PERTH (miningweekly.com) – The Karouni gold project, in Guyana, was delivering ahead of expectations, owner Troy Resources said on Thursday, with the product to date producing some 35% more ounces than predicted by the ore reserve model.

The Karouni project, which poured its first gold in November last year, produced 20 195 oz of gold during the three months to March 31 at a C1 cash cost of $412/oz and an all-in sustaining cost of $638/oz.

Troy’s group gold production during the period reached 26 212 oz, compared with the 10 264 oz delivered in the quarter ended December 31, while silver production was down from 712 697 oz to 240 203 oz.

Waste and ore development at the Casposo mine, in Argentina, was suspended in the first half of 2016, with the mine only producing 3 917 oz of gold and 240 203 oz of silver during the quarter under review.

This was compared with the 7 561 oz of gold and the 712 697 oz of silver produced in the previous quarter.

All mining operations at the Casposo mine were halted in mid-February.

As part of the restructuring of the Casposo operations – aimed at providing a platform to unlock value at the mine – Troy in March announced an agreement for the sale of a majority interest in the mine to fellow listed miner Austral Gold.

Austral would acquire a 51% interest in the project for $3-million and would be entitled to buy a further 19% interest for an additional $1-million in a 12-month period.

Austral was also granted a three-year option to acquire the remaining 30% interest in Casposo for $7-million.

Under the terms of the agreement, Austral would provide up to $10-million for an initial capital investment plan to develop and implement a new mine plan at Casposo, with a view of bringing the operation into profitability within 12 months.

Meanwhile, the Andorinhas mine, in Brazil, delivered 2 046 oz of gold during the three months to March 31, compared with the 2 703 oz produced in the previous quarter.