Athabasca Minerals Inc. announced results for the second-quarter ending June 30, and a strategic refocusing as part of the new emphasis on its core business and initiatives.
In the second quarter of 2022, Athabasca reported consolidated revenue of $7.5 million (compared to $3.2 million in the second quarter of 2021), a gain of 127%, driven mainly by increasing market demand for industrial sand. During the second quarter of 2022, AMI Silica LLC consistently shipped more than 100,000 tons a month and expects the monthly shipment volumes to increase, along with market demand.
Dana Archibald, interim chief executive officer, stateed, “AMI Silica LLC is seeing continued sales growth and profitability for our industrial sand, contributing to AMI’s revenue growth in the second quarter. These encouraging results, combined with the increased sales in AMI Aggregates and RockChain, have led to a renewed focus on the sand and gravel business. Our confidence in AMI’s ability to achieve target revenues for 2022 remains strong.”
AMI had an operating loss of $5.5 million in the second quarter of 2022 versus an operating loss of $0.6 million in the second quarter of 2021. This increased loss was mainly attributed to some one-time operating expenses in AMI Silica LLC of $0.8 million and $0.9 million of depreciation expense.
In addition, the corporation had a $0.7 million severance expense due to the departure of two of the corporation’s executives and a $3.3 million write-down of a certain contract and select resource properties.
In the second quarter of 2022, the corporation reported a total comprehensive loss of $4.8 million (versus a total comprehensive loss of $0.6 million in the second quarter of 2021). For the second quarter of 2022, on a per share basis, total comprehensive loss was $0.061/share basic and diluted (versus a total comprehensive loss of $0.009/share basic and diluted in the second quarter of 2021.)
The corporation has commenced with a comprehensive review of all business assets to determine ways to drive profitability, efficiency and effectiveness. AMI has taken steps to reconstruct its operating model, accelerating its transformation.
Upon reviewing its existing assets, management determined to write down the value of a certain contract and properties that don’t show immediate or mid-term viability. The corporation still firmly believes in these quality properties and will hold them for potential future development.
As of Aug. 24, 2022, the corporation has begun to phase out the operations of its engineering division, TerraShift Engineering, as part of the corporation’s staged plan to create a sustainable and resilient business model. This reorganization and simplification of operations also contributes to a reduction in personnel and overhead. The corporation estimates that the cost of this reorganization will be approximately $30,000.
David Churchill, chief financial officer noted, “As part of AMI’s refocused strategy, the senior leadership team has evaluated all assets and divisions, making decisions based on near-term priorities and contributions to the Corporation. These significant changes are part of an ongoing realignment to create an elevated focus on the Company’s core business of sand and gravel and, ultimately, greater value for AMI’s shareholders.”