Codelco's Copper Production Dips 5% in First Nine Months, Recovery Expected

Codelco, Chile's state-owned mining company, reported a 4.9% decline in its copper production to 918,000 tons for the first nine months of the year, compared to the same period last year, in a filing to the country's financial regulator. The miner's copper production in the third quarter increased by 2% year-over-year to 338,000 tons.

The world's largest copper miner is attempting to address declining ore grades in some of its main deposits and is striving to boost production despite issues in priority mining projects. CEO Ruben Alvarado stated, "We broke the trend line this quarter and have begun to recover production. We will continue to put all our efforts into ensuring that our indicators improve by the end of the year."

According to the statement, when production attributed to mining partners Freeport, Anglo American, and Teck is included, total copper production during the first nine months of this year reached 1.002 million tons.

Codelco disclosed a pre-tax profit of $612 million from copper production for the January-September period, compared to a $76 million loss in the first nine months of the previous year. The company's core profit rose by around a quarter year-on-year to $4.022 billion.

Codelco, which passes all its profits to the state, projected total copper production for 2024 to be between 1.325 million and 1.352 million tons, indicating it would fall short of the initial estimate of 1.390 million tons.

The company also provided a timeline for a couple of projects at the Teniente copper mine, expecting the Andres Norte project to commence production in the first quarter of next year, while Andesita is set to start operations in the coming months. The statement noted that the Rajo Inca project has passed tests and should begin production in the last months of this year.