Glencore expects its nickel and zinc production to grow in 2021 while its copper output will remain subdued as it does not expect to restart its Mutanda mine soon.
The miner plans to produce 1.25mn mt of zinc in 2021, up from 1.16mn mt this year. Its nickel output is slated to grow marginally to 117,000mt next year, over 114,000 in 2020. However, it foresees nickel production of 125,000mt per year in 2022 and 2023, owing to a ramp-up at its Koniambo mine in the northern region of New Caledonia.
Copper
Compared to the 2020 copper guidance of 1.25mn mt, Glencore has lowered its 2021 guidance to 1.22mn mt as it placed its Mutanda mine in the Democratic Republic of Congo under care and maintenance for at least two years. The mine produced 200,000mt of copper per year until 2019. However, the company expects better production at Katanga to partially offset this decline. In 2019, Katanga produced 82,100mt of copper. As previously reported, it plans to sell its Mopani mine to the Zambian government and divest from the project entirely.