ENRC overcomes production problems

The final quarter of 2011 was a bit of a mixed bag for mining giant ENRC, with unexpected maintenance breaks reducing output of of ferro-alloys and iron ore, though other parts of the business were firing on all cylinders.The group's Alumina and Aluminium, and Energy Divisions in Kazakhstan operated at effective full available capacity for the quarter, while the Ferro-alloys and Iron Ore Divisions operated at below full capacity due to unscheduled equipment repairs. Alumina volumes were higher in the quarter than in the comparable period in 2010 owing to the completion of the alumina refinery expansion to targeted capacity of 1.7m tonnes per annum in July 2011. Cobalt contained production was broadly in line with the level seen a year earlier, while production of copper-contained showed exceptionally strong growth against the corresponding period. "Having overcome production issues in the fourth quarter, we anticipate a consistently strong operational performance across our diversified range of commodities in 2012," revealed Felix Vulis, Chief Executive Officer of Eurasian Natural Resources Corporation (ENRC).Divisional break-downFerro-alloys: Most volumes down year-on-year (YOY), except for a roughly 5% increase for low-carbon ferro-chrome and ferrosilicochrome and stable medium-carbon ferro-chrome saleable production.Iron ore: Iron ore extraction down 3.3% YOY, primary concentrate production down 3.8%. Total saleable product down 6.6% YOY.Alumina and Aluminium: Production of aluminium up 1.6% YOY.Other non-ferrous: Production of saleable copper up 61.9% YOY, while output of saleable cobalt was more or less unchanged.Energy: Coal extraction was flat but electricity generation was up 3.8% on a year earlier.Logistics: The volume of goods shifted by rail fell 7.1% from the fourth quarter of 2010.jh