Newcrest Mining’s gold production for the first quarter of 2009 was down 5% from the previous quarter, but the company is maintaining its full year production guide, it said in its March quarter production report.
Copper production over the quarter rose more than 2,000 tonnes to 23,436 compared to the December quarter.
Newcrest offered full year production guidance 1.63 1.70 million ounces of gold and 85 to 88 kilotonnes of copper.
The March quarter saw a marked increase in production of both gold and copper at Newcrest’s Telfer mine in Western Australia’s Pilbara region, with 162,035 ounces of gold and 8,769 tonnes of copper.
According to the company, this was largely due to an increased mill throughput rate at the Telfer mine.
The increase in production at Telfer was offset by a decrease in gold production at the Cadia Valley mine in New South Wales.
Reduction at Cadia Valley was in line with planned output rates, and was a reflection of lower grades and recoveries, the company said.
Despite the drop in gold production, the report said the achieved gold price was $1,352 per ounce in the three months ending March 31, up 13% on the previous quarter.