Globe Specialty Metals has announced results for the quarter ended Sept. 30, which shows net sales for the quarter of $137.4 million were up 30 percent and shipments of 58,448 metric tons were up 46 percent from the first quarter of last year.

The company said it achieved these volumes despite significant planned maintenance outages in the quarter.

Globe CEO Jeff Bradley said in a statement, “Our markets remain strong, with the major silicone and polysilicon producers announcing increased calendar third quarter sales. We had anticipated the modest decline in sales and earnings in the quarter as a result of planned maintenance outages. All our plants are now running at full capacity and many of our planned maintenance outages for the fiscal year are behind us.”

Those maintenance outages included the Selma, Niagara Falls and Alloy plants — each having a furnace out of serve for about a month. As a result, most of the planned maintenance for fiscal 2011 is behind the company.

Sales and shipments were off a modest 6 percent from the immediately preceding quarter, which ended June 30, a company release stated Thursday.

Net income attributable to Globe Specialty Metals for the quarter was $2.2 million, compared to $6.6 million in the quarter ended June 30 and $8.4 million in the first quarter of last year.

Diluted earnings per share were $0.03 for the quarter, compared to $0.09 per share in the quarter ended June 30 and $0.12 per share in the first quarter of last year.

Diluted earnings per share on a comparable base were $0/08 per share in the first quarter, $0.11 per share in the quarter ended June 30 and $0.12 per share in the first quarter of last year.

“As we said previously, we expect significant earnings growth in calendar 2011 after our existing low-priced silicon metal contracts expire,” Bradley said.