copper price : exchange rate

The dramatic fall in the copper price to circa USD$2.45 today needs to be looked at in association with the current USD|AUD exchange rate (of about USD$1 to AUD$1.50).

In effect, the dramatic fall still translates to getting over $3.60/lb which is not so pronounced when compared with where copper was at say USD$3.50 when an exchange rate of say 82c gave $4.27/lb notionally in local currency.

In other words, shifts in the LME/COMEX copper price need to be interpreted in conjunction with the prevailing exchange rate to effectively assess the impact on URL's RCP business case (notwithstanding hedging commitments).

Also, shifts in oil price impact the competitive advantage that the RCP has over copper producers that are dependent upon diesel power generation viz. URL's proposed grid power means that the bottom line would not be unduly impacted by fuel cost increases, whereas other producers may become marginal or even uneconomic to continue mining.