Ellie Saklatvala, Senior Editor — Nonferrous Metals, provides a bitesize overview of the key price movements that happened in Q1 and how supply and demand fundamentals are shaping up as we move through Q2.
Spotlight content
Related news
Tharisa’s profits up on higher chrome production
Tharisa’s profits up on higher chrome production
London, 28 November (Argus) — South African platinum group metals (PGM) and chrome producer Tharisa's full-year 2024 profits rose as revenue from higher chrome production offset low PGM prices, the company announced in its annual results today. The company reported an operating profit of $119.6mn for the financial year. The increase of 26.3pc compared with 2023 was attributed to higher chrome prices that offset lower PGM prices and sales volumes. Chrome ore production contributed 68pc of Tharisa's revenue for the year. Specialty chemicals group Johnson Matthey priced platinum at $945/troy ounce (toz) today, down by 7pc since the start of the year. Palladium prices also fell, down by 14pc since the beginning of 2024 at $998/toz today. In Tharisa's October production report , the company said that chrome concentrate production over the 2024 financial year ending on 30 September was the highest in company history at 1.7mn t, up by 8pc from 2023. Tharisa produced 145,100oz PGM (6E), a 0.3pc increase from the previous financial year. The company is proceeding with plans to expand the Tharisa mine underground, with design, technical and feasibility studies expected to be finalised in the second quarter of 2025. The development is expected to extend the lifespan of the mine by 40 years. Tharisa also said it is continuing development of the Karo Platinum Project mine, although the challenging PGM price landscape led the company to slow the project timeline. By Ellanee Kruck Send comments and request more information at feedback@argusmedia.com Copyright © 2024. Argus Media group . All rights reserved.
Ambatovy to complete debt restructuring by Dec
Ambatovy to complete debt restructuring by Dec
London, 28 November (Argus) — Madagascan nickel project Ambatovy — one of the world's main sources of nickel briquette — has had a debt restructuring plan accepted by a British court, according to an announcement made today by Japanese nickel mining and trading group Sumitomo Corporation. The group expects to complete the restructuring in early December, it said, adding that it was considering all options for Ambatovy in lieu of the low nickel price environment as well as its social obligations. Production at Ambatovy was suspended in early October following damage to a slurry pipeline used to transport ore from its mine to its refinery. Operations resumed under close monitoring at the end of October, but future production plans are under review owing to the plant's high costs of production that are set against a sharp drop in nickel prices this year. In the six months to 30 September, Ambatovy experienced a nickel price drop of 19pc on a year-on-year basis to $7.87/lb, driving a decline in nickel output of 16pc to 16,000t. Benchmark nickel prices on the London Metal Exchange are currently hovering around $16,000/t, at least $10,000/t below Ambatovy's costs of production, traders surveyed by Argus said. By Raghav Jain Send comments and request more information at feedback@argusmedia.com Copyright © 2024. Argus Media group . All rights reserved.
Hastings signs Saudi metals refinery agreement
Hastings signs Saudi metals refinery agreement
Sydney, 28 November (Argus) — Australian mineral mining company Hastings Technology Metals has signed an initial agreement with Saudi Arabia's Ministry of Investment to explore building a metal refinery in the kingdom in preparation for the opening of Hastings' Yangibana mine. Hastings is expecting to be able to produce up to 37,000 t/yr of rare earth concentrates at Yangibana in Australia's New South Wales, beginning in the second quarter of 2027. The development also houses 20.9mn t of proven and probable rare earth ores, making it Australia's third-largest planned rare earth mine. The ASX-listed company is planning to enter the downstream rare earth supply chain by constructing a concentrate processing plant in either Western Australia, Estonia or Saudi Arabia. The company has not committed to constructing refineries in any of those locations at this stage. The recent agreement between Hastings and the Saudi Arabian government commits the kingdom to providing regulatory guidance to the company and helping it to secure Saudi-based capital and joint-venture partners for the refinery. Hastings currently has plans to ship refined rare earth metals to Hong Kong-listed magnet maker JL Mag and Canada-listed rare earth processor Neo Performance Materials, after 2027. Chinese magnet producer Jinli Magnet bought a 9.8pc stake in Hastings earlier this year and agreed to support its New South Wales operations. Manufacturers across a range of sectors, including the electric vehicle, air conditioning, and wind turbine industries, use neodymium and praseodymium, two of the rare earth elements found at the Yangibana mine, to produce industrial-grade magnets. Since 2019, Argus ' praseodymium-neodymium oxide min 99pc fob China price has increased by more than 40pc, from $40,750/t to $57,150/t. By Avinash Govind Send comments and request more information at feedback@argusmedia.com Copyright © 2024. Argus Media group . All rights reserved.
Ecuador, Lumina advance Cangrejo copper mine talks
Ecuador, Lumina advance Cangrejo copper mine talks
Quito, 27 November (Argus) — Ecuador's energy ministry wrapped up talks and expects to reach a final deal by January with a subsidiary of Canada's Lumina Gold to develop the large-scale Cangrejos copper project, mining vice-minister vice-minister Rebeca Illescas said. Odin Mining Ecuador wants to develop the project in El Oro province, in southeast Ecuador, that holds probable copper reserves of about 635,000 metric tonnes (t) of copper. Interim energy minister Inez Manzano said the government plans to sign the production contract with Lumina in January, although both parties could take until May 2025 to complete the deal under the recently agreed terms. The company plans to invest around $1.3bn in building the open pit mine, with plans to start construction by the end of 2025 and production by 2029. According to Illescas, the company committed to pay $25mn in anticipated royalties that will be delivered from 2025-2027 after the contract is signed and during the first two years of the construction of the mine. She added that Lumina Gold also committed to installing up to 60MW of new thermoelectric or renewable power to produce the electricity the project consumes and not depend on the national grid. The firm will pay 5-8pc in royalties to the Ecuadorian government depending on the international price of copper, said Illescas. The contract will last 30 years, and should generate around $5.2bn in income from taxes, she said. The company is working on the feasibility study that will be ready by the second half of 2025, Lumina Gold senior vice-president Diego Benalcazar said. Ecuador's copper concentrate exports generated revenues for about $984mn from January-September 2024, down by 10pc compared with the same period in 2023, according to the central bank. It was Ecuador's fifth-largest export. In 2023, copper concentrate was the fourth-largest export. By Alberto Araujo Send comments and request more information at feedback@argusmedia.com Copyright © 2024. Argus Media group . All rights reserved.
