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TORONTO (miningweekly.com) – TSX- and NYSE-listed Fortuna Silver Mines on Thursday said it had lifted its total second-quarter silver output by 52% year-on-year, while gold output rose 64%.
Vancouver-based Fortuna, which owns and operates the San Jose mine, in Mexico, and the Caylloma mine, in Peru, reported output of 1.6-million ounces of silver, 8 519 oz of gold and significant base metal by-products for the three months ended June 30.
For the first six months of the year, silver output totalled 3.2-million ounces and gold output was 16 669 oz. This represented 53% and 52% of the company's 2014 guidance respectively, placing it on schedule to produce six-million ounces of silver and 32 300 oz of gold, or 7.9-million ounces of silver equivalent.
Cash cost for San Jose was $64.1/t, in line with full-year guidance of $67.1/t, while cash cost for the Caylloma mine was $91.7/t, also in step with the full-year guidance of $88.3/t.
Unit costs at both mines benefitted from cost-cutting measures implemented in mid-2013. The company said it was on track to deliver on its all-in sustaining cash cost an ounce of silver guidance for 2014 of $17.14, a 16% reduction when compared with 2013.
“With San Jose operating at the new throughput rate of 2 000 t/d successfully behind us, we are now focusing on our next phase of organic growth. We are already working with our consultants conducting engineering and trade-off studies to assess the economic robustness of a potential expansion of San Jose to 3 000 t/d,” president and CEO Jorge Ganoza said.
He added that mineralisation at both the Trinidad North discovery and the central portion of the main Trinidad deposit remained wide open in multiple directions.
“Management continues to feel very excited with the prospective resource growth opportunities,” Ganoza said.
Fortuna also produced 3.96-million pounds of lead, 15% less than in the comparable period last year, and 6.69-million pounds of zinc, up 9% year-over-year.