Newcrest reports lower gold output at Gosowong
Tuesday, October 21 2014 - 01:59 AM WIB
ASX-listed Newcrest Mining reported that gold output from the Gosowong mine on Halmahera Island, North Maluku Province, in the September quarter of this year declined by about 5 percent from the corresponding period of last year.
The September output, however, dropped deeper if compared to the June 2014 quarter production.
The company reported on Tuesday that Gosowong?s September 2014 quarter production was 67,676 ounces of gold with an All-In Sustaining Cost of A$771 (US$714) per ounce. This compares with the June 2014 quarter performance of 124,967 ounces of gold with an All-In Sustaining Cost of A$560 (US$522) per ounce.
?Gold production was 46 percent lower than the previous quarter, primarily due to an expected 32 percent reduction in gold grades and lower mine production due to hot water issues at Toguraci and ground conditions at Kencana,? Newcrest said in a statement.
Gold grades will continue to vary from quarter to quarter based on the sequencing of mining stopes, it added.
All-In Sustaining Cost of A$771 per ounce was 38 percent higher than the June 2014 quarter primarily as a result of lower gold grades, higher sustaining capital expenditure per ounce and higher exploration expenditure per ounce, the company explained.
At Gosowong, the search for new discoveries continued. Additional high priority targets within the vicinity of the goldfield area have been identified and drill testing of the Toguraci West and Salut South East areas is underway.
Follow-up drilling to TTD002, 1.4m @ 12g/t Au at Toguraci South East (reported last quarter) has demonstrated a limited extent to mineralisation with one significant result returned, 0.5m (0.49m*) @ 3.6g/tAu from TTD003 (* denotes true thickness).
Extensions to the present geophysical coverage is planned to target cover areas immediately east of the Kencana operations and northern extensions of the goldfield area, Newcrest said.
Newcrest controls 75 percent stake in PT Nusa Halmahera, which owns and operates the Gosowong mine.
Editing by Reiner Simanjuntak