PERTH (miningweekly.com) – Dual-listed gold miner OceanaGold on Tuesday told shareholders that gold production for the year ended December had exceeded its expectations, as the Didipio mine, in the Philippines, upped its output.

During the year ended December, OceanaGold delivered 307 463 oz of gold, which was above the previously delivered guidance of between 275 000 oz and 305 000 oz of gold.

During the three months to December, the company produced 92 712 oz of gold, which was a 38% increase on the previous quarter, and resulted from record gold production at the Didipio mine and higher production from the New Zealand operations.

Copper production during the fourth quarter reached 6 747 t, which was on par with the previous quarter.

“I am very pleased to report another strong year of operational and financial performance at OceanaGold, where we have exceeded our production guidance for the year on the back of record gold production from Didipio and a strong performance from New Zealand,” said OceanaGold MD and CEO Mick Wilkes.

The Didipio mine delivered 106 256 oz of gold and 25 010 t of copper during the full year, with the operation producing a record 34 783 oz of gold and 6 747 t of copper during the fourth quarter.

The increase in production resulted from record mill feed and higher grades during the fourth quarter, and OceanaGold noted that the processing plant at Didipio was now operating at a yearly throughput rate of 3.5-million tonnes a year, after debottlenecking activities and the installation and commissioning of a pebble crusher circuit in the fourth quarter.

In New Zealand, OceanaGold produced 201 207 oz of gold during the full year, with the fourth quarter delivering 57 929 oz. This was up 41% on the previous quarter’s production, and reflected the higher production sourced mainly from the Reefton operation.

“The company continued to deliver on its commitments by further strengthening the balance sheet using strong free cash flow to reduce our core debt by A$30-million in the fourth quarter, and by A$60-million for the year, despite a 9% decrease in the average gold price received year-on-year,” Wilkes said.

He added that for 2015, OceanaGold was expecting higher gold production from both the Didipio and New Zealand operations, with the mines expected to generate significant free cash flow to further strengthen the company’s balance sheet and to improve shareholder returns.

Gold production during 2015 was expected to increase to between 295 000 oz and 335 000 oz.