Westwater Resources, Inc. (AMEX:WWR) Q4 2022 Earnings Call Transcript

Debra Fiakas: Okay. Okay. And I also did notice that the final decision was made by the arbitration panel in regard to the Turkey dispute and that they awarded Westwater $1.3 million. I wondered if you could maybe describe to us what will be — what is it that you’re looking for that makes it more certain to you and more probable than not that you’re going to get the money and that you can begin to reflect this decision on the books? I suppose the earliest that we could see anything would be in March. But if you could just walk us through what to expect next in that regard.

Terence Cryan: Debra? This is Terence Cryan.

Steve Cates: Yeah, Debra. I — go ahead, Terry.

Terence Cryan: Thanks for your question, appreciate that. The decision by the arbitration tribunal was only announced on Friday. And so, I think it’s a little early for us to be definitive about that. And I think that while we’re pleased that the tribunal found our favor on the merits, obviously, we’re disappointed in the amount ordered. But I would note that the decision of the tribunal is binding and non-appealable.

Debra Fiakas: Yes, understood. That’s what arbitration is all about. And then this last final question is, again, for Frank. I wondered if you could maybe go back to the timeline that’s been outlined for the Coosa graphite deposit. It’s been pushed out now to 2028. We jump out in two-year increments with this. Could you maybe give us an idea of what is the strategic thinking in pushing it out another two years? I’m not sure if this was done recently or a couple of months ago, but it has been pushed out to 2028. What’s the driving strategy behind that timeline, if you will? And then that is my last question. And I do. so thank all of you for all of your answers.

Frank Bakker: Yeah. Thank you. Yeah. So the timeline has not been pushed out. So it has always been 2028 for the mine to be operational. So we’ll continue — we have a program in place to get all the permits in place, to do all the research, all the things needed to get it operational in 2028.

Operator: As there are no further questions, this concludes the question-and-answer session. I would like to turn the conference back over to Frank Bakker for any closing remarks.

Frank Bakker: Thank you. I think we’ve made a tremendous amount of progress over the last couple of months. We doubled our production capacity of Phase I, increased our Phase II capacity to 40,500 metric tons per year. By doing this, we improve the project economics significantly. Next to this, we executed a term sheet for the Phase I capital requirements. So I think the future looks bright for Westwater Resources. I want to thank everybody for their attention and looking forward to speaking to you on the next call. Thank you.

Operator: This concludes today’s conference call. You may disconnect your lines. Thank you for participating and have a pleasant day.