SUGAR LAND, Texas, April 26, 2018 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- CVR Partners, LP (NYSE:UAN), a manufacturer of ammonia and urea ammonium nitrate (UAN) solution fertilizer products, today announced a first quarter 2018 net loss of $19 million, or 17 cents per common unit, on net sales of $80 million, compared to a net loss of $10 million, or 9 cents per common unit, on net sales of $85 million for the first quarter a year earlier. Adjusted EBITDA, a non-GAAP financial measure, was $13 million for the first quarter of 2018, compared to adjusted EBITDA of $21 million for the first quarter of 2017.
“Our Coffeyville fertilizer plant performed extremely well during the 2018 first quarter, posting on-stream rates of 100 percent for gasification, 99.8 percent for ammonia and 99.2 percent for UAN,” said Mark Pytosh, chief executive officer. “Operations at our East Dubuque plant were interrupted by 12 days of unplanned downtime related to a boiler feed water coil leak.
“While late snowfall and lingering winter temperatures delayed the start of the spring planting season, we continue to anticipate a strong application period with solid demand driven by lower than normal customer inventory levels and an estimated 88 million planted corn acres.”
Consolidated Operations
For the first quarter of 2018, consolidated average realized gate prices for UAN and ammonia were $153 per ton and $322 per ton, respectively. Consolidated average realized gate prices for UAN and ammonia were $160 per ton and $308 per ton, respectively, for the same period in 2017.
CVR Partners’ fertilizer facilities produced a combined 199,000 tons of ammonia during the first quarter of 2018, of which 59,000 net tons were available for sale while the rest was upgraded to other fertilizer products, including 339,000 tons of UAN. In the 2017 first quarter, the fertilizer facilities produced 219,000 tons of ammonia, of which 80,000 net tons were available for sale while the remainder was upgraded to other fertilizer products, including 342,000 tons of UAN.
Distributions
CVR Partners will not pay a cash distribution for the 2018 first quarter. CVR Partners is a variable distribution master limited partnership. As a result, its quarterly distributions, if any, will vary from quarter to quarter due to several factors, including, but not limited to, its operating performance, fluctuations in the prices received for its finished products, maintenance capital expenditures, and cash reserves deemed necessary or appropriate by the board of directors of its general partner.
First Quarter 2018 Earnings Conference Call
CVR Partners previously announced that it will host its 2018 first quarter Earnings Conference Call for analysts and investors on Thursday, April 26, at 11 a.m. Eastern. The Earnings Conference Call may also include discussion of the partnership’s developments, forward-looking information and other material information about business and financial matters.
The Earnings Conference Call will be broadcast live over the Internet at
https://edge.media-server.com/m6/p/ep8okq85. For investors or analysts who want to participate during the call, the dial-in number is (877) 407-8029.
For those unable to listen live, the webcast will be archived and available for 14 days at
https://edge.media-server.com/m6/p/ep8okq85. A repeat of the conference call can be accessed by dialing (877) 660-6853, conference ID 13678610.
This release serves as a qualified notice to nominees and brokers as provided for under Treasury Regulation Section 1.1446-4(b). Please note that 100 percent of CVR Partners’ distributions to foreign investors are attributable to income that is effectively connected with a United States trade or business. Accordingly, CVR Partners’ distributions to foreign investors are subject to federal income tax withholding at the highest effective tax rate.
Forward-Looking Statements
This news release contains forward-looking statements. You can generally identify forward-looking statements by our use of forward-looking terminology such as “outlook,” “anticipate,” “believe,” “continue,” “could,” “estimate,” “expect,” “intend,” “may,” “might,” “plan,” “potential,” “predict,” “seek,” “should,” or “will,” or the negative thereof or other variations thereon or comparable terminology. These forward-looking statements are only predictions and involve known and unknown risks and uncertainties, many of which are beyond our control. For a discussion of risk factors which may affect our results, please see the risk factors and other disclosures included in our most recent Annual Report on Form 10-K, any subsequently filed Quarterly Reports on Form 10-Q and our other SEC filings. These risks may cause our actual results, performance or achievements to differ materially from any future results, performance or achievements expressed or implied by these forward-looking statements. Given these risks and uncertainties, you are cautioned not to place undue reliance on such forward-looking statements. The forward-looking statements included in this press release are made only as of the date hereof. CVR Partners disclaims any intention or obligation to update publicly or revise its forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise, except to the extent required by law.
About CVR Partners, LP
Headquartered in Sugar Land, Texas, CVR Partners, LP is a Delaware limited partnership focused on the production, marketing and distribution of nitrogen fertilizer products. It primarily produces urea ammonium nitrate (UAN) and ammonia, which are predominantly used by farmers to improve the yield and quality of their crops. CVR Partners’ Coffeyville, Kansas, nitrogen fertilizer manufacturing facility includes a 1,300 ton-per-day ammonia unit, a 3,000 ton-per-day UAN unit and a dual-train gasifier complex having a capacity of 89 million standard cubic feet per day of hydrogen. CVR Partners’ East Dubuque, Illinois, nitrogen fertilizer manufacturing facility includes a 1,075 ton-per-day ammonia unit and a 1,100 ton-per-day UAN unit.
For further information, please contact:
Investor Contact:
Jay Finks
CVR Partners, LP
(281) 207-3588
InvestorRelations@CVRPartners.com
Media Relations:
Brandee Stephens
CVR Partners, LP
(281) 207-3516
MediaRelations@CVRPartners.com
CVR Partners, LP
Financial and Operational Data (all information in this release is unaudited other than the balance sheet data as of December 31, 2017).
| Three Months Ended March 31, | |||||||
| 2018 | 2017 | ||||||
| (in millions, except unit data) | |||||||
| Consolidated Statements of Operations Data: | |||||||
| Net sales (1) | $ | 79.9 | $ | 85.3 | |||
| Cost of materials and other - Affiliates | 2.0 | 2.2 | |||||
| Cost of materials and other - Third parties | 20.3 | 19.6 | |||||
| Direct operating expenses - Affiliates (2) | 0.8 | 0.8 | |||||
| Direct operating expenses - Third parties (2) | 38.1 | 35.1 | |||||
| Depreciation and amortization | 16.4 | 15.4 | |||||
| Cost of sales | 77.6 | 73.1 | |||||
| Selling, general and administrative expenses - Affiliates | 3.4 | 3.9 | |||||
| Selling, general and administrative expenses - Third parties | 2.3 | 3.0 | |||||
| Operating income (loss) | (3.4 | ) | 5.3 | ||||
| Interest expense and other financing costs | (15.7 | ) | (15.7 | ) | |||
| Other income, net | — | 0.1 | |||||
| Loss before income tax expense | (19.1 | ) | (10.3 | ) | |||
| Income tax expense | — | — | |||||
| Net loss | $ | (19.1 | ) | $ | (10.3 | ) | |
| Net loss per common unit - basic and diluted | $ | (0.17 | ) | $ | (0.09 | ) | |
| Adjusted EBITDA* | $ | 13.0 | $ | 20.8 | |||
| Available cash for distribution* | $ | (4.2 | ) | $ | 1.8 | ||
| Weighted average common units outstanding - basic and diluted (in thousands) | 113,283 | 113,283 | |||||
________________________________
* See "Use of Non-GAAP Financial Measures" below.
(1) Below are the components of net sales:
| Three Months Ended March 31, | |||||||
| 2018 | 2017 | ||||||
| (in millions) | |||||||
| Reconciliation to net sales: | |||||||
| Fertilizer sales net at gate | $ | 69.3 | $ | 76.0 | |||
| Freight in revenue | 8.7 | 7.1 | |||||
| Other | 1.9 | 2.2 | |||||
| Total net sales | $ | 79.9 | $ | 85.3 | |||
(2) Direct operating expenses are reflected exclusive of depreciation and amortization.
| As of March 31, 2018 | As of December 31, 2017 | ||||||
| (audited) | |||||||
| (in millions) | |||||||
| Balance Sheet Data: | |||||||
| Cash and cash equivalents | $ | 61.1 | $ | 49.2 | |||
| Working capital | 59.6 | 62.8 | |||||
| Total assets | 1,239.5 | 1,234.3 | |||||
| Total debt, net of current portion | 626.6 | 625.9 | |||||
| Total partners’ capital | 530.8 | 549.9 | |||||
| Three Months Ended March 31, | |||||||
| 2018 | 2017 | ||||||
| (in millions) | |||||||
| Cash Flow Data: | |||||||
| Net cash flow provided by (used in): | |||||||
| Operating activities | $ | 14.5 | $ | 30.0 | |||
| Investing activities | (2.6 | ) | (4.1 | ) | |||
| Net increase in cash and cash equivalents | $ | 11.9 | $ | 25.9 | |||
| Capital expenditures for property, plant and equipment: | |||||||
| Maintenance capital expenditures | $ | 2.3 | $ | 4.0 | |||
| Growth capital expenditures | 0.4 | 0.1 | |||||
| Total capital expenditures | $ | 2.7 | $ | 4.1 | |||
Operating Data
The following tables set forth information about our consolidated operations.
| Three Months Ended March 31, | |||||||
| 2018 | 2017 | ||||||
| Key Operating Statistics: | |||||||
| Consolidated sales (thousand tons): | |||||||
| Ammonia | 36.1 | 61.9 | |||||
| UAN | 345.3 | 321.6 | |||||
| Consolidated product pricing at gate (dollars per ton) (1): | |||||||
| Ammonia | $ | 322 | $ | 308 | |||
| UAN | $ | 153 | $ | 160 | |||
| Consolidated production volume (thousand tons): | |||||||
| Ammonia (gross produced) (2) | 199.2 | 219.2 | |||||
| Ammonia (net available for sale) (2) | 58.9 | 80.0 | |||||
| UAN | 339.3 | 341.9 | |||||
| Feedstock: | |||||||
| Petroleum coke used in production (thousand tons) | 118.2 | 132.6 | |||||
| Petroleum coke used in production (dollars per ton) | $ | 18 | $ | 14 | |||
| Natural gas used in production (thousands of MMBtus) (3) | 1,850.3 | 2,091.2 | |||||
| Natural gas used in production (dollars per MMBtu) (3) (4) | $ | 3.24 | $ | 3.41 | |||
| Natural gas in cost of materials and other (thousands of MMBtus) (3) | 1,257.7 | 1,476.0 | |||||
| Natural gas in cost of materials and other (dollars per MMBtu) (3) (4) | $ | 3.48 | $ | 3.59 | |||
| Coffeyville Facility on-stream factors (5): | |||||||
| Gasification | 100.0 | % | 98.9 | % | |||
| Ammonia | 99.8 | % | 98.5 | % | |||
| UAN | 99.2 | % | 96.8 | % | |||
| East Dubuque Facility on-stream factors (5): | |||||||
| Ammonia | 86.7 | % | 99.6 | % | |||
| UAN | 87.0 | % | 98.2 | % | |||
| Market Indicators: | |||||||
| Ammonia - Southern plains (dollars per ton) | $ | 382 | $ | 387 | |||
| Ammonia - Corn belt (dollars per ton) | $ | 427 | $ | 424 | |||
| UAN - Corn belt (dollars per ton) | $ | 210 | $ | 215 | |||
| Natural gas NYMEX (dollars per MMBtu) | $ | 2.85 | $ | 3.06 | |||
______________________________
(1) Product pricing at gate represents net sales less freight revenue divided by product sales volume in tons and is shown in order to provide a pricing measure that is comparable across the fertilizer industry.
(2) Gross tons produced for ammonia represent total ammonia produced, including ammonia produced that was upgraded into other fertilizer products. Net tons available for sale represent ammonia available for sale that was not upgraded into other fertilizer products.
(3) The feedstock natural gas shown above does not include natural gas used for fuel. The cost of fuel natural gas is included in direct operating expenses (exclusive of depreciation and amortization).
(4) The cost per MMBtu excludes derivative activity, when applicable. The impact of natural gas derivative activity during the periods presented was not material.
(5) On-stream factor is the total number of hours operated divided by the total number of hours in the reporting period and is included as a measure of operating efficiency.
Use of Non-GAAP Financial Measures
To supplement our actual results calculated in accordance with GAAP for the applicable periods, the Partnership also uses the non-GAAP financial measures noted above, which are reconciled to our GAAP based results below. These non-GAAP financial measures should not be considered as an alternative to GAAP results.
EBITDA is defined as net income (loss) before (i) interest (income) expense, (ii) income tax expense and (iii) depreciation and amortization expense.
Adjusted EBITDA is defined as EBITDA further adjusted for the impact of major scheduled turnaround expenses, gain or loss on extinguishment of debt, loss on disposition of assets, and business interruption insurance recovery, when applicable.
We present EBITDA because we believe it allows users of our financial statements, such as investors and analysts, to assess our financial performance without regard to financing methods, capital structure or historical cost basis. We present Adjusted EBITDA because we have found it helpful to consider an operating measure that excludes amounts, such as major scheduled turnaround expenses, gain or loss on extinguishment of debt, loss on disposition of assets, and business interruption insurance recovery, relating to transactions not reflective of our core operations. When applicable, each of these amounts is discussed in the Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations section of our SEC reports, so that investors have complete information about these amounts. We also present Adjusted EBITDA because it is the starting point used by the board of directors of our general partner when calculating our available cash for distribution.
EBITDA and Adjusted EBITDA are not recognized terms under GAAP and should not be substituted for net income (loss) or cash flows from operations. Management believes that EBITDA and Adjusted EBITDA enable investors and analysts to better understand our ability to make distributions to common unitholders, help investors and analysts evaluate our ongoing operating results and allow for greater transparency in reviewing our overall financial, operational and economic performance by allowing investors to evaluate the same information used by management. EBITDA and Adjusted EBITDA presented by other companies may not be comparable to our presentation, since each company may define these terms differently.
A reconciliation of consolidated Net loss to consolidated EBITDA and consolidated Adjusted EBITDA is as follows:
| Three Months Ended March 31, | |||||||
| 2018 | 2017 | ||||||
| (in millions) | |||||||
| Net loss | $ | (19.1 | ) | $ | (10.3 | ) | |
| Add: | |||||||
| Interest expense and other financing costs, net | 15.7 | 15.7 | |||||
| Income tax expense | — | — | |||||
| Depreciation and amortization | 16.4 | 15.4 | |||||
| EBITDA and Adjusted EBITDA | $ | 13.0 | $ | 20.8 | |||
Available cash for distribution is not a recognized term under GAAP. Available cash for distribution should not be considered in isolation or as an alternative to net income (loss) or operating income, or any other measure of financial performance or operating performance. In addition, available cash for distribution is not presented as, and should not be considered, an alternative to cash flows from operations or as a measure of liquidity. Available cash for distribution as reported by the Partnership may not be comparable to similarly titled measures of other entities, thereby limiting its usefulness as a comparative measure.
Available cash begins with Adjusted EBITDA reduced for cash needed for (i) net cash interest expense (excluding capitalized interest) and debt service and other contractual obligations; (ii) maintenance capital expenditures; and (iii) to the extent applicable, major scheduled turnaround expenses and reserves for future operating or capital needs that the board of directors of the general partner deems necessary or appropriate. Available cash for distribution may be increased by the release of previously established cash reserves, if any, at the discretion of the board of directors of our general partner, and available cash is increased by the business interruption insurance proceeds. Actual distributions are set by the board of directors of our general partner. The board of directors of our general partner may modify our cash distribution policy at any time, and our partnership agreement does not require us to make distributions at all.
A reconciliation of consolidated Adjusted EBITDA to Available cash for distribution is as follows:
| Three Months Ended March 31, | |||||||
| 2018 | 2017 | ||||||
| (in millions, except units and per unit data) | |||||||
| Adjusted EBITDA | $ | 13.0 | $ | 20.8 | |||
| Adjustments: | |||||||
| Less: | |||||||
| Net cash interest expense (excluding capitalized interest) and debt service | (14.9 | ) | (15.0 | ) | |||
| Maintenance capital expenditures | (2.3 | ) | (4.0 | ) | |||
| Available cash for distribution | $ | (4.2 | ) | $ | 1.8 | ||
| Distribution declared, per common unit | $ | — | $ | 0.02 | |||
| Common units outstanding (in thousands) | 113,283 | 113,283 | |||||