Toronto — Sherritt International reported a 50 percent increase in fertilizer volumes for the first quarter ending March 31, 2012, to 26,627 mt from the year-ago 17,694 mt. Sherritt noted that the prior year period had a high level of snow cover, which caused delayed planting. Fertilizer revenues for the quarter were up 83 percent to C$15 million from the year-ago $8.2 million, while cost of sales were up 20 percent to $9.5 million from $7.9 million. Sherritt potash royalties were off 44 percent during the quarter, to $2.7 million from $4.8 million. Sulfur prices were up 37 percent and sulfuric acid 14 percent, to $274.30/mt and $198.04/mt, respectively, versus the year-ago $199.85/mt and $174.09/mt. Higher input commodity prices such as these, along with higher financing costs and decreased revenues – partly due to lower nickel prices – served to cut company-wide earnings almost in half, to $32.3 million ($.11 per diluted share) on sales of $462.2 million, down from the year-ago $63.6 million ($.22 per share) on sales of $474.5 million.
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