SOUTH32 confirmed its Mozambique aluminium smelter Mozal will be put on care and maintenance next month amid last minute efforts by authorities to deliver a price for electricity that would keep it operating.
Mozambique’s mineral resources and energy minister Estevao Pale told Reuters on Monday his government was doing “everything that is required” to keep the smelter open. Sources told Miningmx, however, Mozal’s fate was sealed.
“Unfortunately, the reality is we’re running out of things in the next week or so, of pitch and coke, and even if we found a power contract today, that could not be delivered to us in time to keep the plant running,” Graham Kerr CEO of South32 said in an interim earnings call on Thursday.
The miner reported underlying earnings of $435m for the six months to 31 December, exceeding analyst estimates of $386.6m and driving shares up 5%.
South32 impaired its investment in Mozal by $372m last year after failing to secure affordable power beyond March 2026. Drought has crippled Mozambique’s hydroelectric supply, whilst negotiations with South Africa’s Eskom for backup power proved unsuccessful.
The closure threatens more than 4,000 jobs directly and through contractors, representing one-third of Mozambique’s manufacturing employment. Alumina previously processed at Mozal will likely be redirected to Middle Eastern facilities, Kerr told analysts.
Strong commodity prices for copper, silver and aluminium, combined with lower controllable costs and the restart of Australian manganese operations, drove the earnings improvement, said Reuters in its coverage. The manganese division returned to profit with earnings of $66m, reversing a $34m loss from cyclone disruptions.
South32 declared an interim dividend of 3.9 cents per share, up from 3.4 cents previously, the newswire said.
