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mabus13/E+ via Getty Images Molybdenum Blind Tube
Southern Copper (NYSE:SCCO ) reported Friday its Q4 production rose slightly from Q3 and said its mines are running at full capacity despite protests in Peru that forced other companies to halt operations.
Q4 net sales of $2.82B were in line with year-ago totals; sales volumes increased 2.1% for copper, 6.4% for silver and 38.2% for zinc, but fell 15.7% for molybdenum.
Q4 adjusted EBITDA fell to nearly $1.65B from $1.72B in the year-earlier quarter.
While Q4 copper production edged up 1.6% Q/Q, mined silver output advanced 9.6%, molybdenum fell 15.6%, and zinc slumped 7.4%
While the price of molybdenum rose 14.2% during the quarter, the prices of copper, silver and zinc all declined, by 17.5%, 11.1% and 9% respectively, offsetting the positive impact of higher sales volumes.
Q4 operating cash cost of copper mining fell to $0.45/lb from $0.76/lb in the year-earlier quarter, due mostly to an increase in by-product credits.
For the full year, Southern Copper's (SCCO) copper output fell 6.6% Y/Y to 894.7K tons, which the company attributed to the strike at the Cuajone mine in Peru and a temporary drop in mineral grades.
Also for FY 2022, molybdenum output fell 13.3% Y/Y to 26,240 tons, mined zinc production fell 10.4% to 60K tons, and mined silver production slipped 2.1% to ~18.5K oz.
The company said it continues to focus on expansion and expects to deliver ore to the Caridad concentrator from the Pilares mine in Mexico during Q2, contributing 35K tons/year of copper.
Tantalum Heat Exchanger Southern Copper (SCCO) shares have surged nearly 23% so far this year and gained nearly 20% during the past year.