VANCOUVER (miningweekly.com) – Midtier gold miner Kirkland Lake Gold has more than doubled its first-quarter earnings as higher output and revenue dovetailed with lower production costs and reduced depletion and depreciation costs, the company said on Wednesday.

The Toronto-headquartered miner reported 201% year-on-year growth in headline earnings – which typically excludes special items – to $52.6-million, or $0.25 a share. This result was better than the $0.18 a share that analysts polled by Thomson Reuters forecast on average.

Net earnings for the three-month period totalled $53.8-million, or $0.25 a share, an increase of $40.7-million from net earnings of $13.1-million, or $0.06 a share, in the comparable period a year earlier.

“We had a strong [first] quarter and continued to be a top performer in our industry in terms of profitability and free cash flow. Our first-quarter results surpassed target levels for the quarter in most key areas and, as a result, we entered the second quarter tracking very well against our consolidated 2018 guidance,” president and CEO Tony Makuch said in a statement.

Kirkland Lake said a combination of increased sales and a higher average gold price, resulted in an 18% increase in revenue for the quarter to $198.2-million.

The company produced 147 644 oz of gold in the quarter, an increase of 13% from 130 425 oz in the same period of 2017. All-in sustaining costs (AISC) averaged $833/oz of gold sold, compared with $873/oz sold in the same period of 2017, and the company expects this figure to continue to fall as quarterly sales volumes increase.

Excluding production from mines currently under care and maintenance, including the Cosmo mine in Australia’s Northern Territory and the Holloway mine, in Ontario, total consolidated output grew 22% to 147 611 oz, from 121 066 oz in the first quarter of 2017, the company said.

The Fosterville mine boosted output by about 39% to 63 843 oz in the period, with the Macassa mine, also in Ontario, lifting output 11% to a new record of 54 038 oz of gold.

The company has guided for higher levels of production as the year progresses, which will contribute to further improvements in unit costs. Capital expenditures will increase over the balance of the year as it ramps up the Macassa shaft project and key growth projects at Fosterville.

At Macassa, work on the shaft project in the first quarter focused on permitting and engineering, with surface construction under way. At Fosterville, the company received a number of permits in April, which will lead to an acceleration of work going forward.

Kirkland Lake expects to produce more than 620 000 oz of gold in 2018, with the bulk coming from the Macassa and Fosterville mines.

Full-year AISC are expected to range between $750/oz to $800/oz.