Lead & Zinc Mines in China’s Hunan May Reopen after Lantern Festival

SHANGHAI, Mar.3 (SMM) – Most lead and zinc mines in the western part of Hunan, China, particularly Huayuan region, will not resume production until after the Lantern Festival (March 5), SMM understands, as most workers will return to work then.

Huyuan region is one of the main lead and zinc mining centers in China with a capacity to produce 250,000 tonnes of lead and zinc concentrates per year.

Data from the National Bureau of Statistics show lead concentrate output in Hunan province was 454,000 tonnes in 2014 and zinc concentrate output was 503,000 tonnes, claiming 15.15% and 9.09% of the national total, respectively.

Lead smelters in Hunan province complained about the difficulty in sourcing raw materials as local mining companies were running at low utilization rate. TCs for lead concentrate in Hunan thus tend to decline to 1,700-1,900 yuan per tonne for Pb 50% concentrate.  

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