A mining field operated by OceanaGold, an Australian mining company, in Nueva Vizcaya. —RICHARD BALONGLONG
Australian-Canadian mining firm OceanaGold Corp. is expecting its mine site in Nueva Vizcaya to scale up production this year on the back of promising exploration prospects.
In a statement, OceanaGold said full-year production at the Didipio gold and copper mine was projected “to exceed the original guidance range.”
The company said the Didipio mine was seen to produce 125,000 to 135,000 ounces of gold from previous estimates of 120,000 to 130,000 ounces, while the forecast for copper output was unchanged at 12,000 to 14,000 tons.
As a result, the mining project’s all-in sustaining cost, or the cost of sustaining current mining operations, is projected to fall between $650 and $750 per ounce from $750 to $850 per ounce previously.
The Didipio mine has so far produced 95,720 ounces of gold in the nine months to September period, an increase of 13.8 percent from 84,094 ounces in the same period a year ago.
The output is equivalent to 27.6 percent of 347,207 ounces of gold produced by the mining firm in the nine-month period.
Meanwhile, copper output in the third quarter dropped by 5.2 percent to 10,324 tons from 10,885 tons year-on-year.
The mine site’s all-in sustaining cost stood at $727 per ounce, also higher than last year’s $515 per ounce.
‘Exciting’ results
OceanaGold cited “some exciting exploration results” after further drilling at Didipio showed more minerals approximately 100 meters below the existing source.
“Our 2023 drilling program at Didipio has delivered exceptional results to date, supporting our focus on creating value through near-mine exploration targeting resource growth and conversion,” OceanaGold president and CEO Gerard Bond said earlier.
“Drilling continues to improve confidence within the inferred portions of the deposit and supports potential reserve growth and our target to increase underground mining rates to at least 2 million metric tons per year, approximately 20 percent above current underground mining rates,” Bond said.
Didipio is an underground and open-pit mine, which produces gold and silver as doré bars and copper in concentrate. It has an estimated mine life of 10 years. INQ