World's largest copper producer: profits rose sharply last year the conflict between Russia and Ukraine is not expected to affect performance

Published: Feb 27, 2022 19:52

Save

[world's largest copper producer: sharp increase in profits last year the conflict between Russia and Ukraine is not expected to affect results] Codelco announced its 2021 results: its pre-tax profit rose sharply to $7.4 billion in 2021 from $2.1 billion a year ago, and its copper mine output last year was 1.618 million tons, the same as the same period last year. If you add in Codelco's shares in Freeport El Abra and Anglo American Resources Group Anglo Sur, The company produced 1.728 million tons of copper last year.

Codelco, Chile's state-owned copper company, the world's largest copper producer, reported its 2021 results on Friday, local time. Codelco achieved a substantial increase in profits in 2021, thanks to high global copper prices.

Data show that the company's pre-tax profit rose sharply to $7.4 billion in 2021 from $2.1 billion a year earlier, and its copper mine production last year was 1.618 million tonnes, unchanged from the same period a year earlier. If you add in Codelco's stakes in Freeport El Abra and Anglo American Group Anglo Sur, the company produced a total of 1.728 million tonnes of copper last year.

Octavio Araneda, chief executive of Codelco, said cash costs rose 2.6 per cent to $1.327 per pound, mainly due to external effects, and higher input prices began to put pressure on the industry's operating costs at the end of 2021.

Araneda predicts that Codelco's copper production this year will continue to be the same as in 2021 and 2020. Since Codelco is the world's number one copper producer, this means that the tight supply situation in the global copper market is difficult to ease in the short term.

Previously released data showed that Chilean copper production fell 1.9 per cent last year, due to labor shortages caused by the novel coronavirus epidemic. However, earthwork and maintenance work is still being carried out in mines around the world to continue production in the event of a shortage of staff, which have been delayed during the outbreak.

Codelco is speeding up inspections of its aging deposits as the Chilean government relaxes its blockade of the epidemic. Araneda said maintenance at the, Codelco Chuquicamata smelter is not expected to affect overall production, but will affect cathode copper production.

Investors are closely watching the impact of the war between Russia and Ukraine on the market, and Araneda believes that the conflict between the two sides is not expected to significantly affect Codelco's sales, as the two countries are not important buyers for the company.

Araneda expects global copper prices to remain near current levels this year unless the conflict escalates seriously.

Data Source Statement: Except for publicly available information, all other data are processed by SMM based on publicly available information, market communication, and relying on SMM‘s internal database model. They are for reference only and do not constitute decision-making recommendations.

For any inquiries or to learn more information, please contact: lemonzhao@smm.cn

For more information on how to access our research reports, please contact:service.en@smm.cn

Related News

8 hours ago

Chile's Water Crisis Threatens Atacama's Copper and Lithium Mining Amid 14-Year Drought

Chile’s most pressing crisis at present is the issue of water resources. The Atacama Desert in Chile is one of the driest regions in the world and also the core area for copper and lithium ore extraction. The local area has experienced a drought for as long as 14 years, and reservoir storage has fallen to only about 30%. For miners, water resources are not a secondary issue, but an indispensable key production factor in such processes as ore processing, dust suppression, and equipment cooling. The decline in ore grade has further exacerbated the predicament

8 hours ago

Trump Adjusts Metal Tariffs, Applies 50% Rate to Consumer Prices Under Section 232, Details Unclear

US President Trump adjusted the national security tariffs on imports of steel, aluminum, and copper, lowering the tariff rates on derivative products made from these metals, streamlining compliance procedures, and preventing the declared value of imports from being understated.A senior Trump administration official said that, under a proclamation signed by Trump, the US would continue to maintain a 50% import tariff on imports of metal commodities such as steel, aluminum, and copper pursuant to Section 232 of the Trade Act of 1974, but would apply this rate to the price paid by US consumers. It is currently unclear how the selling price—and the resulting tariffs—would be determined.

8 hours ago

Barrick Confirms 2028 Production Target for Reko Diq Copper-Gold Project in Pakistan Despite Budget Concerns

Barrick Mining said that its Reko Diq copper-gold project in Pakistan still plans to achieve first production by the end of 2028.The project is a large-scale copper-gold project jointly developed by Barrick, the Pakistani government, and relevant joint venture partners, and is located in Balochistan, Pakistan. Although the company had previously warned that the capital budget previously disclosed for the project's two phases could face a significant increase, the 2028 production commencement target remained unchanged.

8 hours ago