Antofagasta reports 5% fall in third quarter production

29th Oct 2014 07:49

Antofagasta has reported a 5% fall in production for the third quarter to 169,200 tonnes, mainly as a result of lower throughput at Los Pelambres and Centinela.Output of Copper was down 3.9% in the first nine months of the year, primarily due to lower grades.Gold production actually fell 3.4% to 64,700 ounces in the third quarter, when compared to the previous three months, due to lower throughput at Centinela concentrates as a result of planned maintenance.This was partly compensated for however by higher grades.Production of Molybdenum at Los Pelambres was 2,300 tonnes in the third quarter, up from 1,600 tonnes in the previous quarter, principally due to higher grades.Cash costs before by-product credits in the three months to September were $1.85/lb, a 2.6% fall when compared with the second quarter.That decrease was mainly related to lower energy costs at Los Pelambres and the one-off signing bonus between Centinela concentrates and its labour unions which was paid in the second quarter of the year.