Glencore CEO Ivan Glasenberg
Photo by: Duane Daws
JOHANNESBURG (miningweekly.com) – The South Africa-centred ferrochrome production of diversified miner Glencore lifted in the third quarter, as did its global coal, oil and copper production.
The London-, Hong Kong- and now also Johannesburg-listed global mining and marketing company, headed by CEO Ivan Glasenberg, said that its attributable own-sourced ferrochrome production rose 5% to 939 000 t in the three months to September 30, reflecting the Lion II expansion ramp-up – which is on track to reach full capacity by mid-2015 – plus higher operating capacity in the absence of a power buyback repeat from State electricity utility Eskom.
The company’s oil production entitlement leapt 50% to 5.1-million barrels from production at the Alen oil field, in Equatorial Guinea, and the Badila oil field, in Chad, boosted by the acquisition of Chad-focused Caracal Energy in July.
Glencore’s own-sourced coal production rose 7% to 111.4 million tons, mainly on higher thermal coal production in Australia, driven by productivity improvements and the completion of various advanced-stage expansion projects.
Own copper production rose 8% to 1 149 000 t, mainly driven by a 48% increase in production at the Mutanda opencast mine in Katanga in the Democratic Republic of Congo, which is operating at a production rate of 200 000 t/y, following completion of the expansion project at the end of last year.
The Mutanda expansion also resulted in cobalt production rising 9% to 13 100 t.
The continued ramp-up at Katanga and higher production at the Collahuasi copper mine in northern Chile also contributed to the increase.
African third-quarter copper production rose 24% to 344 300 t, compared with the third quarter of 2013. The Phase V expansion at Katanga is completed and further operational improvements, including adding some additional back-up power generator capacity, are implemented.
Glencore’s zinc output was 998 000 t, down 6%, following the closure of the Perseverance and Brunswick mines in June last year. The ramp-up at the Perkoa zinc mine in Burkina Faso, 120 km west of the capital Ouagadougou, and expansions at the McArthur River and Mount Isa zinc operations, in Australia, have seen 2014, production grow quarter-on-quarter, with the bigger volume benefits expected in 2015.
The company’s nickel production dipped 1% to 75 000 t, following the placing on care and maintenance last year of the Falcondo nickel mine in the Dominican Republic and the Cosmos and Sinclair mines in Australia, as well as the ramp-up at the Koniambo mine in New Caledonia and the strong growth in production at the Integrated Nickel Operations in Sudbury, Ontario, driven by higher grades at the Raglan mine in northern Quebec.
Platinum group metals production was 117 000 oz, broadly consistent with the comparable period, and 15.2-million pounds of vanadium pentoxide was produced, 4% less, because of a longer yearly maintenance shut.
Ferromanganese and silicon manganese production was 18% higher at 167 000 t on increased silicon manganese throughput in Norway, and higher demand drove increased ferromanganese production in France.
Sherwin Aluminium produced 1.1-million tons of alumina, 8% lower than the comparable period as a result of weak market conditions for Atlantic alumina.