Glencore's Copper Ambitions: From Alumbrera Restart to Million-Ton Milestone

Glencore shares climbed 5.79 percent on Wednesday, reaching GBP 381.23 on the London Stock Exchange following the company’s ambitious copper expansion roadmap unveiled at its 2025 Capital Markets Day event. The rally reflects investor optimism around the mining giant’s strategic direction in the copper market.

The British-Swiss firm laid out an aggressive production timeline targeting approximately 1 million tons of copper extraction by 2028, with further expansion planned to hit roughly 1.6 million tons by 2035. This represents a significant scaling-up of operations, supported by projected annual growth of around 9.4 percent in copper output between 2026 and 2029, while broader copper-equivalent production is expected to expand at a 4 percent annual clip during the same period.

Central to this strategy is the restart of Argentina’s Alumbrera mine, slated to resume operations with first production hitting the market in 2028. The project represents a key component in Glencore’s push to capture more of the copper symbol market as global demand for the metal continues to surge amid renewable energy and electrification trends.

The production ramp-up demonstrates Glencore’s confidence in long-term copper demand fundamentals, positioning the company to capitalize on tightening supply conditions expected in the coming years. With these expansion plans in motion, Glencore is signaling to markets that it’s geared up for sustained growth in one of the industry’s most strategically important commodities.