Strong demand for copper and an adequate supply from mines will help copper producer Aurubis buy enough copper concentrate to set higher refining and treatment charges. Improving copper scrap flows will also enable the company to get higher refining charges in 2021.
The German company expects consolidated operating EBT of €270-330mn ($328-401mn) and ROCE of 9-12pc in FY2021 ending September 30, 2021.
Aurubis set its copper premium at $96/mt for the calendar year 2021, unchanged from the previous year though it expects the demand for copper and copper products to be significantly higher than the previous year, the company noted in its H1 FY2021 earnings report on Monday. It also forecasts a strengthening demand for sulfuric acid in tandem with increasing copper prices.
The company attributed its higher throughput in the first half of the year to higher concentrate production and lower treatment charges. Refining charges for copper through processing scrap remained high throughout the period under review, due to good scrap flows.
In H1 2021, ending March 31, 2021, Aurubis’ concentrate production increased by 10pc to 1.22mn mt from 1.19mn mt during the same six months of the previous fiscal. However, copper concentrate output in Q2 FY2021declined by 2pc to 618,000mt from 628,000mt in the same quarter last fiscal.
The copper producer’s copper scrap and blister copper supply increased by 13pc to 212,000mt in H1 FY2021 from 187,000mt in the same period last fiscal, while its Q2 2021 input increased by 11pc to 110,000mt from 99,000mt in the same quarter last year. Its raw material to process concentrates through other recycled materials increased by 60pc to 276,000mt in the first half from 173,000mt in H1 FY2020, while its quarterly input rose by 51pc to 136,000mt from 90,000mt in Q2 FY2020.
Aurubis’ copper cathode output climbed by 17pc to 554,000mt in H1 FY2021 from 474,000mt in the same six months last year and moved up by 15pc in the second quarter to 276,000mt from 236,000mt in Q2 FY2020.
In H1 2021, the German copper products maker’s wire rod production increased by 4pc to 430,000mt from 412,000mt in the same time frame last year, while the product’s output in Q2 FY2021 climbed by 8pc to 230,000mt from 213,000mt in the same period last year. Flat-rolled products grew by 7pc to 98,000mt in H1 from 92,000mt in H1 FY2020 and were flat at 51,000mt annually in the second quarter.
The company’s consolidated revenue increased by 25pc to €7.52bn in the first half of the year compared to 6.01bn in H1 FY2020. Its EBITDA rose more than five times during the period under review to €507mn from €100mn, while its gross profit increased by 88pc to €942mn from €501mn.
In Q2 FY2021, Aurubis’ consolidated revenue rose by 23pc to €4.05bn from €3.30bn in the same quarter of the previous fiscal and its EBITDA more than doubled to €234mn from a loss of €40mn in the same period. The company’s gross profit more than tripled on an annual basis to €466mn in Q2 FY 2021 from €170mn.
(€1=$1.21)