APEX Mining Co. Inc. reported a sharp turnaround in its earnings for the first nine months of 2015, thanks to higher gold and silver output, despite continued weakness at its subsidiary.
For the three quarters ending Sept. 30, the company’s consolidated net income amounted to P76.4 million. This was a turnaround of P437.4 million from the consolidated net loss of P361 million reported in the same period in 2014. The parent company’s net income was P133.7 million before reflecting the net loss from subsidiaries of P57.3 million.
Despite the continued weakness in metal prices, revenue for the third quarter amounted to P605.9 million, or 22 percent over its 2014 figure.
Revenues for the nine months amounted to P1.8 billion, higher by 51 percent from last year.
Production output was higher at 30,995 ounces of gold and 164,818 ounces of silver versus the 19,062 ounces of gold and 108,638 ounces of silver produced in the three quarters of last year. This more than offsets the decline in average metal prices to $1,192 an ounce of gold and $16 an ounce of silver this year from the average prices of $1,282 an ounce and $20 an ounce in 2014.
“Production throughput would have been better were it not for the operational problems and power outages experienced this quarter,” said Apex Mining president and CEO Walter W. Brown in a statement. “The ability of the mines to adjust and cope with the exigencies of the time has been demonstrated by the fact that in the month of August, the mine has produced its highest monthly gold output of 4,536 ounces in its operating history thus far.”
Ore milled during the period increased to 226,723 tons from the 167,386 tons in 2014. Ore grade likewise averaged higher at 5.69 grams of gold a ton and 33.96 grams of silver a ton this year, from 4.68 grams of gold and 29.19 grams of silver last year.
While the higher volume of material resulted in a 12-percent increase in cash production cost to P1.1 billion in 2015 from P1 billion in 2014, on a per ton basis, cash production cost averaged lower at $110 this year from $135 a year ago.
The higher tonnage and ore grade resulted in a 33-percent improvement in cash production cost per ounce of gold to $721 from $1,071 in 2014, net of credit from silver revenue. Earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization amounted to P522.1 million in the first nine months of 2015, compared to P72.1 million in 2014.
Apex Mining recently filed the Maco mine’s updated reports on its outstanding mineral resources and ore reserves as certified to and qualified under the Philippine Mineral Reporting Code, showing slightly higher mineral resources of 2.56 million tons grading 5.6 grams of gold a ton and ore reserves of 1.21 million tons grading 7.86 grams of gold a ton.
To date, capital expenditures at the Maco mine, including exploration and mine development, amounted to P1.5 billion as compared to the budget of P1.9 billion for the year.
“We are pleased to report that on Oct. 26, 2015, the ball mill of the Sangilo mine started to roll again, a significant milestone from about two decades of inactivity since the suspension of its operations in 1996,“ Brown said. “We are on schedule in achieving our objective to operating at 200 tons a day by the middle of next year.” Daxim L. Lucas