China stainless steel mogul fights to avoid a second collapse
A debt crisis is threatening the future of one of the world’s top stainless steel producers, Jiangsu Delong Nickel Industry.
* Q3 nickel output down 3 pct y/y
* Q3 output of copper, PGMs up y/y
* Shares up 0.5 pct in Moscow, in line with market
(Writes through to focus on year-on-year comparison, adds
quotes, context)
Russia’s Norilsk Nickel, the world’s second-largest nickel and top palladium producer, reaffirmed its previous 2017 output forecast on Monday after a strong third quarter.
Nornickel, part-owned by Russian tycoon Vladimir Potanin and aluminium giant Rusal, has planned to increase its nickel and palladium output from Russian raw material this year.
“We reiterate our 2017 metal production guidance,” Sergey Dyachenko, Nornickel Chief Operating Officer, said in a statement.
Nornickel said its third-quarter palladium production totalled 693,000 troy ounces, up 7 percent year-on-year, while platinum output rose 12 percent to 174,000 ounces. Its copper output added 11 percent to 95,949 tonnes.
The Russian mining giant, which competes with Brazil’s Vale SA for the rank of the world’s top nickel producer, said that its third-quarter nickel production, however, fell 3 percent year-on-year to 54,175 tonnes due to the reconfiguration of its Arctic production facilities.
Its shares were up 0.5 percent in Moscow on Monday, matching the broader MICEX index.
Nornickel’s current 2017 production guidance from Russian feedstock:
– To see Nornickel’s 2016 consolidated production results and output from Russian feed
– Nornickel also produces other metals including cobalt and gold as by-products but discloses their output in its full-year annual reports only.
– Source text for Eikon:
(Reporting by Polina Devitt; editing by Louise Heavens)
