Sherritt Chairman and CEO Ian Delaney addresses shareholders during their annual general meeting in this file photo.J.P. MOCZULSKI/Reuters
Sherritt International Corp. more than doubled its third-quarter profits compared with a year ago as higher coal and oil prices pushed revenues up more than 10 per cent.
The Toronto-based company said Wednesday that it earned $45.5-million (U.S.) or 16 cents a share for the three months ended Sept. 30. That was up from $22.5-million or seven cents a year ago.
Revenues in the quarter rose to $466.4-million from $412.7-million.
The average analyst estimate had been for a profit of 21 cents per share, according to Thomson Reuters.
In the three-month period, the company sold 9.4 million pounds of nickel, 1.1 million pounds of cobalt, 9.1 million tonnes of thermal coal, 1.1 million barrels of oil and 159 gigawatts of electricity.
Sherritt's average realized price for thermal coal from its mountain and prairie operations was $102.39 per tonne and $16.20 per tonne respectively. That was up from $88.41 and $14.32 a year ago.
The company's average realized price for oil was $69.62 per barrel equivalent, up from $50.51.
The average realized price for nickel slipped to $9.81 from $9.87 a pound a year ago, while the average realized price for cobalt dropped to $15.50 from $18.61 a pound.
Sherritt produces nickel from projects and operations in Canada, Cuba, Indonesia and Madagascar.
The company is also the largest coal producer in Canada and is the largest independent energy producer in Cuba, with oil and power operations across the island.