VANCOUVER (miningweekly.com) – Several Canadian miners have started publishing their production results for the three months ended March 31, reporting a strong start to the calendar year.

Toronto-based Kirkland Lake Gold has reported strong first-quarter results, with output growing 13% year-on-year to 147 644 oz of gold.

The performance was driven by record output in March of 71 615 oz of gold, which mainly reflected positive grade performance at both the Fosterville mine, in Australia, and Macassa, located in the Town of Kirkland Lake, Ontario.

Kirkland Lake said it remains on track to achieve its full-year production guidance of more than 620 000 oz of gold, with production volumes to increase in the second half of the year, including at Fosterville, where stope production from the high-grade Swan zone is expected to start.

Fellow Toronto-based miner Roxgold has also released first-quarter production results, reporting 40 452 oz of gold output from the company's Yaramoko mine, in Burkina Faso. Production was ahead of schedule and mill throughput came to 71 576 t – 8% above the operation’s nameplate capacity.

The record gold production for the quarter was driven by improved operating performance in both the mine and processing plant. Construction works at Bagassi South continue on schedule, remaining on track to deliver first ore during the fourth quarter, the company stated. The high-grade underground operation is expected to add about 40 000 oz/y of gold to the company’s production profile.

Meanwhile, Vancouver-based base metals producer Capstone Mining on Tuesday said it had a slower-than-planned start to the year, with copper production down 5% year-on-year, but still in line with full-year guidance of 90 000 t. Consolidated output is expected to ramp up during subsequent quarters.

Capstone advised that, at Pinto Valley, in Arizona, production was lower than planned with throughput and recoveries at the low end of expectations. The grade was in line with the mine plan for the quarter, with higher head grades and production expected over the remainder of the year.

At Cozamin, in Mexico, production for the quarter was better than expected on account of higher grades. At the Minto mine, in Canada's Yukon Territory, production was lower than planned with mining delays in the underground operations and lower than expected grades coming from the Area 2 Stage 4 pushback, resulting in lower-grade mill feed during the quarter, the company said.