Ivanhoe Q3 Copper Output Rises But Yearly Target Slips

A 30 percent surge in underground mining rates lifted Ivanhoe Mines' (TSX:IVN,OTCQX:IVPAF) third-quarter copper production to 76,401 tons, though the company anticipates its full-year output will settle at the lower end of its 2026 guidance.

Excavation rates across the complex now exceed 700,000 tons per month, pushing linear underground development to the highest levels on record.

Despite the acceleration, Ivanhoe confirmed its annual production is tracking toward the bottom of its 290,000 to 310,000-ton target. The site ended the third quarter with approximately 43,000 tons of copper held in inventory, comprising unsold concentrates and material moving through the smelter circuit.

Processing metrics improved alongside excavation volumes. The Phase 1 and 2 concentrators milled 30 percent more ore than the prior quarter, achieving a record 89 percent recovery rate following structural modifications in July.

However, elevated silica levels in the concentrates forced the smelter to produce more slag concentrate, a dynamic Ivanhoe expects to persist in the near term.

The site’s 500,000-ton-per-annum smelter operated at roughly 60 percent of design capacity during the quarter, generating 61,506 tons of copper anode.

Alongside the copper, the smelter produced a record 118,638 tons of high-strength sulfuric acid, a highly profitable byproduct sold to neighboring oxide copper leaching operations on the DRC Copperbelt.

Realized average acid prices hit roughly US$900 per ton during the quarter, which is double the prior period with prices peaking at US$950 in September.

Outside the copper circuit, Ivanhoe’s Kipushi operation posted a quarterly record of 77,147 tons of zinc in concentrate. The 10 percent sequential increase solidifies the site's rank as the world’s third-largest zinc mine.

While operations scale in the DRC, Ivanhoe’s US affiliate, Ivanhoe Electric (TSX:IE,NYSEAMERICAN:IE), is advancing domestic capacity with federal backing. In late August, the US Export-Import Bank issued a preliminary project letter for up to US$1.1 billion in debt financing to develop the Santa Cruz copper project in Arizona.

The US$1.24 billion Arizona facility intends to bypass traditional smelting entirely via on-site heap leaching, with initial copper production targeted for 2028.

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Securities Disclosure: I, Giann Liguid, hold no direct investment interest in any company mentioned in this article.