American miner Freeport McMoRan reported a 3.2pc drop in copper production from its global mining operations in January-September 2020. Sales, however, were higher than original estimates.
In the first nine months, the group’s total copper production tallied at 1.06mn mt, down from 1.09mn mt in the same period last year. In the third quarter as well, production declined by 2.3pc to 382,831mn mt from 391,903mt in the prior-year period.
Freeport operates seven open-pit mines in North America, two in South America, and one of the world’s largest copper mines at its Grasbreg mine in Indonesia. By volume, the three regions contributed 167,375mt, 114,758mt, and 100,697mt, respectively, to the total output in Q3 2020.
Copper sales amounted to 1.05mn mt in the first nine months, down 2.1pc over 1.07mn mt last year. However, sales rose by 6.6pc in Q3 2020 to 384,646mt, compared with 360,605mt in Q3 2019.
For the third quarter, Freeport McMoRan’s revenue was up 22pc to $3.8bn while it posted a net income of $432mn in the period, compared to a loss of $234mn in the same quarter last year.