Iofina production on track as iodine prices creep higher

Iodine explorer and producer Iofina produced 142.7 metric tonnes of crystalline iodine from its five operating ‘IOsorb’ plants in Oklahoma in the third quarter, it said on Friday.

The AIM-traded firm said it remained on track to meet its second half production target of between 260 and 275 tonnes.

It said demand for iodine and iodine complexes remained robust, having recently indicated that iodine spot prices were increasing, with spot market prices late in the third quarter hovering between $37 and $39 per kilogram.

The strong demand and tight supply of iodine had continued into October, with spot prices now touching $40 per kilogram in some instances.

Iofina said it believed the outlook for demand for iodine would remain strong into 2022.

As it had recently reported, the firm was in negotiations with brine partners to create a new iodine plant, ‘IO9’.

Those negotiations are progressing, with the company expecting to start construction before the end of the year.

“We are heading for another strong year,” said president and chief executive officer Tom Becker.

“The company is on track to meet its second half crystalline iodine production target and demand for our products continues to be robust.”

Dr Becker said that, with the iodine spot price also climbing higher, the outlook was encouraging.

“Importantly, we remain focused on increasing our production capacity and continue to negotiate terms for our latest plant, IO9, with construction expected to start before the year end.”

At 1355 BST, shares in Iofina were up 5.72% at 15.99p.