Altius Reports Q3 2021 Attributable Royalty Revenue of $20.8M
TS X: ALS | OTCQX: ATUSF Altiu s Minerals Corporation
November 10, 2021 | St. John’s, Newfoundland
Altius Reports Q3 2021 Attributable Royalty Revenue of $20.8M
Altius Minerals Corporation (TSX: ALS; OTCQX: ATUSF) (“Altius” or the “Corporation”)
reports attributable royalty revenue(1,2) of $20.8 million ($0.50 per share(1,2)) for the quarter ended
September 30, 2021. This is a 28% increase from Q3 2020 royalty revenue of $16.2 million. On
a year-to-date basis, attributable royalty revenue of $60.5 million is higher by 33% compared to
the $45.5 million reported for the nine months ended September 30, 2020.
Adjusted EBITDA(1,2) for the quarter was $16.9 million or $0.41 per share(1,2), which compares to
adjusted EBITDA of $12.4 million or $0.30 per share (1,2) in Q3 2020. The adjusted EBITDA margin
for the third quarter was 81% . On a year-to-date basis, adjusted EBITDA of $49.2 million is up
40% from the year-over-year comparable adjusted EBITDA of $35.2 million.
Adjusted operating cash flow (1,2) of $18.9 million or $0.46 per share(1,2) compares to $7.3 million
($0.18 per share) in Q3 2020, and is up significantly year over year as adjusted operating cash
flow was impacted by higher royalty revenues and timing of working capital changes. On a year-
to-date basis, adjusted operating cash flow (1,2) of $33.5 million compares to $33.9 million for the
nine month period ended September 30 2020, which benefitted from lower cash tax installments
as a result of flexibility granted by tax authorities due to Covid-19 related economic concerns.
Net earnings in Q3 2021 are $9.76 million or $0.24 per share, and on an adjusted basis (1,2) are
$0.20 per share (1,2) compared to adjusted earnings of $3.6 million in Q3 2020 or $0.09 per
share(1,2). The main adjusting items in the current quarter on a pre-tax basis are realized gains of
$3.4 million and a $2.2 million gain on disposal of mineral property. Offsetting adjustment items
included a $2.3 million fair value of derivatives charge, foreign exchange loss of $0.7 million and
expensed debt costs on refinancing of credit facilities of $0.7 million. Net earnings for the nine
month period ended September 30, 2021 is $36.1 million or $0.90 per share compared to net loss
of $38.9 million or $0.94 per share in 2020. The full table reconciling adjuste d net earnings per
share to net earnings per share is included below in Note 2.
In addition, Project Generation equity portfolio net cash proceeds (sales minus new investments)
were $9 million for Q3 2021 and $13 million for the nine-month period ended September 30, 2021.
These proceeds are recorded as other comprehensive earnings in the Corporation’s financial
statements.
Portfolio Performance
Base and battery metals (copper, nickel, lithium, zinc and cobalt) revenue of $8.2 million
accounted for 40% of total attributable royalty revenue as compared to $8.7 million (43%) in the
comparable 2020 period. Performance in the quarter was positively impacted by higher production
volumes and revenues at Chapada, but this was offset by lower revenues from 777 on slightly
lower throughput and from Voisey’s Bay, as an annual maintenance shutdown impacted the Long
Harbour processing facility.
TS X: ALS | OTCQX: ATUSF Altiu s Minerals Corporation
Lundin Mining reported that an extensive near-mine drilling program and parallel expansion study
at Chapada continued to progress during the quarter and that updates concerning the results of
these will be released during 2022.
Adventus Mining Corporation (“Adventus”) published a positive feasibility study subsequent to
quarter end for its high -grade, copper, gold and zinc rich El Domo deposit in Ecuador , where
Altius holds a 2% NSR . Adventus also announced that it is currently in advanced stages of
negotiating non-dilutive project financing while preparing to imminently file an Environmental and
Social Impact Statement and move to detailed engineering, all in anticipation of a late 2022
potential construction decision.
Lithium Royalty Corporation, of which Altius is a co-founding 12.6% shareholder, continued to
build out its portfolio during the quarter adding five new royalties to bring the total number of
project royalties acquired since inception in 2018 to 15. These include a tonnage based royalty
on Orocobre’s producing Mt. Cattlin Mine in Australia and gross royalties on each of NeoLithium’s
Tres Quebradas project in Argentina, Sigma Lithium’s Groto do Cirilo project in Brazil and Core
Lithium’s Finniss project in Australia. During the quarter NeoLithium announced that it was being
acquired by Zijin Mining and each of Sigma and Core announced project construction decisions.
Potash royalty revenue of $3.8 million accounted for 18% of total attributable royalty revenue
(19.5% in Q3 2020). Realized prices in the third quarter this year of $467/tonne are up 51% from
average realized prices of $309/tonne in Q3 2020. Production volumes in Q3 2021 were lower
due to annual maintenance shutdowns at the Rocanville, Cory, Allan and Esterhazy mines, all of
which have been completed. Potash spot market prices further increased by more than 30% in
most key markets by the end of Q3 2021 compared to the end of Q2 and these impacts are
expected to be reflected in realized prices for royalty revenue calculation purposes in the coming
quarters given typical lag effects for these royalties. Global supply of potash remains tight against
a backdrop of strong agricultural commodity prices and low crop inventories, with 2021 expected
to establish a new global annual potash demand record.
Iron ore royalty revenue of $6.0 million accounted for 29% of total royalty revenue ( 8% in Q 3
2020). The Corporation’s current iron ore revenue stems from the pass -through of royalties and
equity dividends paid by the Rio Tinto controlled Iron Ore Company of Canada (“IOC”) to Labrador
Iron Ore Royalty Corp (“LIORC”), of which the Corporation is a significant shareholder. While iron
prices retreated significantly during the quarter from recent all -time highs, IOC produces high
purity iron ore products that attract a significant market premium relative to benchmark iron ore
prices.
Champion Iron Ore (“Champion”) continued to advance completion of an updated feasibility study
for the Kami Project in Labrador during the quarter as it considers further growth opportunities
beyond its now nearly completed expansion of the nearby Bloom Lake mine. Champion is
evaluating the project’s potential to produce ultra-high purity iron ore products that could provide
feedstocks suitable for use in the electric arc furnace steelmaking segment. Electric arc-based
steelmaking requires no metallurgical coal usage and is rapidly expanding globally due to its
significantly reduced CO2 emissions profile relative to traditional blast furnace based steel
making. Results of this study are expected in H2 2022. Altius holds a 3% gross sales royalty
related to the Kami Project.
Thermal coal royalty revenue of $2.6 million in the quarter compares to $2.7 million in Q3 2020.
On a year-to-date basis, thermal coal royalty revenue of $7.6 million compares to $7.4 million in
2020. Current quarter production was negatively impacted by an unplanned maintenance outage
TS X: ALS | OTCQX: ATUSF Altiu s Minerals Corporation
at one of the three Genesee integrated power generating units in mid-July, with repairs expected
to be completed near the end of November this year.
Altius Renewable Royalties (“ARR”) had a strong quarter ARR Q3 2021 Results , with
announcements in July, August and September relating to further royalty capital deployment,
including investments in four operating stage wind and solar projects. The Corporation is a 59%
shareholder of ARR following its IPO earlier this year.
ARR, through its Great Bay Renewables joint venture with funds managed by affiliates of Apollo
Global Management Inc., has now established royalties on 16 projects that collectively represent
approximately 3,510 MW of solar and wind capacity. ARR continues to advance due diligence
investigations and negotiations with several other renewable energy operators and developers
relating to additional potential royalty financing transactions.
Silicon Project Gold Royalty: Anglogold Ashanti reported on Sept 13, 2021 that it intends to issue an
end of year based initial mineral resource estimate for Silicon which is within its recently consolidated Beaty
District property which it describes as a “ potential Tier 1 asset”. Exploration work is reportedly ongoing to
delineate these newly discovered ore bodies at both Silicon and Merlin, and both are subject to a 1.5%
NSR royalty in favour of Altius.
The following tables summarize the financial results and attributable revenue for the three and
nine months ended September 30, 2021 and 2020:
S e pte mb e r 30,
2021
S e pte mb e r 30,
2020
Vari ance
S e pte mb e r 30,
2021
S e pte mb e r 30,
2020
Vari ance
Re ve nue
Attributable royalty 20,808$ 16,229$ 4,579$ 60,474$ 45,543$ 14,931$
Project generation - - - 408 - 408
Attributable revenue (1) 20,808 16,229 4,579 60,882 45,543 15,339
Adjust: joint venture revenue (451) (966) 515 (1,825) (6,961) 5,136
IFRS revenue per consolidated financial statements 20,357$ 15,263$ 5,094$ 59,057$ 38,582$ 20,475$
Total assets 709,838$ 556,128$ 153,710$ 709,838$ 556,128$ 153,710$
Total liabilities 191,018 203,893 (12,875) 191,018 203,893 (12,875)
Dividends declared & paid to shareholders 2,904 1,928 976 7,051 5,963 1,088
Adjusted EBITDA (1) 16,900 12,426 4,474 49,202 35,197 14,005
Adjusted operating cash flow (1) 18,902 7,330 11,572 33,542 33,936 (394)
Net earnings (loss) 9,764 (39,787) 49,551 36,117 (38,849) 74,966
Attributable revenue per share (1) 0.50$ 0.39$ 0.11$ 1.46$ 1.09$ 0.37$
Adjusted EBITDA per share (1) 0.41 0.30 0.11 1.19 0.84 0.35
Adjusted operating cash flow per share (1) 0.46 0.18 0.28 0.81 0.81 -
Net earnings (loss) per share, basic and diluted 0.24 (0.96) 1.20 0.90 (0.94) 1.84
(1) See non-IFRS measures section for definition and reconciliation
In T ho usands o f C anadian D o llars, except per share
amo unts
Ni ne mo nths e nde dThre e mo nths e nde d
TS X: ALS | OTCQX: ATUSF Altiu s Minerals Corporation
In Th o usan ds o f Can adian Do llars
Summary of attributable royalty revenue
September 30,
2021
September 30,
2020
Variance
September 30,
2021
September 30,
2020
Variance
Revenue
Base and battery metals
777 Mine 3,209$ 4,175$ (966)$ 11,379$ 8,698$ 2,681$
Chapada 4,578 4,068 510 12,134 10,719 1,415
Voisey's Bay 429 434 (5) 1,713 654 1,059
Gunnison - - 11 - 11
Iron ore (1) 6,035 1,293 13,938 3,592
Potash - -
Cory 413 285 1,092 779
Rocanville 2,350 1,869 481 7,110 7,163 (54)
Allan 196 121 75 835 505 330
Patience Lake 57 59 (2) 363 298 65
Esterhazy 721 782 (61) 2,831 2,770 61
Vanscoy 41 34 125 43
Lanigan 10 8 2 21 18 3
Met coal - -
Cheviot - 291 (291) 58 1,347 (1,289)
Thermal (Electrical) Coal - -
Genesee 2,526 1,800 726 7,126 4,620 2,506
Paintearth - - - 20 75 (55)
Sheerness 36 700 (664) 482 2,295 (1,813)
Highvale - 168 (168) - 397 (397)
Other
Renewables 22 58 (36) 112 1,077 (965)
Coal bed methane 128 79 49 391 285 106
Interest and investment 57 5 52 734 208 526
Attributable royalty revenue 20,808$ 16,229$ (298)$ 60,474$ 45,543$ 14,931$
Three months ended Nine months ended
See non-IFRS measures section of MD&A for definition and reconciliation of attributable revenue
(1)LIORC dividends received
Notes
1. Attributable revenue , adjusted EBITDA and adjusted operating cash flow (and respective per share amounts) are intended to provide
additional information only and do not have any standardized meaning prescribed under IFRS and should not be considered in is olation or
as a substitute for measures of performance prepared in accordance with IFRS. Other companies may calculate these measures differently.
The attributable revenue, adjusted EBITDA and adjusted operating cash flow per share metrics divide the respective values by the basic
weighted average number of shares outstanding during the period. For a reconciliation of these measures to various IFRS measures, please
see the Corporation’s MD&A which is available at http://www.altiusminerals.com.
2. Adjusted earnings and respective per share amounts are intended to provide additional information only and do not have any st andardized
meaning prescribed under IFRS and should not be considered in isolation or as a substitute for measures of performance p repared in
accordance with IFRS. Other companies may calculate these measures differently. The calculations used for the adjusted earnings per share
are as follows:
S e pte m be r 30, 2021 S e pte m be r 30, 2020
Repor ted ear ni ngs (l oss) per shar e 0.24$ (0.96)$
A djusted for :
Fai r val ue adjustment of der i vati ves 0.05 0.02
For ei gn exchange r eval uati on 0.01 (0.02)
Debt exti ngui shment costs 0.01 -
Real i zed gai n on di sposal of der i vati ves (0.07) -
Gai n on di sposi ti on of mi ner al pr oper ty (0.04) -
Di l uti on gai ns - (0.05)
I mpai r ment char ges - 1 .1 0
A djuste d e arnings pe r share 0.20$ 0.09$
Equity accounted f or (gains ) and los s es 0 0
I mpair ments 0.01 0
For eign cur r ency (gains ) los s es - 0.03 0
(Gain) los s on adjus tment of der iv ativ es - 0.03 0
(Gain) on dis pos ition of r oyalty inter es t - 0.01 0
(Gain) on dis pos ition of miner al pr oper ty - 0.05 - 0.07
(Gain) on decons olidation of s ubs idiar y 0 0
Tax adjus tments - 0.01 - 0.04
I nv es tment in as s ociates 0 0.02
0.1 8 0.1 2
Thre e m onths e nde d
A djuste d Earnings pe r S hare
In T housands of Canadian Dollars, except per share amounts
TS X: ALS | OTCQX: ATUSF Altiu s Minerals Corporation
Additional information on the Corporation’s results of operations and developments in its Project
Generation division are included in the Corporation’s MD&A and Financial Statements which were
filed on SEDAR today and are also available on the Corporation’ s website at
www.altiusminerals.com.
Capital Allocation Summary
The Corporation’s capital allocation priorities are linked to its strategy of creating per share value
growth through a portfolio of assets that relate to long life, high margin operations while providing
growing shareholder capital returns.
During the quarter the Corporation made scheduled debt repayments of $5 million , preferred
distributions of $1.3 million and paid cash dividends of $2.7 million following the 40% increase in
its quarterly dividend that was announced at the end of the second quarter.
The Corporation also expended $1.7 million in the repurchase and cancellation of 107,900 shares
under its Normal Course Issuer Bid bringing the total for the year to date to $9.2 million (585,300
shares).
Liquidity
Cash and cash equivalents at September 30, 2021 were $100.1 million, compared to $21.8 million
at the end of 2020 . Cash, excluding $69.8 million held by ARR, was $30.3 million. The value of
LIORC shares was $101.2 million and the value of publicly traded Project Generation business
equity holdings was $51.2 million at September 30, 2021.
On August 9, 2021, the Corporation amended its credit facility to increase the available credit
from $160 million to $225 million and to extend the term from June 2023 to August 2025. Principal
repayments of the term debt under the new facility have also been reduced to $2 million per
quarter from $5 million per quarter previously. The amount of debt outstanding at quarter end is
$117 million.
Dividend Declaration
The Corporation’s board of directors has declared a quarterly dividend of $0.07 per share. The
current quarterly dividend is payable to all shareholders of record at the close of business on
November 30, 2021.The dividend is expected to be paid on or about December 15, 2021.
This dividend is eligible for payment in common shares under the Dividend Reinvestment Plan
(DRIP) announced by press release May 20, 2020, and available to shareholders who are
Canadian r esidents or residents of countries outside the United States. The Corporation has
elected to reduce the discount applicable to purchases made under its Dividend Reinvestment
Plan (DRIP) to 0% from 5% in response to shareholder feedback relating to a lack of equitable
participation eligibility for US shareholders.
In order to be eligible to participate in respect of the December 15, 2021 dividend, non-registered
shareholders must provide instruction to their brokerage and registered shareholders must
provide completed enrollment forms to the transfer agent by November 24, 2021, five business
days prior to record date. Stock market purchases made under the DRIP for the December 15,
2021 payment will be satisfied by issuance from treasury at the 5 day volume weighted average
price ending at the close of trading the day before payment date. Shareholders who have already
TS X: ALS | OTCQX: ATUSF Altiu s Minerals Corporation
provided instruction to be enrolled earlier this year will continue to be enrolled unless they direct
otherwise. For more information, please see http://www.altiusminerals.com/dividend-
reinvestment-plan. Participation in the DRIP is optional and will not impact any cash dividends
payable to shareholders who do not elect to participate in the DRIP. The declaration, timing and
payment of future dividends will largely depend on the Corporation’s financia l results as well as
other factors. Dividends paid by Altius on its common shares are eligible dividends for Canadian
income tax purposes unless otherwise stated.
Third Quarter 2021 Financial Results Conference Call and Webcast Details
Additional details relating to individual royalty performances and asset level developments will be provided
with the release of full financial results, which will oc cur on November 10, 2021 after the close of market,
with a conference call to follow on November 11, 2021.
Date: November 11, 2021
Time: 9:00 AM ET
Toll Free Dial-In Number: +1(866) 521-4909
International Dial-In Number: +1(647) 427-2311
Conference Call Title and ID: Altius Q3 2021 Results, ID 2240919
Webcast Link: Q3 2021 Results
About Altius
Altius’s strategy is to create per share growth through a diversified portfolio of royalty assets that relate to
long life, high margin operations. This strategy further provides shareholders with exposures that are well
aligned with sustainability -related global growth trends including the electricity generation transition from
fossil fuel to renewables, transportation electrification, reduced emissions from steelmaking and increasing
agricultural yield requirements. These macro-trends each hold the potential to cause increased demand for
many of Altius’s commodity exposures including copper, renewable based electricity, several key battery
metals (lithium, nickel and cobalt), clean iron ore, and potash. In addition, Altius runs a successful Project
Generation business that originates mineral projects for sale to developers in exchange for equity positions
and royalties. Altius has 41,357,075 common shares issued and outstanding that are listed on Canada’s
Toronto Stock Exchange. It is a member of both the S&P/TSX Small Cap and S&P/TSX Global Mining
Indices.
Forward-looking information
This news release contains forward ‐looking information. The statements are based on reasonable
assumptions and expectations of management and Altius provides no assurance that actual events will
meet management's expectations. In certain cases, forward ‐looking information may be identified by such
terms as "anticipates", "believes", "could", "estimates", "expects", "may", "shall", "will", or "would". Although
Altius believes the expectations expressed in such forwa rd‐looking statements are based on reasonable
assumptions, such statements are not guarantees of future performance and actual results or
developments may differ materially from those projected. Readers should not place undue reliance on
forward-looking information. Altius does not undertake to update any forward-looking information contained
herein except in accordance with securities regulation.
For further information, please contact:
Flora Wood
Email: [email protected]
Tel: 1.877.576.2209
Direct: +1(416)346.9020
Ben Lewis
Email: [email protected]
Tel: 1.877.576.2209
TS X: ALS | OTCQX: ATUSF Altiu s Minerals Corporation