PJSC MMC Norilsk Nickel, the world’s largest nickel and palladium producer, announces preliminary consolidated production results for the second quarter and the first half of 2016.
Q2 consolidated nickel production amounted to 58 kt decreasing by 9% QoQ. Nickel output from THE Company’s own Russian feed reached 47 kt, down by 9% QoQ. The reduction was driven by the increase of work-in-progress material in transit due to shut down of smelting and roasting capacities of Nickel Plant and lower metal content in mined ore.
Overall in H1, nickel output amounted to 122 kt decreasing by 7% YoY driven mostly by one-off increase of work-in-progress material in transit due to the ongoing reconfiguration of downstream production facilities at Polar division and lower metal content in mined ore.
Q2 consolidated copper production amounted to 90 kt, up by 3% QoQ. Copper output from the company’s own Russian feed reached 86 kt, up by 1% QoQ. The increase was attributed to higher copper content in mined ore.
Overall in H1, copper output amounted to 177 kt, down by 3% YoY driven mostly by the increase of work-in-progress material in transit.
Q2 consolidated palladium and platinum output amounted to 688 koz (up by 7% QoQ) and 162 koz (down by 5% QoQ), respectively. Palladium output from the company’s own Russian feed reached 678 koz, up by 8% QoQ, and platinum output reached 159 koz, down by 3% QoQ. The growth of palladium and decrease of platinum output was mainly attributed to a respective change of metal content in mined ore.
Overall in H1, palladium and platinum output amounted to 1,330 koz (down by 2% YoY) and 333 koz (down by 2% YoY), respectively. The decline was driven mostly by the ongoing reconfiguration of downstream production facilities at Polar division and increase of work-in-progress material in transit.
In Q2 Russian assets produced 47 kt of nickel, down by 8% QoQ. In H1, total nickel output by the Pola and Kola divisions decreased by 8% YoY to 99 kt. The reduction was attributed to lower processing volumes of rich ore due to the pre-commissioning activities as a part of the second phase of Talnakh Concentrator upgrade and the increase of production from Russian feed at Norilsk Nickel Harjavalta in line with the reconfiguration program.
In Q2 copper output in Russia amounted to 88 kt, up by 3% QoQ. The growth was attributed to an increase of cuprous ores mined and processed by the Polar division. In H1, copper output amounted to 174 kt, down by 1% YoY. The slight reduction was attributed to the start of concentrate production for further processing at Norilsk Nickel Harjavalta and a respective increase of work-in-progress material in transit. In reported periods, Kola copper production from third parties surged due to the increase of processing of copper cake received from Norilsk Nickel Harjavalta.
In Q2 palladium output in Russia reached 678 koz (up by 7% QoQ) and platinum output from company’s Russian operations amounted to 159 koz (down by 5% QoQ). Overall in H1, palladium output in Russia stayed almost flat YoY at 1,311 koz and platinum output from company’s Russian operations amounted to 326 koz (up by 1% YoY). The growth of palladium and decrease of platinum output was mainly attributed to the change in metal content in mined ore. (Norilsk Nickel/Ukrainian metal)
