Swedish poly-metal miner Boliden reported a surge in quarterly nickel production, owing to higher milling volumes at the company’s Kevitsa mine concentrator in Finland.
Copper:
The company’s copper production rose by 1pc in January-September 2020 to 93,912mt over 93,020mt in the same period last year. In Q3 2020, Boliden produced 30,777mt of copper concentrate, up 4pc from the same quarter of 2019.
Zinc:
In January-September, the miner produced 214,237mt of zinc concentrate, down 1pc from 216,853mt in the prior year. During the third quarter, zinc production rose by 2pc to 76,720mt, compared with 75,494mt in Q3 2019.
Nickel:
Thanks to the 9.5mn mt annual ore processing capacity achieved at Kevista, the group’s nickel output rose by 12pc in the first nine months of this year, tallying at 8,363mt, from 7,470mt in the prior-year period. For Q3 2020, Boliden’s nickel production stood at 3,058mt, surging 49pc from 2,050mt in the third quarter of 2019.
Lead:
Boliden’s lead production declined in both the nine-month period and third quarter, falling by 3pc and 9pc to 40,147mt and 13,785mt in the respective durations, compared with 41,465mt and 15,206mt, respectively, in the same periods last year.
In January-September 2020, the group’s revenues rose by 43pc over the prior year to SEK40.1bn ($4.5bn) while net profits were flat at SEK4.4bn due to a revaluation of inventory and equipment. During Q3 2020, Boliden’s revenue amounted to SEK13.5bn, up by 21pc over last year’s quarter. It posted a net profit of SEK2bn, an increase of 44pc over Q3 2019.
($1 = SEK8.85)