Singapore 19/01/2016 - Rio Tin expects higher mined and refined copper production in 2016, according to its fourth quarter production report released on Tuesday.
The company’s mined copper production reached had reached 504,400 tonnes in 2015, down 16.4 percent from the same period last year.
But it expects mined copper output to increase to 575,000-625,000 tonnes in 2016 on higher production in Kennecott, Utah in the US and including an expected share of its joint venture at Grasberg in Indonesia.
Rio Tinto’s mined copper production was down in 2015 as expected due to the continuing focus on de-weighting and de-watering the east wall of Bingham Canyon in Kennecott.
Rio Tinto’s mined copper output was also down 13.4 percent year-on-year and 3.3 percent quarter-on-quarter to 111,100 tonnes in the October-December quarter on lower grades at Escondida in Chile.
Meanwhile, the company expects its refined copper production at 220,000-250,000 tonnes in 2016.
This will be up from its refined copper output of 213,000 tonnes in 2015, which is down 27.7 percent from 2014.
Rio Tinto’s refined copper production rose 20.9 percent year-on-year and 37.4 percent quarter-on-quarter to 49,200 tonnes in October-December.
The lower mine production in Kennecott in 2015 was partly mitigated by an inventory drawdown, with fourth quarter refined copper production rising on increased volume and grades from Kennecott material, it said.
Through a joint venture agreement with Freeport-McMoRan, Rio Tinto is entitled to 40 percent of material mined above an agreed threshold as a consequence of expansions and developments of the Grasberg facilities since 1998, the company noted.
Production at Grasberg in 2015 did not exceed the metal attributable to Freeport and, accordingly, Rio Tinto’s share of joint venture production was zero, it added.