Copper output boosts production at Anglo American

Anglo American saw fourth-quarter production jump, the miner said on Thursday, boosted by strong copper output.

The blue chip miner, which has operations around the world, said copper production soared 52% to 244,000 tonnes following a ramp up at the Quellaveco mine in Peru. It produced more than 80,000 tonnes of copper during the quarter.

De Beers rough diamond production also rose, up 6% at 8.2m carats, while iron ore strengthened 4% to 15.7m tonnes, steelmaking coal rose 6% and manganese ore by 18%.

That was partially offset by a 4% fall in nickel production, to 10,200 tonnes, primarily due to planned annual maintenance, while platinum group metals fell 10% because of lower grades at the Mogalakwena mine in South Africa.

Overall, Anglo American’s fourth-quarter total production rose 10%.

Duncan Wanblad, chief executive, said: "In 2023, our unwavering focus remains on ensuring a safe and stable platform for strengthened and repeatable operational performance, while progressing towards our sustainability ambitions and advancing our organic growth options."

The firm reaffirmed its full-year production forecasts, including between 30m and 33m carats of diamonds and between 38,000 and 40,000 tonnes of nickel. It left its guidance for copper unchanged, however, at between 840,000 and 930,000 tonnes, despite the improved performance at Quellaveco, because operations in Chile are expected to be broadly flat.