OREANDA-NEWS. Sociedad Química y Minera de Chile S.A. (SQM) (NYSE: SQM; Santiago Stock Exchange: SQM-B, SQM-A) reported today earnings for the nine months ended September 30, 2015 of US$168.6 million (US$0.64 per ADR), a decrease from US$218.4 million (US$0.83 per ADR) for the nine months ended September 30, 2014, impacted by the write-off related to stopping the operation of the mines in Pedro de Valdivia. Gross margin(3) reached US$424.8 million (32.3% of revenues) for the nine months ended September 30, 2015, lower than US$442.6 million (29.1% of revenues) recorded for the nine months ended September 30, 2014. Revenues totaled US$1,317.0 million for the nine months ended September 30, 2015, representing a decrease of 13.5% compared to US$1,522.8 million reported for the nine months ended September 30, 2014.

The Company also announced earnings for the third quarter of 2015, reporting net income of US$13.7 million (US$0.05 per ADR) compared to US$66.3 million (US$0.25 per ADR) for the third quarter of 2014. This comparison is affected by the write-off related to stopping the operations of the mines in Pedro de Valdivia, which had a one-time, before-tax effect of US$56.3 million on net income. Gross margin for the third quarter of 2015 reached US$129.5 million, lower than the US$142.4 million recorded for the third quarter of 2014. Revenues totaled US$445.2 million, a decrease of approximately 4.5% compared to the third quarter of 2014, when revenues amounted to US$466.4 million.

SQM’s Chief Executive Officer, Patricio de Solminihac, stated, “The greatest impact on our results during the third quarter was the restructuring of our operating facilities. As announced in September, we are stopping the mining and nitrate operations and reducing our iodine production in Pedro de Valdivia. The decision surrounding the changes is necessary given the current production capabilities of the Company, and will enable us to take advantage of our highly efficient production facilities at our Nueva Victoria site.”

“A highlight of the first nine months of this year is the success of our ongoing cost cutting efforts. Our EBITDA margin for this period was over 42%, compared to 37% seen during the same period last year. These strong margins come despite lower prices in the potash and iodine markets.”

“We expect that total world potash demand will be at least 10% lower in 2015. As a result of this lower demand, we saw prices in this market decrease in the third quarter, over 13% when compared to the third quarter of last year. While we have had lower sales volumes this year, we look forward to increasing our sales volumes in 2016. In the lithium market, we continue to lead the world as a low cost producer. To complement this position, we also saw prices reach US$5,700 during the first nine months of 2015, which had a positive impact on our results.”

About SQM

SQM is an integrated producer and distributor of specialty plant nutrients, iodine, lithium, potassium-related fertilizers and industrial chemicals. Its products are based on the development of high quality natural resources that allow the Company to be a leader in costs, supported by a specialized international network with sales in over 110 countries. SQM’s development strategy aims to maintain and strengthen the Company’s position in each of its businesses.

The leadership strategy is based on the Company’s competitive advantages and on the sustainable growth of the different markets in which it participates. SQM’s main competitive advantages in its different businesses include:

 Low production costs based on vast and high quality natural resources;
 Know-how and its own technological developments in its various production processes;
 Logistics infrastructure and high production levels that allow SQM to have low distribution costs;
 High market share in all its core products;
 International sales network with offices in 20 countries and sales in over 110 countries;
 Synergies from the production of multiple products that are obtained from the same two natural resources;
 Continuous new product development according to the specific needs of its different customers;
 Conservative and solid financial position.