Aqua Metals, Inc. (NASDAQ: AQMS), a pioneer in sustainable
lithium-ion battery recycling, today reported financial results for
the full-year ended December 31, 2023.
Full-Year 2023 Financial and Recent
Operational Highlights
Operational
- Established a platform for
commercial production by successfully commissioning the Li
AquaRefining™ pilot plant and operating the plant for over one year
including 24-hour/five-day per week operations at the Company’s
Innovation Center, with the recovery of lithium hydroxide and
carbonate, nickel, copper, cobalt, and manganese dioxide, and
de-risking through pilot operations.
- Completed an engineering report
that included a Life Cycle Analysis (LCA) of Li AquaRefining™
through ICF, an internationally recognized third party, showing an
83% reduction in CO2 emissions versus standard hydrometallurgy
processes.
- Acquired a five-acre parcel in
Tahoe-Reno and materially completed major upfit of the existing
building to advance Phase 1 of the Sierra AquaRefining™ Campus
(ARC) on time and within budget with commissioning beginning this
summer and commercial production commencing this year with expected
financing.
Commercial
- Advanced its ongoing strategic
partnership with 6K Energy and signed a multi-part memorandum of
understanding (MOU) regarding plans for co-located facilities to
build the first circular supply chain of critical minerals for
lithium battery production in the US, that follows the successful
completion of the non-recurring engineering agreement (NRE) where
Aqua Metals developed novel and patent-pending metals to pCAM
(precursor cathode active material) technology for 6K.
- As announced yesterday, executed a
supply agreement between Aqua Metals and 6K Energy, representing a
first-of-its-kind collaboration designed to address the escalating
demand for recycling Li-ion batteries by offering manufacturers
access to low-cost, low-carbon, domestically produced critical
materials.
- Supplied Dragonfly Energy with
battery-grade, sustainably recycled lithium hydroxide, which was
used to manufacture and successfully cycle-tested lithium-based
battery cell.
Financial
- Completed an equity raise, and
strategic investment and partnership with Yulho, Co., Ltd., which
provided $25 million in gross proceeds.
- Advanced flexible business model
strategy, supporting partnerships, licensing models, and
proprietary production, enabling growth with limited capital
expenditures and an asset-lite approach relative to others in the
industry.
Global Industry Distinction
- Aqua Metals has an alliance in Asia with its strategic investor
and partner, Yulho Co., Ltd., and was a featured presenter at the
APEC multistakeholder forum in San Francisco where global leaders
convened to foster collaboration and dialogue around equitable
energy transition principles.
- Company executives attended a trade delegation to Lower Saxony,
Germany to explore opportunities for recycling with government
leaders and regional companies; and recently hosted a Dutch
delegation in Reno, NV.
- Received commendation as a "Leader in Sustainability" alongside
Patagonia by the Economic Development Authority of Western Nevada
(EDAWN) and from US Senator Catherine Cortez Masto and US
Congressman Mark Amodei.
“Aqua Metals achieved our goal of proving out
the pilot plant in 2023, a facility that continues to operate
24x5,” commented Steve Cotton, President and Chief Executive
Officer of Aqua Metals. “Simultaneously, the Company is prudently
and methodically outfitting Phase 1 of our Sierra ARC and we plan
to become the first commercial-scale operator to establish a
sustainable circular supply chain of critical minerals for lithium
battery production in the US. This progress is a major milestone
for Aqua Metals, advancing our commercial initiatives. We have
secured a reliable supply of black mass, developed US and global
partnerships, and commissioned production capacity, operating at a
measured pace that minimizes risk and avoids major capital
requirements as the industry continues to mature.”
“Phase 1 of our Sierra ARC is expected to be
capable of generating the critical battery minerals for
approximately 30,000 average-sized EV battery packs, representing
potential revenue of $30 million annually based on current metals
pricing,” continued Mr. Cotton. “We have input material secured and
have progressed the building infrastructure upgrades on time and
within budget including utility, power distribution, all new
concrete flooring with epoxy, office space, equipment platform and
we are now actively placing and installing equipment. We expect to
complete installing the remainder of the equipment and to
commission our first processes this summer with expected financing.
We have also just finalized our key off-take agreement with our
partner 6K Energy to solidify our circular supply chain approach.
We also expect to finalize more commercial agreements with existing
and new partners during 2024 as we enter commercial
production.”
“Simultaneously, we are pursuing non-dilutive,
strategic, and traditional financing options to continue to fund
the commencement and expanded production at our Tahoe-Reno campus,”
continued Mr. Cotton. “We continue to view 2024 as a pivotal year
for Aqua Metals, as we advance commercial initiatives and bolster
our position as a leader in this important, maturing industry.”
2023 Full-Year Financial
ResultsIn 2023, Aqua Metals continued to focus on its
ability to recycle metals found in lithium-ion batteries. The
Company was in limited pilot-scale production during 2023 and
provided sample production-representative metals produced to
multiple announced and unannounced counterparties and as a result,
generated no significant revenue.
Expenses related to plant operations increased
by 59% during 2023 to approximately $6.3 million compared to
approximately $4.0 million in 2022. Research and development
decreased approximately 4% during 2023 compared to 2022. General
and administrative expenses increased approximately 19% for 2023,
compared to 2022.
The net loss for 2023 was $23.9 million, or
$(0.25) per basic and diluted share, compared to a net loss of
$15.4 million, or $(0.20) per basic and diluted share, for 2022.
The net loss for the year ended December 31, 2023 included $4.9
million of non-cash items including write-offs of $1.4 million
related to our investment in LINICO and $3.5 million related to the
ACME Construction In Process as a result of the suspension of
the development of recycling operations at the ACME Metals
Taiwanese facility. Excluding the impact of the impairment charges,
the Company’s adjusted net loss(1) was $19.1 million or ($0.20) per
basic and diluted share. Weighted average shares outstanding for
the year were 91.9 million.
As of December 31, 2023, the Company had $16.5
million in cash and cash equivalents. Total cash used in operations
for 2023 was $3.2 million.
(1) This is a non-GAAP measure; refer to the non-GAAP
adjusted net loss section of this Press Release for additional
detail.
Conference Call and WebcastThe
company will hold a conference call to discuss results and
corporate developments today at 4:30 p.m. ET. Investors can access
the live conference at https://event.webcasts.com/aqms or from the
investor relations section of the Company’s website at
https://ir.aquametals.com/. Alternatively, interested parties can
access the audio call by dialing 877-407-9708 (toll-free) or
201-689-8259 (international).
Following the conclusion of the live event, a
replay will be available by dialing 877-660-6853 or 201-612-7415
and using passcode 13744371. The webcast replay will also be
available in the “News / Events” section of the Aqua Metals
website.
About Aqua MetalsAqua Metals,
Inc. (NASDAQ: AQMS) is reinventing metals recycling with its
patented AquaRefining™ technology. The Company is pioneering a
sustainable recycling solution for materials strategic to energy
storage and electric vehicle manufacturing supply chains.
AquaRefining™ is a low-emissions, closed-loop recycling technology
that replaces polluting furnaces and hazardous chemicals with
electricity-powered electroplating to recover valuable metals and
materials from spent batteries with higher purity, lower emissions,
and minimal waste. Aqua Metals is based in Reno, NV and operates
the first sustainable lithium battery recycling facility at the
Company’s Innovation Center in the Tahoe-Reno Industrial Center. To
learn more, please visit www.aquametals.com.
Aqua Metals Social MediaAqua
Metals has used, and intends to continue using, its investor
relations website (https://ir.aquametals.com), in addition to its
Twitter, Threads, LinkedIn and YouTube accounts at
https://twitter.com/AquaMetalsInc (@AquaMetalsInc),
https://www.threads.net/@aquametalsinc (@aquametalsinc),
https://www.linkedin.com/company/aqua-metals-limited and
https://www.youtube.com/@AquaMetals respectively, as means of
disclosing material non-public information and for complying with
its disclosure obligations under Regulation FD.
Safe HarborThis press release
contains forward-looking statements concerning Aqua Metals, Inc.
Forward-looking statements include, but are not limited to, our
plans, objectives, expectations and intentions and other statements
that contain words such as "expects," "contemplates,"
"anticipates," "plans," "intends," "believes", "estimates",
"potential" and variations of such words or similar expressions
that convey the uncertainty of future events or outcomes, or that
do not relate to historical matters. The forward-looking statements
in this press release include our expectations for our pilot and
commercial-scale recycling plants, our ability to recycle
lithium-ion batteries and the expected benefits of recycling
lithium-ion batteries. Those forward-looking statements involve
known and unknown risks, uncertainties, and other factors that
could cause actual results to differ materially. Among those
factors are: (1) the risk that we may not be able to successfully
negotiate and conclude a definitive license agreement with Yulho or
a definitive pilot facility agreement with 6K, (2) even if we are
to conclude a definitive agreements with Yulho and 6K, the risk
that we may not achieve the expected benefits from such
relationships; (3) the risk that we may not be able to acquire
the funding necessary to develop our recently acquired five-acre
campus; (4) the risk that we may not be able to develop the
recycling facility on the five-acre campus within the expected time
or at all; (5) even if we are able to develop the recycling
facility, the risk that we may not realize the expected benefits;
(6) the risk that potential licensees may refuse or be slow to
adopt our AquaRefining process as an alternative in spite of the
perceived benefits of AquaRefining; (7) the risk that we may not
realize the expected economic benefits from any licenses we may
enter into; and (8) those risks disclosed in the section "Risk
Factors" are included in our Annual Report on Form 10-K filed on
March 27, 2024. Aqua Metals cautions readers not to place undue
reliance on any forward-looking statements. The Company does not
undertake and specifically disclaims any obligation to update or
revise such statements to reflect new circumstances or
unanticipated events as they occur, except as required by law.
Contact Information
Investor RelationsBob Meyers & Rob FinkFNK
IR646-878-9204aqms@fnkir.com
MediaJennifer Johnson AvrilWarner
Communications917-982-9012jennifer@warnerpr.com
Source: Aqua Metals
Non-GAAP Adjusted net loss
The Company believes the use of adjusted net loss allows
management, investors, and analysts to understand its net loss
related to its primary business. For the three and nine months
ended September 30, 2019, effects of the Veolia non-cash share
payments have been excluded from net loss. Net loss is reconciled
to adjusted net loss in the table below (in thousands, except per
share amounts):
AQUA METALS, INC.Reconciliation to Non-GAAP Net
Loss(Unaudited) |
|
|
Twelve months ended December 31, 2023 |
Net loss |
$ |
(23,938 |
) |
Impairment expense |
$ |
4,851 |
|
Adjusted net loss |
$ |
(19,087 |
) |
|
|
Net loss per share, basic and diluted |
$ |
(0.25 |
) |
Impairment expense |
$ |
0.05 |
|
Adjusted net loss per share, basic and diluted |
$ |
(0.20 |
) |
|
|
|
|
Note About Non-GAAP Financial MeasuresIn
addition to the audited results presented in accordance with
generally accepted accounting principles, or GAAP, in this press
release, Aqua Metals presents adjusted net loss and adjusted net
loss per share, which are non-GAAP financial measures. Adjusted net
loss and adjusted net loss per share are determined by taking net
loss and eliminating the impacts of impairment expense. Our
definitions of adjusted net loss and adjusted net loss per share
may not be comparable to the definitions of similarly titled
measures used by other companies. We believe that these non-GAAP
financial measures, viewed in addition to and not in lieu of our
reported GAAP results, provides useful information to investors by
providing a more focused measure of operating results. These
metrics are used as part of our internal reporting to evaluate our
operations and the performance of senior management. A table
reconciling this measure to the comparable GAAP measure is
available in the accompanying financial tables above.
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