The price of copper is up 65% since announcement of the Nationwide Lockdown on 23rd March 2020 in reaction to the Coronavirus pandemic. Although COVID-19 was the root cause of the demise of the copper prices initially, the price of copper continues to rise, increasing a further 1.35% today so far.
Copper is a metal in great demand. It has been used for millennia with some decorative articles dating back to 8,700BC. Copper production boomed during the Industrial Age as new technology and adaptive methods of mining made it easier to process copper than ever before. The versatility of copper and its uses in jewellery and currency encourages some to consider it a precious metal, however due to copper being plentiful and easily oxidised in moist air, it is not defined as a precious metal.
One of the key features of copper is its ability to conduct high voltages of electricity without burning up. This is due to its high electrical conductivity, making it an ideal material to manufacture wiring and printed circuit boards for a variety of purposes. This is important to consider as we are in the midst of an evolutionary time as the world is focusing on becoming greener and protective of the environment.
The use of copper has increased increased dramatically as the world relies on supplying its nations with renewable energy sources because copper is used five times more in these systems compared to traditional power generation.
What companies can we see benefitting from the copper price boom?
Primarily, the industries that mine the valuable engineering metal will directly benefit from the rising demand and price increase of copper. Quite simply because the 1 tonne of copper sold today will gain 65% more income than it would have generated on 23rd March 2020.
With price continuing to increase and the demand for copper also on the rise, mining companies such a Rambler Metals & Mining Plc and Thor Mining Plc should be able to make a significant profits and benefit from the current circumstances.
Rambler Metals & Mining Plc have managed to maintain mining during 2020 despite the coronavirus restrictions due to their ability to maintain robust measures to identify and manage any reported cases of COVID-19. Thankfully, there have been zero cases of the virus throughout the extensive list of employees and contractors.
Rambler are now focused on draining the lower sections of their mine that were not feasible to maintain during the period of the reduced mining operations put in place that allowed the continuation of mining. The pumping of the mine is expected to be completed by the end of this month.
They are also steadily increasing the capacity of which their mine can operate back to its full potential of 1350 tonnes per day.
In addition to this, Rambler Metals & Mining are also concluding the purchase of Duck Pond plant and relocating the plant to the Ming Mine Site by July this year.
Thor Mining Plc has three major copper projects: Alford East. Alford West and Kapunda projects. The Alford West project is of great interest and the mining technique, In Situ Recovery mining, is more cost effective than traditional mining methods leading to an increased profit potential from this location.
Thor has been on our radar for several months and Mick Billing (Chairman/CEO of Thor Mining) seems to be thorough, ensuring that his claims are rigorously drilled and inspected to pinpoint the resources prior to initiating a full scale mining operation which could potentially result in a substantial loss is no copper or other valuable material was found.
