AMG Critical Materials N.V.

Good day and welcome to AMG's full year and fourth quarter 2021 earnings conference call. This conference is being recorded. At this time, I would like to turn the conference over to Ms. Michelle Fisher, Vice President of Investor Relations. Please go ahead, ma'am.

Welcome to AMG's fourth quarter 2021 earnings call. Joining me on this call are Dr. Hein Schimmelbusch, the Chairman of the Management Board and Chief Executive Officer, Mr. Jackson Dunkel, the Chief Financial Officer, and Mr. Eric Jackson, the Chief Operating Officer. AMG's fourth quarter and full year 2021 earnings press release issued yesterday is on AMG's website. Today's call will begin with a review of the fourth quarter 2021 business highlights by Dr. Schimmelbusch. Mr. Dunkel will comment on AMG's financial results, and Mr. Jackson will discuss operations. At the completion of Mr. Jackson's remarks, Dr. Schimmelbusch will comment on strategy and outlook. We will then open the call to take your questions. Before I pass the call to Dr. Schimmelbusch, I would like to comment on forward-looking statements. This conference call could contain forward-looking statements about AMG Advanced Metallurgical Group. Forward-looking statements are not historical facts, but may include statements concerning AMG's plans, expectations, future revenues or performance, financing needs, plans and intentions relating to acquisition, AMG's competitive strengths and weaknesses, reserve, financial position, and future operations and developments. AMG's business strategy and the trends AMG anticipates in the industries and the political and legal environment in which it operates and other similar or different information that is not historical information. When used in this conference call, the words expect, believe, anticipate, plan, may, will, should, and similar expressions and the negatives thereof are intended to identify forward-looking statements. By their very nature, forward-looking statements involve inherent risks and uncertainties, both general and specific, and risks exist that any predictions, forecasts, or similar projections contained by such forward-looking statements will not be achieved. These forward-looking statements speak only as the date of this conference call. AMG expressly disclaims any obligation or undertaking to release publicly any updates or revisions to any forward-looking statements contained herein to reflect any change in AMG's expectations with regard thereto or any change in events, conditions, or circumstances on which any forward-looking statement is based. I would now like to pass the floor to Dr. Schimelbusch, AMG's Chairman of the Management Board and Chief Executive Officer.

Thank you, Michelle. With regard to COVID, we continue to apply all safety measures at our disposal with the highest degree of attention in order to ensure our employees are working in the lowest risk environment possible. Fortunately, AMG has not experienced a facility closure or operational interruption. AMG continues to sequentially improve EBTA in the fourth quarter. All segments performed well during 2021 relative to the prior year, most notably our clean energy materials segment, where presently our major strategic projects are clustered. This segment continues to deliver strong EBTA, which increased more than three times over the prior year. Our critical materials technology segment was up 77% relative to prior year as an aerospace began its recovery. We continue to progress our key strategic projects. The construction of AMG Venelius' second ferrovenelium plant in Ohio, which will essentially double our recycling capacity for refinery residues, is nearly complete. Shell and AMG Recycling BLE continues to pursue circular refinery residue opportunities globally as project advances the goals of circular economy. To close the loop between fresh and spent catalysts is another building block for achieving the societal benefits for reducing global CO2 emissions compared to the mining of vanadium. At EMG Brazil, we are under construction expanding the lithium concentrate production from 90,000 tons per annum to 130,000 tons per annum. Our products are sold under long-term contracts with index-related price formulas. AMG's first lithium hydroxide production facility in Germany will have its groundbreaking ceremony in May. The design capacity is 20,000 tons of battery-grade lithium hydroxide, the first of five such modules. AMG's first LIWA lithium vanadium battery for industrial power management applications is proceeding as planned. The first AMG industrial battery has a power of 0.6 MW and will flatten the electricity demand curve of our traffic processing operations. A second Weaver battery is planned for Ohio with four times the power. These innovative Weaver batteries will be turned into a product line to compete with diesel engine power units for industrial applications. The environmental advantages are obvious. During AMG's Capital Markets Day on January 11, we explained our full lithium value chain. Several lithium resource projects are under valuation, leveraging our mining and processing expertise in Brazil. We have indicated that as regards to the expansion of EMG's lithium business, we are studying a partial sale to a complementary partner or alternatively an IPO. Obviously, any such dilution has to be justified by an increase of EMG's long-term shareholder value. I'd now like to pass the floor to Jackson Dunkel, AMG's Chief Financial Officer. Jackson?