PERTH (miningweekly.com) – Copper and gold miner Sandfire Resources on Wednesday told shareholders that copper production for the 2021 financial year had exceeded guidance, while gold production had reached the upper end of the guidance range.

Copper production for the full year ended June reached 70 845 t, which was above the guidance range of between 67 000 t and 70 000 t, while gold production during the full year reached 39 459 oz, which was at the upper end of the 36 000 oz to 40 000 oz guidance.

Meanwhile, C1 unit operating costs of $0.81/lb were at the lower end of the guidance range of between $0.80/lb and $0.85/lb.

MD Karl Simich told shareholders that the results demonstrated both the quality of the DeGrussa operation, and the continued strength in the copper price, which reflected exceptional long-term demand fundamentals as the world continued to pursue an unprecedented decarbonisation push.

“The low C1 cost allowed us to take full advantage of the very strong copper price, which persisted throughout much of the year, helping drive a 24% increase in sales revenue over the past 12 months to a record A$813-million.

“This reflects very strong global demand for copper as the world increasingly transitions to electric vehicles and other green energy initiatives, all of which require substantial amounts of copper.

“Importantly, our ability to harvest significant cash from the DeGrussa operation has put Sandfire in an outstanding position for the future, giving us significant flexibility and optionality in terms of financing our future growth initiatives,” Simich said.

The company recently secured a mining licence for its Motheo copper mine, in Botswana, clearing the way for full-scale construction to ramp up, with first copper production expected in early 2023.

“We are also progressing an expansive exploration programme across the Kalahari copper belt, the Doolgunna region of Western Australia, the Lachlan Ford belt in New South Wales and our Black Butte copper project in Montana. We are also continuing to actively assess business development and growth opportunities in the ‘green metals’ sector globally,” Simich said.