Interim report for the period 1 January – 30 September 2023
Cinis Fertilizer secures growth plan through supply agreement and establishment in the USA
Cinis Fertilizer’s circular business model creates value for a broad group of stakeholders and with growing global interest, new markets are opening up. At the end of September, the company signed a supply agreement with Ascend Elements, a leading American manufacturer of battery materials, and a letter of intent with K+S, a global player in salts, for the supply of potassium chloride and the sale of all production of potassium sulphate. There are thus the conditions for the company to establish production of environmentally friendly mineral fertilizer for the North American market in a facility in Hopkinsville, Kentucky. The establishment in the USA is part of Cinis Fertilizer’s growth plan to reach a production of 1.5 million tons of potassium sulphate by the end of 2030 in six plants, three of which are now designated.
July – September
- Net sales amounted to SEK 0.0 million (0.0)
- Operating profit/loss amounted to SEK -8.0 million (-3.0)
- Profit/loss after financial items amounted to SEK -8.1 MSEK (-3.0)
- Earnings per share, before and after dilution, amounted to SEK -0.11 (-0.05)
- Cash flow from operating activities after changes in working capital amounted to SEK 11.0 million (-7.6)
January – September
- Net sales amounted to SEK 0.0 million (0.0)
- Operating profit/loss amounted to SEK -22.1 million (-15.3)
- Profit/loss after financial items amounted to SEK -21.3 million (-15.3)
- Earnings per share, before and after dilution, amounted to SEK -0.29 (-0.27)
- Cash flow from operating activities after changes in working capital amounted to SEK 30.6 million (-29.0)
Significant events during the quarter
- Extraordinary general meeting on 30 August 2023 decided on incentive program for senior executives and board members
- Fredrik Eide appointed Chief Commercial Officer
- Cinis Fertilizer signed a long-term agreement with K+S regarding the purchase and delivery of potassium chloride
- Cinis Fertilizer has signed an agreement with Ascend Elements, Inc, and a cooperation agreement with K+S Minerals and Agriculture GmbH, which creates the conditions for Cinis Fertilizer to establish a production facility in the US state of Kentucky
Significant events after the quarter
- Following the extensive investments now being made in green industrial projects in North America, Cinis Fertilizer has decided to prioritize the construction of its planned facility in Kentucky before the one in Skellefteå
CEO's comment
Construction in Örnsköldsvik according to plan - production scheduled to start early 2024
Cinis Fertilizer made several important strategic decisions in the third quarter of 2023. We secured agreements with established partners in North America and quickly progressed in the preparations for our planned production facility in Hopkinsville, Kentucky, parallel to the continued high pace of ongoing construction in Örnsköldsvik in Sweden.
Cinis Fertilizer’s purpose is to enable sustainable agriculture. We are part of the circular economy and with the help of fossil-free energy we shall produce mineral fertilizer with the industry’s lowest carbon dioxide footprint. Cinis Fertilizer has an important role in the green transition and our business model will create profitable growth and better conditions for our stakeholders. We have a climate-friendly solution for residual products from the manufacture of battery materials, among other things, which are key products in reducing dependence on fossil fuels. Our fossil-free and efficient process for producing mineral fertilizers means reduced emissions of carbon dioxide and increases the yield in food production, especially in areas with an arid climate.
Establishment in Kentucky, USA
In September, we received yet another clear support for our circular business model through a ten-year agreement with a leading American manufacturer of engineered battery materials, Ascend Elements, in Kentucky for the supply of the input product sodium sulphate. This agreement, in combination with K+S signing a letter of intent (“LOI”) for the purchase of all our production of potassium sulphate, means that we have now started work on our production facility in the USA, which will be the second, after the one in Örnsköldsvik.
The rapid handling of important contractual issues and the great interest of key players in our establishment means that we are changing the timetable. Ascend Element’s battery material manufacturing facility is being built quickly and we have already managed to establish a strong network on site. The market for the production of electric vehicle batteries is growing rapidly in North America as a result of the favourable government incentive programs introduced in the United States and Canada. It is favourable for green investments and many battery manufacturers are now shifting their focus from Europe to North America. Cinis Fertilizer wishes to share in this growth and therefore we choose to focus on Hopkinsville as our second facility. This means that we are waiting a bit with the planning of the Skellefteå facility, which means that it will now be number three of our planned six facilities. The investments in Kentucky are estimated to amount to approximately one billion SEK. and financing is planned through internal cash flows and loans. The company is also investigating supplementary financing solutions, which include state and federal investment grants.
The Örnsköldsvik site
The high pace of construction, which is taking place just outside Örnsköldsvik, continues. We have brought in all the process equipment, assembled walls and in the next few days are finishing the roof that will allow us to have a tight building before the end of November, all according to our schedule. The focus now is on installing equipment and completing construction of the 6,000 square meters salt storage facility.
Cinis Fertilizer will soon have a unique plant in operation. To draw attention to this and that the work has so far been carried out in a good way, we organized a roofing party on 5 October 2023. Together with the majority of the partners who have been on site from the start, over a hundred people celebrated on site in Köpmanholmen. Of course, there have been deviations and unforeseen events, but with a common goal, we have managed to solve these in the best way. Many thanks to everyone – I look forward to soon celebrating the next milestone on our journey towards our common goal – starting production in early 2024!
Great interest in new job opportunities
We are also pleased that there is a great interest in working with us. Our recruitment campaign this autumn has been successful, there are many people with the right skills who want to be involved when Cinis Fertilizer becomes part of the green transition. The interviews for several key positions have begun and in this context I would like to welcome Mikael Hörlin to Cinis Fertilizer. At the beginning of December, he takes up his new position as site manager in Örnsköldsvik. He most recently came from a role as process & quality manager at Nouryon Functional Chemicals AB. Mikael also has extensive experience from Akzo Nobel Functional Chemicals AB, in roles as production manager and process engineer.
Cinis Fertilizer’s competence and unique process for the production of environmentally friendly mineral fertilizers contributes to reducing agriculture’s carbon dioxide footprint and increases the yield from cultivated areas. For manufacturers of battery materials and batteries, we offer circular solutions that contribute to the entire production chain meeting high demands on resource efficiency and environmental friendliness. In parallel with the focus on the start of production in Örnsköldsvik at the beginning of next year, work is underway to establish Cinis Fertilizer in more geographical locations and to consolidate the image of Cinis Fertilizer as a knowledgeable partner for circular and environmentally friendly business.
Jakob Liedberg, CEO
For full report, please see attached file.
For more information, please contact:
Jakob Liedberg, CEO
jakob@cinis-fertilizer.com
+46 768 58 12 86
Anders Antonsson, Acting IR & Communications Manager
anders@cinis-fertilizer.com
+46 709 994 970
Henrik Andersson, CFO
henrik@cinis-fertilizer.com
+46 705 70 87 53
This information is such information that Cinis Fertilizer is obliged to make public pursuant to the EU’s Market Abuse Regulation. This report has been prepared with a Swedish and an English version. In the event of any discrepancies between the two, the Swedish version applies. This information was published, through the agency of the contact persons above, on 16 November 2023 at 08:00 a.m. CET.
About Cinis Fertilizer
Cinis Fertilizer is a Swedish green tech company aiming to produce an environmentally friendly mineral fertilizer, potassium sulphate, by recycling industrial waste products from the car battery manufacturing industry as well as the pulp & paper industry. The patent protected technology will use half as much energy as today’s production methods and the result is a fossil-free fertilizer with a close to zero carbon footprint. Cinis Fertilizers mineral fertilizer is a unique and circular contribution enabling sustainable agriculture. FNCA Sweden AB is Certified Adviser. For more information, visit www.cinis-fertilizer.com.
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