Rio Tinto: Iron ore shipment up 3% y-o-y in H1 CY'20; guidance unchanged

Rio Tinto's Pilbara iron ore shipments were recorded at 159.6 mn t for H1 CY'20, up 3% as against 154.7 mn t in H1CY'19. The shipments picked up despite the infrastructure damage and port disruptions caused due to tropical cyclone Damien. There was a strong recovery in March across mines, rail and port.

On a quarterly basis, miner depicted a 19% rise in shipments in the second quarter of the year (Q2 CY'20)at 86.7 mn t against 72.9 mn t in the first quarter.

IOC pellet production increased 6% in H1 CY'20
IOC iron ore pellet & concentrate production in H1 CY'20 recorded at 5.3 mn t, up 6% compared to the same period last year (H1 CY'19). The miner at IOC changed the product mix and increased the focus on production of concentrates to meet the market demand. On a quarterly basis too, the production increased by 8% to 2.8 mn t in Q2 CY20.

Iron ore production picked up by 3% in H1CY20
Rio Tinto's Pilbara depicted a 3% rise on yearly basis in iron ore production to 161.1 mn t in H1 CY'20 as against 155.7 mn t in H1 CY'19.

For the quarter Q2 CY'20, the production increased 7% to 83.2 mn t against 77.8 mn t in Q1 CY'20.

Rio Tinto guidance for 2020:

1. Rio Tinto 2020 Pilbara iron ore shipment guidance unchanged at 324-334 mn t.
2. At IOC, the iron ore pellet and concentrate production guidance for 2020 remains intact at 10.5-12 mn t.
3. Pilbara iron ore unit cost guidance for 2020 is expected to be in the range $14-15/t.