Arch Resources, Inc. (NYSE:ARCH) Q1 2024 Earnings Call Transcript

Paul Lang: And Michael, the simple answer is, I looked year over year we’ve added a significant number of new customers in Asia. Marketing team has done a great job. What I really judge it on is these are quality customers also. These are large steel mills and they are ones being built between Indonesia, Vietnam, and Malaysia. And we are not selling to the brokers. So I feel very strong about the position we’re taking in Asia and we’re really building out that business. You’re seeing it by the quality of customers we are picking up.

Deck Slone: And just one final point, just on the supply side which you sort of alluded to where’s the coal going to come from? Look, if you look back sort of, you know, the three big suppliers into the seaborne market, Australia, the U.S., and Canada, three big suppliers of high-quality coking coal in aggregate peaked in 2014. We are down 45 million tons. You know, those three countries in aggregate are down 45 million tons since 2014. So certainly the demand is there. Not only do we see demand grow and we see those supply constraints continue to manifest themselves. So again, pretty constructive on a long-term view, even though as we always say, we don’t need a great long-term sort of demand story because the fact is we are a first-quartile cost producer, but it is what we see playing out. Mike, he might be on mute right now.

Paul Lang: Operator, you may want to…

Michael Dudas: Yes, no, I’m sorry. No thanks. Thanks for that. I just mentioned that there, the investment you guys made into the sales force and marketing team in that region certainly going to pay benefits as we’re seeing it right now. Thanks, guys.

Matthew Giljum: Thank you.

Deck Slone: Thank you, Michael.

Operator: There are no further questions at this time. I would like to turn the call over back to Mr. Paul Lang, CEO. Please continue.

Paul Lang: I want to thank you again for your interest in Arch. As I noted earlier, we’re sharply focused on driving continuous improvement across our operating platforms, support the value-generating, capital returns, especially as we lean towards greater emphasis on share repurchases. We believe that current market softness is acting to highlight the value of our low-cost coking coal portfolio, as evidenced by our substantial discretionary cash flow in Q1. While at the same time, the tragedy in Baltimore showcases the nimbleness as well as the capabilities of our people in addressing such serious situations on a timely basis. With that operator, we’ll conclude the call. We look forward to reporting the group in July. Stay safe and healthy, everyone.

Operator: That concludes today’s conference call. Thank you for your participation. You may now disconnect.