JOHANNESBURG (miningweekly.com) – Metals miner MMG has received “several approaches” from parties interested in its Golden Grove copper mine, in Western Australia, CEO Andrew Michelmore has said.
The China-owned company, which this week reported a half-year loss of $67-million, will appoint a financial adviser to start a formal expression of interest process, which is expected to be concluded by the end of the year.
“There is no predetermined outcome to this process, and we maintain a positive outlook for both copper and zinc,” Michelmore said in the company’s interim results announcement.
MMG in January implemented a strategy of lowering production at the Golden Grove mine to preserve the value of the resource. As a result, copper-in-concentrate production across its Australian operations was 50% lower at 7 231 t in the January to June period.
Zinc-in-concentrate production at the Rosebery mine, in Tasmania, was 11% lower than reported in the first half of 2015 at 58 137 t, owing to lower head feed grades at Rosebery.
The company’s revenue decreased by 47% year-on-year to $586.1-million in the half-year under review, which MMG said reflected the tough trading conditions and the planned transition of its production profile from zinc to copper.
The group’s production focus has shifted to the Las Bambas copper mine, in Peru, which recently started operating commercially.