5E Advanced Materials Inc. (NASDAQ:FEAM) Q4 2023 Earnings Call Transcript

Chris Knight: Sure. Yes. Thanks, Tate. So what we’ve got, Tate, we have right now — we talked about the five different areas. We are mechanically complete and commissioned in PLS and in our utility areas. We are wrapping up on the wellfield. We just — basically we disassembled that in preparation for the step rate testing and then we’ll reassemble. So, some small dollars really there. The majority of the cost is going into just finalizing the piping and the electrical work needed in the boric acid and the gypsum areas and some ongoing spend, cranes, welding machines, some leased equipment that we’re using to finalize that construction.

Tate Sullivan: And then also related to that, is there any ongoing — I mean, should we take into consideration ongoing dispute with Matrix in terms of an outstanding payable or anything as such?

Susan Brennan: Yes. And I — yes, we’re not going to answer any questions. This is active litigation. So, we’re not at liberty to answer any questions at this time, on that topic.

Tate Sullivan: Understood. And then on the SSBF production, and J.T, you addressed it earlier, the 9,000 targeted short tons of boric acid production. Is there a rough portion of that already spoken to in terms of quality testing and for a potential offtake?

J.T Starzecki: Yes. So, we have — some amount will go for qualifications. And several of our potential customers, they have multiple sites. Each site is going to require commercial quantities, full shipments of material to run through their plant. But that’s not going to be a significant amount really from an overall testing perspective. So, once we get those — that material tested and we continue on that production, once that gets cleared, we should have volume then available for sales.

Operator: Thank you. There are no further questions at this time. I’d like to turn the floor back over to Susan for closing comments.

Susan Brennan: Thank you everyone for your time and interest in 5E Advanced Materials, Inc. We have a tremendous opportunity in front of us to become the newest boric acid and lithium producers in the world. We have the culture, execution, and leadership with our go-forward team on the ground and executing daily. We have a proven asset and a strategy to modularly expand the assets over the next several years. We’re looking forward to sharing this journey with all of you.

Operator: Thank you. This concludes today’s teleconference. You may disconnect your lines at this time. Thank you for your participation.