This Morning in Metals: Oyu Tolgoi copper mine expansion faces termination by Mongolian government

copper mine
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This morning in metals news: Turquoise Hill Resources offered an update on the Oyu Tolgoi copper mine expansion project; renewable power generation will continue to rise this year in the U.S.; and the aluminum price has traded sideways over the last month.
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Oyu Tolgoi copper mine project in danger

The fate of the Oyu Tolgoi copper mine expansion project is up in the air, as it could face termination from the Mongolian government.
Turquoise Hill Resources, which is majority-owned by miner Rio Tinto, jointly owns the massive project with the Mongolian government. The parties reached a financing plan for the project in 2015.
However, the Mongolian government appears to be concerned about runaway costs for the project.
“In addition, the Government of Mongolia has advised Rio Tinto that it is dissatisfied with the results of the Definitive Estimate, which was completed and delivered by Rio Tinto and publicly announced by the Company on December 18, 2020, and is concerned that the significant increase in the development costs of the Oyu Tolgoi project has eroded the economic benefits it anticipated to receive therefrom,” Turquoise Hill said in a statement. “The Government of Mongolia has indicated that if the Oyu Tolgoi project is not economically beneficial to the country, it would be necessary to review and evaluate whether it can proceed.”

Renewables continue to rise

Renewable sources account for the most new electricity-generating capacity this year, the Energy Information Administration reported.
“According to the U.S. Energy Information Administration’s (EIA) latest inventory of electricity generators, developers and power plant owners plan for 39.7 gigawatts (GW) of new electricity generating capacity to start commercial operation in 2021,” the EIA reported. “Solar will account for the largest share of new capacity at 39%, followed by wind at 31%. About 3% of the new capacity will come from the new nuclear reactor at the Vogtle power plant in Georgia.”

Aluminum trends flat

After surging throughout most of the second half of 2020, the aluminum price has slowed down of late.
The LME three-month aluminum price is up just 0.22% over the last month. The price closed Friday at $2,032 per metric ton.
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