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Investing.com -- Antofagasta (LON:ANTO) reported a solid second quarter, with group copper production rising 3% quarter-on-quarter to 160,100 tonnes, driven by stronger output at Los Pelambres and Centinela.
First-half (H1) copper production stood at 314,900 tonnes, up 11% year-on-year.
By-products supported margins, with gold output up 13% quarter-on-quarter to 48,300 ounces, and molybdenum surging 42% to 4,400 tonnes.
Chilean miner’s net cash costs in the period fell 27% sequentially to $1.12/lb, helped by "lower underlying costs and an increase in by-product credits." In H1, net cash costs dropped 32% to $1.32/lb.
CEO Ivan Arriagada said the group delivered "increased production at our two large operations, Los Pelambres and Centinela," and noted that "net cash costs fell by 27%, benefitting from gold and molybdenum by-products."
He reiterated full-year guidance for copper output of 660,000–700,000 tonnes and expects net cash costs to end the year toward the lower end of the $1.45–1.65/lb range.
"Production is expected to increase quarter-on-quarter for the remainder of the year, following maintenance activities completed in H1 2025," Arriagada added.
Capital expenditure guidance was also unchanged at $3.9 billion.
Los Pelambres produced 73,300 tonnes of copper in Q2, up 5% from Q1, with by-product credits helping bring net cash costs down to $0.71/lb. Centinela delivered 60,600 tonnes, a 9% increase, and saw net cash costs fall to $0.84/lb.
In project development, construction continues on major growth initiatives at Centinela and Los Pelambres, including the second concentrator at Centinela and the expansion of the desalination plant at Los Pelambres. Arriagada noted the pipeline of projects remains "on track and on budget."
Arriagada reaffirmed the company’s bullish view on copper: “Our conviction in copper as the metal of the future remains,” citing rising demand from decarbonisation, AI, and infrastructure trends, as well as increasingly constrained supply.