Gold miners steady on quarterly results

Gold miners Perseus Mining, Ramelius Resources and Evolution Mining have all released positive quarterly reports today, with Ramelius upgrading its full-year guidance and Evolution confident of reaching its target comfortably. 

Ramelius, which recently purchased Evolution’s Edna May operation near Southern Cross, had record group gold production of 58,012 ounces with all-in sustaining costs of $1,146/oz.

The gold miner said it had produced 36,635oz at its Mt Magnet and Vivien gold mines in Western Australia, while Edna May produced 21,377oz.

The company said its upgraded full year guidance is for between 200,000 and 210,000oz at an AISC of $1,100 to $1,200/oz.

Ramelius also announced that underground diamond drilling had begun at Edna May with 45 holes completed so far.

Shares in Ramelius were unchanged at 44 cents at 1pm AEDT.

Meanwhile Subiaco-based Perseus, which is focussed on operations in West Africa, said its annual gold production for the 2017 calendar year was its highest on record at 208,226oz.

The company’s Edikan gold mine in Ghana produced 56,699oz for the December quarter, an 11 per cent increase on the previous quarter.

Perseus’s guidance for the 2018 fiscal year is unchanged at 250,000-285,000oz with all-in sustaining costs of $US950 to $US1,100.

The company said a definitive feasibility study for the Yaouré Gold Project in Côte d’Ivoire confirmed the project is economically attractive over its currently defined 8.5 year mine life, with significant potential for extension.

Perseus shares were off 1 per cent at 44 cents.

Evolution says it is on track to comfortably meet its full-year guidance, despite a fall in gold production in the December quarter after the sale of its Edna May operation.

Gold production for the three months to December 31 fell to 186,488oz from 220,971oz in the September quarter - which included production from WA's Edna May mine.

All-in sustaining costs dropped to a record low of $784/oz from $786/oz in the prior quarter.

The company on Tuesday said its operating mine cash flow during the December quarter also fell to $204.7 million, down from $210.4 million in the September quarter.

Evolution in September flagged December quarter production to be lower than the September quarter, after it completed the sale of its Edna May mine to Ramelius Resources for up to $90 million.

The mine, which produced about eight per cent of the group's total gold output, had been the least profitable of its portfolio of seven gold mines.

Australia's second largest gold miner expects production for the full year to be above the midpoint of between 750,000 and 805,000oz, while all-in-sustaining costs are forecast to be at or below the bottom end of between $820 and $870/oz.

Shares in Evolution were up 0.3 per cent at $2.77 at 130pm AEDT.