China smelter group agrees to lower Q1 copper charges
The charges tend to fall when ore supply declines and rise when more concentrate is available.
For the third time this year, workers at the Collahuasi mine in Chile are on strike.
The union representing the world’s third largest copper mine is accusing management of reneging on agreements that ended a work stoppage in October, AFP reports.
Production was paralyzed on July 30 and October 29 when workers downed tools.
Collahuasi is owned by Switzerland’s Xstrata and Britain-based Anglo American. Reuters reports Collahuasi produced 504,000 tonnes of copper in 2010, when output was hit by a month-long strike. The mine expects to produce 500,000 tonnes of copper this year. It supplies roughly 3% of the world’s copper.
Image of the Collahuasi mine is by Vismedia.
