Teck beats fourth-quarter profit estimates on strong copper production

Canadian miner Teck Resources beat analysts’ estimates for fourth-quarter profit on Thursday, helped by higher copper production volumes at its Chile mine.

Total copper output in the quarter came in at 122,100 tonnes, a 19% jump from a year earlier, with 60,700 tonnes from its Quebrada Blanca (QB) mine in Chile.

“Our copper production in the fourth quarter set a new quarterly production record with strong performance at Quebrada Blanca mine” CEO Jonathan Price said in a statement.

Strong sales volumes and favourable prices of the red metal also supported.

The company has been investing in the QB debottlenecking project and expects it could lead to a further increase in throughput by 10-15%.

Teck expects copper production to range between 490,000 and 565,000 tonnes in 2025.

The company reported an adjusted profit of C$0.45 ($0.3168) per share for the quarter ended December 31, compared with analysts’ average estimate of C$0.43 per share, according to data compiled by LSEG.

($1 = 1.4205 Canadian dollars)

(By Mrinalika Roy; Editing by Sriraj Kalluvila)