Chile’s Codelco says output falls 8% in first half of 2024

SANTIAGO (Reuters) -Chile’s Codelco, the world’s largest producer, on Friday posted a 8.4% drop in output for the first half of 2024 compared with the same period last tear, at 579,785 metric tons.

The state-owned miner said its pre-tax profit from January to June totaled $653 million, against a loss of $316 million in the same period last year.

Coldelco has said this year’s output should top the 1.325 million tons produced last year, forecasting a range of up to 1.390 million tons.

Earlier in July, Codelco said its output should improve in the second half of 2024. Analysts, however, say Codelco will struggle to reach that target in the coming months.

Codelco is also spearheading an increase in state control over the country’s lithium industry, and in May finalized a deal with SQM, the world’s second-largest producer, in a tie-up that should grant SQM the ability to extract lithium in the prized Atacama salt flat through 2060.