Algoma Steel Group Inc.

Greetings. Welcome to the Algoma Steel Group Inc. second quarter 2026 earnings call. At this time, all participants are in a listen-only mode. A question-and-answer session will follow the formal presentation. If anyone should require operator assistance during the conference, please press star zero on your telephone keypad. Please note this conference is being recorded. I will now turn the conference over to Laura Devoni, Vice President of Human Resources and Corporate Affairs. Thank you, Laura. You may begin.

Good morning, everyone, and welcome to Algoma Steel Group Inc. Second Quarter 2026 Earnings Conference Call. My name is Laura Devoni, Vice President of Human Resources and Corporate Affairs, and I will be moderating today's call. Leading the prepared remarks are Rajat Marwah, our Chief Executive Officer, and Mike Moraca, our Chief Financial Officer. As a reminder, this call is being recorded and will be made available for replay later today in the investor section of Algoma Steel's corporate website at www.algoma.com. I would like to remind you that comments made on today's call may contain forward-looking statements within the meaning of applicable securities laws, which involve assumptions and inherent risks and uncertainties. Actual results may differ materially from statements made today. In addition, our financial statements are prepared in accordance with IFRS, which differs from US GAAP, and our discussion today includes reference to certain non-IFRS financial measures. Last evening, we posted an earnings presentation to accompany today's prepared remarks. The slides for today's call can be found in the Investors section of our corporate website. With that in mind, I would ask everyone on today's call to read the legal disclaimers on slide two of the accompanying earnings presentation and to also refer to the risks and assumptions outlined in Algoma Steel's second quarter 2026 management's discussion and analysis. Please note that our financial statements are prepared using the US dollar as our functional currency and the Canadian dollar as our presentation currency. Please also note that amounts referred to on today's call are in Canadian dollars unless otherwise noted. Following our prepared remarks, we will conduct a question and answer session. I will now turn the call over to our Chief Executive Officer, Rajat.

Thank you, Laura, and good morning, everyone. Thank you for joining us to discuss our second quarter 2026 results. As always, I want to begin with safety. The pace of activity on our site remains extraordinary, with our first EAF unit running around the clock, construction on our second unit nearing completion, and commissioning activities commencing. Just as important to us as every milestone in this transformation is sending every employee home safely every day. I'm proud of the discipline our teams continue to demonstrate toward these shared goals. The second quarter demonstrated the resilience of our transformed business against a stubbornly challenging industry backdrop. Before I get into the details, I want to highlight three key themes. First, we generated positive adjusted EBITDA of $13.8 million in line with our previously announced guidance range. That result includes the benefit of a $45 million final insurance settlement and a $54.7 million capacity utilization adjustment, which Mike will walk you through shortly. But the underlining message is clear, as transition costs are falling, realized pricing is rising, and the transition we described to you last quarter is playing out as expected. Second, we delivered a second consecutive quarter of record plate sales, with plate shipments of 125,000 tons in the quarter, up from 116,000 tons in the first quarter. as Canada's only producer of discrete plate, we hold a unique competitive position and demand from infrastructure, construction, and defense and market remain healthy throughout the quarter. Our Volta brand of low carbon steel produced through our EAF platform is delivering the same trusted performance our customers rely on and is made in Canada. Average net sales realization rose to 1,361 per ton up 20% from the prior year quarter, driven by this mix improvement. We expect plate production to continue to increase as our ramp-up progresses through 2026. Third, we are entering the final stage of the most significant transformation in Algoma's history. This quarter was our first full quarter with all liquid steel production sourced entirely from our EF platform. A ramp-up of this scale is inherently complex. We are bringing a new steelmaking platform at rated capacity while retiring more than a century of integrated operation. Our throughput is increasing daily as we work through the equipment learning curves and process stabilization that accompany our transformation of this magnitude. Unit 1 is operating on a full 24-hour schedule and quality metrics have been achieved across a broad range of plate and hot-roll coil grades. Construction on our second EF unit is nearing completion with commissioning and testing of critical equipment underway. We expect first steel production from Unit 2 later this quarter. I would also like to note that we have scheduled operational downtime in the third quarter in connection with operational time of Unit 2 alongside planned maintenance activities at the MEL shop and our power generation plant. As a reminder, once fully transitioned, our facility will have an annual raw steel production capacity of approximately 3.7 million tons and is projected to reduce our annual carbon emission by approximately 70% from pre-EF levels. On the broader market environment, the 50% U.S. Section 232 tariff on steel imports from Canada continues to define the operating landscape. We incurred $18.7 million in direct tariff costs in the quarter, down from the prior quarter, as we continue to reduce volumes shipped to the U.S. The Canadian market remains supply pressured. The coil pricing continues to trade lower than the U.S. benchmark pricing due to domestic oversupply. These conditions reinforce why a pivot to a Canada-centric plate-first strategy is the right response. While tariff remains a structural headwind, The rise in steel pricing is encouraging. On the strategic front, our diversification initiatives continue to advance. Rochelle Algoma Defense, the joint venture we formed in April with Rochelle, a Canadian-owned defense manufacturer, is establishing a Canadian Center of Excellence for Ballistic Steel Production with full-cycle capabilities in fabrication, forming, welding, and machining. This initiative positions Algoma as a strategic pillar of Canada's industrial and defense supply chain. With respect to our previously announced strategic relationship with Hanwha Ocean, the Government of Canada recently selected TKMS as the preferred bidder for the Canadian Petrol Submarine Program. As a result, our binding MOU with Hanwha Ocean has been suspended in accordance with its terms. That said, our strategic rationale for pursuing a structural steel beam will remain unchanged. We continue to engage constructively with governments as we advance to potential development of the project, which we believe has the potential to strengthen Algoma's long-term role in supporting Canada's infrastructure, industrial, and defense priorities. I want to recognize the continued support of the federal and the provincial governments as we complete this transition and build a stronger, more sustainable Canadian steel industry. I will now turn the call over to Mike for a closer look at the financials. Mike?