Nyrstar Settles TC of Lead, Zinc Concentrates above 2009 Charges

SHANGHAI, May 7 -- Belgium's Nyrstar, the world's largest zinc producer, has settled the TC of lead and zinc concentrates for 2010.

The base TC for zinc concentrate will be USD 250/dmt at a basis zinc price of USD 2,000/mt, a 22.5% increase from 2009’s base TC of USD 204/dmt at a basis zinc price of USD 1,250/mt. The higher base TC in 2010 could be attributed to the fact that smelters are capturing in 2010 about 36% of the total zinc value, as opposed to 42% in 2009, Nyrstar said.

To respond to possible fluctuations in zinc prices, Nyrstar has agreed to escalators of 5% if zinc prices climb above USD 2,000/mt and 9% if they get higher than USD 2,500/mt. On the downside, the company has put in place a de-escalator of 6% for zinc prices below USD 2,000/mt.

Nyrstar has settled the TC of lead concentrate for 2010 at about USD 230/dmt, a 27.8% increase from USD 180/dmt in 2009.

(Edited by SMM)