Nexa Resources will raise its zinc production by 6.4pc between 2020 and 2022.
The commissioning of its recently acquired Aripuanã mine in Brazil in 2021 is expected to drive this growth, the company reported while announcing its 2019 and Q4 2019 results.
The boosted production is anticipated to drive sales from Nexa’s smelters, with the company raising its previously released metal sales guidance zinc to around 625kt (625,000mt) this year, against actual production of 621kt in 2019. By 2021, the company plans to increase sales volumes to 630kt, then to 640kt in 2022.
In 2019, the company’s earnings from its smelting operations rose with zinc smelting byproducts, like sulfuric acid and silver, to contribute $30mn, along with improved operational efficiencies, which helped the company save $18mn during the year.
However, Nexa’s mining production decreased in 2019, producing 361kt of zinc, 38.2kt copper, and 51.3kt in lead ores—all down by 3.2pc, 2.2pc, and 1.8pc, respectively, compared with 2018.
Zinc and lead production also fell in Q4 2019 compared to the same quarter in 2018, although copper production rose slightly during the same period. The miner’s zinc production fell by 19.7pc to 82.9kt in Q4 2019 from the same period in 2018, while lead production declined by 16.2pc to 12.3kt from 14.7kt during the same period of time. Copper production, however, rose by 10.6pc to 10.2kt in Q4 2019 from 9.2kt during the fourth quarter of 2018.
The company’s metal sales from ore production increased by 0.7pc to 621.2kt in 2019 from 616.9kt in 2018.
Mining also pulled down Nexa’s consolidated revenue, which fell by 6.4pc to $2.33bn in 2019 from $2.49bn the year before. The miner’s EBITDA fell by 42.3pc to $349mn in 2019 from $604.8mn in 2018.