Wednesday, 8th June 2005 (2609 views)

Australia's gold output looks to be beginning an upward trend that is expected to continue to at least mid-2006 according to government forecasts.

The trend of declining output was levelled out in the first quarter with mines in Australia producing 67 metric tons of gold, unchanged from the previous quarter, as declining output at existing operations was compensated for by the effect of new mines coming into use.

Will Mollard, metals analyst with the Australian Bureau of Agricultural & Resource Economics (ABARE) told Dow Jones Newswires that two of the largest new projects, Newcrest Mining's Telfer and Cracow, are yet to reach full capacity and should result in overall production increases in coming quarters.

Mr Mollard said: "Certainly the overall trend is that production will increase in 2005-2006 as new mines come on line and existing ones ramp up."

Other new mines include Telfer, which is set to become Australia's second largest gold mine and has an estimated annual capacity of 800,000-ounce.

NuStar Mining Corporation's 80,000-ounce Paulsens and Perseverance Corporation's 135,000-ounce Fosterville are amongst the smaller new mines coming on stream.

Gold production in Australia has drifted lower over the last nine years as low Australian dollar gold prices squeezed exploration spending.

Nevertheless the growing production at Telfer and Cracow, together with new smaller mines, will offset lower production at existing mines and delays at others, allowing Australia to come a step closer to becoming one of the top five gold producing companies in the world.

 

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