Hudbay Minerals Inc.

Good morning, ladies and gentlemen. Thank you for standing by. Welcome to the Hutt Bay Minerals, Inc. Fourth Quarter 2024 Results Conference Call. At this time, all participants are in listen-only mode. Following the presentation, we will conduct a question and answer session. To join the question queue, you may press star then one on your telephone keypad. Should you need assistance during the conference call, you may signal an operator by pressing star then zero. I would like to remind everyone that this conference call is being recorded today February 19, 2025, at 11 a.m. Eastern Time. I will now turn the conference over to Candice Brule, Vice President, Investor Relations. Please go ahead.

Thank you, Operator. Good morning and welcome to HUD-based 2024 Fourth Quarter Results Conference Call. HUD-based financial results were issued this morning and are available on our website at www.hudbay.com. A corresponding PowerPoint presentation is available in the Investor Events section of our website, and we encourage you to refer to it during this call. Our presenter today is Peter Kikilski, HUD-based President and Chief Executive Officer. Accompanying Peter for the Q&A portion of the call will be Eugene Lee, our Chief Financial Officer, and Andre Lauzon, our Chief Operating Officer. Please note that comments made on today's call may contain forward-looking information, and this information by its nature is subject to risks and uncertainties, and as such, actual results may differ materially from the views expressed today. For further information on these risks and uncertainties, please consult the company's relevant filings on CDAR Plus and EDGAR. These documents are also available on our website. As a reminder, all amounts discussed on today's call are in U.S. dollars unless otherwise noted. And now I'll pass the call over to Peter Kakilski.

Thank you, Candice. Good morning, everyone. And thank you for joining us for today's call. I'll start by saying we had another incredible year in 2024. It was a year of execution as we delivered record financial performance and fully transformed our balance sheet. We proudly achieved consolidated production guidance for all metals with gold production significantly exceeding the top end of the guidance range. And we outperformed our twice improved consolidated cash cost guidance, demonstrating industry leading cost performance. These strong operating results enabled us to achieve a record revenues of more than $2 billion and record free cash flow generation of more than $350 million in 2024. This was driven by our enhanced and diversified operating platform where we continue to demonstrate operational excellence and disciplined capital allocation. Our Peru operations delivered steady copper production and better than expected gold production in 2024 as mill throughput continued to exceed design capacity and we took advantage of a recent government initiative to allow mining companies to operate above permitted throughput levels. CompaCuncha also continued to contribute high-grade copper and gold ore. In addition, the team is advancing studies on future opportunities to further increase mill throughput in Peru. Our Manitoba operations achieved record annual gold production, increasing by 14% from 2023 and exceeding the top end of our production guidance range. I am very proud of the team's continuous improvement efforts, which resulted in impressive cost performance that significantly exceeded our expectations. This success was in part due to the contribution from the New Britannia mill, which was refurbished in 2021, and we continue to deliver high returns from this brownfield investment project. Our British Columbia operations have enhanced our operating platform with 2024 being the first full year of having a third operating asset. We continued our stabilization and optimization efforts in 2024, including increasing mining activities, and our focus for 2025 will be on mill optimization initiatives to enhance mill throughputs. As a result of the free cash flow generation from the enhanced business, plus the proceeds from the successful equity offering we completed in May, we have proudly reduced net debt by more than $500 million in 2024. We have transformed our balance sheet to now be in the lowest leverage position of our peers a significant change from one of the highest leveraged positions more than a year ago. We are in the best financial position we have ever been in to prudently deliver our attractive pipeline of growth opportunities. And this is timely as our Copper World project in Arizona has received the final key permits and we are now advancing the project through feasibility studies and a minority joint venture partner process. I'll go into more detail on our recent achievements throughout today's presentation, along with our outlook for 2025 and our plans for advancing many exciting growth initiatives to continue to unlock value for all stakeholders. Turning to slide four, the fourth quarter of 2024 had strong production and operating cost performance across the business. Consolidated copper production was 43,000 tons in the quarter, an increase of 38% compared to the third quarter and in line with quarterly production cadence expectations. Consolidated gold production was 94,000 ounces, which significantly exceeded our expectations for the quarter and increased 6% from the strong levels achieved in the prior quarter. This was primarily due to higher grades in Peru and continued strong gold production in Manitoba. As a result, we achieved our consolidated full year production guidance for all metals and significantly exceeded the top end of our production guidance range for gold. We had another quarter of industry leading cost performance with consolidated cash costs of 45 cents per pound of copper and sustaining cash costs of $1.37 per pound. While a majority of our revenues continued to be from copper, Our unique copper and gold diversification adds further cash flow resiliency and strong leverage to higher metal prices. This is seen through the increasing portion of our revenues from gold, representing 35% of total revenues in 2024 compared to 29% in 2023. Fourth quarter adjusted EBITDA was $257 million, a 25% increase compared to the prior quarter, resulting in full year 2024 adjusted EBITDA of $823 million, a substantial increase from $648 million a year ago. Adjusted net earnings was 18 cents per share in the fourth quarter, a 40% increase compared to the third quarter. Our financial results would have been even higher if excess copper concentrate in Peru was sold in the quarter. As a result of the strong ramp up of production during the quarter, there remained approximately 30,000 tons of copper concentrate inventory at the end of December, compared to the typical levels of 15,000 tons. The excess copper concentrate is expected to be sold in the first quarter of 2025. Slide five highlights our efforts to transform our balance sheet in 2024, which has positioned us as the lowest levered company in our peer group, as I mentioned. We ended the year with $582 million in cash and cash equivalents, an increase of $332 million over the course of 2024 due to a successful equity offering and record free cash flows bolstered by strong copper and gold prices. HUD-BAY has successfully delivered six consecutive quarters of meaningful free cash flow generation as a result of recent brownfield investments, continuous operational improvement efforts, and steady cost control across the business. We used part of the equity offering use of proceeds and the free cash flow generation to make $245 million of debt repayments during the year. This included repurchasing and retiring a total of 83 million of senior unsecured notes, as well as completing the repayment of $100 million on the revolving credit facilities. We also fully repaid the gold prepay facility with $62 million in gold deliveries during 2024. As a result, we have reduced our net debt by over $500 million in 2024, and as of December 31st, we have $526 million of net debt. The net debt reduction, together with higher levels of adjusted EBITDA over the last 12 months, has significantly improved our net debt to adjusted EBITDA ratio to 0.6 times in comparison to a ratio of 1.6 times at the end of 2023 and over two times at the end of 2022. In addition to these efforts, In November, we took further action to improve balance sheet resilience and financial flexibility by proactively extending our senior secured revolving credit facilities from October 2025 to November 2028. This provides increased financial flexibility to accretively maintain our 4.5% coupon bonds until maturity in 2026 and advance Copperworld towards a sanction decision in accordance with the 3P plan. The newly extended $450 million revolving credits facility includes an improved pricing grid reflecting the enhanced financial position of HUD-BAY and features an opportunity to increase the facility by an additional $150 million at our discretion, providing additional financial flexibility. Looking at our Peru operations on slide six, in the fourth quarter, we produced 34,000 tons of copper, 38,000 ounces of gold, 970,000 ounces of silver, and 195 tons of molybdenum. Copper, gold, and silver production was significantly stronger than the third quarter as a result of high grades from Pampacantia as the planned stripping program was successfully completed in the third quarter, as well as a larger portion of all mill feed coming from Pampacantia. The strong fourth quarter in Peru resulted in the full-year annual guidance ranges being achieved for all metals, with the production of 99,000 tons of copper and 98,000 ounces of gold in 2024. Peru gold production exceeded the upper end of the guidance range by 6%, primarily a result of additional gold benches that were mined in the Pampa Cancha pit ahead of schedule and pulled forward from 2025. The Peru operations continued to benefit from strong and consistent mill throughput, averaging approximately 87,000 tons per day in the fourth quarter and full year of 2024. The mill achieved record copper recoveries of 88% in the fourth quarter, higher than the previous record of 87% achieved in the fourth quarter of 2023. Peru demonstrated strong cost performance and exceeded our expectations in the fourth quarter, As a result, full year cash costs were $1.18 per pound in 2024, outperforming the low end of our annual cost guidance range. Strong mill performance and focus on cost efficiencies has proudly positioned Constantia as the lowest cost open PISCOT. We continue to evaluate opportunities to further increase mill throughput in the coming years with the government regulatory allowance to exceed permitted levels by 10%. This opportunity has the potential to increase production volumes to partially offset grade declines following the depletion of Pampacantia in late 2025. That 7 highlights the record year we had in Manitoba. Our Snow Lake operations delivered exceptional operating performance and continued to exceed expectations in both production and efficiency in the fourth quarter. We also proudly achieved a significant milestone in December with the production of a total of 1 million ounces of gold from the Lalor mine, reflecting the success of our strategy to maximize gold production from the Snow Lake operations. Record annual gold production of 214,000 ounces was achieved in 2024 through a combination of higher metallurgical recoveries at the New Britannia install mills and the strategic allocation of more gold ore feed to the New Britannia mill. This success reflects the positive impact of ongoing continuous improvement initiatives across the entire business unit. Full-year gold and copper production both exceeded the upper end of the 2024 guidance ranges. Zinc production was in line with guidance, and silver production was at the top end of the guidance range. The Lalor mine achieved strong results, averaging 4,600 tons per day in the fourth quarter, marking the highest quarterly ore production in 2024. This strong performance was driven by positive muck fragmentation, stope availability, and improved mobile equipment availability. The New Britannia mill had another quarter of exceptional performance, with the mill operating consistently above nameplate capacity, achieving an average throughput of above 2,000 tons per day in the fourth quarter. Plant availability remained strong, supported by ongoing low capital projects aimed at further increasing throughput while maintaining targeted gold recoveries of 90%. At the Stoll base metal mill, we produced a similar quantity of ore in the quarter compared to the prior, while annual processing declined by 7% year over year, aligned with our strategy to allocate more LALA ore feed to New Britannia to maximize gold recoveries. Manitoba's gold cash costs were $607 per ounce in the fourth quarter and $606 per ounce for the full year. These costs remain better than expected as a result of continued operating efficiencies and focus on strong cost control resulting in full year Manitoba cash costs significantly outperforming the low end of the 2024 guidance range. Similarly, our sustaining cash costs remain stable throughout the year in Manitoba averaging an impressive $868 per ounce in 2024. Our Snow Lake operations are generating significant cash flows as operating costs remain stable and we benefit from expanding margins in the current high gold price environment. Slide 8 ranks our operations against other large-scale gold mines in Canada. At $868 per ounce in sustaining cash costs, Snow Lake is the lowest cost gold mine in Canada, achieving margins of roughly 70% at current gold prices. Through our continuous improvement efforts, focus on cost control, efforts to maximize gold production, and benefits from base metal byproduct diversification, we are proud to say that our Snow Lake business was the highest margin gold operation in Canada in 2024. Moving to our third operating business unit on slide nine, Our British Columbia operations produced 6,000 tons of copper, 4.6,000 ounces of gold, and 59,000 ounces of silver in the fourth quarter. Production in the quarter was impacted by lower mill throughput due to planned and unplanned maintenance shutdowns. Full year coffee production was below the guidance range, primarily as a result of lower grades in stockpiled ore and lower throughput during the ramp up of stabilization and optimization efforts throughout the year. full-year gold production was in line with annual guidance. Since acquiring Copper Mountain in June 2023, we have been focused on advancing operational stabilization plans, including opening up the mine by reactivating the full mining fleet, adding additional haul trucks, adding additional mining faces, optimizing the ore feed to the plant and implementing plant improvement initiatives that mirror HUD-based successful processes at Constantio. These stabilization plans have successfully increased the total tons moved and resulted in stronger mill performance as demonstrated by high mill availability of 92% and copper recoveries of 82% in 2024 compared to 85% and 80% respectively in 2023. The focus in the fourth quarter of 2024 was on mining efficiencies and operator recruitment to effectively utilize the available haul truck fleet. As a result, total material moved is expected to continue to increase in 2025 as per the mine plan. As I mentioned earlier, mill performance in the fourth quarter was impacted by the ramp-up periods following the planned and unplanned maintenance shutdowns. In addition, elevated clay material impacted the secondary crushing circuit. Several initiatives were advanced in the quarter to address these issues. Full-year cash costs in British Columbia were $2.74 per pound and were above the high end of the annual cost guidance range due to lower copper production as mentioned. Progressive operational improvements are expected throughout 2025. Mining activities will continue to execute the three-year accelerated stripping program intended to bring higher-grade ore into the mine plant. And in January, we completed feasibility engineering to de-bottleneck and increase the nominal plant capacity to its permitted capacity of 50,000 tons per day earlier than contemplated in the technical report. We released our 2025 annual guidance with our 2024 results and our production guidance is summarized on slide 10. The 2025 consolidated copper production guidance midpoint of 133,000 tons is expected to remain consistent with 2024 levels. This is a result of higher expected production in British Columbia as mill throughput optimization plans are implemented, offset by a lower portion of ore feed from Pampa Cancha in Peru as it depletes this year. The 2025 consolidated gold production guidance midpoint of 278,000 ounces reflects continued strong gold production in Manitoba, offset by lower gold grades in Peru, as high-grade gold benches were mined ahead of schedule in 2024, as well as a lower portion of ore feed from Pampa Cancha in 2025. Specifically for Peru, the 2025 copper production guidance midpoint is expected to be 88.5 thousand tons, and gold production is expected to be 54.5 thousand ounces, lower than 2024 levels as less mill ore feed will be coming from pampa concha. As mentioned earlier, additional high-grade gold benches were mined in late 2024 and pulled forward from 2025. The pampa concha deposit is now expected to be depleted in early December 2025 as opposed to October as the mine plan has smoothed pampa concha production throughout the year. Total mill ore feed from Pampa Concha is expected to be approximately 25% in 2025, lower than the typical one-third in prior years. In Manitoba, we expect to produce 200,000 ounces of gold based on the midpoint of the 2025 guidance range. The impressive operating performance we saw in 2024 is expected to continue into 2025, resulting in our updated 2025 gold production guidance to be 8% higher than the previously announced guidance of 185,000 ounces. Zinc production for 2025 is expected to be 24,000 tons, which is lower than 2024 production due to lower grade base metals in the mining sequence at Lalor as we continue to prioritize the gold zones. In British Columbia, 2025 copper production is expected to be approximately 35,000 tons based on the midpoint. This is a 31% increase from the 2024 levels as a result of mill throughput ramp up and higher grades in the second half of the year. This is a result of several mill initiatives, including the conversion of the third ball mill to a second sag mill and higher grades from the accelerated stripping schedule. The mill throughput ramp up reflects the first half of 2025 at similar throughput levels seen in 2024, with a significant increase in the second half of 2025 concurrent with the completion of the second SAG mill project, ramping up towards 50,000 tons per day in 2026. As shown on slide 11, consolidated copper cash costs in 2025 are expected to be within 80 cents and $1 per pound, as we continue to focus on maintaining strong cost control across our operations to drive industry-leading margins. Sustaining cash costs are expected to be within $2.25 and $2.65 per pound, reflecting slightly lower copper production, lower byproduct credits, and higher sustaining capital expenditures compared to 2024. In Peru, 2025 cash costs are expected to be between $1.35 to $1.65 per pound as continued strong cost control offsets lower production and byproduct credits compared to 2024. In Manitoba, 2025 gold cash costs are expected to be between $650 and $850 per ounce, remaining at industry low levels during strong margins at current gold prices. In British Columbia, cash costs are expected to be between $2.45 and $3.45 per pound. This is an increase from 2024 due to higher mining costs related to more material moved as we execute the planned accelerated stripping program and higher milling costs as we implement the Mill Improvement Project this year, offset by higher copper production. Our capital expenditures guidance is shown on slide 12. In 2024, total capital spending was $10 million lower than guidance of $360 million as lower growth capital and certain sustaining capital deferrals were partially offset by higher sustaining capital in British Columbia. For 2025, total capital expenditures are expected to be $580 million. This increase reflects higher growth capital spending as we reinvest in several high return growth projects as well as higher sustaining capital at the operations, including some that was deferred from 2024. Peru's 2025 sustaining capital expenditures are expected to be $170 million with higher capitalized stripping and required mine equipment purchases, along with some capital deferrals from 2024. Growth capital of $25 million in Peru is related to the installation of the pebble crusher to increase mill throughput starting in 2026. and other mill optimization initiatives. Manitoba's 2025 sustaining capital expenditures are expected to increase to $60 million, primarily the result of additional underground capitalized development costs. We also plan to spend $15 million of growth capital in 2025 for the exploration and haulage drifts at the 1901 deposit, and a portion of the cost has been funded by a premium flow through financing that was completed in the fourth quarter. In British Columbia, 2025 sustaining capital is expected to remain consistent with 2024 at $50 million for mine and mill equipment capital. And we expect to spend $85 million on capitalized stripping costs related to the continued accelerated stripping program. Growth capital at Copper Mountain is expected to be $75 million in 2025, including $55 million for the conversion of the third ball mill to secondary sag mill, to increase throughput rates starting in the second half of 2025 and ramping up to 50,000 tons per day in 2026. At Copper World in Arizona, we anticipate spending a total of $90 million in growth capital in 2025. This includes $25 million of typical annual holding costs and roughly $65 million related to de-risking activities and definitive feasibility studies to advance the project towards a sanctioning decision in 2026. 2025 exploration expenditures are expected to total $40 million in line with 2024 exploration spending as we continue to execute a multi-year extensive geophysics and drilling program in Snow Lake to extend mine life and explore for new discoveries. A portion of the Snow Lake exploration program has been funded by premium critical minerals flow-through financing. Moving to slide 13, HUD-BAY has a proven track record of prudently allocating capital to generate the highest risk-adjusted returns as we execute our growth strategy and advance our world-class asset portfolio. As an example of this success, we completed a post-project review of our capital investment in the New Britannia Mill refurbishment project. We acquired the New Britannia Mill in 2015 for $12 million to potentially process high-grade LALO gold ores and allow us to achieve higher gold recoveries of approximately 90%. The refurbishment project construction had an initial capital cost of $115 million and an estimated IRR of 19% at the time of project sanction in early 2020. The initial investment was funded by a $115 million low-cost gold prepay facility. The project construction was completed on time with mill ramp-up and commissioning achieved in late 2021. The mill was refurbished with a nameplate design capacity of 1,500 tons per day and has been consistently exceeding performance expectations, reaching record throughput levels of over 2,000 tons per day in 2024. Project payback was achieved after 2.5 years, and in August we completed the final payment under the gold prepay facility, increasing our exposure to the current high gold price environment. After three years in operations, it is estimated that the IRR for the New Britannia refurbishment project has increased to a remarkable 36% after adjusting for higher production rates, stronger gold prices, and higher capital and operating costs. In 2024, we received a permit to increase the production rate at New Britannia to 2,500 tons per day. With over 2 million ounces of contained gold in current reserves and another 1.4 million ounces of gold in inferred resources, the New Britannia investment has the potential to generate even higher returns that could be further enhanced by regional exploration upside and the current strong gold price environment. We expect to replicate this success through our disciplined capital allocation approach when reinvesting in brownfield growth projects, such as our mill throughput improvement projects in British Columbia and Peru. And we expect to generate attractive returns and unlock significant value through our Copper World project, which is shown on slide 14. Copper World is the most advanced greenfield project in our portfolio and offers significant copper exposure and highly attractive project economics. Copperworld is a standalone operation requiring state and local permits and is expected to produce 85,000 tons of copper per year over the initial 20-year mine life in the first phase. The project generates an NPV of $1.1 billion and an after-tax IRR of 19% at a copper price of $3.75 per pound. Copper World is one of the highest grade open pit copper projects in the Americas with mineral reserves of 385 million tons at .54% copper as shown on slide 15. Copper World is expected to be the fourth largest copper producer in the United States and its cost base compares favorably to current operating mines. Once in production, Copper World is expected to be a meaningful copper producer in the U.S. domestic supply chain. The Made in America copper cathode anticipated to be produced is expected to be sold entirely to domestic U.S. customers. Turning to slide 16, we have recently obtained all key permits needed for the development and operation of CopperWorld. This includes the aquifer protection permit, which was received in August, and the air quality permit, which was received in early January. With CopperWorld now fully permitted, And with our transformed balance sheet and significantly improved financial flexibility, we are well positioned to prudently advance CopperWorld in accordance with our 3P plan. Once in production, CopperWorld is expected to increase our consolidated copper production by more than 50% from current levels. Our focus in 2025 will be on advancing feasibility studies with completion expected in the first half of 2026. Now that the permits have been received, we have commenced a minority joint venture partner process. We have also expanded our team in the United States to build bench strength and to establish key leadership roles. This includes the recent hiring of a highly qualified project director and a seasoned mining law expert, both of whom are significant assets as we advance Copperwell towards a sanctioning decision in 2026. We have several exploration opportunities as part of our long-term growth pipeline, including many high-priority exploration targets in Snow Lake, as noted on slide 17. In 2024, we began the largest exploration program in the company's history in Snow Lake with the goal of extending known mineralization near the Lala deposit to further extend mine life, as well as to find a new anchor deposit within tracking distance of the Snow Lake processing infrastructure. To follow on this, in 2025, we will be completing the largest geophysics program in HUD-based history with plans to complete 800 kilometers of ground electromagnetic surveys and an extensive airborne geophysics survey. At Larlour Northwest, follow-up drilling in the second half of 2024 confirmed the potential for a new gold-copper discovery located approximately 400 meters from the existing Larlour underground infrastructure. Several new intersections have helped establish the geometry of this new discovery, and we plan to continue to drill Lalor Northwest in 2025. At the regional rail property, which was acquired through the Rockcliffe acquisition in 2023, the 2024 program yielded new intersections of high-grade copper-gold mineralization. These results will be combined with historical drilling results to update the geological model and assess its economic potential. Recent step-out drilling at the 1901 deposit from the underground exploration drift targeted down-plunge extensions of the ore body. All five holes that were drilled beyond the known extent of the mineralization have intersected visible copper-gold mineralization extensions. Additional drilling at 1901 is expected in 2025 to confirm and potentially extend the ore body geometry and to convert inferred mineral resources in the gold lenses to mineral reserves. One of the recent geophysical targets is a very strong deep anomaly located at Cook Lake North, approximately six kilometers from Lalor. Drilling at the Cook Lake North property is continuing throughout the winter season. We are pleased to have signed our first ever exploration agreement with the Kichiwapa Cree Nation, reflecting our commitment to meaningful collaboration as we explore for new mineral resources in the Snow Lake and Flin Flon regions. Additionally, in Flin Flon, we continue to advance tailings reprocessing studies to recover critical minerals and precious metals while creating environmental and social benefits for the region. An early economic study on the zinc plant tailings reprocessing opportunity has confirmed the potential for a technically viable reprocessing alternative, so we have further engineering work underway. In Peru, our exploration activities surrounding the Maria Reina and Caballito properties near Constancia continue to focus on permitting and drill preparation. As part of the drill permitting process, environmental impact assessment applications were approved by the government in June 2024 for Maria Reina and in September 2024 for Caballito. We anticipate the drill permitting process to be completed in 2025, at which point we will initiate an extensive 18-month drill program. Concluding on flight 18, HUD-Bay is set up for another highly successful year in 2025. Core to our 2025 objectives is the continued focus on operating safely and sustainably, aligning with our purpose to ensure that the company's activities have a positive impact on our people, communities, and the planet. We believe that copper has highly robust long-term supply and demand fundamentals, as global copper mine supply will be unable to meet growing copper demands. HUD-BAY's leading copper development and exploration pipeline and low-cost stable operating platform in Tier 1 jurisdictions offers investors meaningful copper exposure, complementary gold exposure, and continued strong near-term free cash flow generation. This, together with our resilient balance sheet, provides significant upside potential for additional value creation as we prudently advance our many high return copper growth opportunities. And with that, we are pleased to take your questions. Thank you.