Mining’s old guard needs strong medicine
A new report details subpar investor returns in the mining industry over the last decade, particularly big cap diversified companies which have not adapted to new realities.
Toronto-based Sherritt International had a rough quarter, revealing on Wednesday a 50% drop in earnings from $63 million to $32 million when measured against the same quarter of 2011.
The diversified miner, whose operations are centred around coal, nickel and oil, said the poor numbers largely reflected a drop in nickel prices.
Sherritt’s revenues tanked from $474 million in the first three months of last year to $462 million this quarter. The company received a 35% lower price for nickel this quarter, $8.66/lb, compared to $11.73 in Q1 2011, which more than offset a 1% rise in sales volumes.
“Continued pressure on input commodity costs, combined with lower realized nickel and cobalt prices, adversely affected the margin in metals, which was partially offset by stronger results from oil and gas,” said Sherritt President and CEO David Pathe.
Coal revenues quarter to quarter remained flat at $245 million with production volumes the same at 8.6 million tonnes. Oil production in Cuba shrank 4% to 795 barrels of oil per day due to dwindling reservoirs, the company said, although the oil price on the Caribbean island rose 27%.
Sherritt (TSX:S) said its Ambatovy nickel project in Madagascar, a $5.5 billion endeavour to build the world’s biggest nickel mine, is on track for commercial production by the end of this year.
The project’s capital costs are to remain within the $5.5 billion budget and when it comes to production, Ambatovy will produce 60,000 tonnes of nickel and 5,600 of cobalt a year. Sherritt and its Asian partners have made the largest investment in the island’s history and will make nickel the country’s number one export for the next 27 years.
Sherritt is Canada’s biggest coal producer and has nickel and oil operations in Cuba. The company also has oil and gas assets in Spain and Pakistan.
Sherritt’s stock slipped 0.53% today to finish at $5.66 on the Toronto Stock Exchange.
