Vale (NYSE:VALE) +0.9% pre-market Wednesday after reporting Q3 iron ore production reached its highest quarterly total since 2018, and said it is tracking towards the upper end of its full-year output guidance ranges for its three main businesses – iron ore, copper, and nickel.
Vale (NYSE:VALE) said it produced 94.4 million metric tons of iron ore in the quarter, up 3.8% Y/Y and the highest since Q4 2018, helped by record production for any Q3 at its S11D mining project in Brazil and the continued ramp-up of other projects.
The company estimated FY 2025 iron ore output of 325 million-335 million tons, after producing 245.7 million tons in the first nine months of the year.
Q3 sales of iron ore, including pellets, rose 5.1% Y/Y to 86 million tons, as realized prices of iron ore fines increased 4.2% to $94.4/ton.
Vale (NYSE:VALE) said Q3 copper production rose 5.7% Y/Y to 90,800 tons, driven by consistent production at its Salobo project and higher concentrate volumes from Canada’s Voisey’s Bay and Sudbury, while nickel output slipped 0.6% to 46,800 tons, as record production at the Long Harbour refinery offset maintenance at the Copper Cliff refinery in Sudbury, both in Canada.
Citi analysts led by Alexander Hacking called Vale’s (VALE) results “solid” and should lead to a “small positive reaction” in its shares.