American Resources ends busy 1Q with strengthened balance sheet and $11.2M in cash

American Resources Corporation (NASDAQ:AREC) revealed its 1Q results that showed a strengthened balance sheet and capital structure with $11.2 million in cash. The US energy company paid off or converted into equity an additional $10.3 million in outstanding debt throughout the three-month period to end March 31, 2021. During the quarter, Indiana-based American Resources secured a new sales commitment for production of raw materials for the infrastructure market at its flagship Perry County Resources mining complex. READ: American Resources secures project manager for 2kW mobile electrolytic cell rare earth processing plant It also entered into an exclusive patent and technology licensing agreement with Penn State University and acquired exclusive rights to a new technology to aid its rare earths separation and purification process from Purdue University. The firm additionally sub-licensed, on a non-exclusive basis, two of its exclusive patents for the production of graphene to Novusterra Inc for a 50% equity stake in the privately-held company and a portion of future cash flows from the sale of graphene. Revenue for the quarter was down to $10,646 from the $524,334 figure it put up in the first quarter of 2020, while the company’s net loss came in at $6.4 million, or $0.14 per share, compared to $3.4 million, or $0.12 per share, a year prior. CEO Mark Jensen called 1Q 2021 “one of the most active” periods to date in company history, reiterating the firm’s previously stated guidance of $55 million to $75 million in FY 2021 revenue now that its American Carbon division is back in production. "Over the course of the first quarter of 2021, we had the opportunity to continue to position our dynamic platform to provide the infrastructure and electrification marketplaces the resources needed to advance to a greener economy,” Jensen said. “We had the opportunity to further define our suite of technology that has brought together some of the best and most innovative universities and chemical engineers that have developed technologies and processes that enable us to capture, process and purify critical and rare earth elements, and do it in the most environmentally safe, and in certain instances environmentally positive, methods ever developed. “We are confident that our process chain is at the forefront of establishing a sustainable and healthy supply chain of critical materials here in the United States and redefine how these materials are sourced across the globe.” DEEP DIVE: American Resources making acquisitions to bolster its metallurgical coal footprint Jensen also noted the pricing of its company-sponsored SPAC, American Acquisition Opportunity Inc, telling shareholders it “has the potential to drive meaningful value creation” for investors. “The quality of potential targets we are evaluating is certainly impressive,” Jensen added. Headquartered in Fishers, Indiana, American Resources supplies high-quality raw materials to the new infrastructure market. The company is focused on the extraction and processing of metallurgical carbon, an essential ingredient used in steelmaking, critical and rare earth minerals for the electrification market, and reprocessed metal to be recycled. Contact Angela at angela@proactiveinvestors.com Follow her on Twitter @AHarmantas