Highlights
- Positive operating cash flow (before changes in non-cash working capital) of $48.2 million(1);
- Net earnings of $20.0 million ($0.13 per share);
- Revenue of $194.6 million;
- Cash and cash equivalents of $880.3 million;
- Announced subscription, option and joint venture agreement with Aquila Resources Inc.;
- Announced discovery of new copper-gold zone at Lalor deposit;
- Normal course issuer bid approved by TSX;
- Subsequent to quarter end announced $85 commitment for Phase 1 development at Lalor deposit; and
- Subsequent to quarter end announced restart of operations at Chisel North mine. |
TORONTO, ONTARIO--(Marketwire - Nov. 3, 2009) - HudBay Minerals Inc. ("HudBay", "the company") (TSX:HBM) today reported quarterly net income of $20.0 million, or $0.13 per share compared with net income of $2.8 million or $0.02 per share in the third quarter of 2008. These results reflected reduced exploration expense, higher gold prices and operating cost savings from the suspension of operations at Balmat, which were more than offset by lower copper prices and volumes. Earnings during the third quarter of 2008 were affected by an asset impairment charge of $27.2 million related to Balmat and $3.9 million in equity losses related to HudBay's ownership of Skye Resources. Cash provided by operating activities (before changes in working capital) in the third quarter of 2009 was $48.2 million, down from $54.5 million in 2008.
Operationally, HudBay's 777 mine production and operating cost performance continued to improve over the same period last year. Overall, unit operating costs decreased as operations were suspended at Chisel North and Balmat. HudBay also announced the commitment of an $85 million expenditure for Phase 1 of the development of the Lalor deposit, in line with its strategic plan announced in June 2009. The TSX also approved the company's filing of a normal course issuer bid during the quarter.
"This quarter was marked by our discovery of the new copper-gold zone and other advancements at the Lalor deposit," said Peter R. Jones, HudBay's chief executive officer. "Since then we have made a commitment to advance Lalor on a fast track basis and we are focused on making Lalor our next big mine."
"The decision to restart Chisel North in early 2010 will help optimize our zinc plant capacity in Flin Flon," added Mr. Jones. "Combined with our development of Lalor, this will increase our domestic supply of zinc concentrate and lessen our need to purchase third-party zinc concentrate."
FINANCIAL HIGHLIGHTS
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($000s except per share Three Months Ended Sept. Nine Months Ended Sept.
amounts) 30 30
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2009 2008 2009 2008
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Revenue 194,608 247,441 554,049 803,113
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Earnings before tax 32,811 33,898 132,236 145,037
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Net earnings 19,975 2,780 105,432 57,534
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EBITDA(1,2) 59,065 88,633 103,156 245,949
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Operating cash flow(1,3) 48,214 54,484 91,051 195,856
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Basic EPS 0.13 0.02 0.69 0.44
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Cash, cash equivalents
and short-term
investments 880,292 844,384 880,292 844,384
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Total assets 2,000,776 1,918,353 2,000,776 1,918,353
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(1) EBITDA, operating cash flow before changes in non-cash working
capital, operating cash flow per share, and cash cost per pound of
zinc sold are considered non-GAAP measures (refer to "Non-GAAP
Measures" on page 31 of our Management's Discussion and Analysis
("MD&A) for the third quarter of 2009 ). For EBITDA refer to page 17
of our MD&A. For the reconciliation of operating cash flow before
changes in non-cash working capital and operating cash flow per share,
refer to page 19 of our MD&A. For the reconciliation of cash cost per
pound of zinc sold, net of by-product credits, refer to page 32 of
our MD&A.
(2) EBITDA represents earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and
amortization, gain/loss on derivative instruments, exploration and
interest and other income.
(3) Before changes in non-cash working capital.
Operations
Overall, production remains on track to meet our 2009 guidance, although zinc production from HudBay sources is expected to be at the lower end of the previously announced guidance of 75,000 - 90,000 tonnes. Mine production in the third quarter was 551,329 tonnes of ore, compared to 683,627 tonnes for the same quarter in 2008. The lower production was due to the suspension of operations at the Chisel North and Balmat mines.
Production of cast zinc in the third quarter was 1% lower than the same quarter in 2008. Operating costs per pound of zinc metal produced were 3% lower. The lower production was the result of insufficient concentrate available in 2009 to allow for full production. Unit costs were lower during the third quarter of 2009 as a result of lower consumable costs and other cost containment actions.
For the quarter, our cash cost per pound of zinc sold, net of by-product credits was negative US$0.16/lb. compared to negative US$0.58/lb. in the third quarter of 2008, excluding costs and sales related to Balmat and HMI Nickel (refer to "Non-GAAP Measures" on page 32 of HudBay third quarter MD&A). The increase was principally due to lower by-product copper credits arising mainly from lower prices, offset in part by the benefit of a weaker Canadian dollar.
PRODUCTION AND SALES
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Three Months Nine Months
Ended Sept. 30 Ended Sept. 30
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2009 2008 2009 2008
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Production
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Zinc tonnes 28,428 30,998 78,067 99,380
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Copper tonnes 14,290 19,167 46,050 55,823
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Gold troy oz. 22,988 26,920 68,583 78,425
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Silver troy oz. 477,769 630,168 1,533,610 1,591,689
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Metal Sold
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Zinc tonnes 29,349 32,647 80,771 100,365
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Copper tonnes 15,293 19,190 51,117 58,749
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Gold troy oz. 21,900 20,632 74,921 70,751
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Silver troy oz. 506,148 364,944 1,711,212 1,203,144
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Highlights
Revenues of $194.6 million for the quarter and $554.0 million year-to-date
Revenues for the quarter:
- represent a decrease of 2% over Q2 2009 (revenues were $197.7 in Q2 2009); and
- represent a decrease of 21% over Q3 2008 (revenues were $247.4 in Q3 2008).
Total revenue for the third quarter was $194.6 million; $52.8 million lower than the same quarter last year. Year-to-date revenue was $554.0 million; $249.1 million lower than 2008. These variances are due to the following:
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Three Months Nine Months
Ended Ended
(in $ millions) Sep 30,2009 Sep 30,2009
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Metal prices
Lower zinc prices (3.1) (69.5)
Lower copper prices (29.7) (204.6)
Sales volumes
Lower copper sales volumes (25.9) (43.2)
Higher silver sales volumes 2.2 8.0
Higher gold sales volumes 2.1 4.5
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Other
Favorable foreign exchange 13.2 109.9
Lower Balmat concentrate sales (3.9) (20.5)
Disposal of CMMSA(1) (8.2) (21.1)
Other volume and pricing
differences 0.5 (12.6)
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Decrease in net revenues in 2009
compared to 2008 (52.8) (249.1)
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(1) During 2009, we disposed of our 50% ownership in Considar Metal
Marketing SA Inc. ("CMMSA"). The transaction will not have a material
effect on our marketing activities.
Realized Prices decreased in the third quarter of 2009
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HudBay Realized Prices (1)
Three Months Nine Months
Ended Ended
Average market --------------------------------
price(2), Q3 Sep 30 Sep 30 Sep 30 Sep 30
2009 2008 2009 2008 2009 2008
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Prices in US$
Zinc (3) US$/lb. 0.80 0.80 0.83 0.87 0.70 1.02
Copper (3) US$/lb. 2.66 3.48 2.74 3.38 2.21 3.55
Gold US$/troy oz. 960 870 955 862 917 883
Silver US$/troy oz. 14.70 15.03 14.51 13.36 13.43 15.93
Prices in C$
Zinc (3) C$/lb. 0.88 0.84 0.91 0.91 0.81 1.04
Copper (3) C$/lb. 2.92 3.63 3.01 3.51 2.57 3.61
Gold C$/troy oz. 1,054 906 1,046 892 1,083 897
Silver C$/troy oz. 16.13 15.66 15.93 13.70 15.80 16.15
Exchange rate US$1 to C$ 1.10 1.04 1.10 1.04 1.17 1.02
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(1) Realized prices are before refining and treatment charges and only on
the sale of finished metal, excluding metal in concentrates.
(2) London Metals Exchange ("LME") average for zinc, copper and gold
prices, London Spot US equivalent for silver prices. HudBay's copper
sales contracts are primarily based on Comex copper prices.
(3) The realized components of our metal swap cash flow hedges resulted
in a gain of US$0.01/lb. for zinc and a gain of US$0.02/lb. for copper
during the third quarter of 2009. Refer to "Base Metal Price Strategic
Risk Management" on page 21 of our MD&A.
For the third quarter of 2009, our operating expenses were $119.3 million; $35.5 million lower than the same quarter last year. Year-to-date operating expenses were $399.9 million, $130.1 million lower than in 2008. These variances are due to the following:
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Three Months Nine Months
Ended Ended
(in $ millions) Sep 30,2009 Sep 30,2009
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Increased volumes of purchased zinc concentrate 11.5 27.4
Increased cost of concentrate due to
unfavorable exchange rate 3.5 29.9
Care & maintenance costs for Chisel North,
Balmat & HMI Nickel 2.4 12.9
Accrual for termination costs due to closure of
refinery - 6.1
Higher (lower) net profits interest 2.1 (2.1)
Reduced cost and volumes of purchased copper
concentrate (29.8) (92.8)
Suspension of Balmat operations (9.4) (31.9)
Suspension of Chisel North operations (7.7) (17.4)
Disposal of interest in CMMSA (7.4) (18.8)
Lower production volumes and lower input costs
in metallurgical plants (4.0) (16.4)
Lower profit sharing (2.1) (11.0)
Reduced price for purchased zinc concentrate - (7.6)
Other operating expenses and changes in
volumes 5.4 (8.4)
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Decrease in operating expenses in 2009 compared
to 2008 (35.5) (130.1)
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Website Links
HudBay Minerals Inc.: www.hudbayminerals.com
Management's Discussion and Analysis: http://media3.marketwire.com/docs/hbmmdaQ309.pdf
Financial Statements: http://media3.marketwire.com/docs/hbmifsQ309.pdf
Conference Call and Webcast
Peter R. Jones, chief executive officer, Michael D. Winship, president and chief operating officer, and David S. Bryson, senior vice president and chief financial officer, will host a conference call to discuss the company's third quarter results on Wednesday, November 4, 2009. Third Quarter 2009 Results Conference Call and Webcast:
Date: Wednesday, November 4, 2009
Time: 10:00 a.m. (Eastern Time)
Webcast: www.hudbayminerals.com
Dial in: 416-644-3422 or 800-732-1073
Replay: 416-640-1917 or 877-289-8525
Replay Passcode: 4176694#
The conference call replay will be available until midnight (Eastern Time) on November 18, 2009. An archived audio webcast of the call also will be available on HudBay's website.
HudBay Minerals Inc.: Strength to Build the Future
HudBay Minerals Inc. (TSX:HBM) is a Canadian integrated mining company with assets in North and Central America principally focused on the discovery, production and marketing of base metals. The company's objective is to maximize shareholder value through efficient operations, organic growth and accretive acquisitions, while maintaining its financial strength. A member of the S&P/TSX Composite Index and the S&P/TSX Global Mining Index, HudBay is committed to high standards of corporate governance and sustainability.
Forward Looking Information
This news release and its attachments contain "forward-looking information" within the meaning of applicable securities laws. Forward looking information includes but is not limited to information concerning the potential impact of changing economic conditions on HudBay's financial results, potential plans for the Lalor project, HudBay's exploration and development plans, and its strategies and future prospects. Generally, forward-looking information can be identified by the use of forward-looking terminology such as "plans", "expects", or "does not expect", "is expected", "budget", "scheduled", "estimates", "forecasts", "intends", "anticipates", "understands" or "does not anticipate", or "believes" or variations of such words and phrases or statements that certain actions, events or results "will", "may", "could", "would", "might", or "will be taken", "occur", or "be achieved". Forward-looking information is based on the views, opinions, intentions and estimates of management at the date the information is made, and is based on a number of assumptions and subject to a variety of risks and uncertainties and other factors that could cause actual events or results to differ materially from those anticipated or projected in the forward-looking information (including the actions of other parties who have agreed to do certain things and the approval of certain regulatory bodies).
Many of these assumptions are based on factors and events that are not within the control of HudBay and there is no assurance they will prove to be correct. Factors that could cause actual results or events to vary materially from results or events anticipated by such forward-looking information include risks associated with the mining industry such as economic factors (including future commodity prices, currency fluctuations and energy prices), failure of plant, equipment, processes and transportation services to operate as anticipated, dependence on key personnel and employee relations, environmental risks, government regulation, actual results of current exploration activities, possible variations in ore grade or recovery rates, permitting timelines, capital expenditures, reclamation activities, land titles, and social and political developments and other risks of the mining industry, as well as those risk factors discussed in the company's Annual Information Form dated March 30, 2009, which risks may cause actual results to differ materially from any forward-looking statement.
Although HudBay has attempted to identify important factors that could cause actual actions, events or results to differ materially from those described in forward-looking information, there may be other factors that cause actions, events or results not to be anticipated, estimated or intended. There can be no assurance that forward-looking information will prove to be accurate, as actual results and future events could differ materially from those anticipated in such information. HudBay undertakes no obligation to update forward-looking information if circumstances or management's estimates or opinions should change except as required by applicable securities laws, or to comment on analyses, expectations or statements made by third parties in respect of HudBay, its financial or operating results or its securities. The reader is cautioned not to place undue reliance on forward-looking information.
(HBM-F) | |
| CONTACT INFORMATION:
HudBay Minerals Inc.
John Vincic
Vice President, Investor Relations and
Corporate Communications
(416) 362 0615
john.vincic@hudbayminerals.com
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| INDUSTRY: Manufacturing and Production - Mining and Metals | |
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