Glencore plc reported own-sourced lead production of 38.9 kt in the third quarter of 2026, down 9% from 42.6 kt in the second quarter, according to its Third Quarter 2026 Production Report published on 29 October 2026 through the JSE SENS service. Year to date, lead output totalled 122.7 kt, 8% below the 132.7 kt recorded in the comparable 2025 period. Output in Q3 2025 stood at 41.8 kt.
Chief Executive Gary Nagle described the quarter as a strong production performance, with key assets largely in line with expectations and previously communicated guidance. The quarter-on-quarter decline is concentrated in Australia. Lead in concentrates from the Australian operations (Mount Isa and McArthur River combined) fell 7%, from 34.1 kt in Q2 2026 to 31.7 kt in Q3 2026.
Within that total, McArthur River dropped from 13.8 kt to 11.8 kt, while Mount Isa eased from 20.3 kt to 19.9 kt. Kazzinc's lead metal output fell 19% quarter on quarter, from 8.5 kt to 6.9 kt, and its lead in concentrates rose from nil to 0.3 kt. Calculated from the reported quarterly figures, the Australian reduction of about 2.4 kt in absolute terms accounts for most of the roughly 3.7 kt fall in group lead output, while Kazzinc's total lead output declined by about 1.3 kt.
The Kazzinc figures require distinguishing between two lead streams. Lead metal produced by Kazzinc rose to 22.8 kt year to date from 20.7 kt in the comparable 2025 period, an increase of 10%. Lead in concentrates fell to 0.4 kt from 7.8 kt, a decline of 95%.
Total own-sourced lead at Kazzinc was 23.2 kt, 19% lower than the 28.5 kt of the comparable 2025 period. The 19% headline decline is therefore driven mainly by the concentrate line rather than by refined metal output. The report attributes the lower total, in the same way as for zinc, to limited availability of high-quality third-party concentrates for blending, which reduced the rate at which the smelters could process own-sourced material.
Including third-party feed, Kazzinc's total smelter lead metal output was 60.6 kt year to date, up 6% from 57.0 kt. The Mount Isa copper mine closure is relevant to the Australian operations but concerns copper rather than lead. The report states that following the planned closure of the Mount Isa copper mine in July 2025 (the highlights section refers to Q3 2025), copper smelting and refining now rely entirely on third-party feedstocks.
Mount Isa copper metal output was nil in 2026, compared with 41.2 kt in the comparable 2025 period. The report does not cite this closure as a cause of the lead decline. It describes Australian lead production year to date, at 99.5 kt and down 5%, as broadly in line with the comparable 2025 period.
Lead metal output from Glencore's custom metallurgical smelters, which include Portovesme, Asturiana, Nordenham, Northfleet and CEZ Refinery, rose 3% quarter on quarter to 41.9 kt in Q3 2026 from 40.7 kt in Q2. Year to date, it was 4% lower at 136.2 kt against 142.5 kt. On prices, the report gives an average LME cash lead price of $1,912 per tonne year to date in 2026, against $1,961 per tonne in the comparable 2025 period, a decline of 2%.
The spot LME cash lead price was $1,837 per tonne on 30 September 2026, compared with $1,968 per tonne on 31 December 2025. The report does not provide a third-quarter average lead price. The 2026 production guidance covers copper, zinc, nickel and coal, and does not include lead.
The report is a quarterly production disclosure. It does not contain a lead supply-demand balance, estimates of battery-sector consumption, secondary (recycled) production data, or price forecasts. Glencore's notes for editors state that its customers include battery manufacturers, but the report provides no lead-specific volume data for that segment.
Assessment of recycling output and battery demand would require additional sources. Source: Glencore plc, Third Quarter 2026 Production Report, 29 October 2026, published via JSE SENS (Sharenet, sharenet.co.za).
Source: sharenet.co.za