PetroLogistics LP Announces Financial Results and Cash Distribution for Third Quarter 2012

HOUSTON, Oct. 24, 2012 /PRNewswire/ -- PetroLogistics LP (NYSE: PDH) (the "Partnership"), the owner and operator of the only U.S. propane dehydrogenation facility producing propylene from propane, today announces financial results and a cash distribution for the third quarter of 2012. The distribution for the third quarter ended September 30, 2012, is 21 cents per common unit.

Total sales in the third quarter were $156.1 million, with propylene sales contributing $150.6 million. The net income for the quarter was $0.6 million. The Partnership's reported results include certain items that impact comparability of financial results between reporting periods. Excluding the impact of these items, the Partnership's Adjusted net income was $28.2 million, while Adjusted EBITDA was $38.5 million.

Cash available for distribution totaled $28.7 million for the third quarter of 2012. Adjusted net income, Adjusted EBITDA and cash available for distribution are non-GAAP financial measures. Please see "Non-GAAP Financial Measures" included later in this release for reconciliations of these Non-GAAP Financial Measures to the most directly comparable GAAP measures.

"The propane to propylene spread remained compressed during the third quarter; however, we have seen some improvement in propylene pricing during September and October," said David Lumpkins, Executive Chairman of PetroLogistics. "Should this trend continue as expected, and propane prices remain at the currently attractive levels, we would expect to see further margin improvement in the fourth quarter."

"Although customer demand was weak at the start of the quarter, we have seen it recover as the quarter progressed," said Nathan Ticatch, President and Chief Executive Officer. "Further, the EIA-reported propylene inventory levels which began increasing in June, reached a peak in August and have declined steadily since. Despite a generally weak demand environment in the third quarter our sales were 88% of capacity."

The Partnership produced 312 million pounds of propylene and sold 318 million pounds of propylene during the third quarter of 2012. The average polymer grade propylene benchmark price was 51.3 cents per pound. The Partnership recognized total sales of $156.1 million during the third quarter, which included propylene sales of $150.6 million.

Cost of sales was $118.0 million for the third quarter of 2012. The primary component of cost of sales is propane feedstock, which represented approximately 72% of total production costs for the third quarter of 2012. The average propane price for the quarter was 89.3 cents per gallon.

For the third quarter of 2012, the Partnership had a gross profit of $38.1 million, and the propane-to-propylene spread¹ was 25.9 cents per pound for the same period.

The third quarter 2012 distribution will be paid on November 14, 2012, to unitholders of record on November 5, 2012.

The 2012 third quarter results conference call will be held on Thursday, October 25, 2012 at 11 a.m. EDT. Callers may listen to the live presentation, which will be followed by a question and answer segment, by dialing (866) 578-5801 or (617) 213-8058 and entering pass code 10438447. An audio webcast of the call will be available at www.petrologistics.com within the Investor Relations portion of the site under the Presentations section. A replay will be available by audio webcast and teleconference from 12:00 p.m. EDT on October 25, 2012, through 12:00 a.m. EDT on November 2, 2012. The replay teleconference will be available by dialing (888) 286-8010 or (617) 801-6888 and the reservation number 70840088.

PetroLogistics LP is a limited partnership, which owns and operates the only U.S. propane dehydrogenation facility producing propylene from propane. The Partnership's headquarters and operations are located in Houston, Texas.

For more information, please contact [email protected] or (855) 840-7140.

¹ Propane-to-propylene spread is calculated as (PGP Contract Benchmark Price (cents per pound) – 1.2*(Propane Price (cents per gallon)/4.2)). This calculation assumes that it takes approximately 1.2 pounds of propane to make 1.0 pounds of propylene and one gallon of propane weighs approximately 4.2 pounds.

Certain statements and information in this release may constitute "forward-looking statements."  The words "believe," "expect," "anticipate," "plan," "intend," "foresee," "should," "would," "could" or other similar expressions are intended to identify forward-looking statements, which are generally not historical in nature.  These forward-looking statements are based on our current expectations and beliefs concerning future developments and their potential effect on us.  While management believes that these forward-looking statements are reasonable as and when made, there can be no assurance that future developments affecting us will be those that we anticipate.  All comments concerning our expectations for future revenues and operating results are based on our forecasts for our existing operations and do not include the potential impact of any future acquisitions.  Our forward-looking statements involve significant risks and uncertainties (some of which are beyond our control) and assumptions that could cause actual results to differ materially from our historical experience and our present expectations or projections.  Important factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from those in the forward-looking statements include, but are not limited to: the volatile nature of our business and the variable nature of our distributions; the ability of our general partner to modify or revoke our distribution policy at any time; our ability to forecast our future financial condition or results of operations and our future sales and expenses; the cyclical nature of our business; intense competition from other propylene producers; our reliance on propane that we purchase from Enterprise Products Operating LLC; our reliance on other third-party suppliers; the supply and price levels of propane and propylene; the risk of a material decline in production at our propane dehydrogenation facility;  potential operating hazards from accidents, fire, severe weather, floods or other natural disasters; the risk associated with governmental policies affecting the petrochemical industry; capital expenditures and potential liabilities arising from environmental laws and regulations; our potential inability to obtain or renew permits;  existing and proposed environmental laws and regulations, including those relating to climate change, alternative energy or fuel sources, and on the end-use and application of propylene; new regulations concerning the transportation of hazardous chemicals, risks of terrorism and the security of propane processing facilities; our lack of asset diversification; our dependence on significant customers;  our ability to comply with employee safety laws and regulations; potential disruptions in the global or U.S. capital and credit markets; our potential inability to successfully implement our business strategies, including the completion of significant capital expenditure projects;  additional risks, compliance costs and liabilities from expansions or acquisitions; our reliance on certain members of our senior management team and other key personnel of our general partner; the potential development of integrated propylene facilities by our current customers, displacing us as suppliers;  the potential shortage of skilled labor or loss of key personnel; our ability to continue to license the technology used in our operations; our ability to secure appropriate and adequate debt facilities at a reasonable cost of capital; restrictions in our debt agreements; the dependence on our subsidiary for cash to meet our debt obligations; our limited operating history; potential increases in costs and distraction of management resulting from the requirements of being a publicly traded partnership; exemptions we will rely on in connection with NYSE corporate governance requirements; risks relating to evaluations of internal controls required by Section 404 of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act; control of our general partner by our sponsors, and the limitations on the fiduciary duties owed by our general partner which are included in the partnership agreement; and changes in our treatment as a partnership for U.S. income or state tax purposes.

For additional information regarding known material factors that could cause our actual results to differ from our projected results, please see our filings with Securities and Exchange Commission, including our prospectus dated May 3, 2012, filed on May 7, 2012, Quarterly Reports on Form 10-Q and Current Reports on Form 8-K. 

Readers are cautioned not to place undue reliance on forward-looking statements, which speak only as of the date hereof.  We undertake no obligation to publicly update or revise any forward-looking statements after the date they are made, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise.

This release serves as a qualified notice to nominees and brokers as provided for under Treasury Regulation Section 1.1446-4(b). Please note that 100 percent of the Partnership's distributions to foreign investors are attributable to income that is effectively connected with a United States trade or business. Accordingly, the Partnership's distributions to foreign investors are subject to federal income tax withholding at the highest effective tax rate.

PetroLogistics LP

Financial and Operational Data (all information in this release is unaudited except as otherwise noted):

The following tables summarize the financial data and key operating statistics for the Partnership for the three months ended September 30, 2012 and 2011. Select balance sheet data is as of September 30, 2012 and December 31, 2011.

(1) Management fee consists of the expense incurred through our advisory services agreement with Lindsay Goldberg LLC. This agreement terminated upon the closing of the Initial Public Offering, and the amount outstanding at the time was waived by Lindsay Goldberg LLC.

(2) Development expense includes pre-funded charges incurred for preliminary engineering and design work for capital projects which do not qualify for capitalization under GAAP.

(3) Effective May 9, 2012, pursuant to the Omnibus Agreement, to the extent that we make payments for realized losses under the Propane Swaps, PL Manufacturing and the PL Manufacturing Members, through our General Partner, will be responsible for making quarterly capital contributions to us in an amount equal to the net amount due to the propane swap counterparty for the applicable fiscal quarter. PL Manufacturing and the PL Manufacturing Members will contribute approximately $31.0 million to the Partnership in November 2012 for realized losses on the Propane Swaps in the quarter ended September 30, 2012.

(4) The 2011 expense consists of non-cash compensation expense for outstanding pre-IPO equity awards that were granted to employees and management of our Predecessor and affiliated companies and borne by the original pre-IPO investors. These awards were granted starting in 2008 and became fully vested in conjunction with the closing of the IPO. There is no remaining expense to be recognized for these awards. The 2012 expense consists of non-cash unit-based compensation granted to employees and independent directors. 

(5) The pre-IPO investors have designated funds prior to the time of the Offering to fund certain planned capital projects which will result in expenditures in the periods following the Offering. 

(6) Working capital is defined as current assets, including cash, less current liabilities, excluding the term loan and the fair value of derivative assets and liabilities

SOURCE PetroLogistics LP