The share price of Aim-listed Goldplat fell by more than 20% on Friday after the company announced a 40% year-on-year decrease in its production to 6 138 oz for the quarter ended September 30.
This compares with the 10 277 oz produced in the quarter ended September 30, 2017.
Goldplat attributed the lower production to the planned decrease in production at the Kilimapesa mine, in Kenya, as well as to a decrease in volumes and grade of materials sourced for its South African and Ghanaian recovery operations.
The gold producer plans to put the Kilimapesa mine on care and maintenance if a suitable partner for the require expansion of the mine is not found by the end of this month.
The mine produced 1 201 oz of gold in the quarter under review, which is the first quarter of its 2019 financial year, compared with 1 449 oz in the prior comparable period.
Gold and gold equivalent production at Goldplat Recovery (GPL), in South Africa, meanwhile, decreased by 44% year-on-year to 4 251 oz, compared with the 7 588 oz produced in the prior comparable period.
Goldplat on Friday said GPL had achieved some improvements in terms of the quality of material received towards the end of the quarter and expects the operation to return to normalised production through the carbon-in-leach circuits in the second quarter of the current financial year.
The company’s Ghanaian operation, Goldplat Recovery Ghana (GRG) recorded a 42% year-on-year decrease in the production of gold and gold equivalents to 686 oz, compared with 1 190 oz in the prior comparable period, mainly as a result of a lack of feed material from local clients.
GRG has, however, since identified sources for significant volumes of material, but contracts still need to be finalised.
Meanwhile, gold equivalent ounces sold and transferred decreased by 62% year-on-year to 5 407 oz in the quarter under review, compared with the 14 374 oz sold and transferred in the first quarter of the prior financial year.
“Management remains confident that the ongoing focus on sourcing of sufficient quantities and quality material for the recovery operations and the continued focus on all identified group strategic initiatives will yield improved results going forward despite the very difficult quarter for Goldplat reported on today.
“Sourcing funding for Kilimapesa and curtailing the funding burden at Kilimapesa by the group is of the highest priority and we look forward to significant progress in this regard during the current period,” commented CEO Gerard Kisbey-Green.