Perseus Mining Ltd (ASX:PRU, TSX:PRU, OTC:PMNXF) recorded another strong quarter at its West African operations with 120,929 ounces of gold produced in the June quarter at an All-in-Site Cost (AISC) of US$1,173 per ounce.
The company met guidance for the June 2024 half-year and FY24 with 248,400 ounces and 509,977 ounces produced respectively compared to the respective estimated ranges of 226,000-254,000 ounces and 491,000 to 517,000 ounces from the Yaouré and Sissingué mines in Côte d’Ivoire, and Edikan mine in Ghana.
On the cost side of the ledger, Perseus delivered an encouraging result with AISC for the half year of $1,130 per ounce being below the guidance of US$1,180 to US$1,340 while for FY24, AISC was US$1,053 per ounce, which was in the middle of the guidance range of US$1,000 to US$1,100 per ounce.
Best performer for FY2024 was Yaouré, which produced 250,857 ounces of gold, or nearly half of the company’s total gold production for the period, at an AISC of US$943 per ounce.
In the process, the mine exceeded production guidance of 235,000 to 247,000 ounces and comfortably achieved cost guidance for the full financial year of US$900 to US$1,000 per ounce.
Average gold sales rise 22.7%
Perseus sold 141,930 ounces of gold in Q4 2024, a 22.7% increase compared to the previous quarter while the average sale price also increased 4.5% quarter-on-quarter to US$2,117 per ounce.
With those numbers, the company achieved an average cash margin of US$944 per ounce, offering a notional operating cashflow of US$117 million for the quarter and US$490 million for FY24.
The company’s balance sheet at the end of FY24 was US$587 million in cash and bullion, plus liquid, listed securities of US$42 million, zero debt and US$300 million of undrawn debt capacity available.
Perseus has estimated gold production guidance for the December 24 half-year of 220,000 to 260,000 ounces at US$1,230 to US$1,330 per ounce and the 2024 calendar year of 468,400 ounces to 508,400 ounces at US$1,182 to US$1,223 per ounce.
With the recent acquisition of OreCorp Limited now complete, PRU believes it has plenty of potential for further growth in gold production through the large-scale Nyanzaga Gold Project in Tanzania.
Read: Perseus Mining initiates compulsory acquisition of OreCorp
The project has already been assessed via a definitive feasibility study and holds a probable ore reserve of about 40 million tonnes at 2.02 g/t gold for 2.6 million ounces of gold.