Download/view Q3 2010 Report (210KB PDF) for the full text of this release.

Excerpt:

Vancouver, BC Teck Resources Limited (TSX: TCK.A and TCK.B, NYSE: TCK) announced adjusted quarterly earnings of $467 million, or $0.79 per share, for the third quarter of 2010. Our operating profit before depreciation was approximately $1.2 billion and EBITDA was $912 million in the third quarter.

Don Lindsay, President and CEO said, "We are pleased to report record revenues of $2.5 billion for the third quarter of 2010. The ramp-up of production at our concentrate project at the Carmen de Andacollo copper mine in Chile progressed well and we achieved commercial production seven months after start-up, with the operating results to be included in our earnings starting October 1. We also continued to strengthen our balance sheet during the quarter by refinancing a portion of our high-yield notes with an average maturity of six years with investment grade notes of an average maturity of 18 years. This will result in a reduction in our interest expense of approximately US$85 million per year.

Highlights and Significant Items

• Operating profit before depreciation in the third quarter was $1.2 billion compared with $969 million last year. On a year-to-date basis, operating profit before depreciation was $3.1 billion compared with $2.6 billion in 2009.
• EBITDA for the 12 months ended September 30, 2010 was $4.3 billion.
• In October, we declared that commercial production was achieved at the Carmen de Andacollos copper concentrate project marking the completion of project development, commissioning and operational ramp-up of the new facility. Effective October 1, 2010, operating results will be credited to earnings. The project will increase the companys total copper production by 70,000 tonnes from approximately 270,000 tonnes to approximately 340,000 tonnes on an annualized basis.
• Coal sales in the third quarter were negatively affected by temporary capacity constraints at Westshore Terminals. Third quarter sales of 5.5 million tonnes were below our previous guidance of 5.8 to 6.2 million tonnes. Sales for the calendar year are expected to be in the range of 23.0 to 23.8 million tonnes compared with our previously announced guidance of 23.5 to 24.5 million tonnes.
• We have agreed on prices with the majority of our contract coal customers for the fourth quarter of 2010 with pricing generally at US$209 per tonne for our highest quality products. We expect our weighted average selling prices for the fourth quarter to be in the range of US$200 to US$205 per tonne.
• In early October, we announced that we had entered into a 10-year agreement with Canadian Pacific Railway Limited to transport coal from our five mines in southeast British Columbia to Vancouver port areas. The commercial terms of the agreement are confidential and include commitments by CP to provide capacity necessary for us to realize our coal growth strategy and to deliver increased production on a timely basis to our key markets.
• During the quarter, we issued US$1.45 billion of long-term investment grade unsecured notes to replace a portion of the high-yield notes issued in May, 2009. These transactions will reduce our future interest expense by approximately US$85 million per year and resulted in high-yield notes with an average maturity of six years being replaced with investment grade notes with an average maturity of 18 years. This refinancing resulted in a $340 million after-tax charge to earnings in the third quarter. An additional $68 million charge will be recorded in the fourth quarter, as a portion of the transaction was completed in the fourth quarter.

Download/view Q3 2010 Report (210KB PDF) for the full text of this release.

Cautionary Statement on Forward-Looking Information

This news release contains certain forward-looking information and forward-looking statements as defined in applicable securities laws. All statements other than statements of historical fact are forward looking statements. These forward-looking statements, principally under the heading Outlook, but also elsewhere in this document, include estimates, forecasts, and statements as to managements expectations with respect to, among other things, our future production, earnings and cash flow, our plans for our oil sands investments and other development projects, forecast production and operating costs, expected progress and costs of our Antamina expansion project, the sensitivity of our earnings to changes in commodity prices and exchange rates, the potential impact of transportation and other potential production disruptions, the impact of currency exchange rates, future trends for the company, progress in development of mineral properties, the benefits of our transportation agreement with Canadian Pacific Railway, transportation costs, the timing of commissioning of the Greenhills coal dryer, future production and sales volumes, future zinc ore grades at the Red Dog mine, capital expenditures and mine production costs, demand and market outlook for commodities, future commodity prices and treatment and refining charges, the settlement of coal contracts with customers, access to and treatment and disposal of process water at our operations, the outcome of mine permitting currently underway, the impact of measures required to manage selenium discharges, the impact of adoption of International Financial Reporting Standards and the outcome of legal proceedings involving the company. These forward-looking statements involve numerous assumptions, risks and uncertainties and actual results may vary materially.

These statements are based on a number of assumptions, including, but not limited to, assumptions regarding general business and economic conditions, interest rates, the supply and demand for, deliveries of, and the level and volatility of prices of, zinc, copper and coal and other primary metals and minerals as well as oil, and related products, the timing of the receipt of regulatory and governmental approvals for our development projects and other operations, our costs of production and production and productivity levels, as well as those of our competitors, power prices, market competition, the accuracy of our reserve estimates (including with respect to size, grade and recoverability) and the geological, operational and price assumptions on which these are based, conditions in financial markets and the future financial performance of the company. The foregoing list of assumptions is not exhaustive. Events or circumstances could cause actual results to vary materially.

Factors that may cause actual results to vary materially include, but are not limited to, changes in commodity and power prices, changes in interest and currency exchange rates, acts of foreign governments and the outcome of legal proceedings, inaccurate geological and metallurgical assumptions (including with respect to the size, grade and recoverability of mineral reserves and resources), unanticipated operational difficulties (including failure of plant, equipment or processes to operate in accordance with specifications or expectations, cost escalation, unavailability of materials and equipment, government action or delays in the receipt of government approvals, industrial disturbances or other job action, adverse weather conditions and unanticipated events related to health, safety and environmental matters), political risk, social unrest, failure of customers or counterparties to perform their contractual obligations, changes in our credit ratings, and changes or further deterioration in general economic conditions.

Statements concerning future production costs or volumes, and the sensitivity of the companys earnings to changes in commodity prices and exchange rates are based on numerous assumptions of management regarding operating matters and on assumptions that demand for products develops as anticipated, that customers and other counterparties perform their contractual obligations, that operating and capital plans will not be disrupted by issues such as mechanical failure, unavailability of parts and supplies, labour disturbances, interruption in transportation or utilities, adverse weather conditions, and that there are no material unanticipated variations in the cost of energy or supplies.

We assume no obligation to update forward-looking statements except as required under securities laws. Further information concerning risks and uncertainties associated with these forward looking statements and our business can be found in our Annual Information Form for the year ended December 31, 2009, filed on SEDAR and on EDGAR under cover of Form 40-F.

Webcast

Teck will host an Investor Conference Call to discuss its Q3/2010 financial results at 11:00 AM Eastern time, 8:00 AM Pacific time, on Wednesday, October 27, 2010. A live audio webcast of the conference call, together with supporting presentation slides, will be available at our website at www.teck.com. The webcast is also available at www.earnings.com. The webcast will be archived at www.teck.com.

Download/view Q3 2010 Report (210KB PDF) for the full text of this release.

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