ALTIF is at it again. Just announced "it intends to expeditiously proceed with final feasibility work at its titanium/zircon deposit in Camden Tennessee . . . ." biz.yahoo.com
I assume this will be followed by the final, final, feasibility work, which will be followed by the pre-commercialization work, which will be followed by the scale-up pre-commercialization work, etc. Eager to make the news as big as possible, the company warns of impending doom: ''Industry experts believe that many current heavy mineral sand operations are nearing depletion, some with as little as four years of mine life left. As a result of this dwindling worldwide supply, Altair's Tennessee mineral deposits could be a significant player in the production of titanium dioxide well into the 21st Century,'' said Dr. William Long, president of Altair. ''We want to be positioned to take advantage of this unique window of opportunity for Altair as this supply-demand scenario unfolds.''
The funny thing is that these anonymous "industry experts" don't seem to have told the companies that are currently supplying TiO2. For example, NL Industries (whose Kronos subsidiary is a big producer of the stuff) says in their second quarter report: "Operating income of Kronos' titanium dioxide pigments (''TiO2'') business in the second quarter of 1999 was $44.1 million, down 6% from the second quarter of 1998, primarily due to lower production and sales volumes, partially offset by a $5.3 million foreign currency transaction gain in 1999 on certain of the Company's short-term cross-border financings. Kronos' second-quarter sales volume decreased 1% from the record sales volume in the second quarter of 1998 but increased 24% from the first quarter of 1999 sales volume levels. The Company's production rates continue to closely match sales volumes. Kronos' average selling prices during the second quarter of 1999 were comparable to the second quarter of 1998 and were 2% lower than the first quarter of 1999."
Rio Tinto, another big TiO2 producer, noted in their First Half 1999 earnings report that "Titanium dioxide feedstock production at 730,000 tonnes (was) down 2%."
Granted, market conditions today aren't necessarily indicative of future demand, but falling demand and flat to falling prices don't strike me as suggestinging the world is running out of the mineral. Kronos has an interesting website if you want to learn more about TiO2:
nl-ind.com
Of course, the other issue is that, given ALTIF's pace of development, they probably wouldn't be able to get the mine into production until 2100, at the earliest.
Has any SI member in the Tennessee area ever tried to take a look at the alleged site?
Doesn't look like the market was too impressed, though. I remember when this sort of PR would pump the stock at least a point.
Hope you're having a nice day,
CMason |
