Gulf Resources Announces Postponement in Delivery of Equipment for Chemical Factory
SHOUGUANG, China, July 26, 2023 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Gulf Resources, Inc. (Nasdaq: GURE) ("Gulf Resources", “we,” or the "Company"), a leading manufacturer of bromine, crude salt and specialty chemical products in China, today announced that it has temporarily postponed the delivery of the remaining equipment for its Yuxin chemical factory.
Over the past two years, Bromine prices in China have plunged. On 10/16/2021, they were RMB approximately 69,500 per tonne. On 2/17/2022, they were approximately RMB 59,000 per tonne. On 6/30/2023, they had dropped to approximately RMB 18,000 per tonne.
Gulf Resources believes that weakness in construction and the decline in antiseptic sales for the COVID pandemic are two of the factors suppressing prices. The company expects that prices will increase. They have already marginally improved to RMB 19,500. However, with present weak demand and low prices, the company has decided to use this as an opportunity to review its chemical products strategy.
Two advantages of lower prices and the weakness of the Chinese RMB is that imports of bromine become more expensive, and exports, which will be a focus of the company, have become cheaper. As the company has previously indicated, it is reviewing opportunities for exports that will provide it with financial flexibility. The company is also investigating opportunities for zinc-bromine batteries, that may appear to offer strong advantages for electrical storage.
The equipment that has yet to be delivered is sophisticated and must be tailored to specific products the company will produce. The company is currently reviewing its manufacturing plans for the Yuxin Chemical factory so that it can tailor the equipment for the products that may be the most profitable and give the company financial flexibility.
The company expects that this process will not be overly lengthy and that it will make a final decision on the tailoring of the equipment in the near future.
About Gulf Resources, Inc.
Gulf Resources, Inc. operates through four wholly-owned subsidiaries, Shouguang City Haoyuan Chemical Company Limited ("SCHC"), ShouguangYuxin Chemical Industry Co., Limited ("SYCI"), Daying County Haoyuan Chemical Company Limited (“DCHC”) and Shouguang Hengde Salt Industry Co. Ltd. (“SHSI”). The Company believes that it is one of the largest producers of bromine in China. Elemental Bromine is used to manufacture a wide variety of compounds utilized in industry and agriculture. Through SYCI, the Company manufactures chemical products utilized in a variety of applications, including oil and gas field explorations and papermaking chemical agents, and materials for human and animal antibiotics. Through SHSI, the Company manufactures and sell crude salt. DCHC was established to further explore and develop natural gas and brine resources (including bromine and crude salt) in China. For more information, visit www.gulfresourcesinc.com.
Forward-Looking Statements
Certain statements in this news release contain forward-looking information about Gulf Resources and its subsidiaries business and products within the meaning of Rule 175 under the Securities Act of 1933 and Rule 3b-6 under the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, and are subject to the safe harbor created by those rules. The actual results may differ materially depending on a number of risk factors including, but not limited to, the general economic and business conditions in the PRC, the risks associated with the COVID-19 pandemic outbreak, future product development and production capabilities, shipments to end customers, market acceptance of new and existing products, additional competition from existing and new competitors for bromine and other oilfield and power production chemicals, changes in technology, the ability to make future bromine asset purchases, and various other factors beyond its control. All forward-looking statements are expressly qualified in their entirety by this Cautionary Statement and the risks factors detailed in the Company's reports filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission. Gulf Resources undertakes no duty to revise or update any forward-looking statements to reflect events or circumstances after the date of this release.
CONTACT: Gulf Resources, Inc.
Web: http://www.gulfresourcesinc.com
Director of Investor Relations
Helen Xu (Haiyan Xu)
