Nexa Resources S.A. (NYSE:NEXA) Q3 2023 Earnings Call Transcript

So this is a structural change that actually will continue. This takes time to implement as contracts renew. And it’s part also of the, it’s related to our cost control initiatives when we renegotiate contracts, consolidate contracts in order to get better terms. So I wouldn’t worry about that. I don’t expect that there will be a reversal in the fourth quarter because I think the key point here is that we are recovering the working capital that we lost in the first quarter of the year.

Rodrigo Cammarosano : Thank you, Jose. We will go back to one question because it seems that we had an audio problem. And the question was from Orlando Barriga from Creditcorp Capital. The question was related to Cajamarquilla cost. So why did cost increase over quarter despite lower raw material and conversion costs?

Ignacio Rosado: So as I was explaining, I’m sorry about the problem with the communication. As I was explaining, Cajamarquilla is exposed mainly to energy costs inflation. And this is linked to our contract. We have a longer contract and this is linked to that. So this was the main variable that increments the conversion cost. Having said that, we started a program in September to work on reducing costs, to work on increasing production, to work on productivity measures to have fewer people in the operations and this is being very successful. Most of these benefits are going to be shown in our budget for next year and in the first quarter of next year as well.

Rodrigo Cammarosano : So, okay. Thanks, Ignacio. And sorry again for the issue with the audio. We have a question from Carlos [inaudible] from Bank of America. Thanks for the presentation. Could you give us some color about capital allocation going forward? Is Nexa considering inorganic growth in other geographies?

Ignacio Rosado: Yes, this is a very important question. With these prices, it’s worth mentioning that most of our mines still make money on our smelters. And we are, with all the programs, optimization programs that we are running are also helping us with generating more cash. However, as you can see, we have a high debt and the priority in this capital allocation is to reduce the debt. We are putting together the budget for the coming months and for the coming year and we have to assess if how much cash generation we’re going to provide to start reducing the debt, as I was saying, this is the priority. And based on that, we might look for other options to change the capital allocation of the company. This is still early days and we will provide more color to the market at the beginning of next year or mid next year.

From the inorganic growth, I guess the best option, we have some good options in organic growth. This is something that we are assessing. As I was saying today, the priority is to finish early product to start, have more clarity on the approval of the Cerro Pasco project and reducing the debt. So these are the three priorities that we have for the coming months and for 2024.

Rodrigo Cammarosano : Thanks, Ignacio. We have one question related to Aripuanã. It’s from Alexandra Symeonidi from William Blair and Company. What production should we expect from Aripuanã next year? And what is the annual capacity?

Leonardo Coelho : Okay, this is Leonardo speaking. So we expect to keep the ramping up over the next year. So by the second quarter, we expect to start to reach full production. And when we reach the full production, the running duration is about 2.2 million tons a year. We still work on the plan and we’re going to provide more color when we issue the guidance in the next quarter.

Rodrigo Cammarosano : Thank you, Leo. I think can you explain? Sorry, hold on just a moment. Ah, there’s one another question related to Aripuanã from Orlando Barriga from Creditcorp Capital. When would you expect Aripuanã to reach breakeven?