Output from Australian copper mines is forecast to decrease by as much as 3% in the 2026-27 year following an unchanged copper output in the Department of Industry, Science and Resources (DISR) December 2025 Resources and Energy Quarterly.
The quarterly reports that lower company guidance is expected to impact copper mines in the next financial year.
Following on from mine output, copper exports also fell in the first nine months of 2025. Western Australia suffered export declines, with the town of Boddington down 29% in the first three quarters of 2025, and Queensland as a whole down 10%.
Queensland’s copper industry has seen significant production implications, such as the ongoing suspension at 29Metals’ (ASX:29M) Capricorn operations.
While supply is declining, Australia is still marked second globally for its copper resources, with Queensland alone accounting for around 1% of the global copper production, according to the Queensland Government’s Geoscience Open Data Portal.
Queensland has an output of more than 200,000 tonnes of refined copper, making up for around 50% of Australia’s total.
One copper explorer looking to feed into Queensland’s supply chain is Ark Mines (ASX:AHK). Ark is a multi-commodity explorer with copper assets in Far North Queensland, with its Mount Jesse Project, located 176km from Cairns.
The project comprises one exploration permit, centered on a copper-rich magnetite skarn which has potential to be associated with porphyry style mineralisation.
Meanwhile, South Australia has climbed higher due to increased production at BHP’s (ASX:BHP) Olympic Dam and Hillgrove Resources’ Kanmantoo.
Prices up
Australian exports have been revised up by $0.8 billion in 2025-26 and $1.6 billion in 2026-27 due to an increase in copper price and export volumes.
Trading Economics reports the price of copper at US$5.95 ($8.88) per pound, following a 38.35% increase for this year over year.
In early December, copper surged to a record price of US$11,870 per tonne. DISR predicts prices of the base metal to persist in 2026, before easing in 2027 as operations recover from disruptions and new mines enter production.
Global copper smelting activity dropped last year in October, as reported by Mining.com.au, with inactive capacity rising to 15.1% of world nameplate, the highest level recorded this year. China was recorded to drive the majority of the decline.
Write to Maddison Elliott at Mining.com.au
Images: iStock
