Kidd Creek, ferronickel aid Falconbridge profit

After two quarters of losses, Falconbridge Ltd. reports earnings, before extraordinary items, of $5.6 million, or 9 cents a share for the three months ended Sept 30. The figure compares with earnings of $3.7 million, or 9 cents a share, for the 1985 third quarter.

Adding in the proceeds from extraordinary items, which include the sale of Falconbridge’s 19.2% interest in Giant Yellowknife Mines, its 36.7% interest in Akaitcho Yellowknife Gold Mines and 49.6% interest in Corporation Falconbridge Copper, the company had earnings in the latest quarter of $49.4 million, or 83 cents a share.

Falconbridge says the main reasons for the modest third quarter profit, before the gains from subsidiary and associate sales, were an improved performance at Kidd Creek Minerals, which reported an operating profit of $26.2 million for the period, and the contribution from its ferronickel subsidiary in the Dominican Republic, Falconbridge Dominicana C por A.

The Dominican operation contributed $4.1 million in earnings in the third quarter as Falconbridge’s share, compared with losses of $5.1 million and $5.7 million in the first and second quarters. Lower oil prices were largely responsible for the improvement, a Falconbridge spokesman said.

On the full nine months this year, Falconbridge took a loss of $21.6 million, or 37 cents a share, but when the above extraordinary items are included, as well as the sale last January of Falconbridge’s 56.7% interest in Kiena Gold Mines, the company ended the period with a profit of $64.2 million, or $1.11 per share.

Revenues were well up both for the third quarter, and the nine months. Third quarter revenues were $279 million, against $206 million in the similar year-earlier period, and for the latest nine months $861 million, compared with $667 million last year. Falconbridge notes that while in the first quarter there was an improvement in zinc and gold prices, as well as hi gher zinc concentrate and silver sales volumes, there was a further deterioration of nickel and copper markets compared with the first two quarters.