JOHANNESBURG (miningweekly.com) – Despite a strong fourth quarter, West Africa-focused mineral sands miner Sierra Rutile produced a below-target 114 163 t of rutile for 2014, owing to Ebola-related challenges.

Rutile output for the full year was below the company’s 120 000 t production guidance.

Further, although Sierra Rutile had achieved its third-highest quarterly production of 31 025 t of rutile in the quarter ended December 31, this, too, was below the targeted 36 862 t, largely as a result of extended maintenance shutdowns and the slower-than-expected commissioning of its mineral separation plant upgrade.

The company explained that the outbreak of the Ebola virus in the country had impacted on the delivery of irregular parts and materials. This had, during the fourth quarter, led to some regular maintenance shutdowns at Sierra Rutile’s operation being extended for longer than normal.

Further, the company pointed out that the commissioning of its upgraded mineral separation plant, which got under way in September 2014, proceeded slower than expected owing, in part, to the shortage of some parts and materials and, in part, owing to an abnormally high zircon content in the plant feed.

CEO John Sisay was, nevertheless, pleased with the company’s performance in the quarter, given that it had managed to record the highest quarter of rutile production for the year.

“We are proud to have achieved this result while in the midst of the ongoing Ebola virus outbreak. As has been the case throughout the year, we have continued to focus on cost control and have retained control of our costs when certain products and services in Sierra Leone were experiencing Ebola-linked inflation,” he noted.

Sierra Rutile reported a 5.4% drop in its total operating cash cost to $646/t for 2014, compared with a total operating cash cost of $683/t in 2013.

The company expected to continue achieving a strong cost performance in 2015, with total operating cash cost estimated to be between $595/t and $615/t.

The miner had also maintained its production guidance for this year to between 120 000 t and 130 000 t of rutile. It further expected to produce between 30 000 t and 35 000 t of ilmenite for 2015, after having increased its ilmenite output by 10.8% year-on-year to 35 839 t in 2014.

“Looking forward into 2015, we expect that Ebola-related challenges will reduce, allowing us to drive and expand our assets further. Our management and staff have made huge efforts to reduce the effect of Ebola on our operations and to keep our employees safe and Ebola-free,” Sisay commented.

Meanwhile, Sierra Rutile also reported that it would complete the last item of its mineral separation plant upgrade – the addition of new spirals – in the first half of this year. This would result in greater throughput and flexibility in processing different types of tailings material, the company noted.