London- and Toronto-listed gold mining company Centamin remains on track to meet its full-year guidance.

In a release of its quarterly report for the three months ended September 30, it noted that  production guidance for the year ranges from 450 000 oz to 480 000 oz, with a focus on achieving the lower end of that range.

The cash cost guidance remains within the range of $840/oz to $990/oz produced, while all-in sustaining costs (AISC) are expected to be between $1 250/oz and $1 400/oz sold, with an emphasis on the lower half of that range.

Capital expenditure (capex) is being maintained at $273-million. The budget for exploration spending is results-driven, amounting to $30-million for 2023, with $23-million earmarked for predevelopment study work on the Doropo gold project.

Centamin reported several achievements in its quarterly update.

The company achieved a strong safety record during the third quarter, with zero lost-time injuries, resulting in a lost time injury frequency rate of zero. The total recordable injury frequency rate stood at 3.83 incidents per one-million hours worked.

In terms of gold production, Centamin extracted 101 370 oz of gold in the third quarter, bringing the total gold production for the first nine months of the year from the Sukari gold mine, in Egypt, to 321 931 oz, aligning with the lower end of the 2023 guidance range.

The company's revenue reached $200.4-million for the third quarter, contributing to a year-to-date total of $626-million. This revenue was primarily generated from the sale of 103 807 oz of gold, with year-to-date sales amounting to 323 000 oz, at an average realised gold price of $1 927/oz sold.

Centamin reported cash costs of $882/oz for the third quarter, while AISC amounted to $1 266/oz.

The company spent $59.1-million in capex during the third quarter, bringing year-to-date capex to $166-million. These figures reflect cost savings stemming from lower fuel costs and the optimisation of the openpit fleet maintenance strategy in alignment with the new Sukari life-of-mine (LoM) plan.

"The decision to complete the plant maintenance demonstrates our commitment to the long-term stewardship of Sukari and, due to our operational flexibility, 2023 production guidance is maintained. Today's results reflect another period of disciplined cost management, putting us on target for the lower half of our 2023 cost guidance range,” Centamin CEO Martin Horgan said on October 19.

Centamin celebrated the one-year anniversary of the Sukari 30 MW alternating current solar plant operating at nameplate levels as of September. This accomplishment has displaced 22-million litres of diesel fuel with renewable power, leading to a reduction of about 59 000 t of carbon dioxide equivalent greenhouse-gas emissions.

On October 12, the company unveiled the Sukari new LoM plan, demonstrating the potential for increased long-term gold production, lower operational costs, reduced operational risk, and significantly reduced carbon emissions.

Centamin reported that an Egyptian mining regulatory framework was agreed upon in principle. This framework aims to establish a clear, competitive structure for the development of new mining concessions and will apply to commercial discoveries made on Centamin's 3 000 km² Eastern Desert exploration blocks.

The company said that it maintains a strong and flexible balance sheet, with available cash and liquid assets totalling $126-million as of September 30. This comes after the distribution of $23-million to shareholders as an interim dividend, and a total liquidity that stands at $276-million, including the undrawn $150-million sustainability-linked revolving credit facility.

“Our financial strength and the savings made against our 2023 budget have . . . given us the flexibility to accelerate some key 2024 capital expenditures into 2023 without impacting guidance," Horgan said.