Glencore has reported a drop in production for the first quarter of 2023 due to closures and operational conditions. But the company said the results were broadly in line with expectations and has kept its 2023 production guidance unchanged.
Copper production clocked in at 244,100 tonnes for the quarter, five per cent lower than the first quarter of 2022.
According to Glencore, the drop in production was largely due to poor weather conditions at the Antamina mine in Peru, as well as planned lower grades in line with the phasing of the pit at Collahuasi in Chile.
Cobalt was up eight per cent from the same period last year, coming in at 10,500 tones.
Nickel production was 20,900 tonnes, 32 per cent lower than the same period last year.
Glencore produced 400,000 tonnes of ferrochrome, which is used in the manufacturing of stainless steel. Ferrochrome production was three per cent above first quarter production in 2022.
Coal production was hampered by a community blockade at Cerrejón in Columbia, as well as mining around geological anomalies in South Africa. Glencore produced 26.9 million tonnes of coal for the quarter, down 1.6 million tonnes from the same time last year, or six per cent.
Yet even with the mixed results, Glencore remains on production target for the year.
“First quarter production was broadly in line with our expectations, accounting for portfolio changes and operational conditions, including the disposals and closures of some zinc and lead mines in the Americas during 2022,” Glencore chief executive officer Gary Nagle said.
“Our marketing segment continued to perform well through the first quarter of 2023, particularly within energy products, such that (we are) on track to exceed the top end of our $2.2 to 3.2 billion per annum guidance range.”