Newmont reports higher gold, copper output at Batu Hijau mine
Thursday, April 21 2016 - 03:30 AM WIB
US-based Newmont Mining Corp said that gold production at its Batu Hijau mine in Sumbawa, West Nusa Tenggara Province, in the first quarter of this year jumped by 79.4 percent to 192 ounces from 107 ounces in the corresponding period of last year.
The company said in a quarterly report seen Thursday that copper output at the mine, operated by its Indonesian subsidiary PT Newmont Nusa Tenggara, increased to 51 tons during the quarter from 49 tons in the same first quarter of 2015.
Elsewhere, Newmont said that copper AISC is expected to average between $1.50 and $1.70 per pound in 2016 with higher grade ore at Batu Hijau, and increase slightly to between $1.60 and $1.80 per pound in 2017, and to between $2.40 and $2.60 per pound in 2018. CAS is expected to be between $1.20 and $1.40 per pound in 2016 and 2017, and increase to between $1.80 and $2.00 per pound by 2018. The increase in costs over the period is mostly due to lower production volumes at Batu Hijau as Phase 6 ore is depleted as well as higher stripping at Boddington though 2018.
Attributable copper production is expected to be between 120,000 and 160,000 tons in 2016 and 2017 before decreasing to between 70,000 and 110,000 tonnes by 2018.
The decline is due to the depletion of higher grade Phase 6 ore at Batu Hijau in 2018.
Editing by Reiner Simanjuntak