◎ Highlight: In 2021, Zijin Zinc’s Phase 4 flotation system commenced trial production and Bayannur Zijin’s 50,000 tonnes per year zinc alloy technical upgrade project was completed.
According to China Mineral Resources Report 2021 prepared by the Ministry of Natural Resources of the PRC, the national zinc reserves were 30.9483 million tonnes, while the zinc reserves of the Company were 4.5540 million tonnes, representing approximately 14.71% of the total volume in China. According to the statistics disclosed by China Nonferrous Metals Industry Association, the national mine-produced zinc production volume in 2021 was 3.1595 million tonnes, while the Group’s mine-produced zinc production volume was 396 thousand tonnes, representing approximately 12.53% of the total volume in China.
◎ Resources: Zinc resources and reserves were 9.6182 million tonnes and 4.5540 million tonnes respectively; lead resources and reserves were 1.2640 million tonnes and 696.5 thousand tonnes respectively.
◎ Production: The Group produced 718,883 tonnes of zinc, representing an increase of 28.15% year-on-year (same period in 2020: 560,964 tonnes).
Of which, the Group produced 396,443 tonnes of zinc in concentrate, representing an increase of 15.87% year-on-year (same period in 2020: 342,131 tonnes);
322,440 tonnes of zinc ingots were produced from our refineries, representing an increase of 47.34% year-on-year (same period in 2020: 218,834 tonnes).
37,942 tonnes of lead in concentrate were produced, representing an increase of 5.18% year-on-year (same period in 2020: 36,072 tonnes).
◎ Costs: Profitability from the development of low-grade resources is a clear competitive edge of our zinc and lead business. The main economic indicators outperformed other domestic zinc enterprises. In 2021, the unit cost of sales of mine-produced zinc was RMB7,369/tonne, representing an increase of 12.16% compared with the same period last year (same period last year: RMB6,570/tonne).
◎ Contribution: Sales income generated from our zinc and lead business represented 5.01% (after offsets) of the operating income during the reporting period, and the gross profit from the zinc (lead) business represented 8.37% of the gross profit of the Group.
◎ Growth potential: The Group has accelerated the technological upgrade and expansion for incremental gold projects. With subsequent mergers and acquisitions and self-initiated exploration, resources/reserves are expected to increase.