AWSR Announces First Quarter 2011 Results
Today : Monday 16 May 2011
America West Resources, Inc. (OTCBB: AWSR), a domestic compliant coal producer with mining operations in Central Utah, today announced its financial and operational results for the three month reporting period ended March 31, 2011.
Financial Highlights for the Three Months Ended March 31, 2011 Compared to the Three Months Ended March 31, 2010:
* Revenues climbed 217% to $3.49 million, up from $1.10 million.
o Quarterly coal production, from development, reached a record level in the first quarter of 2011, nearly doubling to 94,648 tons when compared to 47,903 tons produced for the three months ended March 31, 2010.
o In January 2011, the Company took delivery of a new continuous miner and deployed it in a second section of the Horizon Mine in late February, which helped contribute to the increase in coal production and revenues.
* Loss from operations decreased 56% to $1.43 million from $3.22 million.
* Net loss increased to $6.53 million, or $0.19 loss per basic and diluted share, compared to a net loss of $4.97 million, or $0.23 loss per basic and diluted share. The rise in net loss was largely attributable to an approximate $2.5 million one-time non-cash charge to interest expense and an approximate $500,000 one-time, non-cash loss on extinguishment of debt for the three months ended March 31, 2011. These non-recurring charges were associated with the restructure of loans with shareholders, and the conversion of approximately $5 million of shareholder debt to equity.
The Company's balance sheet reflects total assets of $28.15 million as of March 31, 2011, up from $23.48 million at December 31, 2010, while total liabilities declined to $27.04 million from $32.58 million, respectively. As a result, the Company succeeded in reversing what was total stockholders' deficit of $9.11 million as of yearend 2010 to total stockholders' equity of $1.11 million as of the end of March 2011.
During March and April 2011, the Company raised $4.5 million through a private placement of its common stock through New York-based investment banking firm John Thomas Financial, and negotiated the conversion of approximately $5 million in debt to equity.
Commenting on the results, Dan Baker, Chief Executive Officer of America West Resources, noted, "The investments we have made over the past two and half years in mine development initiatives, mining equipment and an expanding workforce, are now beginning to pay off. With the deployment of the second continuous miner at Horizon late in the first quarter of this year, we achieved a record quarter in production for our Company. In addition, we hope to begin pulling pillars in certain developed areas of the mine this month, representing another major milestone for America West. When that occurs, daily coal production should notably increase to fuel record revenue growth over the next several quarters," concluded Baker.
For more detailed information relating to the Company's first quarter 2011 results, please refer to the financial statements included with this press release and the 10-Q that was filed with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission on Friday, March 13, 2011.
