Record production at Fosterville prompts Kirkland Lake to up 2017 guidance

JOHANNESBURG (miningweekly.com) – Based on strong operating and financial results for the first half of 2017, dual-listed gold producer Kirkland Lake has revised its production guidance for the year to between 570 000 oz and 590 000 oz, up from between 530 000 oz and 570 000 oz previously.

This follows record results at the miner’s Australia-based Fosterville mine, in Victoria state, during the first half of the year, when mill grades exceeded expected levels by a significant margin. For the full-year, production at Fosterville is now expected to total 250 000 oz to 260 000 oz, compared with the previous guidance of 200 000 oz to 225 000 oz.

In addition, based on higher expected production and sales at Fosterville, guidance for operating cash costs per ounce sold at the mine for the full calendar year has been improved to $260/oz to $280/oz, compared with the previous guidance of $310/oz to $330/oz.

Despite these upward revisions at Fosterville, Kirkland Lake revised down production guidance for the year at its Taylor mine, in Ontario, Canada, to between 50 000 oz  and 55 000 oz, from 55 000 oz to 60 000 oz, based on the operation's results during the first half of the year.

Meanwhile, the record results achieved at Fosterville, owing to higher-than-planned grades and record recoveries, pushed Kirkland Lake’s gold production for the first half of the year to 290 733 oz, which compared favourably to the group’s improved full-year guidance.

Fosterville produced a total of 123 153 oz in the period under review, based on 285 273 t milled at an average grade of 14.2 g/t gold and average recoveries of 94.3%.

Fosterville’s record results were also the primary factor contributing to Kirkland Lake’s unit operating cash costs which, averaging $521/oz, fell within the improved guidance range of $475/oz to $525/oz.

Operating cash costs at the company’s Macassa mine, in Ontario, compared favourably at an average $513/oz against a full-year guidance of between $520/oz and $550/oz, though the operating cash costs at Taylor mine averaged $600 in the first half of the year, which was higher than the target range of $450/oz to $525/oz, mainly reflecting lower-than-planned throughput levels.

Kirkland Lake reported a positive all-in-sustaining cost per ounce sold of $794 in the period under review, which was better than the improved target range of $850/oz to $900/oz.

Operating cash costs in the period totalled $150.6-million, compared with a full-year 2017 guidance of $270-million to $280-million, while total production costs totalled $153.5-million. Based on planned operations in the second half of 2017, including the Cosmo mine, in Australia’s Northern Territory, being on care and maintenance, the company continues to target total operating costs in 2017 between $270-million and $280-million.