Century Aluminum posts a 203% jump in Q3 Adjusted EBITDA driven by rising aluminium shipments and LME prices

Century Aluminum Company, a US-based producer of primary aluminium, announced its third-quarter 2024 results, revealing net sales of $539.1 million. That was down by 3.9 per cent sequentially from $560.8 million, attributed to decreased third-party alumina sales but partially offset by increased aluminium shipments, higher aluminium prices on LME, and value-added product premiums.

Image Source: Century Aluminum Company

Century reported that its Q3 2024 shipments were 168,755 tonnes, up by 847 tonnes from 167,908 tonnes in Q2 2024.

In contrast to declining net sales, net income attributable to Century stakeholders surged Q-o-Q from $2.5 million to $47.3 million. The company’s adjusted earnings per share also soared from $0.01 in Q2 2024 to $0.63 in Q3 2024, driven by the recognition of year-to-date 2024 Inflation Reduction Act Advanced Manufacturing credits of $34.9 million and higher LME aluminium price realisation of $31.0 million.

Adjusted EBITDA during the September quarter was $103.7 million, marking a sequential leap of 203 per cent from $34.2 million. Century’s liquidity position as of September 30, 2024, was $278.9 million, comprised of cash and cash equivalents of $32.6 million and $246.3 million.

Commenting on Q3 results, Century’s President and CEO Jesse Gary said: “Strong global demand, continued supply-side challenges and supportive macroeconomic policy in China and the West led to rising aluminium and alumina prices in the third quarter. With bauxite and alumina supply chains facing a number of challenges around the world, we are thrilled to have our own strategic supply of bauxite and alumina from our Jamalco operations following the acquisition last year.”

He added, “We were very pleased with the final Section 45X rules issued earlier this month that increase the amount of production tax credit we will receive and further bolsters the competitiveness of our U.S. operations. When combined with the benefits of our Jamalco acquisition and growing demand for aluminium around the world, we believe Century is well positioned to offer our customers a unique value proposition and superior returns for our shareholders.”

For Q4, Century expects Adjusted EBITDA to fall slightly between $70-80 million, driven by anticipated lower LME prices.