Process technologies and service provider Outotec saw its order intake from the minerals and metals sector pick up in the September quarter as producers continued to focus on improving their existing operations.

The company’s order intake rose 16% year-on-year to €271.5 million ($308 million) during the three months to the end of September, while its sales jumped 17% to €320.2 million.

In the period, the company secured a contract worth €25 million for a greenfield copper concentrator in South America, but it did note that there was “evidence of postponements in larger investments due to the global economic uncertainty, which has impacted metal prices”.

Outotec added: “Producers continued focusing on developing their existing operations. Demand for equipment, smaller technology packages and spare parts remained solid.”

In the company’s service business, Outotec said it was still experiencing supplier constraints, with sales remaining at previous levels to last year. “However, the sales started to improve towards the end of the third quarter,” the company added.

In terms of earnings, Outotec’s EBIT went from €12.3 million in the September quarter of 2017 to €16 million in the most recent quarter.

President and CEO Markku Teräsvasara concluded: “We expect the demand outlook for our technologies and services to remain good. However, major investments continue to develop relatively slowly.”