Multinational mining firm OceanaGold Corp. projects gold output at its copper-gold mine in Didipio, Nueva Vizcaya to exceed guidance this year.
OceanaGold operates in the Philippines via subsidiary OceanaGold Philippines Inc. (OGPI).
In a statement, OceanaGold raised the full-year gold production at its Didipio mine by 8 percent to 135,000 ounces from 125,000 ounces. Its copper production
guidance was unchanged at 12,000 tons to 14,000 tons this year.Gerard Bond, OceanaGold president and chief executive officer, said the Didipio mine helped keep the company “on track to meet the low-end of our full-year consolidated production guidance range.”
Bond also extended the known mineralization of the Didipio mine at 100 meters below the existing resource but did not provide details.
In the first nine months, OceanaGold said the Didipio mine produced a total 95,700 ounces of gold, up 13.8 percent from 84,100 ounces produced in the same period last year.
The Nueva Vizcaya mine also produced 10,300 tons of copper during the period, lower by 5.5 percent from 10,900 tons produced last year.
Data from the Mines and Geosciences Bureau show the OGPI as among the country’s top gold producers. In the first half this year, it produced 1,828 kilograms or 12 percent of the 15,102-kilogram gold produced during the period.
OGPI also produced 30,763 dry metric tons (DMT) of copper or 23 percent of the 133,072 DMT total copper production in the country.
Last year, OGPI had other prospects in the Philippines but remained focused at the Didipio mine at the moment.
