Louisville, Kentucky — Canada's First Quantum Minerals saw an increase in copper output in the second quarter and is now bracing for a month-long power supply reduction at its Kansanshi and Sentinel copper mines in Zambia, CEO Clive Newall said Tuesday.
Newall also told analysts during a conference call that a brief strike by contract workers at the company's Las Cruces open pit copper mine in southern Spain had ended earlier this week.
He said First Quantum's current focus was on completing and fully commissioning its large Cobre Panama open pit copper project in Panama, where commercial production is scheduled to begin in 2019.
The company produced 150,950 mt of copper over April-June, up from 141,912 mt a year earlier. First half production totaled 296,308 mt, up from 274,268 mt in H1 2017.
"Our copper production exceeded last year's comparable period as drier weather conditions in Zambia returned," Newall said. "While metal prices are being negatively affected by global political concerns, demand for copper remains robust. We continue to sell all of our production into a market where there is excess demand."
Newall said his company has been advised by Zambia's state-run power company that electricity to First Quantum's Kansanshi and Sentinel mines will be reduced from around end July to facilitate maintenance and upgrades to the electricity network.
However, the power cuts are expected to be "only marginally below what we need to run optimally," he said. "It's not going to have a material impact on our guidance going forward and we're doing what we can to make the most of the power that is available," he added.
Once the major Cobre Panama project is completed, First Quantum will turn its attention over the next 2-3 years to new endeavors, most likely its Taca Taca copper-gold-molybdenum porphyry deposit in Argentina, Newall said.
