PERTH (miningweekly.com) – Dual-listed gold miner OceanaGold has reported record gold production for the three months to March, as the Didipio operation, in the Philippines, delivered a strong quarter and production started at the Haile asset, in the US.

Gold production during the quarter under review reached 147 956 oz, which was up from the 102 428 oz produced in the fourth quarter of last year. The Didipio operation contributed 62 748 oz of gold, while Haile added 20 798 oz during its first quarter of operation. The balance of production was delivered from the Waihi and Macraes mines, in New Zealand.

The company also produced 5 995 t of copper during the quarter, which was a 58% increase on the previous quarter.

OceanaGold expects to produce between 150 000 oz and 170 000 oz of gold at Haile in 2017, which poured its first gold in January this year.

OceanaGold MD and CEO Mick Wilkes told shareholders that the company continued to advance the Haile optimisation study, which would be completed by mid-year, while also driving an extensive exploration programme across its remaining asset portfolio.

Gold sales during the quarter reached 126 225 oz while copper sales were recorded at 4 148 oz, resulting in a combined revenue of A$161.8-million, up from the A$147.4-million reported in the December quarter.

“With our strong balance sheet, high-quality assets, with significant organic growth opportunities and industry leading margins, we are well positioned to further deliver on our objective to enhance further value for our stakeholders,” said Wilkes.

Looking ahead to the full year, OceanaGold expects gold production to remain broadly unchanged in the second half of the year, compared with the first half, as mining is expected to start at Coronation North and the Haile project continues to ramp-up to commercial production, offsetting expected lower production from Didipio, owing to the cessation of the final stage of the openpit mine ahead of the start of underground mining at the end of 2017.

Gold production for the full year is expected to be between 550 000 oz and 610 000 oz, while copper production would be between 15 000 t and 17 000 t.

OceanaGold in February received an order from the Department of Environment and Natural Resources to suspend operations at the Didipio mine, with the order repeating allegations previously made by the government, citing petitions from the local government, that nearby houses had suffered damage as a result of blasting at the operations, as well as the mine’s alleged adverse impacts to the agricultural areas in the province.

The company has appealed the order, and the matter is now with the Office of the President for a ruling.