Intrepid Potash Inc (IPI) 2026 Q1 法說會逐字稿

Thank you for standing by. This is the conference operator. Welcome to Intrepid Potash, Inc. first quarter 2026 results conference call. (Operator Instructions) and the conference is being recorded. (Operator Instructions)

感謝您耐心等候。我是會議接線員。歡迎參加 Intrepid Potash, Inc. 2026 年第一季業績電話會議。（接線員指示）本次會議將被錄音。（接線員指示）

I would now like to turn the conference over to Ryan Schultz, Interim Investor Relations Manager. Please go ahead.

現在我想將會議交給臨時投資人關係經理 Ryan Schultz。請開始。

Good morning, everyone. Thank you for joining us to discuss and review Intrepid's first-quarter 2026 results. With me today is Intrepid CEO, Kevin Crutchfield; Our Chief Accounting Officer, Cris Ingold; our VP of Sales and Marketing Zachry Adams; and our VP of Operations; Rick Kim.

各位早安。感謝各位加入我們，一同討論並回顧 Intrepid 2026 年第一季的業績。今天與我一同出席的有 Intrepid 執行長 Kevin Crutchfield；我們的首席會計官 Cris Ingold；銷售與行銷副總裁 Zachry Adams；以及營運副總裁 Rick Kim。

Please be advised that comments we will make today include forward-looking statements as defined by US Securities laws. These are based upon information available to us today, are subject to risks and uncertainties that are described in the reports we filed with the SEC and could cause our actual results to be different from those currently anticipated and we assume no obligation to update them.

請注意，我們今天的發言將包含依照美國證券法所定義的前瞻性陳述。這些陳述係基於我們目前可得之資訊，並受我們向 SEC 提交之報告中所述的風險與不確定性影響，可能導致實際結果與目前預期不同；且我們不承擔更新這些陳述的義務。

During today's call, we will also refer to certain non-GAAP financial and operational measures. Reconciliations to the most directly comparable GAAP measures are included in today's press release and along with our SEC filings are available at intrepidpotash.com. I'll now turn the call over to our CEO, Kevin Crutchfield.

在今天的電話會議中，我們也將提及若干非 GAAP 的財務與營運衡量指標。與最直接可比之 GAAP 指標的調節表已包含於今日新聞稿中，並可於 intrepidpotash.com 以及我們的 SEC 申報文件中取得。現在我將把電話交給我們的執行長 Kevin Crutchfield。

Thank you, Ryan, and good morning, everyone. We appreciate your interest and attendance for today's earnings call. I'm pleased to report that 2026 is off to a strong start with solid first quarter results. Our adjusted net income from continuing operations for the first quarter of $8.2 million and adjusted EBITDA of $19 million is a significant improvement from last year's first quarter adjusted net income of $3.9 million and adjusted EBITDA of $14.6 million, and we're looking forward to capitalizing on this momentum for the rest of the year.

謝謝你，Ryan，各位早安。感謝各位對今天的財報電話會議的關注與出席。我很高興報告，2026 年開局強勁，第一季交出穩健的成績。第一季來自持續營運的調整後淨利為 820 萬美元、調整後 EBITDA 為 1,900 萬美元，較去年第一季調整後淨利 390 萬美元與調整後 EBITDA 1,460 萬美元顯著改善；我們也期待在今年其餘時間延續並把握這股動能。

Our performance is a reflection of the hard work of all of our employees, and I'd like to thank our entire team for their commitment to safety and consistent execution across our core fertilizer business. Our first quarter performance was driven by several factors.

我們的表現反映了全體員工的辛勤付出；我也要感謝整個團隊在安全承諾與核心肥料業務的穩定執行上所做的努力。我們第一季的表現由數項因素所帶動。

First, supporting pricing and resilient demand across our fertilizer products. In the first quarter, our average potash net realized sales price was $353 per ton and our average Trio net realized sales price was $387 per ton. This represents a 13% increase year-over-year for potash, up from $312 a ton and a 12% increase for Trio, up from $345 per ton.

第一，我們的肥料產品整體價格支撐良好、需求具韌性。第一季，我們鉀肥的平均淨實現銷售價格為每噸 353 美元，Trio 的平均淨實現銷售價格為每噸 387 美元。這代表鉀肥年增 13%，由每噸 312 美元上升；Trio 年增 12%，由每噸 345 美元上升。

Second, sales volumes remained strong with our second highest quarterly sales total since idling the West mine in 2016. Combined potash and Trio sales volumes were 211,000 tons in the first quarter with potash sales volumes of 105,000 tons and Trio sales volumes of 106,000 tons.

第二，銷售量維持強勁，為自 2016 年 West 礦場停產以來第二高的單季銷售總量。第一季鉀肥與 Trio 合計銷售量為 211,000 噸，其中鉀肥銷售量 105,000 噸、Trio 銷售量 106,000 噸。

Finally, successful execution on key projects and operational efficiencies supported improved cost margins. Trio delivered its highest quarterly segment margin since 2022 and per ton cost improved 5% compared to the fourth quarter.

最後，關鍵專案的成功執行與營運效率提升，支撐了成本利潤率的改善。Trio 交出自 2022 年以來最高的單季部門毛利，且每噸成本較第四季改善 5%。

Before I pass the call to Zach, I want to highlight a few key developments and operational updates. On April 1, 2026, we sold the majority of the assets of the Intrepid South Ranch to HydroSource Logistics, LLC for total consideration of $70 million, which included the $8 million deposit we received in December 2025.

在我把電話交給 Zach 之前，我想先強調幾項重要進展與營運更新。2026 年 4 月 1 日，我們以總對價 7,000 萬美元將 Intrepid South Ranch 的大部分資產出售給 HydroSource Logistics, LLC，其中包含我們於 2025 年 12 月收到的 800 萬美元訂金。

We were able to transact on the Ranch at a favorable valuation, unlocking decades' worth of cash flows in a single transaction that will allow us to refocus our efforts exclusively on our fertilizer assets. The sale will also allow us to utilize a portion of our sizable deferred tax assets to offset the tax impact of the one-time gain.

我們以有利的估值完成 Ranch 的交易，透過單一交易解鎖數十年現金流，並使我們得以將重心重新聚焦於肥料資產。本次出售也將使我們能運用部分可觀的遞延所得稅資產，以抵銷一次性處分利益所帶來的稅負影響。

On lithium, our partners continue to advance FEL-3 engineering and associated permitting. We remain confident in this project and look forward to sharing further details of the project economics as they develop.

關於鋰業務，我們的合作夥伴持續推進 FEL-3 工程設計及相關許可申請。我們對此專案仍具信心，並期待在專案經濟性逐步明朗後，分享更多細節。

Overall, we're looking forward to a strong year, continued steady support for our core business and solid cash position will allow us to capitalize on our unique position in the market and capture additional upside from opportunities like lithium, among others.

整體而言，我們期待今年表現強勁；對核心業務的持續穩健支撐與良好的現金部位，將使我們能善用在市場中的獨特定位，並從包括鋰在內等機會中掌握更多上行空間。

I'll now pass the call to Zach to provide some commentary on the market. Go ahead, Zach.

接下來我把電話交給 Zach，請他就市場狀況提供一些評論。Zach，請。

Thanks, Kevin. Potash saw a good subscription during the winter fill program with customers securing orders to meet most of their first quarter requirements. Following the closure of the order window, posted potash prices increased by $20 per ton, a change reflected in second quarter Spot transactions.

謝謝，Kevin。鉀肥在冬季補庫計畫期間獲得良好認購，客戶提前鎖定訂單，以滿足其第一季大部分需求。在訂購窗口關閉後，公告的鉀肥價格每噸上調 20 美元，此變動也反映在第二季的現貨交易中。

Trio demand remains resilient as customers value the individual components, particularly sulfate, due to ongoing disruptions in raw sulfur supply from the Middle East, along with the low chloride potassium component.

Trio 的需求仍具韌性，因客戶重視其各個成分，尤其是硫酸鹽；由於中東原料硫供應持續受干擾，再加上其低氯的鉀成分，使其更具價值。

Trio pricing was increased by $15 per ton in late March, with this adjustment realized on Spot's second quarter sales. Globally, potash fundamentals have been supported by consistent production, broadly stable pricing and solid demand. Brazil and China imported potash at record levels in the first quarter, contributing to a balanced market and reinforcing a constructive outlook for the second-half of the year.

Trio 價格於 3 月下旬每噸上調 15 美元，該調整已在現貨第二季銷售中實現。在全球範圍內，鉀肥基本面受穩定產量、整體相對穩定的價格以及穩健需求所支撐。巴西與中國在第一季以創紀錄水準進口鉀肥，促成市場供需平衡，並強化了對下半年較為正向的展望。

Turning to agriculture markets, US Corn exports are on track to reach record levels for the '25-'26 marketing year. Commodity prices for corn, soybeans and cotton have strengthened in recent weeks, driven by weather concerns, supportive demand, and geopolitical tensions affecting market stability.

轉向農業市場，美國玉米出口有望在 25-26 行銷年度達到創紀錄水準。近幾週玉米、大豆與棉花等大宗商品價格走強，主要受天候疑慮、需求支撐，以及影響市場穩定性的地緣政治緊張局勢所帶動。

We do recognize the concerns regarding the financial health of growers within the US market, particularly as affordability challenges have been intensified by volatility and input costs arising from the conflict in the Middle East. We anticipate growers will continue to make the input decisions carefully.

我們也確實注意到美國市場種植戶財務健康狀況的疑慮，特別是中東衝突所引發的波動與投入成本，使可負擔性挑戰加劇。我們預期種植戶將持續審慎做出投入品的決策。

Potash, whose prices have stayed comparatively stable relative to other nutrients, remains a critical input as growers look to maximize yields.

鉀肥的價格相較於其他養分維持相對穩定，當種植戶希望最大化產量時，鉀肥仍是關鍵投入品。

I will now turn the call over to Rick Kim for an operations update.

接下來我將把電話交給 Rick Kim，請他提供營運更新。

Thanks, Zach. In our Trio statement, the commissioning of a new continuous miner has already increased our tons per operating hour and increased operational efficiency. Additional improvements in our mill have boosted recovery and increased operating hours per shift continues to drive higher production of both granular and premium products.

謝謝，Zach。在我們的 Trio 業務方面，新型連續採礦機的試車投產已提升每營運小時的產量，並提高營運效率。磨礦廠的進一步改善提升了回收率，而每班次營運時數的增加也持續推動顆粒與高階產品的產量提升。

We benefited from these improvements in the first quarter, and we expect to continue realizing further improvements through the rest of the year.

我們在第一季受惠於這些改善，並預期在今年剩餘時間將持續實現進一步的改善。

In our potash segment, we've seen promising returns this spring from the HB mine with higher mill recoveries and improved pond deposition, extending our expected runtime before our summer shutdown. Moab also continues to see improvements in overall plant efficiency, driving higher throughput and recovery. Early season evaporation looks promising, and we anticipate making up the tons lost due to last year's late season rain events.

在我們的鉀肥業務部門，今年春季我們在 HB 礦場看到令人鼓舞的回報，包括更高的磨礦回收率與改善的鹵水池沉積，延長了我們在夏季停工前的預期運轉時間。Moab 也持續在整體工廠效率上看到改善，帶動更高的處理量與回收率。季初蒸發情況看起來相當樂觀，我們預期可補回因去年季末降雨事件而損失的產量（噸數）。

At Wendover, we expect to commence construction on Primary Pond 8 this summer, which will expand our evaporative area, and we anticipate increased production in 2028 as a result. We also expect Primary Pond to start contributing more production this year.

在 Wendover，我們預期今年夏天將開始興建主池 8（Primary Pond 8），這將擴大我們的蒸發面積，並預期因此在 2028 年提高產量。我們也預期主池（Primary Pond）今年將開始貢獻更多產量。

Overall, our focus on operational improvements and execution have resulted in higher production and a reduced unit cost year-over-year in both potash and Trio. I'll now turn the call over to Chris.

整體而言，我們對營運改善與執行力的聚焦，使鉀肥與 Trio 兩項業務的產量年增，且單位成本較去年同期下降。接下來我把電話交給 Chris。

Thank you, Rick. To echo Kevin's remarks, Intrepid delivered a strong first quarter. Our continued focus on driving production to increase revenues and improve unit economics is visible in our first quarter results. Potash production was 104,000 tons in the first quarter, compared to 93,000 tons in the first quarter of 2025.

謝謝你，Rick。呼應 Kevin 的說法，Intrepid 第一季表現強勁。我們持續專注於提升產量，以增加營收並改善單位經濟效益，這點在第一季的結果中清楚可見。第一季鉀肥產量為 104,000 噸，相較於 2025 年第一季的 93,000 噸。

As Kevin and Rick mentioned, this production is due to operational improvements across our mines. First quarter potash sales were $46.1 million, up $2.5 million from the prior quarter, driven primarily by higher realized pricing.

如 Kevin 與 Rick 所提到的，這些產量來自我們各礦場的營運改善。第一季鉀肥銷售額為 4,610 萬美元，較前一季增加 250 萬美元，主要由較高的實現價格所帶動。

Potash gross margin was $3.1 million versus $2.5 million last year as a result of higher realized pricing, partially offset by higher costs on a similar volume. We sold 105,000 tons at an average net realized sales price of $353 per ton compared to $312 per ton in the first quarter of 2025.

鉀肥毛利為 310 萬美元，較去年同期的 250 萬美元增加，原因是實現價格較高，但在相近銷量下，部分被較高成本所抵銷。我們銷售 105,000 噸，平均淨實現銷售價格為每噸 353 美元，相較於 2025 年第一季每噸 312 美元。

Higher production from higher-cost sites increased our average potash segment cost of goods sold to $334 per ton in the first quarter of 2026, compared to $313 per ton in the first quarter of 2025 and $332 per ton in the fourth quarter of 2025.

來自成本較高據點的較高產量，使我們 2026 年第一季鉀肥部門平均銷貨成本提高至每噸 334 美元，相較於 2025 年第一季每噸 313 美元，以及 2025 年第四季每噸 332 美元。

For 2026, we expect our annual potash production to be at the upper end of our guidance of 270,000 to 285,000 tons, given recent improvements at HB.

就 2026 年而言，鑑於 HB 近期的改善，我們預期全年鉀肥產量將落在指引 270,000 至 285,000 噸的上緣。

Turning to Trio, first quarter production was 69,000 tons, a 10% increase versus last year. This increase is largely attributed to the new continuous miner commissioned during the quarter and ongoing plant optimization projects.

接著談 Trio，第一季產量為 69,000 噸，較去年增加 10%。此增幅主要歸因於本季啟用的新連續採礦機，以及持續進行的工廠最佳化專案。

Sales were $52.5 million, up $2.7 million from the prior year, driven by a 12% increase in our average net realized sales price per ton. This offset a 4% decline in tons sold.

銷售額為 5,250 萬美元，較去年增加 270 萬美元，主要由每噸平均淨實現銷售價格提高 12% 所帶動。這抵銷了銷售量（噸數）下滑 4% 的影響。

Overall, Trio margin was $14.8 million for the quarter, up $4.4 million from last year. This was the highest quarterly segment margin since 2022 due to higher realized pricing and an improvement in COGS, offsetting the slight decline in sales volume.

整體而言，Trio 本季毛利為 1,480 萬美元，較去年增加 440 萬美元。由於實現價格較高且銷貨成本改善，抵銷了銷售量小幅下滑，這是自 2022 年以來最高的單季部門毛利。

COGS per ton saw an improvement year-over-year and quarter-over-quarter with $229 per ton versus $235 per ton in Q1 last year and versus $242 per ton in the fourth quarter of 2025.

每噸銷貨成本（COGS）無論年比或季比皆有所改善，為每噸 229 美元，相較於去年第一季每噸 235 美元，以及 2025 年第四季每噸 242 美元。

2026 Trio production, we are expecting to reach 285,000 to 300,000 tons with COGS of around $230 per ton. This is the expected result from our improvements with the new miner, increased recoveries, and more operating hours per shift.

2026 年 Trio 產量方面，我們預期可達 285,000 至 300,000 噸，銷貨成本約為每噸 230 美元。這是我們在新採礦機、回收率提升，以及每班次更多運轉工時等改善措施下的預期成果。

In terms of second quarter guidance, we expect another solid quarter as spring application winds down and our potash facilities enter the summer evaporation season. For potash, we expect our sales volumes to be between 50,000 to 60,000 tons at an average net relied sales price in the range of $380 to $390 per ton.

就第二季指引而言，隨著春季施用期接近尾聲、且我們的鉀肥設施進入夏季蒸發季，我們預期將再有一個穩健的季度。鉀肥方面，我們預期銷售量介於 50,000 至 60,000 噸，平均淨實現銷售價格約在每噸 380 至 390 美元區間。

In Trio, we expect our sales volumes to be between 70,000 to 80,000 tons at an average net reliant sales price in the range of $390 to $400 per ton.

Trio 方面，我們預期銷售量介於 70,000 至 80,000 噸，平均淨實現銷售價格約在每噸 390 至 400 美元區間。

For our 2026 capital program, we expect to spend $40 million to $50 million, with most of our spend related to sustaining capital, specifically at our East mine, and for the beginning of a new Primary Pond at Wendover, which we expect will begin contributing to Wendover's production in 2028.

就我們 2026 年資本支出計畫而言，我們預期支出 4,000 萬至 5,000 萬美元，其中大部分與維持性資本支出相關，特別是在我們的 East 礦場，以及在 Wendover 啟動新的主池（Primary Pond）建置；我們預期該主池將於 2028 年開始對 Wendover 的產量做出貢獻。

We continue to consider investment opportunities that will upgrade our assets and optimize future production and efficiency. We are currently evaluating a number of additional high-return growth and productivity investment initiatives over the next 18 to 24 months.

我們持續評估投資機會，以升級資產並最佳化未來的產量與效率。目前我們正在評估未來 18 至 24 個月內多項額外的高報酬成長與生產力投資計畫。

In summary, 2026 is off to a strong start, and we're excited to see the results from the initiatives we put in place to meaningfully pay off in the form of increased production and improving costs.

總結來說，2026 年開局強勁，我們也很期待看到我們所推動的各項措施，能以產量提升與成本改善的形式帶來顯著回報。

Operator, we are now ready for the Q&A portion of our call.

接線員，我們現在準備進入問答環節。

(Operator Instructions)

（接線員指示）

Lucas Beaumont, UBS.

Lucas Beaumont，瑞銀（UBS）。

Hi, good morning. Thanks very much. I just wanted to start on kind of the style of the South branch. I mean, it sounded like you're sort of indicating that potentially you get the full $70 million in cash sort of net of the sort of DTI debt benefits, I guess one, is that sort of correct, and then two, what are you kind of intending to do with the price rates?

嗨，早安。非常感謝。我想先從 South 分行那筆交易的結構談起。聽起來你們似乎在表示，扣除 DTI 債務帶來的效益後，你們可能可以拿到完整的 7,000 萬美元現金；第一，這樣理解是否正確？第二，你們打算如何運用這筆資金？

I'm sorry, Lucas, what was the last part of your question, what are we going to do with the cash?

抱歉，Lucas，你問題的最後一部分是什麼？你是問我們要怎麼使用這筆現金嗎？

Exactly, yeah. So should we assume you're getting the full $70 million and then what are your intentions in terms of deploying it? Are you going to sit on it to sort of put towards projects going forward? I mean, do you see repurchases as attractive at the current level or so where would you like to use that?

沒錯。所以我們是否可以假設你們會拿到完整的 7,000 萬美元？以及你們在資金部署方面的意圖是什麼？你們會先保留現金，用於未來的專案嗎？我的意思是，以目前的水準，你們是否認為庫藏股回購具吸引力？或是你們希望把這筆錢用在哪裡？

Yeah, look, it's a good question. And let me just give you some context on how we're thinking about that right now. As I've mentioned a bunch of times before since I joined, this is a regular conversation amongst our Board, i.e., how to think about capital allocation and frankly, it's becoming even more topical given the improved performance that we've seen over the last 18 months and the cash build that we're experiencing on the balance sheet at the moment.

是的，這是個好問題。我先提供一些我們目前思考方向的背景。如同我自加入以來多次提到的，這一直是董事會經常討論的議題，也就是如何看待資本配置；坦白說，鑑於過去 18 個月我們看到的績效改善，以及目前資產負債表上現金持續累積，這個議題變得更為重要。

So, let me just kind of reiterate some priorities that I've discussed before, just so we're clear and you get a sense of how we think about this. As I laid out early in my tenure here, the first order of business was to reestablish an intense focus on the core assets.

所以，讓我再重申一下我之前談過的一些優先事項，確保我們的想法清楚一致，也讓各位了解我們是如何看待這件事的。正如我在剛上任不久時所說，首要任務是重新建立對核心資產的高度聚焦。

The goal was to make them more predictable, more reliable, more resilient. I think we can all agree that we've seen improvements on that front. But we're not done there, and I'll address that momentarily. From there, we wanted some time to look at our sustaining capital needs for the business over a reasonable period of time, say five years or so.

目標是讓它們更可預測、更可靠、更具韌性。我想大家都同意，我們在這方面已經看到改善。但我們還沒完成，我稍後會談到。接著，我們希望有時間在一個合理的期間內（例如五年左右）檢視公司業務所需的維持性資本需求。

We're pretty much through that process now and believe long-term core operations should require something on the order of $35 million to $40 million a year of sustaining capital. With an add-on every few years for larger sustaining items like making a new cavern or building a new pond like we're doing at Wendover right now. So notably, I'll just give you a heads up that 2027 is expected to be one of those years. We can talk about that a little later.

我們現在幾乎已完成這個流程，並認為長期核心營運每年應需要約3,500萬至4,000萬美元的維持性資本。另外每隔幾年還會有一次加碼，用於較大型的維持性項目，例如開鑿新的鹽穴（cavern）或像我們目前在Wendover正在做的那樣興建新的蒸發池（pond）。因此先提醒各位，2027年預期會是其中一年。我們稍後可以再多談一些。

And then next, and also importantly, we're really focused on -- across the company on ways we can increase volumes and reduce our costs. This effort is being ingrained into the culture of Intrepid. It's simply the way we need to think about our business.

接下來，同樣重要的是，我們在全公司範圍內非常專注於如何提高銷量並降低成本。這項努力正在被內化為Intrepid的企業文化。這就是我們必須用來思考自身業務的方式。

And to be frank, we don't see any silver bullets to increase production substantially in the short-term, but we do see numerous opportunities to add incremental tons to the portfolio with attendant effects on costs and efficiencies. And I think a good example of that is what's happening at Carlsbad now. You can see that result improved over the past several quarters.

坦白說，我們看不到任何能在短期內大幅提升產量的「靈丹妙藥」，但我們確實看到許多機會，可以在產品組合中逐步增加增量噸數，並對成本與效率帶來相應的影響。我認為一個很好的例子就是Carlsbad目前正在發生的事情。你可以看到過去幾個季度成果有所改善。

And then as I've also mentioned in the past, we wanted to review our portfolio to determine if there were assets that we held that might make sense in the hands of somebody else and the South Ranch fit that bill. And as you saw, we monetized that asset and brought forward decades of cash flows and frankly put that asset into a better set of hands than us given the dynamics of what's happening with water in the Permian Basin.

另外，如我過去也提過，我們希望檢視投資組合，以判斷是否有些我們持有的資產，交由其他人經營可能更合理，而South Ranch就符合這個條件。如各位所見，我們已將該資產變現，把未來數十年的現金流提前實現；坦白說，考量二疊紀盆地（Permian Basin）水資源動態的變化，把該資產交到比我們更合適的一方手上。

So now that the assets, core assets are performing better and we've taken a look out into the future and assessed our capital needs, we want to be thoughtful about maintaining an adequate amount of dry powder for organic projects or opportunities that exist across our portfolio and through continued performance to frankly earn the right to consider adjacency opportunities that might make strategic sense for the company.

因此，現在核心資產表現更好，我們也已向前看並評估了資本需求，我們希望審慎地維持足夠的「乾火藥」（dry powder），以投入於我們投資組合中的有機專案或各種機會；並且透過持續的績效表現，坦白說，贏得我們去考慮可能對公司具有策略意義之相鄰機會（adjacency opportunities）的資格。

And then last but not least, we want to retain adequate liquidity to buoy us through any rough times that might come our way. And for those of you that have been around this sector for a while, you'll know exactly what I'm talking about.

最後但同樣重要的是，我們希望保留充足的流動性，以支撐我們度過任何可能到來的艱難時期。對於在這個產業待過一段時間的人，你們會很清楚我在說什麼。

I know, Lucas, that was a lot I realized, but I thought it was important for you and others to hear how we think about capital allocation priorities.

我知道，Lucas，這一段內容很多，我也意識到了，但我認為讓你和其他人聽到我們如何思考資本配置優先順序是很重要的。

And suffice it to say, I think we've made great progress over the year and a half, and what I want to leave you with today is the following. Lot of requests that we return capital to shareholders, we hear you loud and clear, we always have, we simply had some work to do before this conversation could be had in earnest and our board is convening later this month to discuss a variety of matters and what I'll leave you with is just know that this topic is chief among them.

簡而言之，我認為在過去一年半我們已取得很大進展，而我今天想留給各位的是：很多人要求我們把資本回饋給股東，我們聽得非常清楚，我們一直都聽得到；只是，在我們能夠認真地進行這個討論之前，我們確實有一些工作要先完成。本月稍晚董事會將召開會議討論多項議題，而我想告訴各位的是：這個主題是其中最重要的議題之一。

So I'll just leave it at that for now and hopefully that gives you some nuggets at least on how we think about it and what might be on the near-term time frame.

所以我暫時就先說到這裡，希望至少能讓你們掌握一些我們的思考方式，以及短期內可能的時間框架。

Right, thanks. Yeah, I mean, that's very helpful. And then I guess just on the -- I just wanted to kind of talk to you about the -- how the [Trio] market's going to kind of go as we look forward here. So, I mean, you're kind of pointing to like a $10 to $15 kind of sequential improvement in pricing into 2Q.

好的，謝謝。是的，我的意思是，這非常有幫助。接著我想就——我想跟你談談——展望未來，[Trio]市場大概會怎麼走。所以，你似乎在指向第二季（2Q）價格將出現約10到15美元的季比（sequential）改善。

I mean, sulfur markets have been impacted significantly globally from the Middle East disruption. And that's kind of raising production costs and raising the cost curves against the synthetic production on that side.

我的意思是，全球硫磺市場受到中東局勢擾動的顯著影響。這正在推升生產成本，也抬高了那一端合成生產（synthetic production）的成本曲線。

How do you kind of see that flowing into the Trio market and impacting pricing? Is there more of an impact to come as 2026 progresses? Or do you believe that's kind of incorporated in what you're sort of expecting for 2Q now?

你怎麼看這會如何傳導到Trio市場並影響定價？隨著2026年推進，是否還會有更大的影響？或者你認為這些因素已經反映在你們目前對第二季（2Q）的預期之中？

Thanks, Lucas, for the question. So it's important to remember that customers typically lock in the majority of their spring requirements pretty early to start the year for Trio and potash. And so most of those commitments were made ahead of the Iran conflict beginning and certainly before the full extent of it was realized.

謝謝你的問題，Lucas。所以要記得一點：客戶通常在年初很早就會鎖定Trio與鉀肥（potash）春季需求的大部分數量。因此，多數承諾是在伊朗衝突開始之前就已做出，當然也在其影響完全顯現之前。

So we expect to start seeing more and more of that realization and certainly as we kind of see those spot opportunities here in second quarter. And for the balance of the year, we expect Trio to benefit from a constructive outlook amid a tightening global supply environmental sulfur, which should keep sulfate values firm, and you should see that kind of roll through our realized pricing as we kind of move through the rest of the year.

因此，我們預期會開始看到這些因素被市場愈來愈多地反映出來，尤其是當我們在第二季看到一些現貨機會時。而就今年剩餘期間而言，我們預期在全球環保硫磺供應趨緊、前景偏建設性的背景下，Trio將受惠，這應會使硫酸鹽（sulfate）價值維持堅挺；隨著我們走過今年剩餘時間，你應該會看到這些逐步反映在我們的實現價格（realized pricing）上。

Right, thanks. And then just, Kevin, I mean, you kind of mentioned, I guess, the further -- if it's to kind of incrementally lift production progressively. So I guess switching over to potash, how do you kind of see the trajectory beyond this year to kind of push back above 300,000 tons over time?

好的，謝謝。另外，Kevin，我的意思是，你剛才提到——我想是——進一步逐步、循序地拉升產量。所以我想切換到鉀肥（potash）：你怎麼看今年之後的軌跡，隨時間推進如何把產量再推回到30萬噸以上？

Yeah, sure. Hey, Lucas, this is Rick. We see a number of different incremental opportunities at the core of assets. As Kevin mentioned, kind of the past 12 to 18 months have really been focused in on operational improvements, identifying those and executing on them. So continue to see opportunities at HB, we're starting to realize those already, as I mentioned in the earlier comments, and we're seeing similar opportunities around Wendover and Moab as well.

好的，當然。嗨，Lucas，我是Rick。我們在核心資產上看到許多不同的增量機會。如Kevin提到的，過去12到18個月確實聚焦在營運改善上：找出這些機會並加以落實執行。因此我們在HB持續看到機會，而且正如我在先前評論中提到的，我們已開始實現其中一些；同時我們也在Wendover與Moab周邊看到類似的機會。

The addition of the new Primary Pond at Wendover. It will start contributing in 2028. Primary Pond 7, which was commissioned a couple of years ago, will really start to see its full productive capacity coming online throughout this year.

在溫多弗新增新的主池（Primary Pond）。它將於2028年開始貢獻。幾年前投產的第7號主池（Primary Pond 7），將在今年全年真正開始看到其全部產能逐步上線。

And with the intent of getting that operation back up into the 75,000, 80,000 ton per year run rate that it's historically operated at.

並且目標是讓該營運回到其歷史上運行的每年75,000至80,000噸的運行率。

Just one more little point, Lucas, in addition to what Rick said, as we talked about before, we have the AMAX Cavern, it still needs more work, we want to be very thoughtful about how we approach that and to the extent that proves out, that's a mean that that would represent a meaningful upside opportunity for us, but we still have work to do there and we'll keep you posted in the coming quarters on that project.

再補充一點，Lucas，除了Rick提到的之外，如同我們之前談過的，我們有AMAX洞穴（AMAX Cavern），它仍需要更多工作；我們希望非常審慎地思考如何推進。若該項目驗證可行，這將代表對我們而言一個相當可觀的上行機會，但我們仍有工作要做，並會在接下來幾個季度就該專案向你更新。

And then, I guess, just on the lithium project, could you maybe just kind of share how you sort of see the timeline on the milestones there as we sort of move through this year and beyond? And then, I mean, investors are very keen to kind of get an understanding of like how you think the -- to the unit cost economics are going to look fair.

另外，我想就鋰專案再問一下，你能否分享一下你如何看待今年及之後各項里程碑的時間表？還有，我是說，投資人非常希望了解你們認為單位成本的經濟性大概會是什麼樣子。

I mean -- I think that sort of production target and the revenue side to sort of all well understood, sort of depending on sort of whatever I'm doing with market pricing, but to kind of really understand what it could mean to you guys in the medium term, we sort of need a better view on the cost side. So, I don't know if there's anything you can kind of share there now or I guess when you sort of think you'll be able to have a better view of that as we sort of work through the process there. Thanks.

我的意思是——我認為產量目標與營收端大致都很清楚，某種程度上取決於市場定價會怎麼走；但要真正理解它在中期對你們可能意味著什麼，我們需要對成本端有更好的掌握。所以，我不知道你現在是否能分享一些資訊，或是你認為在推進過程中大概何時能對此有更清晰的看法。謝謝。

Yeah, good question. And look, I don't want to front run our partners. The key milestone that's coming, early this summer will be FEL-3. And then, that's when you have a pretty high degree of precision around your engineering, the build, the cost of the build, and where your operating costs are going to come out. We have a sense of what those are, but it'd be way premature for me to start talking about that.

是的，問得好。而且你看，我不想搶在我們合作夥伴之前先講。接下來的關鍵里程碑是在今年夏初的FEL-3。到了那個階段，你對工程設計、建造方案、建造成本，以及營運成本落點，都會有相當高的精準度。我們對這些已有一些概念，但我現在就開始談論會太早。

But, given the concentrations that we have of the lithium ion relative to a lot of these other brine projects, we kind of got a head start really when it comes down to it. So, we feel good about the initial volumes coming out of the project in a couple of years, 5,000 tons LCE.

不過，考量到我們的鋰離子濃度相較於許多其他鹵水專案更高，嚴格來說我們在起步上就有些領先。因此，我們對於該專案在幾年後產出初期量感到樂觀，約5,000噸LCE（碳酸鋰當量）。

We continue to work very closely with our partners on assisting them from the footprint of their operations, testing with permitting, getting through the regulatory hurdles, et cetera, all of which is actually going pretty well. So I think the big milestone, again, is FEL-3, and once that's done, that's when we'll be prepared to talk to the market about more precision around timing, cost to build and cash operating and full operating costs. So hopefully, that's incrementally helpful, Lucas.

我們持續與合作夥伴非常緊密地合作，從其營運場址範圍、測試與許可申請、到通過監管障礙等各方面提供協助，而這些其實進展得相當順利。所以我認為最大的里程碑仍是FEL-3；一旦完成，我們就會準備好向市場更精準地說明時程、建造成本，以及現金營運成本與完整營運成本。希望這能對你有些幫助，Lucas。

That's great. And then maybe just one on sort of the cost side. So I just wanted to sort of understand how you're seeing sort of any cost pressures flowing through the business from the inflationary environment that we're in right now. Just is that sort of impacting either potash or Trio? And I guess how would you sort of see that evolving as the year progresses?

很好。那再問一個關於成本端的問題。我想了解在目前的通膨環境下，你們看到有哪些成本壓力正在傳導到業務中。這是否影響到鉀肥（potash）或Trio？以及你們如何看待它在今年進程中的演變？

And then just lastly, is there any, I mean, I think there's a small residual of the, there's some small residual impacts left, I guess, even after the South Ranch sale. So I just kind of wanted to understand, are there any kind of [Australian] costs associated with that or just anything we should think about there going forward as well? Thank you.

最後，我想問的是，我認為即使在出售South Ranch之後，仍可能留有一些小幅的殘餘影響。所以我想了解，是否還有任何與此相關的（澳洲）成本，或是未來我們還需要留意的事項？謝謝。

Maybe hitting the last part of your question first, to the extent I understood it properly, we had an oil field services segment when we had South Ranch. We'll still have some oil field services activity, but that'll get subsumed into the other segment and we'll discontinue the oil field services segment.

我先回答你問題的最後一部分；如果我理解正確的話，我們在擁有South Ranch時有一個油田服務（oil field services）部門。我們仍會保留一些油田服務活動，但會併入其他部門中，並且我們將停止單獨揭露油田服務部門。

And in terms of kind of cleanup post-deal. I'm looking at Cris to see if I'm going to get this right, but I think it's pretty clean and you're not going to see any sort of tail effects permeating through the P&L and the balance sheet after the sale was concluded. Did I do okay there, Cris?

至於交易完成後的收尾事項。我看一下Cris，確認我是否說得對，但我認為整體相當乾淨；在出售完成後，你不會看到任何尾端影響滲透到損益表（P&L）或資產負債表上。我這樣說可以嗎，Cris？

You did. There are very minimal costs left behind that will be absorbed into the other parts of the business.

可以。留下的成本非常少，會由業務的其他部分吸收。

And then I'll take a shot at the sort of the cost question, Lucas. I mean, yeah, I mean, we're seeing that kind of all over the place. It's not like radical or anything, but fuel clearly is the biggest nemesis and it's highly volatile. It's bouncing all over the place.

接著我來回答成本問題，Lucas。是的，我們確實在各方面都看到一些影響。不算劇烈或什麼，但燃料顯然是最大的對手，而且波動性很高。價格上下起伏很大。

We have some natural gas exposure overtime, that's actually been pretty well, kind of given the natural gas debt. Winter always pretends for a potential spike. But beyond that, we're not seeing anything that I would characterize as material unless Rick has information to the contrary.

我們在一段時間內也有一些天然氣曝險；考量到天然氣的走勢，整體其實還不錯。冬季總是可能出現一波飆升。但除此之外，除非Rick有不同資訊，否則我們沒有看到我會形容為重大的事項。

No, I agree with Kevin. I think one of the things that's probably important to call out is why we do see the fluctuations in fuel. If you look at the nature of our mining processes, we're probably not as impacted or exposed to those fuel fluctuations as traditional surfaces of underground miners.

不，我同意Kevin。我認為可能需要特別指出的一點是，雖然我們確實看到燃料波動，但如果你看我們採礦流程的特性，相較於傳統露天或地下礦商，我們受到燃料波動的影響或曝險可能沒那麼大。

Our solution mining process does insulate us a bit from that.

我們的溶液採礦（solution mining）流程在某種程度上確實能讓我們免受其影響。

Thanks very much.

非常感謝。

Vincent Andrews, Morgan Stanley.

摩根士丹利（Morgan Stanley）的Vincent Andrews。

Hi, and thank you for all the color on that wide slew of questions there. We really appreciate it. I just wanted to -- oh, and this is Justin Pellegrino, one for Vincent. I just wanted to double-click on some of those, first being well understood on the capital allocation priorities. In the meantime, should we expect that the cash kind of generates some interest income on your P&L?

嗨，謝謝你們就那一大串問題提供了這麼多細節。我們非常感激。我想再——喔，這裡是Justin Pellegrino，代Vincent提問。我想針對其中幾點再深入確認一下，首先是資本配置優先順序我們已經很清楚了。同時，我們是否應預期你們的現金在損益表（P&L）上會產生一些利息收入？

Yes. Yes, it will. Those cash balances are placed in very safe federal types of securities. So, yeah, you will see some interest income start to leak through the P&L as we move ahead. We built up a pretty hefty balance. I know we've reported as of the end of the first quarter, but clearly the incremental $62 million for the Ranch transaction came in after the end of the quarter, and we've built some additional cash too. So I think current cash balance stands on the order of $170 million or so. So definitely you'll start to see some interest flow through.

是的。是的，會的。那些現金餘額被配置在非常安全的聯邦類型證券中。所以，沒錯，隨著我們往前推進，你會看到一些利息收入開始透過損益表（P&L）反映出來。我們累積了一筆相當可觀的餘額。我知道我們已經在第一季末時對外報告過，但很明顯，用於 Ranch 交易的新增 6,200 萬美元是在季末之後才進來的，而且我們也又累積了一些額外現金。所以我認為目前的現金餘額大約在 1.7 億美元左右。所以你肯定會開始看到一些利息流入反映出來。

Okay. Perfect. Thank you. And then one more on COGS for the rest of the year. Can you just kind of give us some cadence for COGS per ton in potash throughout the balance of the year? I know the press release kind of mentioned some higher cost mix in production towards higher cost sites. So can you just kind of give us some cadence for the balance of the year? Thank you.

好的。完美。謝謝。然後還有一個關於今年剩餘期間銷貨成本（COGS）的问题。你能否大致給我們一些今年剩餘期間鉀肥每噸 COGS 的節奏/走勢？我知道新聞稿有提到生產組合中較高成本的部分會提高，會偏向較高成本的場址。所以你能否大致給我們一些今年剩餘期間的節奏？謝謝。

Justin, typically our COGS will fluctuate throughout the year, especially in our solar sites, largely due to production volumes. So we're actually finishing up our harvest season here within the next few weeks, and each of the sites will go into their summer shutdown. So that does have an impact on the COGS that we will report for the next two quarters, or we anticipate to see that.

Justin，一般來說，我們的銷貨成本（COGS）會在一年中波動，尤其是在我們的日曬鹽田（solar）場址，主要是因為產量。所以我們其實在接下來幾週內就會結束收成季，而各個場址將進入夏季停工。因此，這確實會影響我們接下來兩個季度所報告的 COGS，我們也預期會看到這樣的影響。

But once we get latter in the year, I mean, we do expect to see some of those operational efficiencies that we've talked about starting to realize in both production and costs. So I think especially in the latter half of the year, we'll start to see those materialize.

但到了今年後段，我的意思是，我們確實預期會看到我們談過的一些營運效率開始在產量與成本兩方面逐步實現。所以我認為，尤其是在下半年，我們會開始看到這些效益具體化。

Great. Thank you. That's all the questions I had.

很好。謝謝。我就這些問題。

Jason Ursaner, Bumbershoot Holding.

Jason Ursaner，Bumbershoot Holding。

Good afternoon. Thanks for taking my questions. Congrats on the quarter and the sale of oilfield. I think, I've asked you about capital allocation pretty much every quarter since you joined Kevin. I appreciate the answers to Lucas. I'm not going to hammer too much on it. But just the last questioner, you said that the cash balance as of the end of April is around $170 million.

下午好。謝謝回答我的問題。恭喜本季表現以及油田資產的出售。我想，自從你加入以來，Kevin，我幾乎每一季都會問你資本配置的問題。我很感謝你對 Lucas 的回答。我不會在這點上一直追問。不過，上一位提問者你提到截至四月底的現金餘額大約是 1.7 億美元。

Yeah, plus or minus.

對，上下浮動一些。

Correct. I guess, what was the rationale why we didn't include it in the press release for this quarter to kind of let algorithms and whatever pick up on that, just given we've included it pretty much every quarter? Kind of that month-end cash balance the last year or two?

了解。我想問的是，為什麼我們這一季的新聞稿沒有把這個數字放進去，讓演算法之類的可以捕捉到，畢竟過去幾乎每一季我們都會披露？就是過去一兩年那種月末現金餘額？

Yeah, look, that's a fair question. I mean, obviously, the press release pertains to the first quarter, and the deal on the Ranch didn't close until the day after the first quarter. So technically, we took the view that we're going to just discuss everything inside the first quarter. Perhaps it would have made sense to address cash on hand and liquidity more poignantly actually in the press release, but we weren't trying to hide from it. It was just focused on the quarter.

是的，你看，這是個合理的問題。我的意思是，很明顯新聞稿是針對第一季，而 Ranch 的交易是在第一季結束後的隔天才完成交割。所以嚴格來說，我們的看法是只討論第一季範圍內的所有事項。或許在新聞稿中更直接地說明手上現金與流動性會更合理，但我們並不是想隱瞞。只是聚焦在該季度。

Okay. And just any update on kind of the XTO, Exxon permitting processing, update on where the BLM stands with that?

好的。另外，關於 XTO、Exxon 的許可/審批流程，有沒有任何更新？BLM 那邊目前進度如何？

I'm sorry, we actually don't have any like information that's useful. We see kind of what's going on in that part of the world where we operate. It's super busy, lots of activity, but we don't have any insights as to Exxon's near-term plans. I mean, we continue to be bullish on, their big eddy development process and it's going to come. We just don't know exactly when.

抱歉，我們目前其實沒有任何有用的資訊。我們能看到我們營運所在那一帶正在發生的情況。那裡非常忙碌、活動很多，但我們對 Exxon 的短期計畫沒有任何洞見。我的意思是，我們仍然看好他們的大型 Big Eddy 開發流程，而且它終究會來。只是我們不確定確切時間。

Okay. I think that's it for me, then. I appreciate all the color that you gave on the capital allocation side.

好的。那我就到這裡。我很感謝你在資本配置方面提供的所有說明。

Yeah. Thank you, Jason.

好的。謝謝你，Jason。

(Operator Instructions) At this time, there are no further questions. I would like to turn the conference back over to Kevin Crutchfield for any closing remarks.

(接線員指示) 目前沒有其他問題。我想把電話會議交回給 Kevin Crutchfield，請他做結語。

I'd like to give one final thank you today before we conclude to our team here in Denver, our teams in Utah and New Mexico for their hard work and dedication over the last quarter and, frankly, the last couple of years. And also those of you who attended the call today, thank you for patching in, and we look forward to keeping you posted in the future. Thank you, everybody. Have a great day.

在結束之前，我想做最後一次致謝：感謝我們丹佛的團隊、猶他州與新墨西哥州的團隊，在過去一季、坦白說在過去幾年裡的辛勤工作與投入。也感謝今天參與電話會議的各位，謝謝你們撥入，我們也期待未來持續向各位更新。謝謝大家。祝各位有美好的一天。

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

今天的電話會議到此結束。感謝各位參與，祝各位有愉快的一天。您現在可以掛斷電話。