Global lead production is expected to decrease by 5.2% to 4.5-million tonnes this year, says data and analytics company GlobalData.

The outbreak of the Covid-19 pandemic in late December 2019 significantly impacted the mining industry in the first half of this year and continues to do so.

Overall global lead mine production decreased by 3.4% year-in-year in the first quarter of this year. This was primarily owing to the decline in production in China, India and Kazakhstan owing to Covid-19 restrictions, says the company

“In China, production is forecast to decline by 3.5%. . . The country’s lead mine production declined in the first quarter, primarily due to restrictive measures taken by the government to contain the virus.

“Several mines and plants had to temporarily cease production activities due to the shortage of workers who could not return to mine sites, owing to the prolonged Lunar New Year holidays, followed by transportation issues due to the lockdown.

"Although most of the lead producers gradually restarted mine operations, lower demand from the automotive sector is expected to constrain mine production in 2020,” says GlobalData senior mining analyst Vinneth Bajaj.

In Australia, production is forecast to fall by 4.2% this year, even though mining in the country has not been as severely impacted as in other countries.

Production from the rest of world is anticipated to decline from 2.2-million tonnes in 2019 to two-million tonnes – a drop of 7.1%.

Significant declines will be recorded in Peru (8.4%), the US (6.1%) and India (14.1%).

“Looking ahead, lead production over the period [from 2021 to 2024] is expected to grow at a compound annual growth rate of 4.2%, to reach 5.2-million tonnes in 2024. Peru, Australia and China will be the key contributors to this growth," Bajaj notes.

Combined production in these countries is expected to recover from a forecast 2.8-million tonnes in 2021 to 3.3-million tonnes in 2024.

“Key projects expected to commence operations during the forecast period include Abra in Western Australia and the Prairie Creek project. The Abra in Western Australia is currently under construction. The project’s debt financing has been slowed due to the outbreak of Covid-19; however, the company is targeting its initial production in 2021, with an annual lead capacity of 95 000 t.

"The Prairie Creek project is currently awaiting regulatory approvals and permissions. With a total $279-million in pre-production capital cost, the project is expected to commence operations in 2022,” says Bajaj.