Production increased by 10% year-on-year to 10.6-million tonnes, driven by improved performances at both the Sishen and Kolomela mines in the Northern Cape.

“Kumba delivered a strong safety and operational performance, as we continued to support our workforce and local communities through the second wave of Covid-19 in South Africa,” Kumba CE Themba Mkhwanazi says.

Sales, however, decreased by 4% to 10.3-million tonnes owing to lower domestic offtake and rail constraints.

Mkhwanazi notes that the company continued to maximise realised value for its products and achieved an average free on board (FoB) export price above benchmark levels on the back of demand for its premium quality products in a buoyant iron-ore market.

Kumba achieved a strong average realised FoB export iron-ore price of $180 per wet metric tonne (wmt), equivalent to $183 per dry metric tonne (dmt), compared with the average benchmark price of $150/wmt or $153/dmt.

The company maintains its full-year production and sales guidance at 40.5-million tonnes to 41.5-million tonnes.