FILE PHOTO: A ship is loaded at a port at the Rio Tinto alumina refinery in Gove, also known as Nhulunbuy, Australia’s Northern Territory July 16, 2013. REUTERS/David Gray/File Photo
April 16 (Reuters) – Anglo-Australian miner Rio Tinto Ltd on Tuesday reported a 14 percent drop in quarterly iron ore shipments and cut its 2019 shipments estimate on disruption caused by a tropical cyclone that hit its export terminal in Western Australia last month.
Rio, the world’s No. 2 miner of the steelmaking material, cut its annual iron ore shipments estimate to a range of 333 million to 343 million from a range of 338 million to 350 million tonnes announced earlier.
Rio shipped 69.1 million tonnes in the quarter ended March 31, down from 80.3 million tonnes last year and well below the Goldman Sachs estimate of 74.7 million tonnes.
Cyclone Veronica disrupted ports used by miners Rio and BHP Group in late March. Rio earlier flagged a loss of about 14 million tonnes of production in 2019 due to disruption caused by the tropical cyclone and a fire at a port facility in January.
“Our iron ore business faced several challenges at the start of this year, particularly from tropical cyclones. As a result, and following the continuing assessment of damage at the port resulting from the cyclones and other minor disruptions, 2019 guidance for Pilbara shipments is reduced…” Chief Executive Jean-Sébastien Jacques said, referring to the Pilbara region of Western Australia.
The hit to production, coupled with the ramifications of the Vale dam disaster in Brazil, have propelled iron ore prices to multi-year highs this year, boosting shares of miners.
(For an interactive graphic on Rio Tinto’s quarterly Pilbara iron ore shipments since second-quarter of 2016, see https://tmsnrt.rs/2X1i6DV)
(Reporting by Aditya Soni and Aby Jose Koilparambil in Bengaluru; Editing by Richard Chang and Cynthia Osterman)
(c) Copyright Thomson Reuters 2019.
Join the gCaptain Club for curated content, insider opinions, and vibrant community discussions.
Join the 108,821 members that receive our newsletter.
Have a news tip? Let us know.
By Dimitri Rhodes Nov 7 (Reuters) – Belgian oil tanker company CMB Tech says it will focus on the fast growing market in India as it reported third quarter results...
In a bold move amidst Russia’s intensified rocket attacks on civilian ships and Ukrainian ports, Maersk has launched a new weekly container service into Ukraine, signaling resilience in the country’s...
By Robert Tuttle (Bloomberg) A tanker of Canadian crude was shipped from Vancouver to Alaska for the first time in at least 10 years as the recently expanded Trans Mountain pipeline...
Maritime and offshore news trusted by our 108,821 members delivered daily straight to your inbox.
Essential news coupled with the finest maritime content sourced from across the globe.
Sign Up
Join The Club
