The decrease in production is attributed to delays to the restart of the smelter at the Kennecott mine (above). (Photo: Rio Tinto)
On Tuesday, Rio Tinto announced it was lowering its group production guidance for refined copper for 2020 to 135,000 metric tons (mt) to 175,000 mt from 165,000 mt to 205,000 mt. The decrease was attributed to delays to the restart of the smelter at the Kennecott mine in Utah.
According to the company, unexpected issues arose following planned maintenance. Rio Tinto is working with customers to limit disruptions and said the smelter will be fully operational within two months.
Back in December, Rio Tinto approved a $1.5 billion investment over six years at Kennecott, which will extend operations until 2032. The investment will extend strip waste rock mining and support additional infrastructure development in the second phase of the South Wall Pushback project to allow mining to continue into a new area of the ore body and deliver close to 1 million mt of refined copper between 2026 and 2032, according to the company.
In May 2019, Kennecott retired its coal-fired power plant in Magna, Utah. Power for the operation now comes from renewable energy certificates purchased from Rocky Mountain Power.
