RE: Santander's cost will be 0.50 - 0.55 $/p Lower supply and new uses could drive up zinc prices, raises Trevali [Reply]
A diverse range of products could increase zinc base metal demand in combination with a lower offer will probably result in an upward trend in the coming years, said Vice President of Canadian mineral exploration Trevali (TSX: TV), Daniel Marinov.
While zinc inventories currently stand at 1 million tonnes (Mt), "leading companies such as Anglo American, Rio Tinto, BHP Billiton decided to shelve it with other base metals to focus on bulk commodities such as ore iron or copper, "Marinov said in a recent interview.
Moreover, the closure of some of the largest zinc mines in the world, as Glencore Xstrata Brunswick 12 in Canada last month and MMG Century in Australia, among others soon paralyze its operations, will result in a decrease of 10 -15% in the supply of zinc in the next couple of years.
Besides decreasing inventories, zinc is increasingly used for a variety of uses that definitely raise demand as agricultural products and a new prototype battery, Marinov said.
"It was determined that zinc batteries are much more efficient and can store much more energy.'m No expert on this, but yes, I firmly believe that this could be a positive development for the market definitely zinc in the near future" said.
Zinc closed at U.S. $ 0.83 / lb on Friday, below its average price of U.S. $ 0.88 / lb in 2012.
Trevali is a mining company that focuses on producing Santander zinc mine in Peru, which also produces lead and silver and is making its implementation, as well as the operations and Halfmile Caribou in Canada.
In Santander, Trevali direct costs expected to reach U.S. $ 0.50 to 0.55 / lb zinc equivalent.
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