Australia's third-biggest iron ore producer Fortescue Metals Group Ltd (Fortescue) has announced its operating results for the second quarter of 2012.
Fortescue said in its statement that its total iron ore shipments during the June quarter increased by 53 percent year on year to 17.8 million mt. In the given quarter, Fortescue's total processed iron ore volume increased to 15.7 million mt, up by 28 percent compared to the same quarter of the previous year.
According to Fortescue's statement, production costs for the quarter decreased to $46.04/mt from $52.56/mt in the previous quarter.
Fortescue intends to maintain its production rate at around 60 million mt per year for the September quarter noting that routine maintenance undertaken in early July will ease production from the record June quarter results.