16/12/08

Chile`s state-owned copper company Codelco will only break even in its financial results next year if the metal averages US$1.65/lb, and if the average falls below that the company will report losses, company VP for shared corporate services Juan Medel said.

“If we forecast the copper price at US$1.65/lb for 2009 pre-tax profits will be zero. We cannot let that happen for the first time in Codelco`s history and we are working to avoid that at all costs,” Medel said in a speech at a Santiago conference Monday to discuss Codelco contractor issues.

The price of copper on the London Metal Exchange closed at US$1.395/lb cash Monday, bringing the metal`s 30-day cash average to US$1.604/lb.

As for costs, Codelco reported an average total cost of US$1.81/lb for the first three quarters of this year, up from US$1.35/lb year-on-year. Cash costs after molybdenum byproduct credits averaged US$0.63/lb in the first nine months of this year, compared to US$0.34/lb year-on-year.

Codelco`s output in January-September fell 7.83% year-over-year to 1.12Mt.Maximiliano PichonBusiness News Americas

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