Copper saw sinking prices toward the end of 2023, but things began to shift in early 2024 as treatment charges at Chinese refiners dropped to single digit lows causing some to cut production.
This led to increased momentum in the price of copper as refined product supply became increasingly tight for consumers of the base metal. In April, the price broke the US$10,000 per metric ton and set new all time highs on both the London Metals Exchange and the Chicago Mercantile Exchange.
Copper has since retreated and has been trading in the US$9,500 to US$9,800 mark in June and July. Despite recent pullbacks, copper prices are still up significantly year-to-date and markets are expected to see supply deficits over the next several years as demand from energy transition sectors continue to grow.
Market cap: AU$220.04 billion; share price: AU$43.67
BHP is a global copper producer with operating copper mines in Australia, Chile and Peru, as well as the Resolution copper project in the US. In addition to its copper operations, BHP is a significant producer of a variety of resources including iron ore, nickel, metallurgical coal, potash and uranium.
In Chile, the company operates the 57.5 percent owned Escondida mine — the world’s largest copper producer — and the wholly owned Pampa Norte operations. BHP also owns 33.75 percent of the Antamina copper-zinc mine in Peru, although it is not the operator.
Market cap: AU$8.51 billion; share price: AU$11.53
Capstone’s 100 percent owned Pinto Valley copper mine in Arizona, US, is fully permitted until 2039 and is expected to produce 58,000 to 64,000 tonnes of copper in 2024. Capstone acquired Pinto Valley from BHP in 2013, and the mine has produced more than 4 billion pounds of copper since it began operating in 1972.
It also is the sole owner of the Cozamin copper and silver mine in Zecatacas, Mexico, which boasts a 1,000 tonne per day throughput and is projected to generate 22,000 to 24,000 tonnes of copper in 2024, as well as the Mantos Blancos copper mine in Antofagasta, Chile, which underwent an expansion in 2021 to extend its mine life significantly.
Market cap: AU$4.13 billion; share price: AU$9.21
Sandfire Resources is a copper mining and developing company with a global portfolio of assets. Sandfire’s DeGrussa copper-gold operations in Western Australia were depleted in 2022 and entered care and maintenance in 2023, with the company now working to rehabilitate the site.
Sandfire also owns the Motheo operations in the Kalahari Copper Belt in Botswana. The asset consists of multiple open pits and is currently in the advanced stages of ramping up to production from its A4 open pit and mill. In the March quarter, Motheo produced 36,597 tonnes of copper concentrate and achieved a mill rate of 1.18 million tonnes of ore.
Market cap: AU$1.6 billion; share price: AU$21.20
Another newcomer to this list of biggest copper companies, Metals Acquisition is focused on acquisitions in the metals and mining industry for assets that are critical to the energy transition.
Market cap: AU$547.07 million; share price: AU$2.10
Unlike the other companies on this list, Develop Global is not yet a producer of copper; instead, it is developing its three copper projects in Australia with the goal of supplying the clean energy transition.
In 2022, copper saw historically high prices. In Q1 and most of Q2, copper prices on the COMEX ranged between US$4.10 and US$4.89 — an all-time high. For the same time period on the LME, copper moved between US$9,000 and US$10,730.
Two other growing sectors for copper are the burgeoning electric vehicle and green energy industries. Electric vehicles require a significant amount of the red metal per vehicle.
Investors have access to a wide variety of Australian copper companies on the ASX, from copper miners to copper explorers. This means that investors can choose what kind of company matches their risk appetite and portfolio.
When looking for a copper company to invest in, be sure to do your due diligence and learn about the company, its team, its finances and the geology of its projects. Once you’ve selected a company or companies to invest in, you can buy copper stocks using trading apps with access to ASX stocks, as well as with the help of stock brokers.
This is an updated version of an article first published by the Investing News Network in 2018.
Securities Disclosure: I, Dean Belder, hold no direct investment interest in any company mentioned in this article.
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