Peru copper output this year forecast below expectations, deputy minister says
Adds quote from deputy mining minister
LIMA, Sept 11 (Reuters) -Copper production in Peru, the world's No. 3 producer of the key industrial metal, will likely fall short of a government goal of 3 million metric tons this year, a top mining official said on Wednesday.
Output is currently on track to reach about 2.8 million tons this year, said deputy mining minister Henry Luna.
However, he noted that some miners may increase their production estimates under a new government norm allowing copper processing plants to increase their capacity by 10%.
"At the end of the year (production) goes up, but what's projected for the year is 2.8 million tons in Peru," Luna told reporters at a mining industry conference.
According to official data, copper production this year through Julyfell 2.3% compared to the same period a year before.
Output in the period was 1.51 millionmetric tons, due to declines of 5.7% at Cerro Verde, 11.3% at Las Bambas and 17.1% at Toromocho, according to a government report.
In July alone, Peru produced 222,389 tons of copper, a 3.2% drop from the year before. During the month, production dropped nearly 25% at Quellaveco, owned by Anglo American.
After years as the world's second-largestcopper miner after Chile, Peru last year lost its position to the Democratic Republic of the Congo.
The government's production goal for this year was initially 3 million tons, which would mark a 9% increase over last year. The SNMPE mining, oil and energy association last month said it expected copper miners to fall short of that target.
Reporting by Marco Aquino; Writing by Daina Beth Solomon; Editing by Kylie Madry
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