Antofagasta plc Reports Group Production Results for the Fourth Quarter and Full Year Ended December 31, 2016; Reaffirms Production Guidance for the Year 2017
For the year, the company reported copper production of 709.4 kt against 630.3 kt a year ago. Gold production was 270.9 koz against 213.9 koz a year ago. Molybdenum production was 7.1 kt against 10.1 kt a year ago. Group copper production for the full year increased by 12.5%, driven by higher copper production at Centinela and additional production coming from the Group's new Antucoya and Zaldívar operations, partly offset by the closure of Michilla at the end of 2015. For the full year gold production was 26.6% higher than in 2015, again reflecting better grades and throughput at Centinela.
Group production in 2017 is expected to be in the range of 685,000-720,000 tonnes of copper (as previously announced), 185,000-205,000 ounces of gold and 8,500-9,500 tonnes of molybdenum.