Barrick earnings slip

Lower production and higher costs combined to reduce third-quarter earnings for Barrick Gold (ABX-T).

Net earnings topped US$66 million (or 17 per share) in the three months ended Sept. 30, US$20 million less than a year ago. Comparable revenue was up U$5 million, to US$317 million. Cash flow was off US$1 million from a year ago, at US$162 million.

Earnings in the first nine months of this year totalled US$204 million (52 per share) on revenue of US$954 million, compared with US$230 million (58 per share) on US$953 million last year.

Cash flow topped US$466 million, down significantly from a year ago.

Barrick produced 944,811 oz. at an average cash cost of US$156 per oz. Nine-month figures are 2.8 million oz. and US$157 per oz., respectively.

The Goldstrike mine in Nevada contributed 1.7 million oz. to the major’s 9-month production. Total cash costs have averaged US$190 per oz. so far this year.

In Peru, the Pierina mine cranked out 264,586 oz. during the quarter, bringing 9-month production to 691,869 oz. Cash costs over the longer period averaged US$40 per oz.

Across the Atlantic, in Tanzania, the Bulyanhulu mine produced 85,384 oz. at US$199 per oz. during the quarter. The mine began commercial production in early April. It has since produced 148,963 oz. at a total cash cost of US$202 per oz. The mine is expected to have produced 240,000 oz. by year-end at a total cash cost of US$195 per oz.

Barrick realized an average gold price of US$340 per oz. on its 9-month production. This represents a premium of US$71 per oz. over the spot price, reflecting the company’s hedging program.

In 2001, Barrick expects to churn out 3.7 million oz. at a total cash cost of US$158 per oz. This is expected to translate into net earnings of US70 per share, which represents the lower end of of a range provided at the year’s start. Operational adjustments are partly to blame.

The earnings forecast excludes any adjustments that would be required if the proposed merger with Homestake Mining (HM-N) passes muster. Homestake has called a meeting for December so that shareholders can vote on the merger, and regulators have yet to approve the plan.

Print

Be the first to comment on "Barrick earnings slip"

Leave a comment

Your email address will not be published.


*


By continuing to browse you agree to our use of cookies. To learn more, click more information

Dear user, please be aware that we use cookies to help users navigate our website content and to help us understand how we can improve the user experience. If you have ideas for how we can improve our services, we’d love to hear from you. Click here to email us. By continuing to browse you agree to our use of cookies. Please see our Privacy & Cookie Usage Policy to learn more.

Close