Xstrata Q1 copper output falls 6 pct on bad weather

* Total (Euronext: FP.NX - news) mined copper 209,935 tonnes vs 222,971 tonnes

* Consolidated (Berlin: YO3.BE - news) coal production up 3 pct to 19.3 mln tonnes

* Operating, financial performance continues to be strong

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LONDON, May 4 (Reuters) - Anglo-Swiss miner Xstrata (EUREX:XTAF.EX - news) reported a 6 percent decline in copper output in the first quarter due to severe weather conditions at its Collahuasi mine in Chile (Frankfurt: 164698 - news) and lower grades at its Alumbrera mine in Argentina.

Overall, the miner said adverse weather conditions including flooding in Queensland and Western Australia, tropical cyclone Yasi and heavy rainfall in South Africa, Colombia and other parts of South America impacted production during the period.

Copper is the most profitable product for the world's fourth-largest miner, with coal ranking second. Consolidated coal production grew 3 percent, mainly due to increased thermal coal volumes from Australia.

"In the period from 1 January 2011, Xstrata's operating and financial performance continues to be strong and the company's financial position remains robust," the company said on Wednesday.

Xstrata is the latest miner to detail the impact of freak weather across its projects. BHP Billiton (Hamburg:BHP1.HM - news) warned last month that rains in Australia were delaying the recovery of its key coal operations. [ID:nSGE73J00R]

Zinc (Xetra: A0MP37 - news) in concentrate production, which fell 6 percent, was also hit by flooding and power shortages due to the severe weather in Queensland, while mined nickel production dipped 1.9 percent.

(Reporting by Julie Crust and Clara Ferreira-Marques; editing by Kate Holton)

(Source: http://uk.finance.yahoo.com/news/UPDATE-1-Xstrata-Q1-copper-targetukfocus-4114842910.html?x=0)