Energy Fuels Inc Q2 FY2025 Earnings Call

Good morning. My name is Jeannie, and I will be your conference operator today. At this time, I would like to welcome everyone to the Energy Fuels Second Quarter 2025 Conference Call. Thank you. Mr. Chalmers, you may begin your conference.

Thank you, Jeannie, and thank you for that introduction. Again, Mark Chalmers, CEO of Energy Fuels, and thank you for joining our Q2 conference call today. And I can say with absolute confidence that we had a big quarter with regard to momentum on many fronts, and I don't believe our timing could be any better; namely, rapid advancement of our Uranium production with very high grades being mined, dropping unit cost, increasing production rates as we ramp up to 2 million pounds per year, and we expect the Pinyon Plain costs looking forward to be around $23 to $30 per pound of finished goods of Uranium, which are exceptional compared to Q1 cost. We're also rapidly advancing our Rare Earth separations with the expansion of the White Mesa Mill Phase 2 and significantly improved Rare Earth pricing, particularly outside China, where the prices outside China for Dy and Tb are approximately 350% higher than China prices. And at the same time, NdPr prices are up about 20% in the mid-70s in the last month. Our Heavy Mineral Sands portfolio is also rapidly advancing. So, there's no shortage of things to do at Energy Fuels. We received our final regulatory approvals on the Donald project, which is rich in heavies. We're also advancing our feasibility study and nearing the completion of our feasibility study on Toliara, and the other agreements with the Madagascar government and the permits and drilling at Bahia. We have improving financial results and a strengthened balance sheet as compared to Q1 '25. Our cost and margins of Uranium production are improving materially as Pinyon Plain ore is planned to be processed starting in Q4. No Pinyon Plain ore has been processed as of this date. As I typically do, I'm going to be making a short presentation to update listeners on the overall strategy of the company and the state of play of the company. I believe that you're going to be controlling the slides. Is that correct? Kim there will be conference replays available at the completion of this conference call on the website. And as always, there will be time for presentations at the end of this presentation. Nate Bennett, our CFO; and David Frydenlund, our Executive VP and Chief Legal Counsel, will be available for questions that I'm unable to answer. In addition, it is my pleasure to have Ross R. Bhappu, our new President, with us. While Ross is new to our organization, he is not new to mining. Feel free to ask questions of Ross at the end of the presentation on his past experience in the resource sector or his first impressions on day 4 with Energy Fuels. So, let's get going. So again, our story is different because we are building a globally significant critical mineral company. I always tell everybody; I love this picture. This is in San Juan County. It's not far from the White Mesa Mill, which is our critical mineral hub that is advancing in leaps and bounds. Next slide. Okay. I may be making some forward-looking statements. Those are included on Page 2 of this presentation. Next slide. Again, many of you have seen this. Energy Fuels is basically three businesses in one with the three sectors that we've been advancing and focused and built around our core Uranium business, which, as I said, is ramping up very quickly and turning into immediate cash flow at large scale and low cost, what I believe is the largest scale and lowest cost in the entire United States and competitively lower quartile in the entire world. And we're very excited. We'll talk more about that. Certainly, the Rare Earths, we're emerging as a global leader on the Rare Earths fronts with our ability to separate NdPr, Dy, and Tb and Heavy Mineral Sands with the Heavy Mineral Sands projects that we've acquired for titanium and zirconium minerals. So really three sectors in one company, Energy Fuels, which equates to about 10 critical elements, providing us broad diversification amidst the volatility of a lot of the critical minerals that we've seen over the last couple of years. All three of these segments share one common denominator: naturally occurring Uranium, which is our significant advantage as a company and our ability to deal with that at the White Mesa Mill. Next slide. All of this is in demand. You're hearing about these critical minerals every day, whether it be for energy, defense, mobility, health, or improvements in electrification. Uranium, certainly the focus on fuel for clean baseload energy, data centers, and space travel, is back front and center globally and particularly in the United States and developing countries where you're now seeing bipartisan support. Rare Earths Energy Fuels is becoming a leading producer of Rare Earths oxides used in energy efficiency, automotive, advanced manufacturing, defense, robotics, and other technologies. The Heavy Mineral Sands projects that we've acquired are world-scale and world-class and basically contain the titanium and zirconium minerals and monazite. That is part of those three sectors that we have that perfectly fit together. We also are a leading producer of Vanadium, and we have a Vanadium circuit at the mill. It's currently not operating, but it is the only conventional Vanadium circuit in the United States and is also a critical mineral. Medical Isotopes, we're still advancing our R&D work on the potential to recover radium for emerging medical technologies. Next slide. Uranium highlights. We are producing more Uranium than anybody else in the U.S. today. We're mining high-grade ore. As many of you will have seen in Q2, we mined newly mined ore of over 660,000 pounds of Uranium from both the Pinyon Plain Mine, La Sal and Pandora Mines. Now, if you extrapolate out that 665,000 pounds, that would be a 2.7 million pound rate. We haven't modified our guidance yet, but it gives some examples of capacity when the right stars align. In 2025, our guidance remains between 875 million and 1.4 million pounds of newly mined Uranium, where you can see what we produced in a quarter. We are getting all the pieces in place when it comes to our mining, including additional trucks to haul the ore from the Pinyon Plain Mine to the mill. This is all ramping up very quickly. And we're working towards a 2 million pound run rate. We don't require a lot of capital for this; we've already spent the capital and it really is just getting the mining going, getting the miners hired, and securing the reagents. This will also be at very attractive costs. So, watch this space as we ramp up the mining, which then goes to processing. Processing at the White Mesa mill has been productive, but we are building significant inventories at the mill. In the first half of the year, we produced 330,000 pounds of finished Uranium that was a mixture of La Sal ore, alternate feed, and cleanup material. We expect by 2025 to finish with Uranium between 700,000 and 1 million pounds by the end of the year. One of the reasons we'll achieve this is by preparing the mill to run hard. The mill has not been asked to run this hard for decades. There is a lot of work being done on the mill, including securing critical spares, as it hasn't run at capacity before. When the mill is actually running with Pinyon Plain ore, it can process approximately 230,000 to 250,000 pounds of finished Uranium per month. There's a bit of a lead lag between the time we mine things and process them, and I think that's important to understand for investors and analysts. Next slide. Moving forward, I expect that we'll be able to mine 1.6 million pounds per year or greater starting in 2026. We still have a lot of exploration to do in the Juniper zone. We're encouraged with the grades we're finding in the main zone, the Juniper zone, and, quite frankly, everywhere we drill, we are discovering additional ore. We have more work ahead. The next mill run is planned to begin in October, which will continue into '26. With this run, we expect to produce between approximately 1.1 million and 1.4 million pounds of finished Uranium. On average, the mining and transport costs for Pinyon Plain ore are expected to be $10 to $14 per pound recovered. That's remarkable. Following processing, the cost will be around $13 to $16 per pound. So when you combine those, we anticipate costs of $23 to $30 per pound recovered, which is exceptional compared to our peers, both in the U.S. and globally. Currently, we have about 725,000 pounds of finished goods inventory priced between $50 and $55 per pound. Many of these need to be sold at those prices because that was the cost of production. As we ramp up our Uranium production, particularly with the lower costs of Pinyon Plain alternate feed and other mining feeds, we expect these prices to start dropping, estimating to be between $30 to $40 per pound in Q1 of '26. As more Pinyon Plain ore is mined, these costs are likely to continue to drop. We're in a position where we have to clear out existing cost of goods inventory as we ramp up our Uranium production. So, Pinyon Plain, I've built that mine 38 years ago and it is exceeding my expectations on every front regarding the grades, low cost, and larger than originally expected with upside exploration potential. In an earlier part of my career, I mined four breccia pipes. The largest, most successful breccia pipe, ever mined on the Arizona strip was Hack 2, amounting to about 7 million pounds of Uranium. My hope is that Pinyon Plain will greatly exceed Hack 2, but we have exploration to do to further quantify that. It absolutely has better grades than Hack 2. This is great progress for our company, particularly at this time. As I said, we mined over 600,000 pounds in the three months ending June 30, which is a great outcome. The grades have been double, in some cases triple, what we expected in certain areas. We believe that there's more ore in the main zone and transitioning to the Juniper zone, which is less explored, starting just a few hundred feet below the main zone. Recent exploration drilling has confirmed very high-grade areas just below the main zone. We're driving drift down to that lower zone and will be adding additional drill stations to expand that. Approximately half of the breccia pipe that contains this ore has seen very limited exploration, which gives us optimism about the upside. In the little box, I talked about the $23 to $30 that will really commence in Q4 of '25 and extend into '26 as we deplete existing cost of goods sold priced at $50 to $55 per pound, transitioning over to more Pinyon Plain ore. Our cost of sales will decrease significantly. And as I said before, none of the high grade from Pinyon Plain has been processed to date. We have to clear the processed ore where we see those very low costs. Next slide. We're continuously growing our portfolio of long-term Uranium sales contracts. We have four existing contracts and are looking for other opportunities as they arise, especially with the growing Uranium production we are seeing and expecting this year and beyond. We have 300,000 pounds of contract deliveries occurring in the last two quarters of this year, so expect to see a real increase in our contract sales. Additionally, we have the ability to make spot sales if we choose to, even in 2025 and 2026. There has been some reluctance to place product into the market at around $70 per pound, although we have sold a small amount at $77 per pound. We believe that the price of Uranium is going to rise. We're monitoring the situation closely, but remain focused on ramping up our revenue and margins over the next few months. Next slide. Shifting gears from Uranium to Rare Earths and Heavy Mineral Sands, as I stated earlier, we're making rapid progress and receiving significant recognition as an emerging producer of Rare Earths oxides. NdPr produced from our Phase 1 run last year is currently being validated by various metal alloy and magnet manufacturers. We're very encouraged by the feedback. We announced our relationship with POSCO. We're actively piloting heavy Rare Earths at this time and have had several positive updates. We plan to produce 1 kilogram of Dy oxide, 99.5% pure this August, expanding to about 15 kilograms of Dy by October and then a kilogram of Tb expected at 99.99% purity in October. This information enables us to solidify our plans for commercial production quite rapidly as things evolve. We have the technical capability to produce all the Rare Earths oxides currently under Chinese export restrictions. We are advancing the Phase 2 feasibility study at the mill, expected to be completed by October or November, which will increase the capacity to process monazite from 10,000 tonnes in our Phase 1 capability to 60,000 tons per year of monazite, equivalent to Lynas scale. This is a large-scale facility in the United States. The final investment decision on Donald is still pending, potentially as early as December of '25. It is fully permitted and shovel-ready for rare Earth projects with exceptional heavy Rare Earth oxides, very high grade, over 2% Dy and about 0.4% Tb. We are very excited about this prospect; very few companies have fully permitted projects that are shovel-ready. We're also advancing the Toliara project in Madagascar, where final investment agreements are under negotiation with the government, and the Toliara feasibility study is very advanced and should be released soon, pending final reviews by legal and U.S. compliance. The final investment decision for Toliara could happen as early as 2026. Next slide. Talking about monazite, it’s our structural advantage in the Rare Earths business, allowing us to process it at the White Mesa Mill. Monazite is a superior Rare Earth mineral concentrate that is high grade, with 50% to 60% more NdPr, more mids, more heavies, lower cost, includes a credit for Uranium, easy to process, and we achieve high recovery rates. We are the only facility in the United States capable of processing monazite. The pictures surrounding this are from our commercial scale recovery circuit, and our capability is a reality. So, we are growing to become a leader in the industry. If we compare our market cap to MP and Lynas, we're the third largest publicly traded company outside of China focusing on critical minerals and Rare Earths. The Rare Earths, particularly the heavy Rare Earths, are in high demand, and the shortage is contributing to the market's dependency on these minerals, primarily from China. We discussed our separations work earlier, and this raises further importance around what we're doing at the Donald project. Benchmark recently published new updates regarding prices in China and outside of China. Notably, NdPr prices increased about 20% in the mid-70s. What is extraordinary is the benchmark published Dy prices in Europe at $800 per kilogram, in contrast to $230 in China, representing a 3.5 times difference. Tb was similarly priced, at around $1,000 per ton in China, compared to $3,600 in Europe. This indicates that markets are willing to pay a premium over Chinese pricing for products not sourced from China. Next slide. As many of you have seen, we are advancing the Donald project, the Bahia project, and the Toliara project, all of which have the potential to reach Lynas scale upon being fully permitted, constructed, and operational. It’s important to note that we are ramping up our Uranium production from 2 million pounds, which could rise up to 5 million pounds as our Uranium sector generates significant cash flow, and the margins with increased production even at current prices are exceptional. Next slide. Let's discuss our financials. Next slide. We're producing low-cost Uranium by the end of June 30, while developing Tier 1 critical mineral assets and maintaining a strong balance sheet. We had over $250 million in liquidity at the end of June 30, which reflects about $253 million in working capital. A significant part of this is in cash, cash equivalents, liquid market securities, and inventories along with various trade receivables. The finished product inventory was nearly $60 million, and if we factor in current commodity prices, that could amount to an additional $13 million in liquidity. We hold nearly 1 million pounds of Vanadium, 9,000 kilograms of separated NdPr and carbonate, and around 37,000 kilograms of separated NdPr in inventory. We have no debt. We hold a lot of assets and no debt, which is exceptional. We did have a net loss in Q2, mainly due to not selling as much Uranium due to lower market prices. We're also incurring significant costs towards development and general operating expenses to advance our three projects. The net loss came to $22 million, or $0.10 a share, which represents an improvement from Q1's net loss of $26 million or $0.13 a share. As we transition to increased production from Pinyon Plain and subsequent efforts, we expect to see a significant turnaround thanks to our investments, positioning, and increasing momentum. Next slide. Returning to Uranium: we are actively mining from three conventional mines and processing Uranium ore, including alternate feeds and cleanup material at the mill while increasing levels of contract sales later this year and next year. The cost of goods will trend lower, starting in Q4, with the low-cost Pinyon ore being processed. We will opportunistically consider selling Uranium on the spot or in the midterm markets as the situation develops. We are increasing Uranium production up to around 2 million pounds plus. We expect the Pinyon Plain mine will contribute at least 1.6 million pounds going forward. As mentioned previously, we are advancing the permitting process on three large-scale Uranium mines. The Roca Honda mine is on the Fast-41 government list, and we will explore ways to increase output over time, potentially scaling production to between 4 million to 6 million pounds. Additionally, we are continuing research on the potential recovery of radium, which could be utilized for medical isotope cancer treatments. Next slide. While we have not materially changed our guidance, I want to highlight a few points because this slide is significant for analysts. Mining Uranium does not instantly equate to processing it. Our guidance of 875,000 pounds to 1.435 million pounds remains. We noted producing over 600,000 pounds in a single quarter illustrates capacity when fully operational. So, if mining flows freely, we can surpass that but are retaining our conservative guidance until we have all operational aspects in place. The alternate feed remains material to our business, projecting up to 200,000 pounds for the year. Concerning Uranium processing, our output ranges of 700 million to 1 million pounds will also depend on getting the mill ready with critical spares. When running Pinyon Plain ore, we could output between 230,000 to 250,000 pounds of finished goods each month, which yields large quantities of finished goods at significant margins. Projected finished goods projected by the end of the year is between 900 million and 1.2 million pounds. This amount supports our contracts extending into next year depending on sales volume. Total inventories are expected to be between 2 million and 2.5 million pounds at year's end, with a significant portion being processed but yet to be mined. Next slide and last slide. Activities for 2025 for Rare Earths and Heavy Mineral Sands are anticipated to lead to potential commercial production of heavies by 2026 following our Uranium run. Only Energy Fuels has unique capabilities to progress and execute on many fronts others can’t due to our capabilities at the White Mesa Mill. The Phase 2 Rare Earths expansion at the White Mesa Mill will be a completely separate facility from the Uranium mill, capable of processing 6,000 tonnes of NdPr and monazite as well as Dy and Tb. The feasibility study is expected within a few months. We're piloting heavies as previously mentioned, and the Donald project's FID could be executed as early as this year. Potential offtake sales and financing options are being evaluated in light of the increased value of the heavies. As mentioned, the Toliara project is nearing finalization of its feasibility study; a final investment decision could also arrive in 2026. We're negotiating the final agreements with the Madagascar government that formalize the fiscal terms. Additionally, drilling activities in Brazil and the permitting processes for the Bahia project are both progressing, with hopes for a resource estimate later in 2025 or early 2026. At the front of our strategy is developing a comprehensive project financing plan, as we have multiple projects ready to maximize cash flow through uranium to lessen any burn from the rapidly developing other two sectors. I will stop there and open the floor for questions.

And your first question comes from the line of Nick Giles with B. Riley Securities.

My first question, obviously, there's a ton of excitement across Rare Earths. I imagine others are trying to engage with agencies like the Department of Defense, which you hinted at last quarter for potential offtake and funding. What do you believe is the most critical differentiator that would give you a greater likelihood for offtake or funding?

I think when we say we're going to do something, we do it. We have the infrastructure to actually execute it. You can tour the White Mesa mill, and you'll find a fully operable site with over 100 people working there, equipped with laboratories and a Phase 1 separation circuit. We've qualified our product with end users, and you see the number of projects we have accumulated. We are not just one mine; we have Bahia, Donald, Toliara, and agreements with Chemours for monazite from Florida and Georgia. What they see is our scale, low-cost infrastructure, and the necessary skills to advance. This encapsulates our competitive edge.

Mark, I appreciate that perspective. And as a follow-up, could you walk us through your plans to secure enough feedstock as we consider processing as early as Q4 '26? Should we think about this coming from Chemours, or are you exploring additional sources outside of Energy Fuels?

That's a good point. Currently, we are constrained on feedstock. The only supply we have is from Chemours, which sends us a few hundred tons periodically, and we are stockpiling. We are also in discussions with other companies willing to procure monazite from them globally, many that currently send shipments to China. Companies from Australia and the U.S. still ship monazite to China, and that is not favorable. So, we're open to opportunities for further procurement and stockpiling at the White Mesa Mill as they arise to run as needed. This is a dynamic process; however, we are focusing on building up inventories.

Your next question comes from the line of Heiko Ihle with H.C. Wainwright.

Congrats on another good quarter. It's been nice to see your transformation over the years. Let's discuss Pinyon Plain. The site is a big driver for the company right now, and it's been mentioned frequently throughout the release. You stated the cost expectations of $23 to $30 per pound earlier on this call, with a breakdown of $10 to $14 for transport and $13 to $16 for milling costs. Can you discuss what factors could shift us from the lower to the upper end of that cost guidance, especially on the mining and transport, where there's a significant range?

Heiko, we aim to be conservative in our guidance. It's important to note that if we can exceed 600,000 pounds in a quarter, we can deliver a high volume of pounds to the mill. Our biggest limitation lies with transportation and trucking; right now, we have about 10 trucks en route for hauling ore each day, five days a week, and we’re trying to increase that. I estimate that if there were no restrictions on ore transport to the mill, we could be delivering significantly more Uranium. However, as we mine, we will be ameliorating any trucking limitations while preparing to expend development work down to the Juniper zone to put in additional drill stations and conduct more drilling. We are aiming for a balanced approach, but yes, trucking poses the most significant constraint at this time, while we work to resolve that issue and build stronger momentum.

Fair enough. It's clear to read between the lines. A completely different question: your balance sheet is the strongest it has ever been since I began tracking. Has your internal thought process on minimum cash or minimum working capital changed over the past 12 to 24 months?

We've got numerous activities underway. Many could require cash in diverse forms, whether for M&A transactions or certification payments needed for Toliara. I maintain a strong belief in having a robust balance sheet; one must be cautious because unforeseen challenges can arise.

Your next question comes from the line of Katie Lachapelle with Canaccord Genuity.

There are recent reports from Australia indicating that the government may implement a floor price to support critical minerals projects, akin to what the DoD did with MP Materials. Have you had any discussions with the Australian government regarding potential funding support or floor prices for the Donald project with your partners at Astron? Likewise, do you think you might see similar support from the U.S. government?

Yes, this topic of floor pricing to safeguard against China manipulation has been widely discussed. I have spoken to both the Australian government and Astron regarding these possibilities, similar to our outreach to the U.S. government. It is recognized that overcoming dependency on China involves some form of support. I find the announcements already encouraging.

Regarding potential U.S. government support, do you believe that funding will be allocated primarily to expansions at White Mesa, or do you think it could extend beyond the U.S. to projects such as Toliara and Donald?

The U.S. government likely prefers funding and advancing domestic projects. However, they must acknowledge that quality Rare Earth deposits are scarce domestically, aside from Mountain Pass. Our monazite from Chemours in Florida and Georgia is unique with high heavies. The U.S. government likely fosters a global perspective, as evident in their interest in Australia, Canada, and even Africa. So, while there is a preference for domestic support, there seems to be an appetite for ensuring they have reliable materials distributed across a variety of geographies.

Your next question comes from the line of Justin Chan with SCP Resource Finance.

Congrats on being ahead of the curve with your early strategies coming together. A few questions: First, regarding Astron and Donald—can you confirm that if you proceed with the project, it entails a payment of AUD 183 million securing your 49% stake, which would go towards your share of CapEx? Or is your CapEx in addition to this payment?

The AUD 183 million essentially secures our buy-in to the project, with both parties responsible for financing their pro-rata share of any additional capital needed. So yes, that's our entry into the project through Astron.

That's correct. The $183 million will cover the equity contributions of both sides, securing our position in the joint venture.

Our buy-in was around $60 million. We have invested about $20 million thus far towards preliminary work. We are pleased to be advancing this project, as it is permitted and located in a favorable area in Australia.

Understood. And does that $183 million flow to the Donald Project Co, or does it go to Astron?

It goes into the joint venture.

So that amount would be collectively available for both parties?

Yes, it will support joint venture expenditures for project advancement.

And could you discuss the next steps for confirming the FID now that the project has received its permits? Is the focus on offtake agreements? There was a revised capital estimate not long ago. What are the next priorities?

Correct. Our focus lies on securing bankable offtakes for both Heavy Mineral Sands and Rare Earths products regarding capital operating costs and project returns. So that's our immediate objective—getting those bankable offtakes, securing financing, and preparing the project for advancement.

And for clarity, will the offtakes involve both titanium and zircon products as well as Rare Earths?

Both materials!

Regarding Pinyon Plain, you've exceeded reserve grades significantly, and the continued drilling looks promising. When can we expect an updated reserve or mine plan?

We have SOR currently working on that. Dave, do you know the timeline for this? They are still awaiting analyses from the labs and compiling results. What’s intriguing about the Pinyon Plain project is that when our initial modeling was conducted, it was conservative regarding high grades, which now appear to extend further than anticipated. We still need to conduct substantial drilling in the Juniper zone, where over half has yet to be explored. Expect an update on the resource by the end of the year, alongside new geological potential expansion.

Great to hear. And regarding Toliara and the Rare Earths master plan, would your Phase 2 expansion for White Mesa align with the FID on Toliara, potentially next year?

Currently, our top priority is projects that are fully permitted and ready to move forward. Given our position in Donald and the ability to receive continued materials from Chemours and others, while considering the current status of the White Mesa Mill, we may hold off on the Phase 2 decision until we have all permits in place for Toliara. Ideally, we’d like to synchronize both developments, but structured phasing is an ongoing process. We aim to have both plants operating to maximize our resource potential effectively.

Your next question comes from the line of Zach Perry with Robertson Stephens.

Mark, congratulations on another strong quarter. There's been considerable hype around financing for Rare Earths, which you highlight is a significant geopolitical factor. Could you assess whether the government fully comprehends your supply chain's structure and scales necessary for your competitive advantages?

Absolutely, Zach, part of it's an educational process. Many decision-makers in the U.S. government are not deeply versed in mining or processing. They have some technical expertise, yet they require continuous storytelling to understand our various advancement points. It's resonating that there are numerous stories, yet only a few represent legitimacy. A multitude of concepts have emerged that hinge on securing funding to kickstart efforts, while we’re already grounded with executed strategies that showcase promising outcomes.

Can you discuss whether your timelines might accelerate if the government decides to support your projects?

Funding can accelerate numerous initiatives. However, practicalities such as permitting, construction durations, and lead times play a role. Indeed, resources can speed up progress, but the question remains: how much? Notably, in our case, we possess an already constructed Phase 1 and permitted Donald project that gives us an edge over many others.

Lastly, about Uranium—congratulations on establishing a competitive cost structure. The market remains in a standoff regarding pricing. I'm curious about what could eventually lead to increased contract pricing at levels that clear the market.

The utilities are beginning to recognize the struggles of various new producers to deliver products on schedule. We've observed over the past year that discussions with utilities indicate their need for more product. Our contracts have caused some utilities to increase their purchase orders in light of shortages. There is currently an active market, evidenced by an influx of RFPs, and term prices have risen to $80 or higher. As such, we see a higher term price than spot, underscoring that utilities anticipate increasing prices.

Your next question comes from the line of Noel Parks with Tuohy Brothers Investment Research.

Could you address the ongoing excitement regarding Small Modular Reactors (SMRs) alongside existing legacy reactors? It appears there’s a juxtaposition between the two when assessing Uranium demand. What insights can you provide on the realities of this comparison?

Restarting existing reactors that are already built is the most straightforward way to boost demand. We’re observing unexpected surges in such initiatives, notably within the U.S. and Japan, where reactor restarts have been taking place. This immediate demand uplift is quicker than any potential delivery from SMRs, which are still quite far from becoming operational.

Do you see a timeframe or threshold that would trigger a meaningful shift toward development financing for SMRs, alongside potential pricing impacts?

To gain deeper insights into this, I'd recommend consulting TradeTech or UX as they offer more scientific estimates, but I foresee potential gaps in Uranium supply. I suspect that if demand doubles for nuclear fuel, the mining production would also need to double. There's a lack of recent exploration in Uranium, making projections on filling this demand concerning.

Your next question comes from the line of Gary Steele.

With all the attention surrounding Ramaco in Ranchester, Wyoming, and Mountain Pass, do you see any potential synergies or opportunities between those projects and Energy Fuels?

This is a nuanced scenario. Our strategy remains distinct from theirs, with our focus on monazite, whose grade and distribution of NdPr and heavies drive our economics. We are concentrating on becoming a low-cost producer. The realities around production costs and grades will heavily influence future competitiveness.

I assume that your Uranium and Rare Earths runs must be conducted separately, which involves a cleanout and turnaround between them. Is that correct?

Yes, accurate. Currently, we aim for rapid flexibility. An approximate run for two million pounds a year spans around eight to nine months, requiring a conversion window between a Uranium and Rare Earths run, typically needing a month for the switch. While we strive to minimize downtime, profitable margins are our priority. It’s imperative that we balance our operations effectively.

So the Phase 2 expansion will add a new front end to the SX circuit, allowing independent runs for both materials?

That's correct. Phase 2 will operate independently, removing the need for changes between materials. The mill hasn't reached its capacity in many years; I'm confident we will use both facilities effectively to achieve maximum capacity in the future.

Your final question comes from the line of Aaron Vadakkan with Alta.

Congrats on a productive quarter. I noticed you mentioned the benchmark ex-China pricing. How have these pricing changes impacted your offtake discussions?

The benchmark prices were released about a week ago, so they are fresh data. I received a text from another forecaster indicating they believe benchmark's forecasts may actually be lower than reality. I think a recognition is growing that to remain competitive outside China, higher prices are now becoming accepted as the norm.

I want to thank everyone for calling in and watching the webcast. We really appreciate your participation. I would like to remind you all that our management team will be attending several upcoming industry and investor conferences, including Citi’s 2025 Natural Resources Conference, EnerCom Denver, the 2025 Global Uranium Symposium, the World Nuclear Symposium 50; Jefferies Industrials 2025, the H.C. Wainwright 27th Annual Global Investment Conference, the Pinyon Plain Institute, Critical Minerals Symposium, Uranium Summit, and Power Up BNP Paribas. We will post this information to our website for reference.

Thank you to everyone who joined. I want to emphasize that we're playing a long game, not focusing on short-term wins. We've concentrated on Uranium for decades, and five years ago when we decided to venture into Rare Earths, we received criticism for that decision. However, many of those critics are now praising our strategic vision. We remain committed to building a world-class, cost-competitive critical mineral company, producing more than 10 critical minerals commercially and at scale. I don't believe this approach has been mirrored elsewhere. We are finally witnessing the results of our strategy. Year-to-date, we have had the best performance among all Uranium shares, and our outputs in the Rare Earths sector are competitive. It’s essential to highlight that this is not mere coincidence; it results from a steadfast commitment to a strategy that will keep us focused and dedicated.

Thank you very much for participating in the Energy Fuels conference call. For additional investment questions, please reach out directly to the company. This concludes today’s call. You may now disconnect.