The Fortescue Metals Group Ltd (ASX: FMG) share price is down around 1% after its FY24 Q1 update was announced.
Fortescue is a large iron ore miner and it’s also working on a number of green energy efforts.
Fortescue share price
FY24 first quarter update
Iron ore shipments totalled 45.9 million tonnes (mt) in the first quarter, which was 3% lower than the prior corresponding period of the first quarter of FY23.
Fortescue said that its Pilbara Hematite C1 cost, being the mining costs, were US$17.93 per wet metric tonne (wmt), which was 1% higher than the prior corresponding period.
The Pilbara Hematite average revenue was US$100 per dry metric tonne (dmt) for the quarter, which is a pretty good amount of revenue.
The Iron Bridge project transitioned to operational production in August 2023 and achieved its first shipment of high-grade magnetite concentrate. The Iron Bridge concentrate revenue was US$131 per dmt. This project could have an important impact on the Fortescue share price in the coming years.
Fortescue also said that during the quarter it signed a memorandum of understanding with the Puutu Kunti Kurrama and Pinikura (PKKP) Aboriginal Corporation to guide the development of a co-management model.
It finished the quarter with a cash balance of US$3.1 billion and net debt of US$2.2 billion after paying its final dividend of US$2 billion during the quarter.
Green progress
The main things that the resources business is working on is green hydrogen and high-performance batteries.
During the quarter, it completed the acquisition of the Phoenix Hydrogen Hub in the US, where phase one proposes an 80MW electrolyser and liquefaction facility.
The company also said that from FY24 onwards, it will no longer buy voluntary offsets unless required by law, with the funds reallocated to the company’s decarbonisation plan.
In October 2023, the business opened a new zero emission battery factory in Kidlington, UK, and it also submitted its climate transition plan to the ‘UN Race to Zero’.
Final thoughts on the Fortescue share price
The strong iron ore price continues to support the company’s profit, so this is good for its investing in green energy and dividend payments. Even so, I wouldn’t call this the best time to invest. A good time to invest in a cyclical business like an iron ore miner is when the iron ore price goes down, which I see as below US$100 per tonne.
Until then, there are other ASX dividend shares I’d rather invest in, though I remain a shareholder for the long-term.
