(Bloomberg) -- Gold Fields Ltd. reduced its production guidance for the second time in a few months due to operational challenges at mines in Chile and South Africa.
The Johannesburg-listed gold miner now expects to produce 2.05 million to 2.15 million ounces of the precious metal this year, according to a statement released on Friday. The company had already cut its annual target in June by as much as 10 per cent to 2.2 million to 2.3 million ounces.
The “operational performance was disappointing” during the first six months of the year, with production declining by a fifth to 918,000 ounces compared with the same period in 2023, Gold Fields said. First-half profit fell 15 per cent to US$389 million, at a time when the bullion price has hit successive records.
Gold Fields’ stock fell as much as 7.7 per cent following the release of the firm’s half-year results.
A severe winter is slowing down the ramp-up of output at the company’s new Salares Norte project in Chile, while challenges at its South Deep mine in South Africa also curbed production.
Gold Fields should be able to hike output in the remainder of 2024 because operations in Australia, Ghana and Peru are either designed to produce more metal in the second half of the year or have overcome disruptions caused by the weather, Chief Executive Officer Mike Fraser said in an interview.
The company’s all-in-costs rose almost 50 per cent to $2,060 per ounce in the first half. Higher production during the rest of 2024 will bring about a “significant reduction” in those levels, Fraser added.
Earlier this month, Gold Fields announced a $1.6 billion deal to buy Osisko Mining Inc., giving the company full control of the Windfall development project in Canada.
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