Japan's Mitsubishi Materials set some 2026 TC/RC deals at below 2025 levels

Mitsubishi Materials

19/03/2026 10:10

TOKYO, March 19 (Reuters) - Japanese copper smelter
Mitsubishi Materials  5711.T  has agreed 2026 treatment and
refining charges (TC/RCs) with some global miners at below 2025
levels of $25 a metric ton and 2.5 cents per pound, its
president said on Thursday.
    "We can't disclose details of the talks, but some deals were
set at below 2025 levels and above $0 per ton and 0 cents per
pound," President Tetsuya Tanaka told a news conference.
    TC/RCs, fees paid by miners to turn concentrate into refined
metal, have come under pressure as global smelting capacity, led
by China, expands faster than mined supply, squeezing smelters'
margins.
    Chilean miner Antofagasta  ANTO.L  and a Chinese copper
smelter have agreed 2026 TC/RCs of $0 per ton and 0 cents per
pound, two sources said in December, highlighting the tough
market.
    For 2025, Japanese smelters secured TC/RCs of $25 a ton and
2.5 cents per pound, higher than the $21.25 a ton and 2.125
cents per pound agreed between a Chilean miner and a Chinese
smelter, industry sources said.
    Tanaka, also head of the Japan Mining Industry Association
(JMIA), has said Japanese smelters were aiming for contracts at
a different level than China's by stressing their value
proposition such as traceability and lower environmental risks.

 (Reporting by Yuka Obayashi, Editing by Louise Heavens)
 ((Yuka.Obayashi@thomsonreuters.com; +813-4520-1265;))