Q3 2015 Production Report
22 October, 2015
Anglo American plc Production Report for the third quarter ended 30 September 2015.
Overview
| Q3 2015 | Q3 2014 | % vs. Q3 2014 | YTD 2015 | YTD 2014 | % vs. YTD 2014 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Iron ore – Kumba (Mt) | 11.4 | 13.0 | (12)% | 33.9 | 35.8 | (5)% |
| Iron ore – Minas-Rio (Mt)(1) | 2.9 | - | nm | 5.9 | - | nm |
| Export metallurgical coal (Mt) | 5.5 | 5.1 | 8% | 15.7 | 16.0 | (2)% |
| Export thermal coal (Mt) | 8.8 | 9.0 | (2)% | 26.1 | 25.0 | 5% |
| Copper (t)(3)(4) | 171,100 | 176,900 | (3)% | 527,400 | 573,300 | (8)% |
| Nickel (t)(5) | 6,800 | 10,700 | (36)% | 19,800 | 30,500 | (35)% |
| Platinum (produced ounces) (koz)(6) | 614 | 541 | 14% | 1,739 | 1,267 | 37% |
| Diamonds (Mct)(7) | 6.0 | 8.2 | (27)% | 21.6 | 24.2 | (11)% |
- Q3 2015 production increased by 2% (on a copper equivalent basis) compared to Q3 2014 and by 3% compared to Q2 2015.
- Iron ore production from Kumba decreased by 12% to 11.4 million tonnes due to a temporary lack of sufficient exposed high quality ore for blending purposes at Sishen and adjustments to the mine plan and schedule as it transitions to the lower cost pit configuration.
- Minas-Rio produced 2.9 million tonnes (wet basis) of iron ore, a 60% increase compared to Q2 2015, reflecting the ongoing ramp up of the operation.
- Export metallurgical coal production increased by 8% to 5.5 million tonnes, driven by productivity improvements at Grasstree, which more than offset the loss of production from Peace River Coal being placed on care and maintenance in December 2014.
- Export thermal coal production was broadly flat at 8.8 million tonnes, with higher production at Cerrejón offsetting lower production from South Africa.
- Copper production from retained operations increased by 1%, while total production decreased by 3% to 171,100 tonnes as a result of the sale of the Norte assets, effective for reporting from 1 September.
- Nickel production decreased by 36% to 6,800 tonnes due to the planned Barro Alto furnace rebuilds. Both furnace rebuilds are now complete, ahead of schedule and below budgeted cost, with Furnace 2 operating at design capacity and Furnace 1 currently being ramped up.
- Platinum production (expressed as metal in concentrate)(6) increased by 14% to 614,300 ounces due to Rustenburg, Amandelbult and Union mines ramping up to normal production levels during the comparable period in 2014 following the strike.
- Diamond production decreased by 27% to 6.0 million carats, following the decision to reduce production to better reflect current trading conditions.
(1) Wet basis;
(2) Not meaningful (nm);
(3) Copper production from the Copper business unit;
(4) Copper production shown on a contained metal basis;
(5) Nickel production from the Nickel business unit;
(6) In keeping with industry benchmarks, production disclosure has been amended to reflect own mine production and purchases of metal in concentrate. Previous disclosure of own mine production and purchases of metal in concentrate was converted to equivalent refined production using standard smelting and refining recoveries;
(7) De Beers production on 100% basis.
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