Newmont Mining Company has submitted its second quarter 2018 results posting a net income from continuing operations attributable to stockholders of $274 million or $0.51 per diluted share. It delivered adjusted net income of $144 million or $0.26 per diluted share, down 43 percent compared to the prior year quarter
The mining giant posted a consolidated cash flow from continuing operations of $401 million and free cash flow of $143 million
Its gold costs applicable to sales was $751 per ounce over the period with no change to its full year guidance. Newmont’s attributable gold produced was 1.16 million ounces in line with the company’s full year guidance.
The company during the period had an agreement to acquire 50 percent ownership interest in Galore Creek from NovaGold, partnering with Teck. It completed the Twin Underground and Northwest Exodus projects in Nevada; advanced the Akyem Underground project in Ghana to prefeasibility study in Africa. It also welcomed Sumitomo Corporation as a new five percent partner at Yanacocha in Peru; and divested royalty portfolio forming a strategic partnership with Maverix Metals
Newmont ended the quarter with $3.1 billion cash on hand and net debt under $1.0 billion; an industry-leading balance sheet with investment-grade credit profile; and a quarterly dividend declared of $0.14 per share, an increase of 87 percent over the prior year quarter
“Newmont delivered $545 million in adjusted EBITDA and $143 million in free cash flow in the second quarter, as strong operational performance helped offset the impacts of geotechnical challenges and back-half weighted results,” said Gary J. Goldberg, President and Chief Executive Officer. “We continued to add lower cost production by completing our Twin Underground and Northwest Exodus projects safely, on budget and ahead of schedule. And we invested in future value-creation by forging a partnership with Teck to advance prefeasibility largest undeveloped copper-gold deposits, and with Sumitomo to develop Yanacocha Sulfides in Peru.”
The company’s revenue decreased 11 percent to $1,662 million for the quarter primarily due to lower production, partially offset by higher average realized gold prices.
It recorded an average realized price of gold at $1,292, an improvement of $42 per ounce over the prior year quarter. It recorded an average realized price for copper at $2.99 per pound, an improvement of $0.53 over the prior year quarter.
Attributable gold production decreased 14 percent to 1.16 million ounces primarily from lower grades at Carlin, Twin Creeks, Boddington and Akyem and a build of CC&V concentrate inventory to be processed in Nevada.
Ahafo Mill Expansion (Africa) is designed to maximize resource value by improving production margins and accelerating stockpile processing. The project also supports profitable development of Ahafo’s highly prospective underground resources. First production is expected in the second half of 2019 with commercial production also expected in the second half of 2019. The expansion is expected to increase average annual gold production by between 75,000 and 100,000 ounces per year for the first five years beginning in 2020. Capital costs for the project are estimated at between $140 and $180 million with expenditure of approximately $75 to $85 million in 2018. The project has an IRR of more than 20 percent.
By Adu Koranteng
