en.Wedoany.com Reported - Russia's copper concentrate output is expected to grow by 10% in 2026, according to a market assessment compiled by Nornickel. The company, one of the world's largest palladium producers and a major nickel and copper producer, attributed the growth to the commissioning of new projects and capacity expansion at existing operations.

Meanwhile, Russia's refined copper production is expected to remain stable at approximately 1 million metric tons. According to estimates cited by Nornickel, Russia's copper output in 2025 was close to 1.2 million metric tons of concentrate and about 1 million metric tons of refined copper. The company believes that refined copper production will not see significant changes in 2026, despite project advancements and capacity growth on the concentrate side, with market growth concentrated in the earlier stages of processing.

Nornickel itself expects to produce between 336,000 and 356,000 metric tons of copper in 2026. Its Bystrinsky plant, which is subject to U.S. sanctions, will produce between 69,000 and 73,000 metric tons of copper concentrate. The company is one of the few large copper producers in Russia not directly sanctioned by the U.S., while most of the country's copper industry faces international restrictions.

The market assessment shows that medium-term refined copper production at UMMC and Russian Copper Company (RCC) will remain at 2025 levels. Nornickel estimates UMMC's output at approximately 430,000 metric tons and RCC's at around 150,000 metric tons, with neither company commenting on the estimates.

Another focus is Udokan, one of Russia's largest copper projects. Nornickel expects the operation to produce approximately 50,000 metric tons of copper cathodes in 2026. The company stated that Udokan resumed copper cathode production in early 2026 after a fire at its electrowinning plant in late 2023. Udokan began producing copper concentrate in September 2023 and plans to commission a hydrometallurgical plant with an annual capacity of up to 135,000 metric tons of copper (in cathode or concentrate form). The fire damaged some cathode production facilities but did not affect concentrate production. The project's first phase has an annual capacity of 150,000 metric tons of copper, with products sold to the domestic market and exported to China.

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