LSB Industries, Inc. (NYSE:LXU) Q1 2024 Earnings Call Transcript

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Charles Neivert: That’s all for me, thanks. Gas has come down quite a bit. Obviously, it’s still much higher than the U.S. But having seen where it was, forgetting the obviously incredibly high numbers, but where it is now, does it seem like you’re going to see some of that European production come back online? At $450 for ammonia, it might not be extremely profitable, but it might be enough to keep them in the game, considering they’ve got the protection of somebody having to move product into the area. It just might be easier for them that way. Do you see any increase in European production because of the lower gas numbers coming out of there?

Damien Renwick : Look, I think the European producers will probably want to see some more sustained pricing levels in order to get some confidence to restart operations. So I think there’s still a lot of water to pass under the bridge in that aspect. I think that plants that have restarted will continue on, and I think we’ll see a little bit of the status quo continue for some months.

Mark Behrman : I also think it depends on import prices versus cost of production, right, and so where those levels are.

Charles Neivert: Right.

Mark Behrman : And so I think if gas is low here and gas is much higher in Europe but relatively low compared to where it’s been over the last several years, yeah, that puts a cap sort of on ammonia prices in general, it might be still cheaper for them to import. So I think it’s really just a total economic decision.

Charles Neivert: Do you see anyone throwing in the towel completely, sort of like in the way CF chose to close the UK ammonia operation but to supply ammonia from the outside? Any of those, any of the current players in and around Europe who might consider closure and either substitution or is it outright closure of the facility?

Damien Renwick : Not that we’ve heard of, of late. I think most of the producers like CF and BASF, they’ve already made their moves.

Mark Behrman : A couple of Eastern Europeans have closed down facilities.

Damien Renwick : Yeah, but I think the rest are probably, those that are operating are happy to do so, and those that are suspended or shut down, we haven’t heard anything of that turning into a permanent closure.

Mark Behrman : I think the only thing that people will start to face after some period of time is you can’t just shut down a facility. It’s expensive to maintain it, right, because you have to be able to maintain it so that you can turn it back on. So at some point, I think the cost of maintenance will force some decisions.

Charles Neivert: Okay, that’s it for me. Thanks, guys.

Mark Behrman : Yeah.

Operator: Thank you. We’ve reached the end of our question-and-answer session. I’d like to turn the floor back over to management for any further closing comments.

Mark Behrman: Thank you. As always, thanks so much for your interest in LSB Industries, and if you have any follow-up calls or follow-up questions, feel free to call us and we’ll be happy to answer them. Thank you. Have a great day.

Operator: Thank you. That does conclude today’s teleconference. You may disconnect your line at this time and have a wonderful day. We thank you for your participation today.

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