Warrior Met Coal, Inc. (NYSE:HCC) Q1 2022 Results Conference Call May 5, 2022 4:30 PM ET

Company Participants

Walt Scheller - CEO

Dale Boyles - CFO

Conference Call Participants

David Gagliano - BMO Capital Markets

Lucas Pipes - B. Riley Securities

Nathan Martin - The Benchmark Company

Operator

Good afternoon. My name is Rocco, and I will be your conference operator today. At this time, I would like to welcome everyone to the Warrior Met Coal First Quarter 2022 Financial Results Conference Call. All lines have been placed on mute to prevent any background noise. After the speaker's remarks, there will be a question-and-answer session. [Operator Instructions] This call is being recorded and will be available for replay on the company's website.

Before we begin, I have been asked to note that today's discussion may contain forward-looking statements, and actual results may differ materially from those discussed. For more information regarding forward-looking statements, please refer to the company's press release and SEC filings.

I've also been asked to note that the company has posted reconciliations of the non-GAAP financial measures discussed during this call in the tables accompanying the company's earnings press release located on the Investors section of the company's website at www.warriormetcoal.com. In addition to the earnings release, the company has posted a brief supplemental slide presentation to the Investors section of its website at www.warriormetcoal.com.

Here today to discuss the company's results are Mr. Walt Scheller, Chief Executive Officer; and Mr. Dale Boyles, Chief Financial Officer. Mr. Scheller, you may begin your remarks, sir.

Walt Scheller

Thanks, operator. Hello, everyone, and thank you for taking the time to join us today to discuss our first quarter 2022 results. After my remarks, Dale will review our results in additional detail, and then you'll have the opportunity to ask questions.

We were pleased to deliver our second consecutive quarter of record quarterly earnings in over 3 years on the back of strong customer demand. The global supply of met coal remained tight during the first quarter, even with China continuing to reduce its steel production. We're well positioned to continue meeting our customer commitments even in the face of potential global economic volatility in the future. Demand for premium met coals was strong throughout the first quarter due to sustained steel production and due to restocking by customers. We also experienced a short-term surge in demand due to panic buying associated with the Russian invasion of Ukraine. The Russian buyers searching for alternative coals in an already tight market pushed prices in uncharted territory. The [Technical Difficulty] that was largely responsible for making this past quarter the most volatile pricing period in recent history. However, the spike in pricing was short-lived as we saw all major indices give back a substantial portion of the gains brought on by the war.