Oyu Tolgoi announces Q3 2020 performance results

Oyu Tolgoi LLC has highlighted the following in its latest performance scorecard that gives key performance metrics for the third quarter of 2020, and provided an update on underground development, and its continued prevention measures on COVID-19.
•    Awarded the Copper Mark for responsible production. 
•    Paid $201 million in the form of taxes, fees and other payments to the Government of Mongolia as of the end of the third quarter of 2020. Since 2010, Oyu Tolgoi has paid $2.8 billion in taxes, fees and other payments including VAT to Mongolian suppliers.
 
•    Collaborated with 703 suppliers by the end of the third quarter of 2020, of which 468 are national businesses, which accounts for 73 per cent of the total operations procurement spend. 
•    Open pit operations continued uninterrupted.
 
•    Achieved an All Injury Frequency Rate (AIFR) of 0.17 per 200,000 people/hours worked.
 
•    Maintained excellence in water saving, using 0.35 cubic metres of raw water per tonne of ore processed compared to the target of 0.55, and achieving an average water-recycling rate of 87.5 per cent, compared to the target of 80 per cent, at the end of the third quarter.
 
•    Ninety-four per cent of Oyu Tolgoi’s workforce were Mongolian citizens.
 
•    Mined copper production from the open pit was 28 per cent higher than in the same quarter of 2019 and steady quarter-on-quarter reflective of the move to higher grade areas of the open pit in 2020, primarily due to accelerated mine development and production phasing. Access to higher copper and gold grades is expected to continue for the remainder of 2020, which was originally planned for the first half of 2021.
•    Q3 2020 mill throughput was slightly higher than Q3 2019 due to slightly higher mill availability and an increased milling rate associated with softer ore.

 •    Copper and gold production guidance for 2020 remains within the ranges of 140,000 to 170,000 tonnes and 155,000 to 180,000 ounces respectively, with gold production trending towards the higher end of the range.
•    Work on the project has continued to progress despite COVID-19 controls and ongoing international travel restrictions issued by the Government of Mongolia.
 •    Care and maintenance activities continue at Shafts 3 and 4; some commissioning activities have advanced in preparation for shaft sinking, including rope installation on Shaft 4. 
 •    Overall, underground lateral development has now reached 45,858 equivalent metres, or around 90 per cent of the required development to support firing of the first drawbell.
•    All surface infrastructure required for sustainable production is complete and the team is focused on progressing the critical underground Material Handling System 1 (MHS1) to the stage needed ahead of the first drawbell firing. The balance of project infrastructure to be delivered post completion of MHS1 is not needed for sustainable production, however, it is needed to support the production ramp-up profile.
 
•    Preliminary indications from the definitive estimate process are that first sustainable production is trending towards the earlier months of the October 2022 to June 2023 range. The estimated development capital cost remains within the range of $6.6 to $7.1 billion. This assessment has now been updated to include known cost and schedule impacts from COVID-19 and assumes an easing of travel restrictions and COVID-19 related controls from the time of reporting.