Hudbay Minerals has withdrawn its 2020 business guidance for its Peru operations, where the company’s capital expenditure is $25mn lower than previously planned.
However, Hudbay will maintain this year’s guidance for its Manitoba operations.
Constancia, which had been suspended because of the Peruvian government implemented a lockdown to contain COVID-19, has been granted permission to restart production next week.
Hudbay’s total copper concentrate production, which includes both its Canadian and Peruvian operations, in Q1 2020 dropped by 35pc to 24,635mt from 37,972mt in Q1 2019, and it fell close to 24pc from 32,422mt in Q4 2019.
Its consolidated zinc concentrate production in Manitoba in Q1 2020 increased by 8pc to 30,355mt from 28,037mt in Q1 2019, while it dropped by declined by just 1pc from 30,592mt in Q4 2019.
Copper concentrate production in Peru alone in Q1 2020 declined by 40pc to 19,290mt from 31,843mt during the same quarter in 2019, and it declined by 28pc from 26,659mt in Q4 2019. In Manitoba, the company’s copper concentrate production in Q1 2020 decreased by 13pc to 5,345mt from 6,129mt in Q1 2019.
Hudbay’s total copper concentrate sales in Q1 2020 fell by 25pc to 24,072mt from 31,717mt in Q1 2019 and by 29pc from 33,715mt in Q4 2019.
The company’s total zinc concentrate sales, which were only produced only in Manitoba, in Q1 2020 increased by 14pc to 26,574mt from 22,954mt in Q1 2019, but decreased by 5pc from 28,001mt in Q4 2019.
Copper concentrate sold from Hudbay’s Peru operations in Q1 2020 declined by 28pc to 19,247mt from 26,662mt in Q1 2019, and by 32pc from 28,430mt in Q4 2019. Sales of copper concentrate from its Manitoba operations in the first quarter of the year dropped by 4pc to 4,852mt from 5,055mt in Q1 2019, and it declined by 10pc from 5,285mt in Q4 2019.
The firm’s total revenue in the first quarter of 2020 was $245mn, down from $292mn in Q1 2019 and from $324mn in Q4 2019. Hudbay’s total loss in Q1 2020 was $76mn, which was higher than its $13mn loss in Q1 2019 and $1.4mn loss in Q4 2019.