STOCKHOLM - Miner Boliden warned on Monday that increased sick leave due to Covid-19 infections and production disruptions in its Aitik mine in Sweden and the Tara mine in Ireland would hit profits in the first quarter.
The negative effect is expected to be nearly 200-million crowns ($23.4-million) and will affect Boliden's business area Mines, the Swedish group said in a statement.
The operator of mines and smelters in Sweden, Finland, Norway and Ireland said that in the Aitik open pit copper mine, output was smaller than expected due to an increased spread of Covid-19 among staff and hydraulic problems in one of the mills.
In the Tara zinc and lead mine, output was also hit by the spread of the disease among staff and by the breakdown of the mine's ore hoist, Boliden said.
Shares in Boliden were down 1.5% at 13:50 GMT while the wider market in Stockholm stood slightly higher on the day. The company is due to publish its first-quarter earnings report on April 27.