JOHANNESBURG (miningweekly.com) – During the first half of this year, diversified mining and marketing group Glencore continued to optimise the business and position it for further value accretive growth, CEO Gary Nagle reported on Wednesday.

A review during the period has recognised opportunities to streamline the industrial operating structure of the Johannesburg- and London-listed company and support enhancement of technical expertise.

One-billion dollars worth of recurring cost-saving opportunities were identified across more than 300 initiatives against a 2024 baseline. These cost savings across operating structures are expected to be delivered by the end of 2026, with more than 50% already targeted for the end of this year.

Organisational changes already made include the creation of a single nickel/zinc department from two separate ones before, with the combined department now assuming management of the overall custom metallurgical processing assets portfolio. Optimisation and savings across headcount, energy, consumables, contractors, maintenance, and administrative functions is involved.

Morgan Stanley Research analysts stated in a note: “We believe that execution on these savings remains key given the steepness of the implied unit cost decreases, especially in copper.”

This year is expected to be the floor for copper department production volumes, which are said to be on a pathway back to one-million tons a year by 2028.

“We'll curtail production where it makes sense,” Nagle outlined during the presentation covered by Mining Weekly. Examples where such curtailment has already taken place are in ferrochrome, copper/zinc smelting and coal.

While Glencore’s zinc and coal assets are largely operating at the required run rates to deliver full-year volumes, the company’s copper business is navigating various temporary, but largely expected, operational factors, including mine sequencing, lower grades, water constraints and cobalt stockpiling, impacting half-year production at Collahuasi, Antamina, Antapaccay and KCC, with all these operations expecting a substantial step-up in the second half of this year.

“Weak coal prices and low copper production were headwinds in the first half, but we see value at current levels,” Deutsche Bank Group analysts commented.

Half-year earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortisation (Ebitda) was a 17%-lower $3.8-billion, reflecting weaker coal prices and lower copper production. Net debt to June 30 was $3.2-billion higher at $14.5-billion.

“Second half should be better,” Jefferies UK Metals & Minerals headlined in a results summary.

With healthy second-half cash flow generation leading to deleveraging, net debt is poised to reduce meaningfully by year-end.

The completion of the Viterra sale in early July brought in $900-million cash, along with 16.4% of the New York-listed Bunge shares that will be monetised for Glencore shareholders at some point in future.

Supported by the $2.63-billion value of the Bunge shareholding, Glencore announced a share buyback of up to $1-billion to be concluded by the presentation of its annual results in February next year.

The second tranche of next month’s base $0.05-a-share dividend payout will incorporate the new up to $1-billion share buyback communicated in July, taking total announced 2025 shareholder returns increases to $3.2-billion.

The completion of the Viterra sales process, the long-term marketing guidance Ebit range of $2.3-billion to $3.5-billion is also uplifted, the new midpoint of $2.9-billion representing a 16%-higher $2.5-billion.

“While there is much uncertainty around the impacts of geopolitics and trade in the shorter-term, we remain of the view that, in certain commodities, the scale and pace of required resource development will struggle to meet the demand projections for such materials into the future. We are well placed to participate in bridging this gap, through the flexibility embedded in our marketing and industrial businesses to respond to global needs,” added Nagle.

Nagle spoke of the world’s nearer-term macro uncertainties potentially presenting marketing opportunities for Glencore, which markets more than 60 commodities across a global network of 50-plus offices. Overall, it has 150 000 employees and contractors in over 30 countries.