PERTH (miningweekly.com) – Copper cathode producer Tiger Resources has reported a slight decrease in production during the first quarter of 2016, which resulted in higher cash operating costs.
Copper production during the three months to March reached 6 162 t, compared with the 6 557 t produced in the fourth quarter of 2015, while cash operating costs increased from A$1.29/lb to A$1.44/lb during the same period.
Tiger told shareholders on Thursday that operating costs for the quarter were higher on the back of additional maintenance required at the Kipoi crusher and conveyors, in the Democratic Republic of Congo.
Additional higher costs for contract mobile crushing services were also reported to meet the crushing requirements during the maintenance downtime.
Looking ahead to the full year, Tiger was hoping to produce between 26 000 t and 28 000 t of copper cathode at an operating cost of between A$1.34/lb and A$1.42/lb, and an all-in sustaining cost of between A$1.56/lb and A$1.65/lb.
The company was expected to start mining at the Kipoi Central pit during the third quarter of this year, providing new copper ore by the fourth quarter to coincide with the depletion of existing stockpiles.
ASX-listed Tiger was also undertaking a debottlenecking of the solvent extraction and electrowinning plant at Kipoi to expand its nameplate production capacity from 25 000 t/y to 32 500 t/y of copper cathode.
Permitting for the construction of the tailings storage facility was well under way, and the construction of the tank leach circuit and 14 electrowinning cells were set for completion by the fourth quarter of 2016.
Meanwhile, copper sales for the three months under review reached 6 363 t, at a realised average price of A$4 647/t.