PERTH (miningweekly.com) – ASX- and TSX-listed gold miner Alacer Gold on Friday reported that its Çöpler gold mine, in Turkey, had delivered 204 665 oz of gold during the year ended December, compared with 227 000 oz in 2014.

About six-million tonnes of oxide ore were treated at Çöpler, at an average head grade of 1.23 g/t gold. Total cash costs for the full year reached $480/oz, while all-in sustaining costs were $690/oz.

“Çöpler has delivered another strong year of production and cost performance,” said Alacer president and CEO Rod Antal.

He said production at Çöpler would be between 150 000 oz and 170 000 oz in 2016, at a total cash cost of between $575/oz and $625/oz.

Gold production in 2016 was expected to be higher in the second half of the year as mining moved to the Marble and Manganese pits.

Antal noted that in 2015, as mining progressed through the Redox boundary in the Main pit, the transition from oxide to sulphide ore was more abrupt than previously interpreted, which resulted in a reclassification of oxide ore to sulphide ore and waste. This was expected to lead to lower production in the first half of 2016.

Meanwhile, Alacer on Friday noted that the company had completed a comprehensive review of the Çöpler sulphide project, and had taken the decision to instal twin horizontal autoclaves for the processing of sulphide ore, and to move forward with the project on an engineering, procurement and construction management basis.

As expected, the ramp-up in capital expenditure for the sulphide project would increase in 2016, resulting to an increase in the expected all-in costs for 2016.

Çöpler's sustaining capital expenditure (capex) was expected to reach $13-million in 2016, which included a $10-million spend on the heap leach phase 4 expansion. Growth capex at Çöpler would reach $315-million for the sulphide project, pending the receipt of land use permits and final board approval.

The $660-million sulphide project would consist of the introduction of a whole-ore pressure oxidation (POX) circuit that would extend the life of the mine and boost current resources and reserves.

The POX facility was expected to process sulphide ore at a rate of 5 000 t/d and would result in a 20-year mine life for the project.