Copper cathode production of KAZ Minerals in 2015 slipped 2.9% from 2014 to 81,100 mt while copper-in-concentrate output was little changed on the year at 89,400 mt compared with 89,900 mt in 2014.
In its fourth-quarter 2015 report released Thursday, KAZ said it produced 22,700 mt of copper cathode during the three-month period, 4.6% more than 21,700 mt the previous quarter and 6% less than a year earlier. Lower copper-in-concentrate output was recorded during Q4 of 23,000 mt compared with 23,200 mt in Q3 and 23,600 mt a year earlier.
The Kazakh copper producer operates four open-pit mines and three concentrators in the East Region of Kazakhstan, and the Bozymchak copper-gold mine in Kyrgyzstan.
It has been developing greenfield Bozshakol and Aktogay projects in Kazakhstan for staged commissioning since the end of 2015. Ore extraction in Q4 and 2015 has increased significantly as a result of KAZ's pre-production mining operations at Bozshakol and Aktogay.
In Q4 alone saw the group boosted ore extraction to 8 million mt, double the amount it achieved in the previous quarter. Bozshakol and Aktogay together accounted for almost 70% of the group's 14.5 million mt of ore extracted last year.
The incremental ore from these large-scale, open-pit projects, however, has lowered KAZ's average copper grade to 1.1% in 2015 from 2.35% in 2014.
CATHODE OUTPUT NEAR LOW END OF 2015 TARGET
The group's 81,100 mt of copper cathode production was near the lower end of its 2015 production guidance of 80,000-85,000 mt.
Output of 80,700 mt from the East Region and Bozymchak was affected by a build-up of work in progress due to maintenance at the Balkhash smelter earlier in 2015, which was not fully released during the year.
Production in Q4 was 4.6% more than in Q3, due to higher processing volumes at Balkhash and the first contribution from Aktogay's oxide of 400 mt during the quarter.
Throughput of KAZ's Nikolayevsky concentrators increased following modernization work and recovery rates were higher at all three East Region concentrators, the Kazakh copper producer said.
These factors partially offset a reduction in copper in ore mined, thus keeping copper-in-concentrate produced stable at 89,400 mt last year.
Production also benefited from an increased contribution from Bozymchak to 3,100 mt, from 700 mt in 2014, as the concentrator ramped up during the year.
Increased copper-in-concentrate output from the Orlovsky concentrator largely offset lower output from Nikolayevsky, thus keeping the group's December quarter production at the 23,000 mt level.
2015 ZINC-IN-CONC OUTPUT DOWN 22%
KAZ's zinc-in-concentrate output slumped 2.3% last year to 94,300 mt, though the amount still reached the upper end of the 2015 production guidance of 90,000-95,000 mt, the Kazakh miner said.
The group only processed 21,000 mt of zinc-in-concentrate in Q4, almost 10% less than 23,300 mt in Q3 and 34.4% less on the year.
KAZ said the fall in output was expected as mining at Artemyevsky moves through a low zinc grade transitional zone.
The group churned out 34,600 oz of gold bar in 2015, unchanged from 2014 and in line with its production guidance of 34,000-38,000 oz for last year.
