www.eldoradogold.com
Eldorado Gold Corporation is a gold mining company actively growing businesses in Brazil, China, Turkey, Greece, and surrounding regions. Eldorado Gold is one of the lowest cost pure gold producers, and anticipates production of 700,000 ounces of gold per annum by 2013.
Eldorado Gold posts 48% Q3 profit growth on record gold production
Eldorado Gold (TSE:ELD) (NYSE:EGO) (ASX:EAU) saw its third quarter results meet or exceed Street estimates on Thursday after it reported record gold production, higher selling prices, and lower operating costs.
For the three months ending September 30, the gold miner posted profits of $110.7 million, or $0.19 per share, up 48 percent from $74.8 million, or $0.13 per share, a year ago.
Revenues rose 71 percent to $326.1 million, from $190.3 million in the same period last year.
Analysts polled by Bloomberg Businessweek had expected 19-cents per share in earnings, on $311 million in sales.
The company produced a quarterly record total of 179,195 ounces of gold - 18 percent more than it did a year ago. Total cash operating costs fell three percent to $397 per ounce, while selling prices rose 38 percent to $1,700 per ounce during the third quarter.
"The performance of our mines during the third quarter reflects the success the company has achieved in increasing the productive capacities and efficiencies of our mines through targeted capital investments and well managed mining practices," commented president and CEO, Paul Wright.
Operations at the company's Kisladag mine in Turkey posted strong improvements, driving Eldorado's results, it said. The mine produced 86,788 ounces of gold, up 40 percent year-over-year. Throughput increased as it sent over 3.5 million tonnes of ore to the leaching pad, at a gold grade of 0.9 grams per tonne (g/t). Cash operating costs rose 12 percent to $377 per ounce at the mine, largely due to increased electricity and reagent costs associated with the leaching pad.
The White Mountain mine in China was also integral to Eldorado's operations, it said. During the quarter, the site produced 21,270 ounces of gold, up 48 percent, at operating costs of $475 per ounce, down almost one percent.
At the Vila Nova mine in Brazil, Eldorado posted revenues of $20.9 million on the sale of 170,782 dry metric tonnes of iron ore. These operations contributed $8.6 million in gross profits, the company said.
In other news, Eldorado said that shareholders of Kopy Goldfields have approved the company's purchase of another one million common shares. Eldorado's 2.7 million shareholding represents a 28.9 percent interest in Kopy, which holds seven exploration licenses over 255 square kilometres in the Lena Goldfields in Russia.
The Vancouver, B.C.-based company revised its full year production outlook to about 650,000 ounces of gold, at an average cash cost of $400 per ounce. It had originally expected gold production to be between 700,000 and 725,000 ounces, with cash costs between $390 and $410 per ounce.
As of Thursday morning, Eldorado shares rose 0.25 percent in Toronto to $19.90, and rose 0.41 percent to $19.62 in New York.
