SQM Reports Earnings For The Second Quarter Of 2021

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 (12:00pmChile 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)