Listed ore miners cut losses in Q3
21-NOV-2008 Intellasia | Business World | GMA News
Nov 21, 2008 - 7:00:00 AM
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Listed ore miners continued to post losses until the third quarter as they managed to cut maintenance costs and to hike production amid ongoing development projects.
Apex Mining Co., Inc. cut its net loss by lowering costs, while Dison Copper-Silver Mines, Inc. reduced its loss by increasing production, the companies said in separate disclosures to the stock exchange Wednesday. On the other hand, the net loss of Atlas Consolidated and Mining Corp more than doubled in July to September due to foreign exchange costs and a drop in mineral production and sales, the company told the bourse.
Higher gold production and sales cut Apex's net loss by almost three-quarters to P116.403 million from a year earlier.
Ore mined from its 679-hectare Maco mine in Compostela Valley went up by more than two-thirds to 39,260 metric tonnes at an average grade of 4.8 grams of gold per metric tonne. Gold produced in the third quarter more than doubled to 5,053 ounces, while sales surged by three-fourths to 4,080 ounces from a year earlier.
Apex said it expects to continue to post losses next year given the ongoing upgrade of the mine's milling capacity, which will cost it US$62.47 million.
Crew Gold Corp., Apex's parent, will partly shoulder the development costs. Apex's net loss in the nine months ending in September slid by a third to P292.5 million.
Meanwhile, Dison Mines cut its net losses by a third to P2.37 million in July to September from a year earlier due to lower maintenance expenses at its Zambales mine. The company's projects have been limited to the maintenance of the mining claim since suspending operations in 1997 due to damage caused by a typhoon.
The company is looking for a partner to operate the mines and recover gold from its tailing dam
Dison Mines' January to September net loss went down by 6% to P6.96 million.
Meanwhile, Atlas said its net loss had more than doubled to P314.024 million in the third quarter, while the January to September level went up more than six times to P837 million.
"The increase in losses were attributed to the drop in sales volume of laterite nickel ore, coupled with the recognition of unrealised foreign exchange losses of P530 million and interest of P299 million," the company said.
Meanwhile, excessive rainfall at its Berong nickel mine in southwestern Palawan, which is operated by subsidiary Berong Nickel Corp., delayed mining operations and shipping schedules, the company said.
Lower production in January to September led to a 50% drop in Atlas' mineral revenues to P686 million from the year-ago level.
In July, Atlas subsidiary Carmen Copper Corp started its mining operations.
The company expects to generate US$62 million in gross revenues by selling 60,000 wet metric tonnes of copper concentrates to Swiss MRI Trading AG until June next year.
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