Lightbridge (LTBR) Q4 2023 earnings summary

Executive summary

• 2023 fuel-development progress included a FEED contract with Centrus Energy for a pilot fabrication facility and an engineering study with RATEN ICN on use in CANDU reactors.

• Collaboration with Texas A&M, NuScale and Structural Integrity Associates began on an NEUP-funded study of fuel behavior in NuScale SMRs; Virginia Commonwealth University published a peer-reviewed paper on a fuel variant for weapons-grade plutonium disposition.

Financial highlights

• FY2023 net loss was $7.9M vs. $7.5M in FY2022; total other income rose to $1.1M from $0.3M, primarily on higher interest income from Treasury bills and bank savings.

• Working capital was $28.3M at Dec. 31, 2023, vs. $28.7M a year earlier; cash and equivalents were $28.6M vs. $28.9M.

Outlook and guidance

• Fuel development targets existing light-water and pressurized heavy-water reactors and new SMRs; anticipated benefits include reactor safety, economics and proliferation resistance, with load-following capability for SMRs.

• An aspirational goal announced at COP28 calls for tripling global nuclear capacity by 2050, supporting a positive outlook for nuclear power deployment.