PERTH (miningweekly.com) – Dual-listed gold miner Perseus Mining boosted gold production during the quarter ended September 30, as the company’s productivity improvements paid off.
During the three months under review, the Edikan gold mine, in Ghana, produced 51 529 oz of gold, a 22% increase on the gold production in the June quarter, and a 12% increase on the previous corresponding quarter.
Perseus mined 27% less waste during the quarter under review, as part of the company’s strategy to reduce investment in waste stripping until a comprehensive review of its approach to mining was completed and recommendations could be implemented.
The company also pursued incremental productivity improvements at the Edikan processing plant, which yielded positive results during the quarter, improving the gold recovery rate from 85% to 87%.
As a result, all-in unit cash costs for the period declined by 28%, to $959/oz, which was also 29% less than the previous corresponding period.
Meanwhile, of the 49 703 oz sold during the quarter ended September, a total of 36 000 oz were delivered into the forward sales contracts while the remaining gold was delivered at the prevailing spot prices.
Looking ahead, ASX- and TSX-listed Perseus said that it was on track to achieve its production and cost guidance for the six months to December, with the Edikan mine expected to deliver between 95 000 oz and 105 000 oz, at a cost of between $1 160/oz and $1 280/oz.