Brazilian miner Vale has revised its production guidance for 2020 at 310-330mn mt iron ore fines, 35-40mn mt pellets and 360,000-380,000mt of copper. Its nickel production excluding Vale New Caledonia (VNC) is expected to reach 180,000-195,000mt.
The company has lowered its guidance on the back of COVID-19 related stoppages and idling of Voisey’s Bay. Earlier, the company had pegged its guidance at 340-355mn mt of iron ore fines, 44mn mt of pellets, 400,000mt copper and 200,000-210,000mt of nickel excluding VNC.
The company’s iron ore fines production in Q1 2020 (Jan-March) was 59.6mn mt, short of its guidance of 63-68mn mt, according to its Q1 2020 result declared on April 17. The decline in production was a result of unscheduled maintenance of its long-distance conveyor belt in the Northern system and weather-related conditions, especially in March among other reasons.
Production
| 000’mt | Q1 2020 | Q4 2019 | Q1 2019 | Q-o-Q Change | Y-o-Y Change |
| Iron ore | 59,605 | 78,344 | 72,870 | -23.90% | -18.20% |
| Pellets | 6,926 | 9,415 | 12,174 | -26.40% | -43.10% |
| Nickel | 53.2 | 56.7 | 54.8 | -6.20% | -2.90% |
| Copper | 94.5 | 90.3 | 93.8 | 4.70% | 0.70% |
Sales
| 000’mt | Q1 2020 | Q4 2019 | Q1 2019 | Q-o-Q Change | Y-o-Y Change |
| Iron ore | 51,656 | 77,907 | 55,416 | -33.70% | -6.80% |
| Pellets | 7,311 | 10,966 | 12,314 | -33.30% | -40.60% |
| Nickel | 44.2 | 47 | 50.3 | -5.90% | -12.10% |
| Copper | 89.2 | 87.8 | 90.4 | 1.60% | -1.30% |
Vale is continuously evaluating the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on operations, consumer demand and supply chain to keep market participants informed.
Vale Indonesia
PT Vale Indonesia’s nickel matte production rose by 35pc to 17,614mt in Q1 2020 (Jan-March) from the prior-year period. Output, however, declined by 14pc from the prior quarter due to planned maintenance activities.