VANCOUVER, British Columbia, April 30, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Except where otherwise noted, all currency amounts are stated in United States dollars.
Financial and Production Highlights
- Net income attributable to Methanex shareholders of $111 million and Adjusted EBITDA of $248 million in the first quarter. Our average realized price in the first quarter was $404 per tonne compared to $370 per tonne in the fourth quarter of 2024.
- Production in the first quarter was 1,619,000 tonnes compared to 1,868,000 tonnes in the fourth quarter of 2024. The lower production in the first quarter was due to a planned turnaround at Geismar 2 and an unplanned outage at Geismar 3, which was somewhat offset by higher production from Chile. Repairs to Geismar 3 are on schedule, with production expected by early May 2025.
- The acquisition of OCI Global's international methanol business ("OCI Acquisition"), including OCI's interest in two world class methanol facilities in Beaumont, Texas, is expected to close later in the second quarter of 2025.
- In the first quarter, $12.5 million was returned to shareholders through regular dividends. We ended the first quarter with $1,087 million in cash or $1,031 million excluding non-controlling interest portion of $62 million but including our share of cash held by the Atlas joint venture of $6 million.
VANCOUVER, BRITISH COLUMBIA - For the first quarter of 2025, Methanex (TSX:MX) (NASDAQ: MEOH) reported net income attributable to Methanex shareholders of $111 million ($1.44 net income per common share on a diluted basis) compared to net income of $45 million ($0.67 net income per common share on a diluted basis) in the fourth quarter of 2024. Adjusted EBITDA for the first quarter of 2025 was $248 million and Adjusted net income was $88 million ($1.30 Adjusted net income per common share). This compares with Adjusted EBITDA of $224 million and Adjusted net income of $84 million ($1.24 Adjusted net income per common share) for the fourth quarter of 2024.
Rich Sumner, President & CEO of Methanex, said, "We delivered a solid quarter of earnings and cash flows during the first quarter of 2025. At the start of the second quarter, we have seen methanol pricing moderate with increased supply from restarts of several large-scale methanol plants as well as a decline in global energy pricing with increased uncertainty and concerns about potential tariffs and their effect on global economic activity. We are closely monitoring the macro-economic environment and are proactively managing the business. Our priorities are the safe restart of Geismar 3, the reliable and cost efficient operation of our assets and supply chain, and effectively integrating the OCI assets post closing."
FURTHER INFORMATION
The information set forth in this news release summarizes Methanex's key financial and operational data for the first quarter of 2025. It is not a complete source of information for readers and is not in any way a substitute for reading the first quarter 2025 Management’s Discussion and Analysis ("MD&A") dated April 30, 2025 and the unaudited condensed consolidated interim financial statements for the period ended March 31, 2025, both of which are available from the Investor Relations section of our website at www.methanex.com. The MD&A and the unaudited condensed consolidated interim financial statements for the period ended March 31, 2025 are also available on the Canadian Securities Administrators' SEDAR+ website at www.sedarplus.ca and on the United States Securities and Exchange Commission's EDGAR website at www.sec.gov.
FINANCIAL AND OPERATIONAL DATA
| Three Months Ended | |||
| ($ millions except per share amounts and where noted) | Mar 31 2025 | Dec 31 2024 | Mar 31 2024 |
| Production (thousands of tonnes) (attributable to Methanex shareholders) 1 | 1,619 | 1,868 | 1,721 |
| Sales volume (thousands of tonnes) | |||
| Methanex-produced methanol | 1,703 | 1,455 | 1,681 |
| Purchased methanol | 382 | 911 | 807 |
| Commission sales | 132 | 198 | 182 |
| Total sales volume | 2,217 | 2,564 | 2,670 |
| Methanex average non-discounted posted price ($ per tonne) 2 | 639 | 547 | 471 |
| Average realized price ($ per tonne) 3 | 404 | 370 | 343 |
| Revenue | 896 | 949 | 916 |
| Net income (attributable to Methanex shareholders) | 111 | 45 | 53 |
| Adjusted net income 4 | 88 | 84 | 44 |
| Adjusted EBITDA 4 | 248 | 224 | 160 |
| Cash flows from operating activities | 315 | 281 | 91 |
| Basic net income per common share | 1.65 | 0.67 | 0.78 |
| Diluted net income per common share | 1.44 | 0.67 | 0.77 |
| Adjusted net income per common share 4 | 1.30 | 1.24 | 0.65 |
| Common share information (millions of shares) | |||
| Weighted average number of common shares | 67 | 67 | 67 |
| Diluted weighted average number of common shares | 68 | 67 | 68 |
| Number of common shares outstanding, end of period | 67 | 67 | 67 |
| 1 Methanex-produced methanol represents our equity share of volume produced at our facilities and excludes volume marketed on a commission basis related to the 36.9% of the Atlas facility and 50% of the Egypt facility that we do not own. | |||
| 2 Methanex average non-discounted posted price represents the average of our non-discounted posted prices in North America, Europe, China and Asia Pacific weighted by sales volume. Current and historical pricing information is available at www.methanex.com. | |||
| 3 The Company has used Average realized price ("ARP") throughout this document. ARP is calculated as revenue divided by the total sales volume. It is used by management to assess the realized price per unit of methanol sold, and is relevant in a cyclical commodity environment where revenue can fluctuate in response to market prices. | |||
| 4 Note that Adjusted net income, Adjusted net income per common share, and Adjusted EBITDA are non-GAAP measures and ratios that do not have any standardized meaning prescribed by GAAP and therefore are unlikely to be comparable to similar measures presented by other companies. Refer to the Additional Information - Non-GAAP Measures section on page 13 of our first quarter MD&A dated April 30, 2025 for a description of each non-GAAP measure. | |||
- A reconciliation from net income attributable to Methanex shareholders to Adjusted EBITDA, Adjusted net income and the calculation of Adjusted net income per common share is as follows:
| Three Months Ended | |||||||||
| ($ millions) | Mar 31 2025 | Dec 31 2024 | Mar 31 2024 | ||||||
| Net income attributable to Methanex shareholders | $ | 111 | $ | 45 | $ | 53 | |||
| Mark-to-market impact of share-based compensation | (32 | ) | 22 | (10 | ) | ||||
| Depreciation and amortization | 106 | 91 | 95 | ||||||
| Finance costs | 51 | 49 | 28 | ||||||
| Finance income and other expenses | (4 | ) | 37 | (3 | ) | ||||
| Income tax expense | 36 | 9 | 6 | ||||||
| Earnings of associate adjustment | 2 | 3 | 9 | ||||||
| Non-controlling interests adjustment | (22 | ) | (32 | ) | (18 | ) | |||
| Adjusted EBITDA | $ | 248 | $ | 224 | $ | 160 | |||
| Three Months Ended | |||||||||
| ($ millions except number of shares and per share amounts) | Mar 31 2025 | Dec 31 2024 | Mar 31 2024 | ||||||
| Net income attributable to Methanex shareholders | $ | 111 | $ | 45 | $ | 53 | |||
| Mark-to-market impact of share-based compensation, net of tax | (26 | ) | 19 | (9 | ) | ||||
| Impact of Egypt and New Zealand gas contract revaluation, net of tax | 3 | 20 | — | ||||||
| Adjusted net income 1 | $ | 88 | $ | 84 | $ | 44 | |||
| Diluted weighted average shares outstanding (millions) | 68 | 67 | 68 | ||||||
| Adjusted net income per common share 1 | $ | 1.30 | $ | 1.24 | $ | 0.65 | |||
- We recorded net income attributable to Methanex shareholders of $111 million in the first quarter of 2025 compared to net income of $45 million in the fourth quarter of 2024. Net income in the first quarter of 2025 was higher compared to the prior quarter primarily due to a higher average realized price, higher sales of produced product, and a recovery on mark-to-market adjustments of share-based compensation, offset by lower New Zealand gas sale net proceeds and higher finance costs.
- We sold 2,217,000 tonnes in the first quarter of 2025 compared to 2,564,000 tonnes in the fourth quarter of 2024. Sales of Methanex-produced methanol were 1,703,000 tonnes in the first quarter of 2025 compared to 1,455,000 tonnes in the fourth quarter of 2024.
- Production for the first quarter of 2025 was 1,619,000 tonnes compared to 1,868,000 tonnes for the fourth quarter of 2024. Production was lower in the first quarter of 2025 compared to the fourth quarter of 2024 mainly due to a planned turnaround at Geismar 2 and an unplanned outage at Geismar 3, which was somewhat offset by higher production from Chile.
- In the first quarter of 2025 we paid a quarterly dividend of $0.185 per common share for a total of $12.5 million.
- At March 31, 2025, we had a strong liquidity position including a cash balance of $1,087 million, or $1,031 million excluding non-controlling interests and including our share of cash in the Atlas joint venture. We expect to complete the acquisition of OCI Global's international methanol business ("OCI Acquisition") in the second quarter and to draw on the $650 million Term Loan A that will be available on closing. Upon closing, our existing revolving credit facility will also increase from $500 million to $600 million. Our facilities have been structured to allow the flexible repayment of the term loan commitment to support our capital allocation priority to de-lever.
PRODUCTION HIGHLIGHTS
| Q1 2025 | Q4 2024 | Q1 2024 | ||
| (thousands of tonnes) | Operating Capacity 1 | Production | Production | Production |
| USA (Geismar) | 1,000 | 617 | 839 | 571 |
| Chile | 425 | 429 | 387 | 391 |
| Trinidad (Methanex interest) 2 | 215 | 137 | 205 | 258 |
| New Zealand 3 | 215 | 160 | 143 | 277 |
| Egypt (50% interest) | 158 | 136 | 155 | 83 |
| Canada (Medicine Hat) | 140 | 140 | 139 | 141 |
| 2,153 | 1,619 | 1,868 | 1,721 | |
| 1 The operating capacity of our production facilities may be higher or lower than original nameplate capacity as, over time, these figures have been adjusted to reflect ongoing operating efficiencies at these facilities. Actual production for a facility in any given year may be higher or lower than operating capacity due to a number of factors, including natural gas availability, feedstock composition, the age of the facility's catalyst, turnarounds and access to CO2 from external suppliers for certain facilities. We review and update the operating capacity of our production facilities on a regular basis based on historical performance. | ||||
| 2 The operating capacity of Trinidad consists of the Titan facility (100% interest). The Atlas facility (63.1% interest) is excluded as it is currently idle. Refer to the Trinidad section below. | ||||
| 3 The operating capacity of New Zealand consists of one Motunui facility, with the other excluded as it is currently idle. Refer to the New Zealand section below. | ||||
Key production and operational highlights during the first quarter include:
United States
Geismar produced 617,000 tonnes in the first quarter of 2025 compared to 839,000 tonnes in the fourth quarter of 2024. Production was lower in the first quarter due to a planned turnaround at Geismar 2 ("G2") in the first quarter and an unplanned outage at Geismar 3 ("G3") in late February. Upon completing various plant inspections, management decided to complete repairs to the autothermal reformer and bring forward the completion of other planned maintenance work on G3 which was part of a previously budgeted three-week outage. G2 successfully restarted in March and G3 is expected to resume production by early May.
Chile
Chile produced 429,000 tonnes in the first quarter of 2025 compared to 387,000 tonnes in the fourth quarter of 2024. Production was higher due to better reliability driven by the removal of a technical production constraint. We have gas contracts in place with Chilean and Argentinean gas producers until 2030 and 2027, respectively, which underpin approximately 55% of the site's gas requirements year round. We continue to expect seasonality in production but generally see positive developments on gas availability.
Trinidad
In Trinidad, the Titan plant produced 137,000 tonnes in the first quarter of 2025 compared to the 205,000 tonnes in the fourth quarter of 2024. Production was lower in the first quarter compared to the fourth quarter due to an unplanned outage that has been resolved.
New Zealand
New Zealand produced 160,000 tonnes in the first quarter of 2025 compared to 143,000 tonnes in the fourth quarter of 2024. Production in the first quarter was higher compared to the fourth quarter with Motunui II operating for the full quarter in the first quarter of 2025, whereas the site was fully shut until October 31, 2024 in order to on-sell gas. Commercial arrangements are in place to on-sell a portion of contracted natural gas to support the energy sector until September. Future production will be dependent on gas availability and hydro inflows impacting the level of support required to meet New Zealand's energy needs. We are in continuing discussions with our gas suppliers to ensure our contractual entitlements, which are in place until 2029, are being respected as well as engaging with our gas suppliers and government agencies in supporting efforts to improve energy balances in the country.
Egypt
Egypt produced 272,000 tonnes (Methanex interest - 136,000 tonnes) in the first quarter of 2025 compared to 310,000 tonnes (Methanex interest - 155,000 tonnes) in the fourth quarter of 2024. Production was lower compared to the fourth quarter as operating rates were impacted by gas availability. Gas availability in Egypt is influenced by several factors, including domestic production levels, and seasonal demand fluctuations. We are monitoring the gas market closely and would expect to experience some curtailments in 2025, particularly in the summer months, depending on gas supply and demand dynamics.
Canada
Medicine Hat produced 140,000 tonnes in the first quarter of 2025 compared to 139,000 tonnes in the fourth quarter of 2024.
Outlook
We expect our 2025 production to be lower than our previously guided 7.5 million tonnes (Methanex interest) primarily due to the unplanned G3 outage. Updated 2025 production guidance will be provided with the second quarter 2025 earnings release. Actual production may vary by quarter based on gas availability, turnarounds, unplanned outages and unanticipated events.
In the second quarter of 2025, we expect lower Adjusted EBITDA compared to the first quarter, with lower produced sales due primarily to the outage at G3, and a lower average realized price. Based on our April and May posted prices we expect that our average realized price range will be between approximately $360 to $370 per tonne for these two months.
CONFERENCE CALL
A conference call is scheduled for May 1, 2025 at 11:00 am ET (8:00 am PT) to review these first quarter results. To access the call, dial the conferencing operator fifteen minutes prior to the start of the call at (647) 932-3411, or toll free at (800) 715-9871. The conference ID for the call is #2019292. A simultaneous audio-only webcast of the conference call can be accessed from our website at www.methanex.com/investor-relations/events and will also be available following the call.
ABOUT METHANEX
Methanex is a Vancouver-based, publicly traded company and is the world’s largest producer and supplier of methanol to customers globally. Methanex shares are listed for trading on the Toronto Stock Exchange in Canada under the trading symbol "MX" and on the NASDAQ Global Market in the United States under the trading symbol "MEOH".
FORWARD-LOOKING INFORMATION WARNING
This first quarter 2025 press release contains forward-looking statements with respect to us and the chemical industry. By its nature, forward-looking information is subject to numerous risks and uncertainties, some of which are beyond the Company's control. Readers are cautioned that undue reliance should not be placed on forward-looking information as actual results may vary materially from the forward-looking information. Methanex does not undertake to update, correct or revise any forward-looking information as a result of any new information, future events or otherwise, except as may be required by applicable law. Refer to Forward-Looking Information Warning in the first quarter 2025 Management's Discussion and Analysis for more information which is available from the Investor Relations section of our website at www.methanex.com, the Canadian Securities Administrators' SEDAR+ website at www.sedarplus.ca and on the United States Securities and Exchange Commission's EDGAR website at www.sec.gov.
NON-GAAP MEASURES
Throughout this document, the Company has used the terms Adjusted EBITDA, Adjusted net income, and Adjusted net income per common share. These items are non-GAAP measures and ratios that do not have any standardized meaning prescribed by GAAP. These measures represent the amounts that are attributable to Methanex Corporation shareholders and are calculated by excluding the mark-to-market impact of share-based compensation as a result of changes in our share price, the impact of the Egypt and New Zealand gas contract revaluation and the impact of certain items associated with specific identified events. Refer to Additional Information - Non-GAAP Measures on page 13 of the Company's MD&A for the period ended March 31, 2025 for reconciliations to the most comparable GAAP measures. Unless otherwise indicated, the financial information presented in this release is prepared in accordance with International Financial Reporting Standards ("IFRS") as issued by the International Accounting Standards Board ("IASB").
For further information, contact:
Sarah Herriott
Director, Investor Relations
Methanex Corporation
604-661-2600
