Tasiast achieves record production month in August
Kinross Gold Corporation’s Tasiast Project in West Africa performed well, with higher production quarter-over-quarter and year-over-year. While production in the second quarter was negatively impacted by a strike, Q3 2020 production improved as a result of record mill grades and higher mill throughput, with Tasiast achieving a record production month in August.
Cost of sales per ounce sold increased compared with Q2 2020 mainly due to higher royalty expenses and increased milling supplies. Compared with Q3 2019, production increased due to higher mill grades, which was partially offset by lower mill throughput and recoveries, while cost of sales per ounce sold was largely consistent.
During the quarter, Tasiast’s mining rate continued to ramp up and is now operating at near full capacity after rates were affected by the strike in Q2 2020 and COVID-19 impacts earlier in the year.
As a result of lower mining rates, approximately 100k Au eq. oz. of production is expected to be deferred from 2021 to 2022. Kinross does not expect any impacts to Tasiast’s life of mine production.
At Chirano, production increased compared with the previous quarter primarily due to higher mill throughput, and cost of sales per ounce sold increased due to higher milling costs.
Year-over-year production was lower as a result of lower grades, and cost of sales per ounce sold increased due to higher milling costs and maintenance supplies, partially offset by lower operating waste mined.
The Tasiast 24k project is advancing well and remains on schedule to increase throughput capacity to 21,000 t/d by the end of 2021, and then to 24,000 t/d by mid-2023.
The project is now approximately 45% complete, with civil and mechanical works progressing well in the processing plant, including the gravity circuit, thickener and screens. Work on power plant construction, which was previously delayed by COVID-19 impacts, is now ramping up.
Kinross is a Canadian-based gold mining company with mines and projects in Brazil, Canada, Chile, Ghana, Mauritania, Russia and the United States employing approximately 9,000 people worldwide.
