PERTH (miningweekly.com) – Australian copper producer Oz Minerals has reported a strong performance from its Prominent Hill operation, in South Australia, generating revenue of A$609-million during its first year of operation.

In the 2009 financial year, Oz Minerals went through significant corporate change and sold four of its five operations to China Minmetals Non-Ferrous Metals, retaining the new Prominent Hill operation as its only producing mine.

Prominent Hill reached its nameplate production capacity of eight-million tons a year by the fourth quarter of 2009, exceeding production expectations for the year.

Oz Minerals noted that maiden earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation of A$381-million was reported for the Prominent Hill operations.

As a consequence of the sale of assets to Minmetals for A$1,7-billion Oz Minerals repaid all its bank debt facilities totalling A$987-million. The company also sold the Martabe development project to China Sci-Tech Holdings for A$269-million.

Exploration expenses for the continuing operations was A$19-million, with funds employed for exploration mainly in the Prominent Hill region and in Cambodia. Oz Minerals noted that active exploration work restarted in June 2009, after a hiatus in the first half of the year.

In 2010, capital expenditure was expected to be relatively low with expenditure on sustaining capital and upgraded or additional infrastructure, including new boreholes, road upgrades, tailings storage facility lift.

The miner noted that should the Prominent Hill underground project proceed, this capital expenditure would require board approval.

Oz Minerals plans to grow its business through the acquisition of copper mining projects at either the exploration phase, development stage or in production. Sources of available cash include continuing cash flows from Prominent Hill and cash reserves of A$1-billion as at the end of December 2009.

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