JOHANNESBURG (miningweekly.com) – Gold major Gold Fields produced 451 000 oz of gold-equivalent ounces in the quarter ended June 30, 25 000 oz less than in the first quarter of the year.
The 5% quarter-on-quarter drop in output was mainly the result of a week-long illegal strike by workers at its Tarkwa and Damang mines, in Ghana, in April.
The JSE- and NYSE-listed miner, however, remained confident of maintaining its full-year target of producing between 1.82-million and 1.9-million ounces.
Further, Gold Fields reported that its cash costs and notional cash expenditure (NCE) for the quarter were about $860/oz and $1 250/oz respectively. Cash costs and NCE for the full year were expected to remain at about $860/oz and $1 360/oz respectively.
Meanwhile, the company noted that it would, when its results for the June quarter are released on August 22, start to report its costs in accordance with the World Gold Council’s guidance on new metrics for reporting on all-in sustaining costs and all-in costs, which are designed to offer greater clarity around the costs associated with gold production.
The reporting of cash costs and NCE would be phased out by the end of the year.
Gold Fields’ share price on the JSE rose by 5.42% to a high of R52.29 a share on Thursday, compared with Wednesday’s close of R49.60 a share.