HAMBURG, Dec 12 (Reuters) - Copper ore refining charges are likely to rise sharply in 2015 following initial contract settlements reported in China, the CEO of Europe's largest copper refiner Aurubis said on Friday.
U.S. miner Freeport-McMoRan Copper & Gold Inc has agreed to pay Chinese smelters term treatment and refining charges (TC/RC) of $107 per tonne and 10.7 cents per pound for copper concentrate shipments in 2015, up from $92 per tonne and 9.2 cents per pound for term shipments in 2014, Reuters reported on Wednesday.
"I think the settlements in the new year will be around this overall level," said Aurubis CEO Bernd Drouven.
Copper TC/RCs are paid by miners to smelters to refine concentrate into metal and are a key part of the global copper industry's earnings.
(Reporting by Michael Hogan; editing by David Clarke)