Antofagasta Reports 15% Increase in Q3 Copper Production, Maintains Full-Year Guidance

Copper mining giant Antofagasta reported a fifteen percent increase in third-quarter production, while maintaining expectations for full-year output to reach the lower end of its guidance range. Copper production totaled 179,000 tonnes for the three months ending September 30, up 15.3% from the second quarter. Year-to-date output stands at 463,700 tonnes, down 1.2% compared to the previous year.

The quarterly increase was primarily driven by destocking inventories at the flagship Los Pelambres project, as well as improvements in copper grades and recoveries at the Centinela mine. Copper sales also rose by 9.3% during the three-month period, reaching 176,500 tonnes.

In addition to copper, gold production surged by 54.2% to 51,800 ounces, while molybdenum production increased by eight percent to 2,700 tonnes. Cash costs before by-product credits fell by 11.4% to $2.33 per pound, bringing year-to-date cash costs to an average of $2.53 per pound, up 5.4% from the previous year.

Chief Executive Iván Arriagada stated, "Following the third quarter, we maintain our expectation to finish 2024 at the lower end of our guidance range of 670,000 to 710,000 tonnes of copper production, as destocking of concentrate inventories at Los Pelambres continues in the fourth quarter. Both Los Pelambres and Centinela exited the third quarter performing in line with expectations."

The company also confirmed that cash cost guidance for the full year remains unchanged, supported by improving operational performance and strong gold prices.