Iofina plc Unveils 90% Quarterly Production Increase

Iofina plc (LON: IOF) focused on a daily basis on achieving consistent production.

Mark Stones

Mark Stones (TMFMumbojumbones) joined The Motley Fool in 2014 and initially worked as a writer for Fool.co.uk, before joining the Fool’s analyst programme. Mark earned a BA in English from Loughborough University. Although he spends more time reading annual reports than Russian literature these days, he still appreciates a novelist’s antipathy toward the accepted view, which is a useful attitude when trying to sniff out hidden gems on the stock market. His approach to investing has been largely influenced by the principles of Warren Buffett and Peter Lynch. He also takes a special interest in the work of healthcare companies. Outside of investing, Mark plays guitar, enjoys good writing and has a guilty passion for combat sports.

Published 9 July, 2014 11:08 am BST

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Iofina (LSE: IOF), the iodine and natural gas producer, saw a 98% increase in quarterly production in the second quarter. The company reported that it produced 92.9 metric tons (mt) of crystalised iodine, compared with 47mt for the first quarter. This resulted in a net profit for the period.

While production for the month of June was lower due to weather related issues that caused power outages, there was a strong uptick at the end of the month. The group is completely vertically integrated from the production of iodine, which eliminates the need to purchase raw iodine on the open market.

The group’s non-executive chairman, Lance Baller, comented:

“We continue to have strong interest in long term supply agreements with multiple Iodine customers. These agreements would allow the Company a built in hedging mechanism from price volatility. The Company had near record sales again for the month which demonstrates good demand for our products.”

Iodine has medical uses, such as disinfecting skin before surgery, and can be used to treat some types of thyroid cancer. The chemical is normally expensive to produce, but Iofina has patented a low cost technology to extract iodine from chemical waste water. Iofina has six extraction plants in the US.