Antofagasta PLC (LON:ANTO) has said it expects coronavirus restrictions to only put a slight dent in copper production for 2020 as around two-thirds of its workforce are still on-site at its Chilean mining operations.
With some social distancing measures put in place and with workers said to be wearing improved personal protective equipment, the FTSE 100-listed miner now anticipates production down at the lower end of its original 725,000-755,000 tonnes guidance.
This assumes mining operations continue to run at or close to capacity and no coronavirus shutdowns are required.
In an update, Antofagasta said around 194,000 of copper was produced in the first quarter, up 4.6% on the final three months of last year and 2.9% on the same period a year ago.
Net cash costs were $1.10 per pound, around 27 cents per pound lower because of a weaker Chilean peso, higher production and tighter cost control.
Chief executive Iván Arriagada said the US$2.5bn of cash and liquid investments on the balance sheet puts the group in a “strong position to confront this unprecedented situation of operational uncertainty”.
Capital expenditure is expected to be close to $1.3bn despite suspending the Los Pelambres Expansion project for four months and deferring other development projects.