| | Published : May 06th, 2008 | Interim Management Statement and Q1 Production Report |
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NEWS RELEASE
Zug, 6 May
2008
INTERIM MANAGEMENT STATEMENT
AND
Q1 PRODUCTION REPORT
Following a
year of record production and profitability in 2007, in the period from 1
January 2008 Xstrata’s operating and financial
performance continues to be strong and the company’s financial position
remains robust.
- First
quarter copper, semi-soft coking coal, platinum, ferrochrome, mined zinc
and lead production increased compared to the same period last year
- Solid
production performances at the majority of operations were partially
offset by adverse weather conditions in Queensland,
Australia and South Africa which impacted all open pit
coal producers and ongoing restrictions to electricity supply to the mining
industry in South
Africa. Lower grades, severe weather
and maintenance shutdowns reduced mined production at our nickel
operations
- Electricity
supply to our South African operations continues to be restricted to
approximately 90% of total demand, impacting ferrochrome and vanadium
production and, to a lesser extent, South African thermal coal production.
Xstrata continues to work closely with Eskom (South
Africa’s power utility) and is
examining a number of alternative options to secure a cost effective
supply of electricity to our operations over the medium term
- Constraints
to industry supply growth and strong demand for commodities led to higher
prices for most of Xstrata’s key
commodities compared to the first quarter of 2007, including substantial
increases in copper, platinum, ferrochrome, thermal and coking coal prices
- The
European benchmark ferrochrome price was settled at a record level of
$1.92 per pound for the second quarter
- Thermal
coal contracts have been settled with long-term customers in Japan for the
2008/09 Japanese contract year at prices up to $125 per tonne, an increase
of 125% over the prior year
- Xstrata’s hard coking coal contracts are
yet to be settled, however spot prices for
premium coking coal continue to trade at record levels. We are confident
that contract prices in 2008 will significantly exceed prices achieved in
2007
- Average
LME copper prices rose by 31% and platinum prices increased by 59%
compared to the first quarter of 2007
- Nickel
and zinc prices have softened from elevated levels in the early part of
2007, but prices remain well in excess of historical levels
�
Following an approach by
Vale in late 2007, Xstrata announced on 25 March that
discussions with Vale regarding a potential combination of the two companies had
been terminated by mutual agreement
�
The Jubilee Mines nickel
and Resource Pacific coal acquisitions announced in late 2007 completed on 22
February and 10 March respectively
�
Xstrata Alloys’ acquisition of the De Wildt
property from Nkwe Platinum Limited was announced on
22 February and is expected to become unconditional during the second quarter
of 2008
- In January, Xstrata
Copper announced a 28% increase in the total estimated Mineral Resource at
the Collahuasi copper mine in Chile. In March, a tonnage
increase of 31% in total Mineral Resources was announced at the southern Peru
division to over 1.6 billion tonnes of copper mineralisation
�
On 3
March, Xstrata Coal announced the restructuring of
its Douglas Tavistock Joint Venture (DTJV) with BHP Billiton Energy Coal South Africa (BECSA), resulting in Xstrata acquiring and managing the mining of reserves
approximately equivalent to its 16% share of Douglas Tavistock,
in an area contiguous to the 100% owned Arthur Taylor Colliery Open-Cast Mine
(ATCOM) operations
�
On 11
March, Xstrata Coal announced it had received the
necessary approvals to commence mining operations at the 4.5 million tonnes per year Glendell open cut
operation.
Half-yearly
results for the six-month period to 30 June 2008 will be announced on 6 August
2008. The outlook for Xstrata’s financial and operating performance in 2008
remains very positive.
Xstrata contacts
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Investors & analysts
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Claire Divver
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Hanr� Rossouw
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Telephone:
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+44 20 7968 2871
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Telephone:
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+44 20 7968 2820
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Mobile:
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+44 7785 964340
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Mobile:
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+44 7879 455885
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Email:
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cdivver@xstrata.com
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Email:
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hrossouw@xstrata.com
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Pamela Bell
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Telephone:
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+44 20 7968 2822
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Mobile:
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+44 7799 626715
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Email:
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pbell@xstrata.com
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Q1 2008 PRODUCTION
Xstrata Alloys
First
quarter chrome production increased by 4% compared to the same period in 2007,
following the return of all previously idled capacity to production during
2007. However, the full benefit of returning all furnaces to production
has been partially offset by reduced electricity supply to operations from Eskom, as part of a national energy shortage in South Africa.
The Lion ferrochrome complex which was commissioned last year has continued its
ramp up, using the Premus technology which is approximately
35% more energy efficient than conventional industry ferrochrome smelting
processes.
Platinum
group metals (PGM) volumes increased by 128% as a result of the Eland Platinum
acquisition and the successful commissioning of the Elandsfontein
operation in the fourth quarter of 2007.
Chrome
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Q1 2008
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Q1 2007
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Year ended
31.12.07
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Attributable saleable production (kt)
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305
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292
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1,219
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Indicative average published price (US�/lb) (Metal Bulletin)
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121.0
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75.0
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89.3
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Vanadium
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Q1 2008
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Q1 2007
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Year ended
31.12.07
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Consolidated* saleable ferrovanadium production (k kg)
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1,057
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1,003
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4,280
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Consolidated* saleable vanadium pentoxide (k
lb)
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4,520
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4,148
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18,870
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Indicative average published price ferrovanadium (US�/kg) (Metal
Bulletin)
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68.05
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34.64
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37.17
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Indicative average published price vanadium pentoxide
(US�/lb) (Metal Bulletin)
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12.65
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6.64
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7.40
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* Consolidated 100%
Platinum
Group Metals
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Q1 2008
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Q1 2007
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Year ended
31.12.07
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Consolidated** saleable production (oz)
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Platinum
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27,161
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10,803
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57,303
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Palladium
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13,066
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6,408
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32,618
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Rhodium
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3,158
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1,814
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9,294
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Average LBM prices ($/oz)
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Platinum
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1,892
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1,190
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1,337
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Palladium
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447
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343
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355
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Rhodium
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8,151
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5,848
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6,201
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** Consolidated 100% of Eland and 50% of Mototolo
Xstrata Coal
Total
consolidated production of 18.5 million tonnes was 4% lower than the first
quarter of 2007, primarily due to lower thermal coal production in Australia.
In Queensland,
thermal coal production from open pit operations was impacted by flooding and
heavy rains from February. Force majeure was declared
on a number of contracts from the Newlands-Collinsville-Abbots
Point (NCA) complex and Rolleston operations in
mid-February. By 8 March, Rolleston had lifted force majeure on all contracts and production has now returned to
normal levels. The situation remains under review at the NCA complex.
Production was switched from thermal to higher value semi-soft coking
coal production in New South Wales
to take advantage of strong prices, resulting in an increase of over 40% in
semi-soft production and a slight decline in thermal production compared to the
first quarter last year.
Lower production of thermal coal at the South
African operations due to heavy rains in January was more than offset by
increased production at the Cerrej�n mine in Colombia
as this operation ramps up to reach an annual rate of 32 million tonnes per
annum by mid 2008. Australian coking production was 0.2 million tonnes
lower than in the previous year, predominantly due to the timing of longwall moves at the Oaky Creek
complex.
PRODUCTION DATA
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Q1 2008
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Q1 2007
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Year ended
31.12.07
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Total consolidated production (million tonnes)
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18.5
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19.2
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82.8
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Australian coking
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1.0
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1.2
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6.8
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Australian semi-soft coking
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1.7
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1.2
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6.4
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Australian thermal
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7.8
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9.0
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35.0
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South African thermal*
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5.4
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5.6
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24.7
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Americas
thermal
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2.6
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2.2
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9.9
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Average received export FOB coal price ($/t)
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Australian coking
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132.8
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104.5
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98.1
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Australian semi-soft coking
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71.4
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60.2
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62.5
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Australian thermal
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65.3
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46.0
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51.2
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South African thermal
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68.4
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49.5
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51.7
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Americas
thermal
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65.1
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52.0
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52.3
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* For production
reporting DTJV is included for the full 3 months. For financial reporting DTJV
will be excluded from Xstrata Coal’s ex-mine
results as a result of the DTJV re-structuring announced on 3 March 2008.
Xstrata Copper
Total
mined copper production increased by 2% across the five operating divisions
compared to the corresponding period last year. Despite difficult weather
conditions, production increased at Collahuasi due to
the full operation of the milling circuits, compared to the first quarter of
2007 during which major repairs to the main SAG mill motor impacted ore
throughputs. Higher grades and increased mill throughput increased production
at Ernest Henry mine. These production improvements more than compensated for
slightly lower production at all other operations. Gold production
increased as a result of higher ore grades at Minera Alumbrera and improved performance at Ernest Henry. Lower
concentrate processing at Mount
Isa
resulted in slightly lower cathode production.
PRODUCTION DATA
(tonnes)
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Q1 2008
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Q1 2007
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Year ended
31.12.07
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Total mined copper
production (t) (contained metal)
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219,978
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216,190
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986,663
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Total mined gold production
(oz) (contained metal)
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177,172
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146,620
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777,257
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Total copper cathode (t)
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204,808
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206,498
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802,271
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Average LME copper price
(US$/t)
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7,796
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5,933
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7,139
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Average LBM gold price
(US$/t)
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927
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650
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697
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Xstrata Nickel
Total
mined production in the first quarter of 2008 decreased by
15% compared to the same period last year. Reduced mined production was more
than offset by the purchase of third party custom feeds, which led to a slight
increase in refined nickel production compared to the same period in 2007. In Northern Canada, production was impacted by severe
weather conditions and a planned shutdown at Raglan in the first quarter. The Sudbury operations were
impacted by a planned hoist changeover at Fraser mine and lower grades as some
operations approach the end of mine life. Planned maintenance shutdowns in
early 2008 at Falcondo reduced ferronickel
production.
Xstrata Nickel Australasia, a new
operating division following the acquisition of Jubilee Mines NL in February
2008, accounted for around 800 tonnes of mined nickel in the first quarter of
2008. The integration of the acquisition is proceeding well with the main
focus being the optimisation of the mine planning schedule and increased
drilling activity to enable production to ramp up to the targeted annual rate of
30,000 tonnes by 2012.
.
PRODUCTION DATA
(tonnes)
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Q1 2008
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Q1 2007
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Year ended
31.12.07
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Total mined nickel production (t) (contained metal)
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11,785
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13,847
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52,108
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Total mined ferronickel production (t) (contained metal)
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6,866
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7,237
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29,130
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Total mined copper production (t) (contained metal)
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6,789
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7,991
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31,425
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Total mined cobalt production (t) (contained metal)
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315
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363
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1,412
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Total refined nickel production (t) (payable metal)
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28,531
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28,482
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116,720
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Average LME nickel price(US$/t)
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28,957
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41,440
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37,089
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Average LME copper price
(US$/t)
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7,796
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5,933
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7,139
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Average Metal Bulletin
cobalt low grade price (US$/lb)
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45.63
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25.14
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27.70
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Xstrata Zinc
Zinc in concentrate and lead metal production
was maintained at a similar level to the first quarter of 2007. Zinc metal
production decreased by 4% due to the failure of one transformer at San Juan de
Nieva plant. Lead in concentrate production increased
by 21%, primarily due to higher mill throughput, increased grades and improved
lead concentrator recoveries at Mount
Isa
compared to the same period of 2007.
PRODUCTION DATA
(tonnes)
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Q1 2008
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Q1 2007
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Year ended
31.12.07
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Total zinc in concentrate production (t)
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182,702
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181,807
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735,555
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Total zinc metal production (t)
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205,682
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214,623
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843,726
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Total lead in concentrate production (t)
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64,572
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53,551
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213,735
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Total lead metal production (t)
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57,374
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57,734
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190,168
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Average LME zinc price (US$/t)
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2,426
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3,460
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3,257
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Average LME lead price (US$/t)
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2,891
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1,787
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2,594
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**********************************************************************
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VanEck Vectors Global Alternative Energy ETF
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PRODUCER |
CODE : XTA.L |
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ProfileMarket IndicatorsVALUE : Projects & res.Press releasesAnnual reportRISK : Asset profileContact Cpy |
Xstrata is a zinc and lead producing company based in Switzerland. Xstrata produces zinc, lead, bauxite, coal, cobalt, copper, gold, molybdenum, nickel and silver in Argentina, in Australia, in Botswana, in Canada, in Chile, in Colombia, in Jamaica and in Peru, develops cobalt, copper, copper , gold, lead, molybdenum, nickel, palladium, platinum, silver, uranium and zinc in Argentina, in Australia, in Canada, in Chile, in Dominican Republic, in New Caledonia and in Philippines, and holds various exploration projects in Argentina, in Australia, in Botswana, in Brazil, in Canada, in Chile, in Greenland, in Ireland, in Mexico, in Norway, in Panama, in Papua New Guinea, in Peru, in South Africa, in Turkey and in Yemen. Its main assets in production are ALUMBRERA in Argentina, KIDD CREEK MINE (MINE D), CRAIG - ONAPING (SUDBURY) MINE, PELLETIER LAKE (STADACONA MINE), LINDSLEY MINE, NORALEX (WEST ANSIL, HORNE, ETC), FALCONBRIDGE MINE, RAGLAN, SUDBURY, BRUNSWICK MINE, KIDD, STRATHCONA, KIDD CREEK DIVISION and BUCKO LAKE in Canada, HYC MCARTHUR RIVER, MOUNT ISA LEAD ZINC SILVER, ERNEST HENRY, BOUNTY MINE, COSMOS MINE, THUNDERBOX, EMILY ANN (LAKE JOHNSTON), MT MCCLURE, MT ISA, MT ISA BLACK STAR, MT ISA ENTERPRISE, EMILY ANN and SILVER SWAN in Australia, LOMAS BAYAS and COLLAHUASI MINE in Chile, TINTAYA, ANTAMINA, ANTAMINA and ANTAMINA ZINC ORE in Peru, PHOENIX MINE (TATI NICKEL) in Botswana, PRODECO in Colombia and ST ANN BAUXITE in Jamaica, its main assets in development are LENNARD SHELF, MAGGIE HAYS, CLONCURRY COPPER and LENNARD SHELF in Australia, CERRO DE MAIMON and FALCONDO MINE in Dominican Republic, PERSEVERANCE, HACKETT RIVER, PREMIERE RIDGE, ONAPING DEPTH, FRASER MORGAN, NICKEL RIM SOUTH, ONAPING DEPTH and PD1 in Canada, AGUA RICA and EL PACHON in Argentina, LOMAS BAYAS II in Chile, KONIAMBO in New Caledonia and TAMPAKAN in Philippines and its main exploration properties are HORNE SMELTER, ISLAND COPPER, CEZINC, DONKIN, KONRAD, MARY MARCH, MEGATEM, ROBB LAKE, AKWESKWA, MUSK, TROILUS / TORTIGNY, TORTIGNY, SABIN, CHANCE, TULKS NORTH, CATFACE, GREAT BURNT LAKE, WEST ANSIL, TULK SOUTH - DOMINO, TULK EAST B ZONE, TULK SOUTH BOOMERANG, TULK EAST A ZONE, TULK LONG LAKE MAIN ZONE, SKIDDER, MATAGAMI, HEATH STEELE MINES, GASPE MINE and MONTCALM TWP PROP in Canada, BLACK ROCK, TOBY CREEK, MUSGRAVE, SINCLAIR and MOUNT PEAKE in Australia, ELMALAAN in Turkey, MANGABAL in Brazil, KABANGA in Tanzania, FRIEDA - NENA DEPOSIT in Papua New Guinea, PALLAS GREEN in Ireland and DIKOLOTI in Botswana. Xstrata is listed in Germany and in United Kingdom. Its market capitalisation is 45.7 billions as of today (US$ 71.1 billions, € 54.3 billions). Its stock quote reached its lowest recent point on April 30, 2013 at 963.50, and its highest recent level on May 02, 2013 at 999.70. Xstrata has 47 442 200 shares outstanding. |
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