South32 beats manganese output estimates as Australian operations restart

South32 posted a smaller-than-expected fall in second-quarter manganese ore output on Monday, as the diversified miner restarted production in Australia after a cyclone in March disrupted operations.

The company maintained its fiscal 2025 production guidance for all operations, except Mozal Aluminium in Mozambique. It had withdrawn its guidance for Mozal Aluminium in December following civil unrest in the country.

South32 has rebuilt alumina stocks at the Mozal smelter after implementing contingency plans and civil unrest eased.

Any escalation in civil unrest can impact the company’s critical trucking activity and operations, South32 said in a statement.

“The civil unrest… is one challenge expected to be faced in FY25, while volatile commodity prices will also likely fuel headwinds for any company in the mining sector, not just South32,” said Grady Wulff, a market analyst at Bell Direct.

South32 has undertaken a phased restart of manganese mining activities at its Groote Eylandt Mining Co (GEMCO) project and production has resumed from the primary concentrator, South32 said.

Operations were suspended in mid-March after category two tropical cyclone Megan severely damaged infrastructure at the site.

The project is co-owned by Anglo American and South32, and the Australian miner had earlier said it was open to buying Anglo American’s 40% stake in GEMCO.

South32, the world’s biggest producer of manganese, logged an output of 1.1 million wet metric tonnes (wmt) of the steel additive for the quarter ended Dec. 31, beating a Visible Alpha consensus estimate of about 602,000 wmt, but down from the 1.3 million wmt produced in the year-earlier period.

“Manganese is essential for iron and steel production, thus with China finally showing signs of material growth post-pandemic, we will likely see S32 benefit from increased steel production and commodity demand in 2025,” Wulff said.

Shares of South32 rose 1.2% to A$3.52 in early trade, while the benchmark stock index was up 0.3%.

(By John Biju and Adwitiya Srivastava; Editing by Diane Craft, Lisa Shumaker and Subhranshu Sahu)