Glencore´s copper smelter in Australia to be operating beyond 2022

Glencore will spend A $ 500 million ($ 356 million) to extend the life of its copper smelter and refinery in the Australian state of Queensland beyond 2022 after reaching a funding agreement with the state government, both parties said Wednesday. The global miner said he secured a one-time incentive from the Queensland government for the company, which also owns its Mount Isa copper smelter and Townsville refinery, ahead of the state elections in late October. The Queensland government said it had offered "multi-million dollar assistance" but did not provide any further information. Queensland Prime Minister Annastacia Palaszczuk said government funding will help protect jobs and maintain critical industrial capacity and supply chains in difficult economic conditions due to the coronavirus pandemic. The support package will enable the bricks lining the Mount Isa Hut in northwestern the state to be replaced by the end of next year, a process that occurs every four years. "This incentive will partially mitigate the negative costs of maintaining these facilities, which are faced with high fixed costs and have to assert themselves in international competition," said Glencore in a statement. Australian manufacturers have struggled with high electricity prices for years, which are a significant part of metal production costs. The deal will secure around 570 direct smelter and refinery jobs and an additional 520 jobs at chemicals maker Incitec Pivot in North Queensland, which sources sulfuric acid from its Mount Isa plant, the government said. As part of an A $ 8 billion financing package, the Queensland state government will also spend A $ 50 million on the Mount Isa railroad line to increase capacity between the state's northwest mineral province, which also has miners like South 32, and Townsville, the state's largest port. Glencore also said it would look into the economic feasibility of large-scale e-recycling or custom smelting.