EX-99 7 ex99.htm EXHIBIT 99
EXHIBIT 99
RISK FACTORS
Our business faces significant risks. Set forth below are all risks that we believe are material at this time. Our business, financial condition and results of operations could be materially adversely affected by any of these risks. These risks should be read in conjunction with the other information in the Company's Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2020, and this Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q.
COVID-19 Pandemic Risk
We have been and expect to continue to be adversely affected by the COVID-19 pandemic.
The COVID-19 outbreak, declared a pandemic by the World Health Organization, has surfaced in nearly all regions around the world. Governments around the world have taken preventative measures to contain or mitigate the outbreak, including travel restrictions, border closings, restrictions on public gatherings, shelter-in-place restrictions and limitations on business. This has affected, and is continuing to affect, the global economy, the United States economy and the global financial markets. The outbreak and resulting preventative measures have disrupted our operations and affected our business, and we expect this to continue. The impacts include, but are not limited to, the following:

| ● | We have experienced, and may experience in the future, temporary facility closures in response to government mandates in certain jurisdictions in which we operate. We may also be required to close certain of our facilities for the safety of our employees in response to positive diagnoses for COVID-19. Even in facilities that are not closed, we could be affected by reductions in employee availability and effectiveness, changes in operating procedures, and increased costs.

| ● | Our customers have been, and may continue to be, affected by COVID-19 and the business slowdown caused by preventative measures, resulting in decreased demand for our products and services, delayed payments from customers and uncollectable accounts.

| ● | Our supply chain could be disrupted. This could materially adversely impact our ability to secure raw materials and supplies for our facilities, which could materially adversely affect our operations.

| ● | Significant disruption of global financial markets could have a negative impact on our ability to access capital in the future.

| ● | Further or prolonged impact from COVID-19 could result in impairment of asset charges, including long-lived or intangible assets, inventory or bad debt charges.

We cannot predict the degree to which, or the time period that, global economic conditions and our business, sales, liquidity, financial condition and results of operations will continue to be affected by the COVID-19 pandemic and the resulting preventative measures. The extent to which we are affected will depend on future developments, including the duration of the outbreak, travel restrictions, business and workforce disruptions, and the effectiveness of actions taken to contain and treat the disease. The effects on our business, sales, liquidity, financial condition and results of operations could be material.
Industry and Market Risks
Worldwide general economic, business, and industry conditions may have an adverse effect on the Company’s results.
The global economic instability caused by the COVID-19 pandemic has caused and may continue to cause, among other things, declining consumer and business confidence, volatile raw material prices, instability in credit markets, high unemployment, fluctuating interest and exchange rates, and other challenges in the countries in which we operate. The Company’s business and operating results could be adversely affected by these global economic conditions. The Company’s customers and potential customers may experience deterioration of their businesses, cash flow shortages, and difficulty obtaining financing. As discussed below, the industries we serve have in the past been adversely affected by the uncertain global economic climate due to the cyclical nature of their businesses. As a result, existing or potential customers may reduce or delay their growth and investments and their plans to purchase products and may not be able to fulfill their obligations in a timely fashion. Further, suppliers could experience similar conditions, which could affect their ability to fulfill their obligations to the Company. Adversity within capital markets may also impact the Company’s results of operations by negatively affecting the amount of expense the Company records for its pension and other postretirement benefit plans. Actuarial valuations used to calculate income or expense for the plans reflect assumptions about financial market and other economic conditions – the most significant of which are the discount rate and the expected long-term rate of return on plan assets. Such actuarial valuations may change based on changes in key economic indicators. Global economic markets remain uncertain, and there can be no assurance that market conditions will improve in the near future. Future weakness in the global economy could materially and adversely affect our business and operating results.
Our customers’ businesses are cyclical or have changing regional demands. Our operations are subject to these trends and we may not be able to mitigate these risks.
A significant portion of our Performance Materials segment’s sales are derived from the metalcasting market. The metalcasting market is dependent upon the demand for castings for automobile components, farm and construction equipment, oil and gas production equipment, power generation turbine castings, and rail car components. Many of these types of equipment are sensitive to fluctuations in demand during periods of recession or difficult economic conditions, including the current conditions resulting from the COVID-19 pandemic, which has affected and may continue to affect the demand for our Performance Materials segment’s products and services.
In the paper industry, which is served by our Paper PCC product line, production levels for uncoated freesheet within North America and Europe, our two largest markets are projected to continue to decrease. The reduced demand for premium writing paper products has also caused recent paper mill closures. We expect paper consumption to gradually improve, however remain below 2019 levels.
Our Refractories segment primarily serves the steel industry. Global steel production has been and will continue to be affected by volatility in the market due to the COVID-19 pandemic. We expect steel consumption to remain below 2019 levels but improved from 2020 levels.
A significant portion of our Environmental Products and Building Materials products sales are derived from the commercial construction and infrastructure markets. In addition, our Processed Minerals and Specialty PCC product lines are affected by the domestic building and construction markets, as well as the automotive market.
Demand for our products is subject to trends in these markets. During periods of economic slowdown, our customers often reduce their capital expenditures and defer or cancel pending projects. Such developments occur even amongst customers that are not experiencing financial difficulties. In addition, these trends could cause our customers to face liquidity issues or bankruptcy, which could deteriorate the aging of our accounts receivable, increase our bad debt exposure and possibly trigger impairment of assets or realignment of our businesses. The Company has taken steps to reduce its exposure to variations in its customers' businesses, including by diversifying its portfolio of products and services; through geographic expansion, and by structuring most of its long-term satellite PCC contracts to provide a degree of protection against declines in the quantity of product purchased, since the price per ton of PCC generally rises as the number of tons purchased declines. In addition, many of the Company's product lines lower its customers' costs of production or increase their productivity, which should encourage them to use its products. However, there can be no assurance that these efforts will mitigate the risks of our dependence on these industries. Continued weakness in the industries we serve has had, and may in the future have, an adverse effect on sales of our products and our results of operations. A continued or renewed economic downturn in one or more of the industries or geographic regions that the Company serves, or in the worldwide economy, could cause actual results of operations to differ materially from historical and expected results.
The Company operates in very competitive industries, which could adversely affect our profitability.
The Company has many competitors. Some of our principal competitors have greater financial and other resources than we have. Accordingly, these competitors may be better able to withstand economic downturns and changes in conditions within the industries in which we operate and may have significantly greater operating and financial flexibility than we do. We also face competition for some of our products from alternative products, and some of the competition we face comes from competitors in lower-cost production countries like China and India. As a result of the competitive environment in the markets in which we operate, we currently face and will continue to face pressure on the sales prices of our products from competitors, which could reduce profit margins.
The Company’s sales could be adversely affected by consolidation in customer industries, principally paper, foundry and steel.
Several consolidations in the paper industry have taken place in recent years and such consolidation could continue in the future. These consolidations could result in partial or total closure of some paper mills where the Company operates PCC satellites. Such closures would reduce the Company's sales of PCC, except to the extent that they resulted in shifting paper production and associated purchases of PCC to another location served by the Company. Similarly, consolidations have occurred in the foundry and steel industries. Such consolidations in the major industries we serve concentrate purchasing power in the hands of a smaller number of manufacturers, enabling them to increase pressure on suppliers, such as the Company. This increased pressure could have an adverse effect on the Company's results of operations in the future.
The Company’s sales of PCC could be adversely affected by our failure to renew or extend long term sales contracts for our satellite operations.
The Company's sales of PCC to paper customers are typically pursuant to long-term evergreen agreements, initially ten years in length, with paper mills where the Company operates satellite PCC plants. Sales pursuant to these contracts represent a significant portion of our worldwide Paper PCC sales, which were $308.4 million in 2020, or approximately 19% of the Company’s net sales. The terms of many of these agreements have been extended or renewed in the past, often in connection with an expansion of the satellite plant. However, failure of a number of the Company's customers to renew or extend existing agreements on terms as favorable to the Company as those currently in effect, or at all, could have a substantial adverse effect on the Company's results of operations, and could also result in impairment of the assets associated with the PCC plant.
Financial Risks
Servicing the Company’s debt will require a significant amount of cash. This could reduce the Company’s flexibility to respond to changing business and economic conditions or fund capital expenditures or working capital needs. Our ability to generate cash depends on many factors beyond our control.
At October 3, 2021 the Company had $951.5 million aggregate principal amount of total indebtedness (consisting primarily of $548.0 million aggregate principal amount of loans under our term facility and $400.0 million aggregate principal amount of notes) and an additional $191.1 million of borrowing capacity under the revolving credit facility (after giving effect to $8.9 million of outstanding letters of credit and $100 million in outstanding borrowings.). Our outstanding indebtedness will require a significant amount of cash to make interest payments. Further, the interest rate on a significant portion of our borrowings under our senior secured credit facility is based on LIBOR interest rates, which could result in higher interest expense in the event of an increase in interest rates. In addition, since these borrowings under our senior secured credit facility extend beyond 2023, the interest rates for these obligations might be subject to change based on the United Kingdom's Financial Conduct Authority's intention to phase out LIBOR by 2023. Our ability to pay interest on our debt and to satisfy our other debt obligations will depend in part upon our future financial and operating performance and upon our ability to renew or refinance borrowings. Prevailing economic conditions and financial, business, competitive, regulatory and other factors, many of which are beyond our control, will affect our ability to make these payments. We cannot guarantee that our business will generate sufficient cash flow from operations or that future borrowings will be available to us in an amount sufficient to enable us to fund our liquidity needs. If we are unable to generate sufficient cash flow to meet our debt service obligations, we will have to pursue one or more alternatives, such as reducing or delaying capital or other expenditures, refinancing debt, selling assets, or raising equity capital. Further, the requirement to make significant interest payments may reduce the Company’s flexibility to respond to changing business and economic conditions or fund capital expenditure or working capital needs and may increase the Company’s vulnerability to adverse economic conditions.
The agreements and instruments governing our debt contain various covenants that could significantly impact our ability to operate our business.
The agreement governing our senior secured credit facility and the indenture that governs our 5.0% Senior Notes due 2028 contain a number of significant covenants that, among other things, limit our ability to: incur or guarantee additional indebtedness, pay dividends or make other distributions or repurchase or redeem capital stock, prepay, redeem or repurchase certain debt, issue certain preferred stock or similar equity securities, make loans and investments, sell or otherwise dispose of assets, incur liens, enter into transactions with affiliates, enter into agreements restricting our subsidiaries’ ability to pay dividends and consolidate, merge or sell all or substantially all of our assets. In addition, our revolving credit facility, if used, requires us to comply with specific financial ratios, including a maximum net leverage ratio, under which we are required to achieve specific financial results. Our ability to comply with these provisions may be affected by events beyond our control. A breach of any of these covenants would result in a default under the applicable agreements. In the event of any default under our senior secured credit facility, our lenders could elect to declare all amounts borrowed under the credit agreement, together with accrued interest thereon, to be due and payable. In such an event, we cannot assure you that we would have sufficient assets to pay debt then outstanding under the credit agreement, the indenture governing our notes, and any other agreements governing our debt. Any future refinancing of the senior secured credit facility is likely to contain similar restrictive covenants. We may also incur future debt obligations that might subject us to additional restrictive covenants that could affect our financial and operational flexibility. We cannot assure you that we will be granted waivers or amendments to these agreements if for any reason we are unable to comply with these agreements or that we will be able to refinance our debt on terms acceptable to us, or at all.
Technology, Development and Growth Risks
The Company’s results could be adversely affected if it is unable to effectively achieve and implement its growth initiatives.
Sales and income growth of the Company depends upon a number of uncertain events, including the outcome of the Company's strategies of increasing its penetration into geographic markets such as Brazil, Russia, India and China as well as other Asian and Eastern European countries; increasing its penetration into product markets such as the market for papercoating pigments and the market for groundwood paper pigments; increasing sales to existing PCC customers by increasing the amount of PCC used per ton of paper produced; developing, introducing and selling new products such as the FulFill® family of products for the paper industry. Difficulties, delays or failure of any of these strategies could affect the future growth rate of the Company. Our strategy also anticipates growth through future acquisitions. However, our ability to identify and consummate any future acquisitions on terms that are favorable to us may be limited by the number of attractive acquisition targets, internal demands on our resources and our ability to obtain financing. Our success in integrating newly acquired businesses will depend upon our ability to retain key personnel, avoid diversion of management’s attention from operational matters, and integrate general and administrative services. In addition, future acquisitions could result in the incurrence of additional debt, costs and contingent liabilities. Integration of acquired operations may take longer, or be more costly or disruptive to our business, than originally anticipated, and it is also possible that expected synergies from future acquisitions may not materialize. We also may incur costs and divert management attention with regard to potential acquisitions that are never consummated.
Delays or failures in new product development could adversely affect the Company’s operations.
The Company’s future business success will depend in part upon its ability to maintain and enhance its technological capabilities, to respond to changing customer needs, and to successfully anticipate or respond to technological changes on a cost-effective and timely basis. The Company is engaged in a continuous effort to develop new products and processes in all of its product lines. Difficulties, delays or failures in the development, testing, production, marketing or sale of such new products could cause actual results of operations to differ materially from our expected results.
The Company’s ability to compete is dependent upon its ability to defend its intellectual property against inappropriate disclosure, theft and infringement.
The Company's ability to compete is based in part upon proprietary knowledge, both patented and unpatented. The Company's ability to achieve anticipated results depends in part on its ability to defend its intellectual property against inappropriate disclosure and theft as well as against infringement. In addition, development by the Company's competitors of new products or technologies that are more effective or less expensive than those the Company offers could have a material adverse effect on the Company's financial condition or results of operations.
The Company’s operations could be impacted by the increased risks of doing business abroad.
The Company does business in many areas internationally. Approximately 48% of our sales in 2020 were derived from outside the United States and we have significant production facilities which are located outside of the United States. We have in recent years expanded our operations in emerging markets, and we plan to continue to do so in the future, particularly in China, India, Brazil, the Middle East, and Eastern Europe. Some of our operations are located in areas that have experienced political or economic instability, including Indonesia, Malaysia, Nigeria, Egypt, Russia, Saudi Arabia, Turkey, Brazil, Thailand, China and South Africa. The UK’s decision to exit the European Union (referred to as Brexit) has caused additional volatility in the markets and currency exchange rates. Market conditions and exchange rates could continue to be volatile in the near term as this decision is implemented. As the Company expands its operations overseas, it faces increased risks of doing business abroad, including inflation, fluctuation in interest rates, changes in applicable laws and regulatory requirements, export and import restrictions, tariffs, nationalization, expropriation, limits on repatriation of funds, civil unrest, terrorism, unstable governments and legal systems, and other factors. We are also subject to increased risks of natural disasters, public health crises, including the occurrence of a contagious disease or illness, such as COVID-19, and other catastrophic events in such countries. Many of these risks are beyond our control and can lead to sudden, and potentially prolonged, changes in demand for our products, difficulty in enforcing agreements, and losses in the realizability of our assets. Adverse developments in any of the areas in which we do business could cause actual results to differ materially from historical and expected results. In addition, a significant portion of our raw material purchases and sales outside the United States are denominated in foreign currencies, and liabilities for non-U.S. operating expenses and income taxes are denominated in local currencies. Accordingly, reported sales, net earnings, cash flows and fair values have been and, in the future, will be affected by changes in foreign currency exchange rates. Our overall success as a global business depends, in part, upon our ability to succeed in differing legal, regulatory, economic, social and political conditions. We cannot assure you that we will implement policies and strategies that will be effective in each location where we do business.
The Company’s operations are dependent on the availability of raw materials and access to ore reserves at its mining operations. Increases in costs of raw materials, energy, or shipping could adversely affect our financial results.
The Company depends in part on having an adequate supply of raw materials for its manufacturing operations, particularly lime and carbon dioxide for the PCC product line, and magnesia and alumina for its Refractory operations. Purchase prices and availability of these critical raw materials are subject to volatility. At any given time, we may be unable to obtain an adequate supply of these critical raw materials on a timely basis, on price and other terms, or at all. While most such raw materials are readily available, the Company has purchased approximately 49% of its magnesia requirements from sources in China over the past five years. The price and availability of magnesia have fluctuated in the past and they may fluctuate in the future. Price increases for certain other of our raw materials, including petrochemical products, as well as increases in energy prices, have also affected our business. Our production processes consume a significant amount of energy, primarily electricity, diesel fuel, natural gas and coal. We use diesel fuel to operate our mining and processing equipment and our freight costs are heavily dependent upon fuel prices and surcharges. Energy costs also affect the cost of raw materials. On a combined basis, these factors represent a large exposure to petrochemical and energy products which may be subject to significant price fluctuations. The contracts pursuant to which we construct and operate our satellite PCC plants generally adjust pricing to reflect the pass-through of increases in costs resulting from inflation, including energy. However, there is a time lag before such price adjustments can be implemented. The Company and its customers will typically negotiate reasonable price adjustments in order to recover these escalating costs, but there can be no assurance that we will be able to recover increasing costs through such negotiations.
The Company also depends on having adequate access to ore reserves of appropriate quality at its mining operations. There are numerous uncertainties inherent in estimating ore reserves including subjective judgments and determinations that are based on available geological, technical, contract and economic information. Access to reserves is also typically subject to permitting and other regulatory requirements that may be beyond our control.
The Company relies on shipping bulk cargos of bentonite from the United States, Turkey and China to customers, as well as our own subsidiaries, and we are sensitive to our ability to recover these shipping costs. In the last few years, bulk cargo shipping rates have been very volatile, and, to a lesser extent, the availability of bulk cargo containers have been suspect. If we cannot secure our container requirements or offset additional shipping costs with price increases to customers, our profitability could be impacted. We are also subject to other shipping risks. In particular, rail service interruptions have affected our ability to ship, and the availability of rail service, and our ability to recover increased rail costs, may be beyond our control. During the COVID-19 pandemic, our ability to ship our products has been, and may in the future be, affected by government mandates in certain jurisdictions in which we operate.
Operational Risks
The Company is subject to stringent regulation in the areas of environmental, health and safety, and tax, and may incur unanticipated costs or liabilities arising out of claims for various legal, environmental and tax matters or product stewardship issues.
The Company’s operations are subject to international, federal, state and local governmental environmental, health and safety, tax and other laws and regulations. We have expended, and may be required to expend in the future, substantial funds for compliance with such laws and regulations. In addition, future events, such as changes to or modifications of interpretations of existing laws and regulations, or enforcement polices, or further investigation or evaluation of the potential environmental impacts of operations or health hazards of certain products, may affect our mining rights or give rise to additional compliance and other costs that could have a material adverse effect on the Company. Government action taken in response to the COVID-19 pandemic, including government-imposed restrictions on the movement of people and goods, and other new legal rights and obligations, could also have an adverse effect on the Company. Further, certain of our customers are subject to various federal and international laws and regulations relating to environmental and health and safety matters, especially customers of our Energy Services business within the Environmental Products product line, who are subject to drilling permits, waste water disposal and other regulations. To the extent that these laws and regulations affecting our customers change, demand for our products and services could also change and thereby affect our financial results. State, national, and international governments and agencies have been evaluating climate-related legislation and regulation that would restrict emissions of greenhouse gases in areas in which we conduct business, and some such legislation and regulation have already been enacted or adopted. Enactment of climate-related legislation or adoption of regulation that restrict emissions of greenhouse gases in areas in which we conduct business could have an adverse effect on our operations or demand for our products. Our manufacturing processes, particularly the manufacturing process for PCC, use a significant amount of energy and, should energy prices increase as a result of such legislation or regulation, we may not be able to pass these increased costs on to purchasers of our products. We cannot predict if or when currently proposed or additional laws and regulations regarding climate change or other environmental or health and safety concerns will be enacted or adopted.
The Company is also subject to income tax laws and regulations in the United States and various foreign jurisdictions. Significant judgment is required in evaluating and estimating our provision and accruals for these taxes. Our income tax liabilities are dependent upon the location of earnings among these different jurisdictions. Our income tax provision and income tax liabilities could be adversely affected by the jurisdictional mix of earnings, changes in valuation of deferred tax assets and liabilities and changes in tax treaties, laws and regulations.
The Company is currently a party in various litigation matters and tax and environmental proceedings and faces risks arising from various unasserted litigation matters, including, but not limited to, product liability, patent infringement, antitrust claims, and claims for third party property damage or personal injury stemming from alleged environmental torts. Failure to appropriately manage safety, human health, product liability and environmental risks associated with the Company’s products and production processes could adversely impact the Company’s employees and other stakeholders, the Company’s reputation and its results of operations. Public perception of the risks associated with the Company’s products and production processes could impact product acceptance and influence the regulatory environment in which the Company operates. While the Company has procedures and controls to manage these risks, carries liability insurance, which it believes to be appropriate to its businesses, and has provided reserves for current matters, which it believes to be adequate, an unanticipated liability, arising out of a current matter or proceeding or from the other risks described above, could have a material adverse effect on the Company’s financial condition or results of operations.
Production facilities are subject to operating risks and capacity limitations that may adversely affect the Company’s financial condition or results of operations.
The Company is dependent on the continued operation of its production facilities. During the COVID-19 pandemic, our facilities have been, and may in the future be, temporarily closed in response to government mandates in certain jurisdictions in which we operate or for the safety of our employees in response to positive diagnoses for COVID-19. Production facilities are subject to hazards associated with the manufacturing, handling, storage, and transportation of chemical materials and products, including pipeline leaks and ruptures, explosions, fires, inclement weather and natural disasters, mechanical failure, unscheduled downtime, labor difficulties, transportation interruptions, and environmental risks. We maintain property, business interruption and casualty insurance but such insurance may not cover all risks associated with the hazards of our business and is subject to limitations, including deductibles and maximum liabilities covered. We may incur losses beyond the limits, or outside the coverage, of our insurance policies. Further, from time to time, we may experience capacity limitations in our manufacturing operations. In addition, if we are unable to effectively forecast our customers’ demand, it could affect our ability to successfully manage operating capacity limitations. These hazards, limitations, disruptions in supply and capacity constraints could adversely affect financial results.
Operating results for some of our segments are seasonal.
Certain product lines within our Performance Materials segment are affected by seasonal weather patterns. A majority of revenues from our Energy Services business within the Environmental Products product line is derived from the Gulf of Mexico and surrounding states, which are susceptible to hurricanes that typically occur June 1st through November 30th. Actual or threatened hurricanes can result in volatile demand for services provided by our Energy Services business. Our other Environmental Products businesses and our Building Materials product line within our Performance Materials segment are affected by weather patterns which determine the feasibility of construction activities. Typically, less construction activity occurs in winter months and thus this segment’s revenues tend to be greatest in the second and third quarters when weather patterns in our geographic markets are more conducive to construction activities. Our Processed Minerals product line is subject to similar seasonal patterns.
Our operations have been and will continue to be subject to cyber-attacks that could have a material adverse impact on our business, consolidated results of operations, and consolidated financial condition.
Our operations are becoming increasingly dependent on digital technologies and services. We use these technologies for internal purposes, including data storage, processing, and transmissions, as well as in our manufacturing operations and in our interactions with customers and suppliers. Increased use of remote working arrangements has only increased our reliance on these technologies. Digital technologies are subject to the risk of cyber-attacks. If our systems for protecting against cybersecurity risks prove not to be sufficient, we could be adversely affected by, among other things: loss of or damage to intellectual property, proprietary or confidential information, or customer, supplier, or employee data; interruption of our business operations; and increased costs required to prevent, respond to, or mitigate cybersecurity attacks.
In October 2020, we detected a ransomware attack impacting certain of our information technology systems. The network security incident primarily impacted our internal corporate functions. The Company’s manufacturing sites, which rely on different networks, continued to operate safely and with limited interruption. Further, we currently do not believe that any of our customers or suppliers were impacted as a result of this incident. Nonetheless, we believe that the security event included unauthorized access to personal data of employees, former employees and their dependents.
The risks associated with the October 2020 incident or future incidents could harm our reputation and our relationships with customers, suppliers, employees, and other third parties, and may result in claims against us. In addition, although we do not currently believe the October 2020 incident will have a material impact on us, there can be no assurance that this incident or future incidents will not have a material adverse effect on our business, consolidated results of operations, and consolidated financial condition.