Photo by: Bloomberg
PERTH (miningweekly.com) – Gold miner Saracen Mineral Holdings has beaten its production expectations for the 2018 financial year, and set itself a higher target for 2019.
Saracen on Tuesday reported record gold production of 316 453 oz during the full year ended June, which was above the 310 000 oz to 315 000 oz target set earlier this year.
The Carosue Dam operation delivered 171 301 oz during the full year, with the Thunderbox mine adding a further 145 152 oz.
In the three months to June, Saracen produced 78 930 oz of gold, with Carosue Dam contributing 44 680 oz and Thunderbox 34 250 oz.
MD Raleigh Finlayson said on Tuesday that the results showed the company was reaping the benefits of its investment programme.
“Our results have gone from strength to strength on every front. In the process, we have entrenched our position as a leading midtier ASX gold miner.
“We generated record production last financial year and we are forecasting further growth this year. This is a direct result of the investment we made in exploration and development in recent years,” Finlayson said.
He noted that the increased production was also achieved while costs were kept tight, and the company remained debt free. This has allowed Saracen to grow its cash and equivalents by a further A$17-million in the last quarter to A$118-million.
“We have achieved this while also continuing to invest in growth, as shown by the outstanding exploration results we are generating across our assets. We are confident that this strategy will underpin ongoing growth in our inventory, production rates and free cash flow.”
For the 2019 financial year, Saracen is targeting production of between 325 000 oz and 345 000 oz, with all-in sustaining costs targeted at between A$1 050/oz and A$1 100/oz.