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Australian Gold Production Up

Surbiton Associates have released their Australian gold production report for the quarter and there was an increase of over 10% from the March quarter. The June quarter produced 85 tonnes up from the 77 tonnes for the March quarter. The FY gold production for Australia was 328 tonnes worth almost $25 billion at an average price for the financial year.

According to Dr Sandra Close director of Surbiton Associates “I cannot recall so much interest in gold since the modern boom began almost 40 years ago, There is a high level of activity overall, from investment, increased capital raisings and initial public offerings, to greater exploration and drilling and a scramble to peg new ground. Just look at the gold price graphs, the price increases over the last year or 18 months have been extraordinary, both in Australian and United States dollars,” Dr Close said. “Sadly, this is a reflection of the uncertainty and unrest around the world.”

Dr Close also identified the Top 5 producers of Gold for the FY.

 

Operation
Ounces
 Owner
Cadia
843,338
 Newcrest Mining Ltd
Boddington
673,000
 Newmont Corp
Fosterville
664,191
 Kirkland Lake Gold Ltd
Tanami
495,000
 Newmont Corp
Tropicana – JV
463,556
 AngloGold Ashanti Ltd 70%, IGO Ltd 30%
Cadia Mine, New South Wales

“Almost all operations have increased output in the June quarter 2020,” Dr Close said. “The largest increases were Cadia East (Newcrest), up 41,500 ounces, then Jundee (Northern Star) and Boddington (Newmont) both up 26,000 ounces and Mount Magnet (Ramelius) was up 22,000 ounces.”

Dr Close also mentioned the KCGM operations which recently announced a resource reserve update “The latest update on the Super Pit is most encouraging,” Dr Close said. “After the problems with the large wall slip are resolved by the cut-back now underway, production should return to more usual levels, with Super Pit probably once more joining the list of top five Australian gold producers.”

Surbiton Associates Pty. Ltd are Melbourne-based gold mining consultants.

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Morning News Bites – August 28

Morning News Bites – August 28

Specialised pilots not being allowed to fly in to WA due to the hard border closure could affect iron ore exports out of Port Hedland, Tesla hit a new high overnight and according to one leading analyst we need to rethink where our stocks are with banks not the best option according to Jefferies’ Brian Johnson

Late yesterday Caeneus Minerals has announced that it will commence detailed Aeromagnetic survey to commence first week of September on Mallina Tenements. These tenements are located in close proximity to the northern tenement boundaries of the De Grey Mining Limited’s Shaggy, Mt Berghaus, Scooby and Hemi gold discoveries. According to Caeneus there was a 10 day field orientation visit to Roberts Hill and Mt Berghaus with the aim for making vehicular access for future drilling programs and to review flight survey specifications for the Company’s upcoming airborne magnetic survey, which is as per above.

Essential Metals have identified numerous targets at its Juglah Dome gold project, situated near Silver Lake Resources Daisy complex around 60km south-east of Kalgoorlie. Recent rock chip sampling and compilation of historic exploration has confirmed that numerous drill targets are present within the Project. Managing Director Tim Spencer, said: “We are keen to commence a drill program at Juglah Dome. Multiple exciting gold and VHMS targets have been identified, some of which are considered drill-ready. The Gards Prospect is one such target, where previous drilling by Placer Dome in the late 1990s and early 2000s intersected gold mineralisation, however it was not followed up”.

GWR Group has secured approvals for its C4 Stage 1 iron ore project from DMIRS and the Federal Government Department of Agriculture, Environment and Water. GWR Chairman Gary Lyons said this represents a significant milestone and the strong prices of iron ore give a unique opportunity to GWR.  “These approvals represent a significant milestone for the Company and pave the way for the commencement of commercial iron ore production at the Wiluna West Iron Ore Project. Current strong iron ore prices provide a unique opportunity for the Company and the Wiluna West Iron Ore Project, an exceptional, DSO iron ore development project, which will produce a high grade, low impurity iron ore.” he said. C4 Stage 1 project is west of Wiluna in the northern Goldfields of WA.

Announcing their FY details, Boral has reported sales revenue of $5,728 million down 2% on FY2019 and sales revenue from continuing operations of $5,671 million down 1%. EDITDA was down 30% to $710 million and NPAT before significant items of $181 million, down 57% on the prior year. Boral’s new CEO & Managing Director, Zlatko Todorcevski, said: “Boral’s FY2020 results reflect a particularly challenging year. Following the lower than expected first half result from Boral North America, Boral had a difficult start to the second half of FY2020. Boral Australia was impacted by bushfire and flood-related events in Australia, resulting in significantly lower volumes and higher costs. This was quickly followed by COVID-19 disruptions, resulting in higher costs and production curtailments, which substantially reduced earnings for all divisions. “Overall, second half margins were substantially down, as flagged in the Company’s market update in May, due to lower sales and even lower production volumes together with an unfavourable shift in the sales mix and costs”.

Mining, Gas and Oil services provider Civmec has reported Net Profit margin of 4.5%, up from 1.4% in FY19 and also recommends a full year dividend of 1.0 Australian cents, increased by 43% . Revenue was down around 20% but EBITDA was up for the FY around $14m and NPAT was up 149% to $17.5m. According to Chairman James Fitzgerald the year was of consolidation and the order book strengthened “Following a year of consolidation in FY19, Civmec’s order book continued to strengthen in FY20, enabling the Group to grow revenue and profits throughout the year. Strong cashflow from operations allowed the Group to fund the completion of the new Assembly and Sustainment Hall in Henderson Western Australia while also reducing borrowings by $35.7 million during the year. This places the Group in a strong financial position as we enter FY21, with a A$900 million  strong order book, an extensively improved balance sheet and a significantly reduced capital investment requirement in FY21. This disciplined approach has allowed us to recommend an increased final dividend payout to 1.0 Australian cents.” he said.

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Morning News Bites – August 27

Woolworths recorded boom sales, but the impact of COVID-19 and one off costs have added up, Independence Group record a 12.5% increase to revenue and Flight Centre recorded a $510m underlying loss before tax.

Drilling services provider Boart Longyear has announced revenue of US$309M down around US$79M this morning. Net cash flow from operating activities though was up US$10M to US$30M due to Net Working Capital initiatives. Jeff Olsen CEO said “Management implemented plans in March that would ensure the Company would be able to continue to support the mining industry when normal activity levels resumed. The actions taken, including significant pay reductions across the world, ensured the business would generate positive EBITDA and cash from operations and were vital in supporting the company with having the required liquidity to support a growing business through the second half of 2020.”

Diamond drilling is now underway at Galileo`s Fraser Range prospect in Western Australia. Three diamond drill holes with planned depths from 200 to 380 metres will be directed to test an EM conductor, a structural target, and the known disseminated sulphide mineralisation. Brad Underwood, Managing Director said this is an exciting opart of teh exploration process underway and will look forward to updating the market when results are known. He also said “This is our first diamond drilling program at our northern Fraser Range project. It is also the first diamond drilling program ever to be undertaken looking for nickel in our project area. As such, this greenfields project has great potential and is also very well located within the emerging new nickel province of the Fraser Range. We have approximately 500 metres of diamond drilling planned across three separate areas with each zone showing potential for sulphide mineralisation.”

Drilling at Capricorn’s Karlawinda Gold project – Supplied

Capricorn Metals has announced MACA limited are the preferred mining contractor for its Karlawinda Gold Project. The five year deal is worth around $400m with Preproduction mining activities to commence in the December 2020 quarter. Capricorn Executive Chairman Mike Clark said “The selection of a preferred mining contractor is the culmination of a competitive process that included a number of very competent Australian mining services providers. MACA was selected as the preferred contractor after submitting a compelling bid both in terms of price and execution. We look forward to partnering with MACA in the successful operation of the Karlawinda Gold Project.”

A maiden two hold diamond drill program for Talisman Mining`s Lucknow Gold Project has been completed. The program was targeting the interpreted high-grade lode offset position of the historical Lucknow gold mine. The second drill hole of the program delivered a zone of strong foliation and quartz veining from 297m to 303m downhole. According to Talisman the recent drilling, supported by a structural and geological interpretation, suggests that the ultramafic stratigraphy and prospective contact has been offset to the north-west by a sinistral fault – indicating a potential target to the north-west of recent drilling.

Results from Cardinia Hill RC drilling with Kin Mining have revealed the presence of two north-plunging shoots of higher-grade mineralisation within the main lode. Kin Mining Managing Director Andrew Munckton said the RC program had provided a good base for Kin “The follow-up phase of RC drilling at the northern end of Cardinia Hill has been successful in intersecting the northern shoot of mineralisation at depth, further improving our understanding of the geometry and scale of the deposit – and providing a solid foundation for planned resource drilling. The diamond drill core is also providing strong insight for our exploration team in terms of understanding the internal detail of the deposit.” he said.

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Morning News Bites – August 26

In Today’s Morning News Bites for August 26.  Kalgoorlie-Boulder wakes to a 3.1 magnitude earthquake at around 3:15am local time this morning. Seven Group Holdings report Westrac’s FY20 revenue up 15 per cent. PM raises concerns about Victoria’s state of emergency extension with Daniel Andrews.

Conglomerate Seven Group Holdings has reported a 12 per cent rise in full year revenue to $4.56 billion. This was facilitated by the Groups Caterpillar equipment business and its work associated with the mining industry. However (on a statutory basis) its net profit after tax fell 42 per cent to $115.8 million, primarily due investments associated with Seven West Media (a major shareholder) and a $117 million impairment of a US oil and gas operation. WesTrac’s FY20 revenue was up 15 per cent, with strength across both product sales and product support. This was encouraged by WesTrac’s strong product sales results supported by the delivery of equipment to major mining projects. In addition, WesTrac’s product support revenue improved 10 per cent driven by a record 6.6 million parts lines shipped in WA and NSW. Chief Executive Ryan Stokes commented, saying “In particular our Industrial Services portfolio has delivered solid growth with WesTrac executing a standout performance, reflecting the strong demand from customers who remain active in mining production and construction.”

Macmahon Holdings Limited delivered record financial results for FY20, in-line with the increased guidance provided at the half year result. Revenue grew by 25% over the prior year to $1,380.4 million, this was primarily driven by driven by increased activity across the company’s projects in Australia and Indonesia from predominantly Gold and Copper/Gold operations, the eleven-month contribution of the acquired specialist underground contractor GBF Group and successful ramp up at the Tropicana Boston Shaker contract. This growth in revenue underpinned record earnings for Macmahon in FY20. To date, there has been minimal net impact on business performance from COVID-19.

An exploration update of the Saxby Gold Project has been provided by Strategy Energy Resources. The drill rig has commenced mobilisation in northwest Queensland with drilling scheduled to commence in early September. A cultural heritage survey has cleared the area and a drill contract has been executed with DDH1 Drilling. Recent structural, alteration and geophysical work have upgraded the prospectivity of the surrounding district and Strategic Energy Resources has now pegged the entire belt. A comprehensive regional geophysical review with a view to commencing district-scale geophysical data collection in the near future.

Paterson Resources report that planning is underway for the validation diamond drilling recommended in the report on an estimate of Gold Mineral Resources at Hackneys Creek and Lucky Draw located at the Burraga Copper Gold Project in the Eastern Lachlan Fold Belt in NSW. The diamond drilling is designed to validate the existing drill assay data used in the inferred resource estimation at Hackneys Creek by twinning approximately 6 holes. A further 10 diamond drill holes recommended to validate the existing drill assay data at the remnant Lucky Draw inferred resource are also planned. Validation of this drill data along with the collection of additional geological and structural information will enable the upgrading of the current resource from inferred to a higher category. Highlights from past drilling carried out by RGC Exploration at Hackneys Creek that were included in the inferred resource estimation are: 21.3m @ 9.19 g/t Au from 89m, including 4m @ 40.38 g/t Au, 33.6m @ 2.27 g/t Au from 71.4m, including 5m @ 5.83 g/t Au, 25.0m @ 3.57 g/t Au from 20m, including 4m @ 7.48 g/t Au.

5,000m drill program commences at Pilbara Gold Project by Kairos Minerals. Reverse Circulation drilling has commenced as its 2020 exploration program continues to gather momentum. The program, comprising 5,000m of RC drilling in total, has commenced at the large Fuego gold target (located on the Croydon Project), with the initial reconnaissance program expected to be completed there over the next 2-3 weeks while drill pad preparations are completed at the Mt York Project. The rig will then relocate to Mt York to complete the balance of the program. Kairos’ Executive Chairman, Terry Topping, said, “Our 2020 exploration campaign across the Pilbara Gold Project has now stepped up a gear with drilling underway, which is a really exciting development for our team and for our shareholders. Due to logistical considerations including timing of heritage clearances and drill pad preparation, we have commenced the program at the exciting Fuego target first rather than Mt York, as previously advised.”

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Morning News Bites – August 25

In Today’s Morning News Bites for August 25. Resolute confirms supply lines to the Syama Gold Mine continue, despite political tension in the south of Mali. Largest diamond unearthed this year discovered in Africa. Victoria report another 9 COVID-19 related deaths. 

SRG Global provided results for FY20, with revenue at AU$545 million. The impact of the global pandemic is mentioned and the negative effects on key drivers are explained. These include a repositioned and simplified business – core business, clients and geographies, continued plan to execute strategy to transition business mix to annuity earnings, significant liquidity with available funds of $73m (banking facilities renewal not due until FY22), net debt reduced in 2H to $8.4m (inclusive of $26m of equipment finance debt) and final fully franked dividend of 0.5 cents per share (total FY20 dividend of 1 cps). Despite this, Managing Director David Macgeorge maintained a positive outlook into the future, saying ““The decisive actions taken in FY20 has us well positioned for long-term sustainable growth, underpinned by an earnings profile of two thirds annuity-based in FY21 and beyond.”

Breaker Resources announces more strong drilling results which confirm the presence of extensive mineralisation over 2km between the Kopai and Crescent prospects within its Lake Roe Project, 100km east of Kalgoorlie. The latest results are from 40 reconnaissance reverse circulation (RC) drill holes for 5,202m, and two diamond drill holes for 269m. Breaker Executive Chairman Tom Sanders said the latest results are significant particularly given the reconnaissance nature of the drilling.“This 2km stretch of mineralisation sits just 3km north of our existing 1Moz Bombora deposit and highlights the outstanding growth potential of a rare emerging greenfields gold district on Kalgoorlie’s doorstep,” Mr Sanders said.

Significant new assay results from the ongoing resource drilling programme at the shallow high-grade copper-gold discovery at the Thursday’s Gossan prospect for Stavely Minerals Stavely Copper-Gold Project in Victoria. Very broad zone of copper mineralisation including a significant shallow intercept of 18m at 1.11% Cu intersected in the interpreted near-surface position of the parallel Copper Lode Splay (CLS) in drill hole SMD093: 299.7m at 0.40% Cu from 35m down-hole, including 64m at 0.68% Cu from 35m and 18m at 1.11% Cu from 36m in the interpreted Copper Lode Splay.

Buxton Resources informed shareholders that IGO Limited has commenced on-ground activities for the West Kimberley JV 2020 season. Diamond drilling has commenced at Merlin and ground EM will commence this week at Quick Shears. IGO has provided the following updates to Buxton which includes a new EM plate has been identified from the 2019 low temperature SQUID survey at Merlin. This anomaly is directly down plunge from the high tenor magmatic sulphide intersection (2.19m @ 4.6% Ni, 1.37 % Cu & 0.12 % Co from 236.0m). Modelling of this anomaly has returned two overlapping targets, a 125m x 90m 10,000S conductance plate and a 110m x 90m 9,700S conductance plate.

Horizon Minerals provides an update on the Nimbus silver-zinc project, adjacent to the Boorara gold mine, 15km east of Kalgoorlie-Boulder in the goldfields of Western Australia. Past production between 2003 and 2007 recovered 3.6Moz silver from the processing of 320kt grading 352g/t Ag with the plant now decommissioned, removed and the site rehabilitated. The current global Mineral Resource estimate stands at: 12.1Mt grading 52g/t Ag for 20.2Moz of Silver and 0.9% Zn for 104kt zinc. A high grade lode exists within this resource immediately below the historic Discovery Pit and has a Mineral Resource estimate of  260kt grading 774g/t Ag for 6.4Moz silver and 12.8% Zn for 33kt zinc.

 

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Morning News Bites – August 24

In Today’s Morning News Bites for August 24. Fortescue Metals report 49% increase in net profit to a record $US4.7bn. QLD reports one new COVID-19 case overnight. Liberal call for branch clean-out. 

Fortescue Metals report strong results from FY20, exceeding production guidance with 178.2 million shipments of iron ore for the full year. Costs remain low: C1 costs came in at US$12.94 per wet metric tonne in FY20. The company achieved average revenue of US$79 per dry metric tonne in fiscal 2020, up 21% YoY and has guided for FY21 iron ore shipments of between 175-180 million tonnes. Former CEO, and current non-executive chairman Andrew Forrest said, ”Fortescue’s success allows Minderoo Foundation the capacity and the flexibility to continue its work and tackle new challenges as they arise for many years to come.”

Saturn Metals announce further results from ongoing RC drilling at the Apollo Hill deposit within its Apollo Hill Gold Project, 60km southeast of Leonora in the Western Australian goldfields. This drilling at Apollo Hill is a key part of the Company’s strategy to grow the Project’s 781,000oz Mineral Resource. A further resource upgrade is targeted for late 2020, incorporating results from drilling conducted since November 2019. All 13 holes reported intercepts above the Apollo Hill resource cut-off grade and all but one intersected mineralisation above the average resource grade. Other strong intersections include: 21m @ 0.94g/t Au from 184m – , 9m @ 1.0g/t Au from 179m and 14m @ 0.84g/t Au from 329m.

Kin Mining NL significant new assay results received from recent air-core drilling at the East Lynne prospect, located 3km north east of the proposed plant site at its Cardinia Gold Project near Leonora in Western Australia. The drilling commenced at East Lynne in early July as part of the extensive and ongoing Phase 3 Exploration Program. Significant widths and grades encountered in 400m line spaced AC drilling, with in-fill drilling to 200m line spacing underway. Results include 20m at 1.36g/t from 20m and 4m at 1.29g/t from 32m.

St Barbara reports its Mineral Resources and Ore Reserves positions for FY20. Group Ore Reserves increased year on year from 4.1 Moz of contained gold to 6.0 Moz, and Group Mineral Resources increased from 9.6 Moz of contained gold to 11.6 Moz. The increase in Resources and Reserves is due to the Atlantic Gold acquisition concluded in July 2019 and Simberi sulphide drilling completed in December 2019.

Zenith Minerals Wide mineralised gold zone confirmed at the Red Mountain Gold Project for Zenith Minerals. New gold assay results from the first 7 follow up RC holes of an ongoing drill program, confirm near surface, wide, mineralised gold zone at Red Mountain Gold Project in Queensland. This includes highlights of 12m @ 2.2 g/t Au from surface, including 8m @ 3.1 g/t Au and 5m @ 1.7 g/t Au from 25m, including 3m @ 2.6 g/t Au

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Morning News Bites – August 21

In the Morning News Bites for August 21 2020.

Coventry Group recorded Group sales growth for FY20 including acquisitions of 22.3%. Suncorp has recorded an earnings slide and A2 Milk look to baby formula.

A detailed airborne magnetic survey has been completed for Sabre Resources near the Penny West Gold Mine. According to Sabre they will identify the highest priority drilling targets and will then immediately take steps to commence planning for a drilling program.

FE limited are set to acquire a 50% interest in the Yarram Iron Ore project in the Northern Territory and will operate the resulting JV. Highlights at the site include 108m @ 65.6% Fe, 2.3% SiO2, 1.8% Al2O3, 0.037% P and 65m @ 66.4% Fe, 2.0% SiO2, 1.5% Al2O3, 0.022% P from 13m. Chairman of FE Limited Tony Sage said “With iron ore prices at six year highs, mature iron ore assets such as we have identified at Yarram are highly sought after. It is even more difficult to find one that hosts high grade iron ore mineralisation, that’s located just over 100km from a major port, and is in close proximity to existing mining infrastructure.” Consideration of A$1.5 m in cash and shares payable with a further $1.5m in cash and shares payable on achieving a JORC indicated resource. FEL to cover certain historical and future costs.

FMG Autonomous Truck

Elizabeth Gaines has given an indication on Mineral Reserves for Fortescue Metals Group this morning “We are pleased to report over 2.2 billion tonnes of Hematite Ore Reserves and 5.8 billion tonnes of Mineral Resources at our operating properties, supporting the sustainability of our core iron ore assets across our Solomon and Chichester Hubs, as well as our developing Western Hub. Our investment in significant growth projects including the Eliwana Mine and Rail Project in the Western Hub is now well advanced with first ore on train scheduled in December 2020. Our Iron Bridge Magnetite Project is developing Australia’s largest publicly disclosed magnetite Mineral Resource, with first ore on ship planned in the first half of calendar year 2022.”

Mineralisation at De Grey Mining‘s Brolga Zone has identified trends to the north.  De Grey Managing Director, Glenn Jardine, gave a further insight to the recent drilling “We continue to test for extensions to known mineralisation around Hemi using aircore and RC drilling. Aircore drilling has intersected new mineralisation approximately 320 metres north east of Brolga. This is along the structural corridor heading toward Scooby. RC drilling has succeeded in identifying extensions to the north of Brolga, heading toward Aquila. Specific diamond drilling has been conducted to provide samples for metallurgical variability and optimization test work. The assay results from metallurgical drilling will provide additional information on internal continuity of the gold mineralisation within Brolga.”

Perth based mineral explorer, Cullen Resources has re- prioritised drilling for its operations due to rain.Its Wongan Hills Rupert project was due for RC Drilling for August but has since been postponed, this will commence as soon as possible however. The Wongan prospect is showed an intersection of up to 1m @ 3.7% Cu, 1.5 g/t Au, hole with DHEM survey taking place. While at the North Tuckabianna project during September Cullen intends to RC drill test two DHEM targets for gold and base metals.

 

 

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Morning News Bites – August 20

In Today’s Morning News Bites for August 20. Qantas profits fall 91% as 6000 jobs are axed. Wesfarmers slashes the value of Target by $525 million. Pantoro reports Scotia Mining Centre has been expanded once again due to new zone discovery. 

The Scotia Mining Centre has once again been expanded with the discovery a new zone of near surface mineralisation at Green Lantern, south east of the existing Scotia open pit, located approximately 25 km south of Norseman in Western Australia. Commenting on the results Pantoro Managing Director Paul Cmrlec said, “We are excited about the long-term potential of the area, and continue to test additional surface targets while we commence the drill out of depth extensions to the existing high grade orebodies.”

Impact Minerals Limited announces that drilling has now commenced at the Platinum Springs Prospect at the company’s Broken Hill nickel-copper-platinum group metal (PGM) project in New South Wales. Three prospects to be drill tested to follow up previous drill intercepts such as: 2.75 metres at 3.5 g/t platinum, 7 g/t palladium, 0.4 g/t gold, 2% copper, 1.9% nickel and 11.6 g/t silver from 55 metres down hole; and 1.5. metres at 1.7% nickel, 1.3% copper, 4.3 g/t palladium, 3.05 g/t platinum and 1.08 g/t gold.

Minotaur Exploration and Avira Resources Ltd have signed a binding Terms Sheet under which, subject to it satisfying its due diligence requirements, Minotaur may acquire 100% ownership of the Pyramid tenement group located 180km south of Townsville. The project, covering 150km2, embraces two main areas prospective for gold, being the West Pyramid Range and East Pyramid Range. Historic high-grade gold drill intercepts, such as 35m @ 6.1g/t and 15m @ 5.65g/t, with ground electrical geophysics to refine mineralised trends.

Field work activities are underway at its 1,050km2 Kurnalpi project 50km east of Kalgoorlie, according to Riversgold Limited. Field crew have mobilised to site and commenced work, with Simon Bolster coordinating sampling activities on site and validating remote sensing regolith interpretation. Initial work will focus on the infill and extension of Farr-Jones and Cutler geochemical surveys where historical gold intercepts include highlights of; 10 metres at 11 g/t Au (Cutler) and 3 metres at 17.8 g/t Au (Farr-Jones).

Mandrake Resources Limited provides a progress update on drilling currently underway targeting gold mineralisation at the Berinka Pine Creek Gold Project in the Northern Territory. The reverse circulation (RC) drilling programme is focused on strong gold anomalies derived from historic soil, rock chip and trench sampling across four separate prospects – Vegetation Anomaly, Terry’s Gap, Cross and Sandy Creek.

 

 

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Morning News Bites – August 19

In the Morning News Bites – August 19

ANZ posts cash profits of $1.49 billion with around 84,000 home loan deferrals and around 22,000 business loans deferred. Dominoes Pizza has increazsed its sales in Australia and New Zealand by 4% to $1.2 billion. While The Reject Shop posts a net profit after tax of $1.1 million after a $16.9m loss in previous corresponding period.

Silver Lake Resources has posted an increase in gold production of 64% to 273,071 ounces gold equivalent and a 54% increase in gold sales. The company also posted a 3,852% increase in statutory profit after tax of $257 million. The hedge book for Silver Lake Resources is also totals 155,568 ounces at A$2,147/oz for delivery over FY21 – FY22 as of June 30.

Saracen Resources has made the big league according to Managing Director Ral Finlayson as the company announced a record underlying net profit after tax. Mr Finlayson said “These results show Saracen has successfully made the transition to the big league of ASX gold producers,” Production for Saracen is set to reach around 700,000oz pa in FY24, before climbing to around 800,000ozpa in FY27 “Our production rate is now running at +600,000oz a year and our cost base is still tight. This means we are perfectly positioned to capitalise on the strong gold price and continue generating strong growth in our cashflow. And all our operations are based in the Tier-1 location of Western Australia which, in conjunction with our future-proofing strategy, adds further certainty to the outlook for our business.” he said.

Production volume for Mineral Resources has increased for the 20FY by 65%. The Koolyanobbing Iron Ore operation June run rate was at 12.7Mtpa, while Mt Marion lithium production up 17% year-on-year. MRL have initiated a comprehensive COVID-19 screening process for employees and visitors and includes WA’s largest private PCR screening facility 7 sites – 2 in Perth metropolitan area and 5 in regional areas, More than 40 nurses and collectors trained for swab screening and they process test everyone prior to entering a site. Managing Director Chris Ellison said “MRL has entered FY21 with a strong balance sheet and positive momentum in our operations. We remain vigilant to the ongoing threat posed by COVID-19, as well as opportunities for which we can quickly and efficiently deploy the Mining Services capabilities that are the hallmark of our Company.”

Drill sites for Castillo Copper’s Big One Deposit have been pegged and preparations for the upcoming drill program are in place. Managing Director Simon Paull thanked his geology team and is looking to move forward on the drilling “Thanks to the dedicated hard work of our geology team, we are now clearly across logistics and regulatory approvals. Importantly, we are now fully prepared to move forward with our planned drilling campaign at the Big One Deposit. Moreover, the fresh geological insights the field team observed at site is extremely encouraging, especially finding high-grade supergene and massive sulphide mineralisation at surface.” he said.

Placement and Institutional Entitlement Offer attracted significant demand from both eligible existing and eligible new institutional investors located in Australia and offshore. Lynas Corp Managing Director Amanda Lacaze said “We are delighted by the level of demand for the Institutional Offer from eligible existing and new institutional investors, both in Australia and overseas. This is a clear indication of institutional support for our Lynas 2025 growth vision and our strengthened balance sheet will enable Lynas to mitigate global economic uncertainties and continue to progress with our Lynas 2025 foundation projects. We look forward to the participation of our retail shareholders when the Retail Entitlement Offer opens on Monday, 24 August.”

 

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Morning News Bites – August 18

In Today’s Morning News Bites for August 18. KCGM release their reserves, resources and guidance update for FY21. 

KCGM have set an FY21 guidance of 440,000 – 480,000oz at AISC of A$1,470 – 1,570/oz3, growth capital budget at A$198m (A$12m on exploration), and an expectation of production to rise to +675,000ozpa.  Further growth is supported by a large quantity of significant drill results across the KCGM portfolio that sit outside of current Reserves, including at Fimiston South open pit, OBH open pit, Fimiston South underground and Mt Charlotte underground.

Saracen Mineral Holdings report a new 7 year group production outlook. It was underwritten by 8.6Moz in Reserves and resources of 320Mt @ 1.7g/t for 17.0Moz as of FY20. Group production guidance for FY21 of 600 – 640,000oz at an AISC of A$1,300 – A$1,400/oz. Saracen Managing Director Raleigh Finlayson said Saracen was on track to continue the Company’s long record of growing its production and expanding its inventory, saying “Saracen’s strategy of making opportunistic acquisitions and then unlocking their full value through exploration and development has created substantial value for shareholders for many years.”

Northern Star Resources report further increases in forecast production and more growth in reserves and resources as a result of the review conducted at its half-owned KCGM joint venture in WA. Production is forecast to rise to 1.15Moz in FY22 and 1.25Moz in FY23. The increased production is expected to drive down AISC by 10 per cent over the next two to three years. Following the inclusion of KCGM, Northern Star’s total Reserves have risen 102 per cent, or 5.5Moz, to 10.8Moz. Resources are up 67 per cent, or 12.7Moz, to 31.8Moz.

FY20 results are in for BHP. US$8.0 billion and Underlying attributable profit of US$9.1 billion broadly in line with the prior year. Net operating cash flow of US$15.7 billion, above US$15 billion for the fourth consecutive year, and free cash flow of US$8.1 billion. Capital and exploration expenditure within guidance at US$7.6 billion. Chief Executive Officer, Mike Henry: “BHP delivered a strong set of results for the 2020 financial year that reflect the strength, resilience and quality of our people and our portfolio. In a year marked by the challenges of the global COVID-19 pandemic, social unrest in Chile and commodity price volatility, we were safer, more reliable and lower cost.”

Golden Swan assays confirm exceptional drill intersection, with assays received returning: 9.0m (4.5m true width) @ 10.46% Ni on basal contact including 4.6m (2.3m true width) @ 13.8% Ni. Managing Director and CEO Peter Harold said, “The latest assay and drill results confirm the significance of the Golden Swan discovery. The thick, high grade nickel intersections in combination with favourable geological setting is pointing to something very exciting. Should Golden Swan continue to evolve and prove to be economically viable, the close proximity to the existing Silver Swan decline would allow mining operations be commence in a very short time-frame.”