Q1 2025 Trading Update
Q1 portfolio contribution of $6.0m with cobalt deliveries timing impacting results; Q2 expected to strengthen.
- Portfolio contribution Q1 2025 $6.0m (prior $6.7m)
- Voisey's Bay cobalt received Q1 56 tonnes
- Voisey's Bay cobalt realised price Q1 $13.28/lb
- Mimbula copper stream acquisition $50m
- Net debt at 31 March 2025 $125.9m (prior $82.3m)
- Revolving credit facility total commitments $180m (prior $150m)
Select text to share a quote on X · sign in to keep highlights & notes in your ECOR notes
Ecora Resources PLC (LSE/TSX: ECOR, OTCQX: ECRAF) issues the following trading update for the period 1 January to 31 March 2025.
Marc Bishop Lafleche, Chief Executive Officer of Ecora, commented:
"The Group reported a solid start to the year with a Q1 portfolio contribution of $6.0m. Looking ahead to Q2 we expect volume growth to come through more strongly with mining at Kestrel returning to the Group's private royalty area; an increased number of cobalt deliveries from Voisey's Bay expected to benefit from the current higher price environment; Four Mile royalty contributions resuming; and the first revenue contribution from the Mimbula copper stream."
Highlights:
- Portfolio contribution of $6.0m (Q4 2024: $6.7m) down primarily as a result of the timing of cobalt deliveries from Voisey's Bay
- Voisey's Bay continues to ramp up post-completion of the underground mine expansion project:
o 56 tonnes of cobalt received during Q1 generating $1.3m (Q4 2024: $2.3m) at an average realised price of $13.28/lb
o Further 28 tonnes received to date in Q2 2025 at an average realised price of $18.63/lb;
o 40% increase in realised price of cobalt sold in Q2 to date vs Q1 reflects the increase in cobalt prices since early March following the Government of the Democratic Republic of Congo announcing a cobalt export ban
o FY guidance unchanged at 335-390 tonnes of cobalt attributable to Ecora; expected to be c. 60% weighted to H2 as production from underground mine continues to ramp up
- Mantos Blancos delivered a second consecutive record quarterly portfolio contribution of $1.8m (Q4 2024: $1.7m) following the successful completion of a debottlenecking project in H2 2024
- Acquired a copper stream over the producing Mimbula copper mine for $50m:
o Ecora's initial copper entitlement in Q1 (post transaction) of 75.0 tonnes
o Revenue will be recognised in Q2 when the copper units are received and sold
- EVBC benefited from high gold prices and generated a portfolio contribution of $0.8m (Q4 2024: $0.7m)
- Four Mile portfolio contribution of $0.1m (Q4 2024: nil), not yet reflecting the return to normalised sales volumes during Q1 as revenue reporting lags a quarter
- Kestrel operations remained outside of the Group's private royalty area for the majority of Q1 with the Group's 2025 volumes expected to be weighted to Q2 and Q3
- Agreement reached with Whitehaven Coal under which the Group received $6.2m as an acceleration of all outstanding payments, including contingent and deferred consideration, with respect to the sale of the Narrabri thermal coal royalty
- Increased, amended and extended the Group's revolving credit facility resulting in total commitments increasing by $30m to $180m and the maturity being extended 12 months to end January 2028
- Net debt at 31 March 2025 of $125.9m (31 December 2024: $82.3m)
| Portfolio contribution: | Q1 2025 | Q4 2024 | Q1 2024 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| $m | $m | Q/Q | $m | |
| Base metals | ||||
| Mantos Blancos (copper) | 1.8 | 1.7 | 1.3 | |
| Voisey's Bay (cobalt) | 1.6 | 2.8 | 1.0 | |
| Carlota (copper) | 0.2 | 0.2 | 0.1 | |
| Sub-total | 3.6 | 4.7 | (23%) | 2.4 |
| Speciality metals & uranium | ||||
| McClean Lake (1) (uranium) | 1.2 | 0.8 | 1.1 | |
| Maracás Menchen (vanadium) | 0.4 | 0.7 | 0.7 | |
| Four Mile (uranium) | 0.1 | - | 0.7 | |
| Sub-total | 1.7 | 1.5 | 13% | 2.5 |
| Bulks & other | ||||
| Kestrel (steelmaking coal) | 0.1 | 0.2 | 14.5 | |
| EVBC (2) (gold) | 0.8 | 0.7 | 0.2 | |
| Other | 0.1 | 0.1 | 0.1 | |
| Sub-total | 1.0 | 1.0 | - | 14.8 |
| Less: | ||||
| Metal stream cost of sales (3) | (0.3) | (0.5) | (0.2) | |
| Total portfolio contribution | 6.0 | 6.7 | (10%) | 19.5 |
1In Q1 2025, principal repayment totalled US$0.9m and interest received totalled US$0.3m
2Under IFRS 9, the royalties received from EVBC are reflected in the fair value movement of the underlying royalty rather than recorded as royalty income
3Includes ongoing metal purchase costs under stream agreements
Cleaned text: letterheads, contacts and legal notices removed. View the original announcement ↗ · Company filings. Not investment advice.