OKLAHOMA CITY--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Dec. 30, 2015--
LSB Industries, Inc. (NYSE:LXU) (“LSB or the Company”) today announced
that the ammonia plant at its Cherokee, Alabama chemical facility
(“Cherokee Facility” or “Cherokee”) resumed production on December 24,
2015. On December 17, 2015 the Company announced that the plant had been
taken out of service for unplanned maintenance on December 11, 2015 due
to a small leak that was detected in a vessel containing hydrogen. LSB
management estimates that this unplanned outage will reduce operating
income by approximately $2.5 million to $3.0 million. Approximately half
of the financial impact is expected to be reflected in LSB’s fourth
quarter 2015 results because of repair costs, lost sales and reduced
absorption of fixed costs, with the balance being realized in the first
quarter of 2016 due to lost sales as the Cherokee Facility rebuilds its
product inventory.
LSB also announced that its Pryor, Oklahoma chemical facility (“Pryor
Facility” or “Pryor”) remains under repair. As announced on December 17,
2015, Pryor’s urea plant was taken out of service on November 14, 2015
in order to repair a CO2 pre-compressor, which was completed and the
plant restarted on December 21, 2015. However, on December 27, 2015 both
Pryor’s urea and urea ammonium nitrate (UAN) plants were taken down when
the facility’s production of nitric acid (a component of UAN) had to be
halted in order to repair a leaking joint in Pryor’s nitric acid plant.
The completion of the nitric acid plant repairs and the resumption of
urea and UAN production are expected to occur within the next ten days.
In the interim, Pryor has been transporting a portion of its ammonia
production to the El Dorado Facility for use in the production of low
and high density ammonium nitrate (LDAN/HDAN). Management now expects
that the lost sales volume of UAN (see table below), coupled with the
cost of repairs and reduced absorption of fixed costs is expected to
lower fourth quarter 2015 operating income by approximately $3.5 million
to $4.0 million. Approximately $1.0 million of this lost operating
income is expected to be recovered in the first quarter of 2016 from the
sale of surplus ammonia produced in the fourth quarter of 2015 that
could not be used to produce urea and then upgraded to UAN.
As a result of the unplanned downtime at Cherokee and Pryor, LSB’s
expectations for its Chemical Business fourth quarter 2015 sales
volumes, as compared to the outlook the Company provided in its November
6, 2015 earnings announcement, are as follows:
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Products
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Revised Outlook –
Q4’15 Sales (tons)
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Original Outlook –
Q4’15 Sales (tons)
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Agriculture:
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UAN
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70,000 – 80,000
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100,000 – 110,000
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HDAN
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25,000 – 30,000
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25,000 – 30,000
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Ammonia
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25,000 – 30,000
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25,000 – 30,000
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Industrial, Mining and Other:
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Nitric acid
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130,000 – 140,000
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130,000 – 140,000
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LDAN/HDAN
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15,000 – 20,000
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15,000 – 20,000
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Ammonium nitrate solution
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20,000 – 25,000
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20,000 – 25,000
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Ammonia
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5,000 – 10,000
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5,000 – 10,000
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About LSB Industries, Inc.
LSB is a manufacturing company. LSB’s principal business activities
consist of the manufacture and sale of chemical products for the
agricultural, mining, and industrial markets, and the manufacture and
sale of commercial and residential climate control products, such as
water source and geothermal heat pumps, hydronic fan coils, modular
chillers, large custom air handlers and make-up air units.
This press release includes certain forward-looking statements within
the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995.
These forward-looking statements generally are identified by use of the
words “will”, “believes”, “expects”, “estimates”, “intends”,
“anticipates”, “plans to”, “should”, “estimates”, “projects”, or similar
expressions, including, without limitation, timing of the repairs to and
the return to operation of the Pryor Facility; the anticipated effect of
the repairs to the Pryor and Cherokee Facilities on fourth quarter 2015
and first quarter 2016 operating income; the impact of the unplanned
downtime at the Pryor and Cherokee Facilities on Chemical Business sales
volume in the fourth quarter of 2015, and the sale of surplus ammonia
produced in the fourth quarter of 2015 in the first quarter of
2016, and the various factors described in the “Special Note Regarding
Forward-Looking Statements,” and the “Risk Factors” contained in our
10-K for the year ended December 31, 2014, and our 10-Q Reports and
other filings with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. These
forward looking statements speak only as of the date of this press
release, and LSB expressly disclaims any obligation or undertaking to
disseminate any updates or revisions to any forward-looking statement
contained herein to reflect any change in LSB’s expectations with regard
thereto or any change in events, conditions or circumstances on which
any such statement is based.
View source version on businesswire.com: http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20151230005067/en/
Source: LSB Industries, Inc.
LSB Industries
Mark Behrman, 405-235-4546
Chief
Financial Officer
or
Investor Relations:
Fred
Buonocore, 212-836-9607
Linda Latman, 212-836-9609
The Equity
Group Inc.