Half Year 2025 Northern Star Resources Ltd Earnings Call Transcript

The following is excerpted from the question-and-answer section of the transcript.

Question: Levi Spry - UBS - Analyst : Hey good morning Stuart, Ryan. Thanks for your time. Maybe just a question on the returns piece, can you just clarify exactly what you said there on the potential for the final dividend to be partially or fully franked and how you were thinking about potentially extending the buyback here? Or are we awaiting to grow and, I guess, the full integration of that in the portfolio for FY26? REFINITIV STREETEVENTS | www.refinitiv.com | Contact Us consent of Refinitiv. 'Refinitiv' and the Refinitiv logo are registered trademarks of Refinitiv and its affiliated companies. FEBRUARY 12, 2025 / 10:00PM, NST.AX - Half Year 2025 Northern Star Resources Ltd Earnings Call

Question: Levi Spry - UBS - Analyst : Yeah. Great. Thank you. Thanks for the detail. And maybe just a quick operational one. We're following your weather over there from over here. Can you just sort of talk us through how you might be prepared for a bit of rain fall through the mill of WA?

Question: Kate McCutcheon - Citi - Analyst : Just fleshing out the buyback, given that De Grey shareholders receive Northern Star shares when that completes, is it fair to assume there will be no stock purchased until that closes in May sometime. And if that's not fair then just what's the thinking there? REFINITIV STREETEVENTS | www.refinitiv.com | Contact Us consent of Refinitiv. 'Refinitiv' and the Refinitiv logo are registered trademarks of Refinitiv and its affiliated companies. FEBRUARY 12, 2025 / 10:00PM, NST.AX - Half Year 2025 Northern Star Resources Ltd Earnings Call

Question: Kate McCutcheon - Citi - Analyst : And then moving to the super pit. So we spoke at the quarterly that Golden Pike access was delayed by a quarter or so, and now you're back in there and thinking about the next year or 18 months, is there scope to put more gear in there to get out more of those higher-grade tonnes? I guess I'm trying to work out how to think about the delay and whether those impacts flow on or whether there's scope to catch up and we shouldn't get too hung up about it.

Question: Matthew Frydman - MST Financial - Analyst : Stuart, Ryan. Can I firstly ask on your leases and lease liabilities? So end of the half, $360 million of lease liabilities and cash outflows from leasing expenses running at about $220 million a year. Can we get a sense of how much of that sits in equipment, either at KCGM or maybe other long-life operations? And I guess how you guys think about whether there's any benefit in whether you convert some of those leases to North Star owned equipment? Thanks.

Question: Matthew Frydman - MST Financial - Analyst : And then maybe secondly, I apologize, it's a pretty general question. But at Pogo, obviously, we're about a month into the new administration in the US. Is there any sort of impacts or things to call out there that are affecting the operation or that you've seen over the last month or so?

Question: Matthew Frydman - MST Financial - Analyst : Anything maybe to call out in terms of labor access or workforce? I mean, obviously, it's probably something that affects the Southern states more than Alaska. But yes, anything to call out there?

Question: Daniel Morgan - Barrenjoey - Analyst : First question is you flagged shuts obviously, this quarter or reiterated them. Can you just talk about if those shuts already occurred? And if so, how does that go?

Question: Daniel Morgan - Barrenjoey - Analyst : And separate question just on mills, maybe the Yandal mill. How is that going with throughput and reliability post quarter end?

Question: David Radclyffe - Global Mining Research - Analyst : Stuart, Ryan. So a non-accounting question for me. Just on the midterm production profile, and just to come back to this, because obviously, at today's price, there should be good upside to extend the shorter mine life assets in the portfolio post the end of this decade. So I appreciate you spending a lot on exploration, but do you need to consider maybe raising the gold price assumptions or investing some capital now in the good times to develop that optionality within those. So thinking outside of KCGM and potentially De Greyhere, it just good to understand what your thinking is here and maybe which of those shorter mine life assets you think have a better potential and stand out? REFINITIV STREETEVENTS | www.refinitiv.com | Contact Us consent of Refinitiv. 'Refinitiv' and the Refinitiv logo are registered trademarks of Refinitiv and its affiliated companies. FEBRUARY 12, 2025 / 10:00PM, NST.AX - Half Year 2025 Northern Star Resources Ltd Earnings Call

Question: David Radclyffe - Global Mining Research - Analyst : So there's no, I guess, obvious capital projects you're talking about because the risk is obviously you're successful as a reak hope on to De Grey, and then you're putting money into that. And then there's potentially not surpluses to then put into those older assets. Is that the way to think about it?

Question: Hugo Nicolaci - Goldman Sachs - Analyst : Morning Stu and Ryan. Just a couple of questions from me, please. And again, sorry in advance for asking a lease accounting question, but just following on from Matt's comments before just around the renewables projects and lease additions. Can you just remind us where those projects are at? How much we might expect that liability to keep increasing in the second half? And then just what the cost savings you're expecting to come out of those PPAs look like? REFINITIV STREETEVENTS | www.refinitiv.com | Contact Us consent of Refinitiv. 'Refinitiv' and the Refinitiv logo are registered trademarks of Refinitiv and its affiliated companies. FEBRUARY 12, 2025 / 10:00PM, NST.AX - Half Year 2025 Northern Star Resources Ltd Earnings Call

Question: Hugo Nicolaci - Goldman Sachs - Analyst : Excellent. And then just to ask another one on capital management. I'm sorry to push the point after a few questions already, but not extending the buyback, you only got $43 million left in that program, having spent $85 million last half despite half of that being in blackout. On your reported metric, your net cash liquidity is $2.7 billion, comfortably covers the acquisition if that completes before considering the cash you'd also acquire. So I guess to Kate's question, it sounds like the buyback and the acquisition are independent. So how do we, I guess, interpret that? Do you see maybe higher returning opportunities on a six-month view? Or is it just not a priority at the moment in terms of the capital returns and it's kind of see how some of these projects go before you start to consider wrapping that up?

Question: Hugo Nicolaci - Goldman Sachs - Analyst : Yeah. No, that makes sense. And then just last one, if I can squeeze a third in. Can you just remind us the moving pieces that go into adding that sort of 0.5 million tonne per year step-up at the underground at KCGM and sort of the time line to execute and get new equipment and all those sorts of things?

Question: Mitch Ryan - Jeffries - Analyst : My question just relates to the KCGM mill expansion. Just wondering if you can expand on that. So obviously, we've seen in the region smaller mills, but that's come in ahead of schedule and under CapEx budgets. Is it too early to sort of give comment? You sounded quite happy with the progress to date, but are you seeing -- how are you seeing things on a capital spend relative to expectations and also timing relative to expectations?

Question: Al Harvey - JPMorgan - Analyst : So I suppose you did mention you're still progressing towards that five-year 2 million ounce target by FY26, so just under 18 months away. I suppose when you got Hemi coming in, you mentioned the upside at Pogo with the exciting upside there. I guess I'm just trying to get a sense of when we might be looking at timing for the next five-year plan and directionally where group production could go to, notwithstanding, obviously, you do have 18 months on the current one left to go. But yes, any -- are we kind of thinking post financial -- full year results this year? Or could it be a bit earlier?

Question: Baden Moore - CLSA - Analyst : Just a question really just following up on some of the investor focus on the buyback. If I look at your cash movement through the first half. It looks like you actually went backwards on cash through the six months despite the strong commodity price. I appreciate you're reinvesting a lot of money, but that also included a $200 million gain on your sales. Just wondering, do you think it's appropriate to be thinking about extending your buyback while you're not generating excess cash? Or do you think that in the second half, you're going to see a material turnaround in that cash growth?

Question: Baden Moore - CLSA - Analyst : No. Forgive me. I'm not suggesting the balance sheet is weak. I just think when we're thinking about potential signals for where you have the additional liquidity you may need, do you think you'll need to see a turnaround in that cash generation? Or do you think you'd be happy spending out of the capital you've got at hand?

Question: Baden Moore - CLSA - Analyst : Just the net cash went from $1.1 billion to $1 billion in round numbers?

Question: Levi Spry - UBS - Analyst : Thanks for the extra one. It's a good time to be a gold miner. I think you reaffirmed the 2 million ounces for next year, too. I just want to confirm that's not a run rate to be achieved through the year. And I guess, some pretty material growth from this year, year on year if maybe we're heading REFINITIV STREETEVENTS | www.refinitiv.com | Contact Us consent of Refinitiv. 'Refinitiv' and the Refinitiv logo are registered trademarks of Refinitiv and its affiliated companies. FEBRUARY 12, 2025 / 10:00PM, NST.AX - Half Year 2025 Northern Star Resources Ltd Earnings Call to sort of the mid- to lower end of current guidance. So can you just maybe remind us of the drivers from the key centers, Kalgoorlie, Yandal year on year as we look forward?