Cerro Verde: 96,516t Cu cathodes, 16,226t concentrate in 2006
Source: BNamericas
metalsplace.com
Peru's Cerro Verde copper mine churned out 96,516t of cathodes and 16,226t of concentrates in 2006 versus 93,551t of cathodes the year before, the company reported to the Lima stock exchange.
The mine recorded net income of US$445mn in 2006 compared to US$235mn the previous year.
Sales came to US$668mn in 2006 versus US$359mn in 2005, while sales costs reached US$140mn last year compared to US$134mn in 2005.
Cerro Verde is in the process of tripling its copper production to roughly 272,000t/y thanks to a new concentrator plant where construction wrapped up in December, providing the mine's first ever concentrates. The mine announced its first shipment of concentrates in January.
The expansion involves processing 1B short tons (907Mt) of sulfide ore reserves averaging 0.51% copper in the new concentrator, extending the mine life by some 26 years.
Phelps Dodge owns 53.6% of Cerro Verde in southern Peru's Arequipa department, while Sumitomo Metal Mining and Sumitomo Corp jointly own 21% and Peruvian precious metals miner Buenaventura (NYSE: BVN) has 18.5%. |
