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Katanga continues to perform well

Mutanda production increased, and the first copper cathode was produced in October

Mutanda's average production forecast is 76,000 metric tons/year of copper

On December 2, Glencore, a diversified mining company, said that due to the strong output of Katanga and the resumption of production at the Mutanda mine, it has raised its copper and cobalt production forecasts for 2021 and 2022.

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Peter Freyberg, head of Glencore assets, stated in an investor update report call that the business in Katanga, Democratic Republic of the Congo continues to perform well, consistent with the output achieved in 2022, and most of the overall copper investment portfolio is within the scope of the plan.

"As far as the prospects for the next four years are concerned, in terms of copper, we can see the impact of the sale of Ernest Henry, coupled with a slight decline in the number of units in the non-copper sector, but overall it remains the same," Freberg said.

The mining company predicts that copper production will be 1.22 million tons in 2021, 1.15 million tons in 2022, 1.18 million tons in 2023, and 1.12 million tons in 2024.

Regarding cobalt, Freyberg said that due to the relaunch of Mutanda in the Democratic Republic of Congo and further growth in Katanga, sales have increased.

Cobalt production is expected to be 35,000 metric tons in 2021, 48,000 metric tons in 2022, and 50,000 metric tons per year in 2023 and 2024.

Freyberg also introduced the latest situation of Mutanda, which has not been under maintenance and maintenance until recently.

"We are starting this business, and we did produce our first copper cathode in October," he said, adding that the premises and processing plants are in good condition and the maintenance and maintenance period has passed well. It has an estimated mine life of 20 years.

"The first phase of the asset life cycle plan will be an offside phase. We will deal with some existing stocks in the next two to three years while opening up more oxide reserves in the mine. We are continuing to conduct sulfide research," Frey Berg said.

The miner plans to start mining and processing sulfide resources in 2028, using additional flotation, oxygen plants, and Glencore's Isamill and Albion Process technologies.

He added that in terms of capital expenditures, Mutanda is a relatively modest project, and capital efficiency is also high. It is expected that the average copper production capacity in the first few years will exceed 25,000-30,000 metric tons/year, and that it will exceed 10,000 metric tons of cobalt. .

Freyberg added that the average production for a 20-year mine life is expected to be about 76,000 metric tons/year, and cobalt production is slightly higher than 20,000 metric tons/year.

Looking at other metals from Glencore, the total nickel production in 2021 is expected to be 105,000 metric tons, 115,000 metric tons in 2022, 120,000 metric tons in 2023, and 135,000 metric tons in 2024.

"For nickel, it is always important to talk about key asset Koniambo... The first three quarters were difficult. It will take some time to recover from the severe impact of COVID on the site and the factory in 2020," Frey Berg said even though he added that operational integrity and production have improved significantly in the past few months.

The zinc production guidance is set at 1.17 million tons in 2021, 1.11 million tons in 2022 and 2023, and 915,000 tons in 2024. The increase in Zhairem's assets was offset by the sale and closure of its Bolivian assets. Mrs. Loretta and Mrs. Kidd will start business in the next two years.

Freyberg said that the ferrochrome sector is also expected to perform well, with an estimated output of 1.43 million tons in 2021, 1.46 million tons in 2022, and 1.48 million tons per year in 2023 and 2024.

"When we look at the copper equivalent, we have actually shown that it will grow by about 10% next year, and then grow steadily," Freberg said.

Glencore's goal is to become a net zero-emission company in Scope 1, 2 and 3 emission ranges by 2050.

In 2019, the company's total baseline scope 1 and 2 emissions were 29.2 million metric tons of carbon dioxide equivalent.

Freyberg said that the combination of the company's product portfolio and the geographic location where it operates puts it in a favorable position to reduce emissions, including increasing opportunities to replace fossil fuel power in its assets with renewable energy on a global scale. .

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