Detour Gold Corp. enjoyed a strong fourth quarter - with record output of 158,200 oz. - bringing the 2018 total to 621,128 oz. of gold. The total was 9% more than for 2017.
The average mining rate was 56,594 t/d, but Q4 was even better at 305,000 t/d, making it the third consecutive quarter of improvement and the most tonnes mined in a quarter since operations began. The month of December averaged 318,000 t/d.
The mill processed 20.7 million tonnes of ore with a head grade of 1.04 g/t and recoveries of 90.1% for the 2018 calendar year.
Detour Gold COO Frazer Bourchier said, "We surpassed our production target for 2018 with a strong finish to the year. The fourth quarter represented our third successive quarter with overall operational improvement with record total tonnes mined and gold production."
At Dec. 31, 2018, the company had about $132 million in cash and equivalents and $222 million available from its $500-million credit facility.
This article originally appeared in the Canadian Mining Journal.