Palabora Copper Output On Track Despite S Africa Power Cuts
Wednesday April 9th, 2008 / 20h22
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By Andrea Hotter Of DOW JONES NEWSWIRES SANTIAGO -(Dow Jones)- Rio Tinto PLC's (RTP) Palabora copper mine will meet its full-year production target despite being affected by the energy crisis in South Africa, Bret Clayton, chief executive of Rio Tinto's copper division, told Dow Jones Newswires.
"When the power cuts were first undertaken, we had a week or two of cutbacks, but now we've been requested to drop our electricity usage to 95%," Clayton said on the sidelines of a conference in Santiago. "At that level, we can meet our forecast production, and don't foresee any problems," he added.
Palabora is a South Africa-listed company in which Rio Tinto owns a 47.2% stake. The mine produces 30,000 metric tons of copper ore a day, and is currently being expanded. The smelter and refinery produced some 91,700 tons of refined new copper in 2007.
At the end of February, Palabora said that South African utility provider Eskom foresees ongoing reductions in power and that it is working with Eskom to address this issue. Eskom generates about 95% of South Africa's electricity but is struggling to meet demand.
-By Andrea Hotter, Dow Jones Newswires; +44 (0)20 7842 9413; andrea.hotter@dowjones.com |
