Finders reports lower copper cathode production
Tuesday, October 31 2017 - 12:53 PM WIB
ASX-listed Finders Resources Ltd said on Tuesday that copper cathode production at its 74.1 percent owned Wetar Copper Project in Indonesia?s Maluku Province for the September 2017 quarter declined slightly to 6,131 tons compared to 6.804 tons produced in the June quarter.
Finders said in a statement that the decline was a consequence of an interruption to the 25,000 tpa copper cathode SX-EW plant from a ?crud run event? that affected the production of copper cathode during the last week of September and into October 2017.
Finders said the C1 cash cost was at lower end of the revised guidance provided in that announcement at US$1.15/lb, with an AISC cost of US$1.66/lb. The C1 cash cost remains in the lowest quartile of the cost curve. Notwithstanding the interruption, an EBITDA of US$21.0 million was achieved and was slightly below the $22.5 million EBITDA recorded for the June quarter.
?Forecast copper cathode production for the December 2017 quarter is currently estimated at between 5,700 to 6,000 tons at a C1 cost of between US$1.15/lb to US$1.25/lb for an EBITDA of ~US$20 million at current copper prices,? Finders said in the statement.
In addition to the ongoing impact of the ?crud run event? into October, lower quantities of high grade ore are scheduled to be delivered to the pads for stacking and leaching as the priority will be on moving old, partially leached material from the former truck dump leach pads, therefore reducing the quantity of leachable copper available for stripping during the December 2017 quarter. The rehandling and relining work on the former truck dump leach pads is planned to be completed by the end of the calendar year. It is important to note there will be no loss of recoverable copper from the life of mine reserve profile, it is simply delayed in the production profile.
The company said the current full year to 31 December 2017 production forecast is 24,500 to 25,000 tons of copper cathode at a C1 cost of between US$1.09 and US$1.11/lb.
Editing by Reiner Simanjuntak