Eramet is a mining and metallurgical group. The Company refines and produces nickel, manganese, and special steels. The Company operates plants in New Caledonia, France, Sweden, the United Kingdom, The United States, and Gabon.
In Gabon, manganese ore production at Comilog achieved the quarterly record levels at about 1.3 Mnt in Q1 2020, which is up by 28% with respect to Q1 2019. Transported Manganese ore volumes also increased by 25%, owing to the improved logistics performance. External sales volumes were up by 29% over the period. Manganese alloy production rose to 196,000 MT, up by 3% Y-o-Y and 20% as compared to the previous quarter, reflecting nominal production levels at the Group’s plants.
In Q1 2020, the Group’s sales remained at €774 Million, down by 11%, mainly owing to an unfavourable price environment for the manganese activity and the decline in sales at Eramet. Manganese ore sales, which represent about 46% of the Group’s consolidated sales, fell by 17% to €359 Million in Q1 2020. The growth in sales’ volumes for Manganese ore which is 29% partly offsets the decrease in selling prices, which was particularly strong for manganese ore (-41%).
Christel Bories, Eramet Chairman and CEO, in his press release shared by Globenewswire, said, “The impact of the pandemic on our first-quarter sales is limited. As soon as the Covid-19 spread around the globe, our priority was to protect the health and safety of our employees, their families and our communities. We created a solidarity plan with a specific budget allocation in addition to our internal initiatives. The situation for our operations varies according to country. However, we have achieved new operational records in our mining activities as well as continued our work to prepare Weda Bay Nickel’s startup. In March, activities in France for the High-Performance Alloys division were affected by the implementation of health protocols at the plants. They are now penalised by a strong slowdown due to the effects of the pandemic on their end-markets. We are closely monitoring in a responsive way the development of the situation on a daily basis in order to ensure continuity in our operations. We have adopted immediate measures to reduce our costs, limit investment and preserve our cash, and we are doing everything possible to safeguard jobs. It is too soon to assess the impact of the health crisis on business in the quarters ahead. I commend the exemplarity and commitment of our teams who are adapting and riding out this unprecedented situation with a strong cooperative spirit.”
Outlook
Steel production has been strongly impacted since the spread of COVID-19 across the globe, major production suspension and curtailment are the operations which should weigh down the Manganese ore and alloys demand. Meanwhile, mining operations have also been limited in South Africa, which has increased the Manganese Ore prices substantially. However, the lifespan of such increase still remains uncertain.
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