- Dacian Gold (DCN) improves production from 21,400 ounces of gold in the March quarter to 25,558 ounces in the June quarter
- This takes total production from the Mt Morgans Gold Operation to 106,919 ounces for FY21 which is slightly lower than Dacian’s production guidance
- The company attributes this to rainfall affecting conditions in the Heffernans and Mt Marven open pits
- Dacian allocated about $6.4 million on exploration work during the June quarter which allowed for 62,843 metres of drilling to be completed
- In terms of its cash position, Dacian has $41.8 million in cash and gold, and has repaid $5.2 million in debt which reduces its total debt to $16.2 million
- Company shares are down 3.23 per cent and trading at 30 cents at 2:05 pm AEST
Dacian Gold (DCN) has reported a production increase from the March quarter to the June quarter.
In the quarter just gone, the materials stock produced 25,558 ounces of gold at an all-in sustaining cost (AISC) of $1742 per ounce compared to 21,400 ounces of gold at an AISC of $1874 per ounce in the March quarter.
The gold produced across both quarters came from Dacian’s Mt Morgans Gold Operation (MMGO) in Western Australia.
Across the 2021 financial year, MMGO produced 106,919 ounces of gold which was slightly below the company’s production guidance of between 110,000 and 120,000 ounces.
The company attributes this to rainfall affecting conditions in the Heffernans and Mt Marven open pits.
In saying that, the Mt Morgans processing plant continued to perform strongly with a throughput of 764,480 tonnes compared to 755,970 tonnes in the March quarter.
Managing Director Leigh Junk was pleased with the production result despite it being less than the planned target.
“Dacian has had a significant year nonetheless with the acquisition of Redcliffe, further reductions in our debt and hedge positions, completion of over 160,000-metre of exploration and resource definition drilling and re-positioning our exploration strategy towards making the next generation of discoveries,” Mr Junk said.
In terms of exploration, Dacian Gold completed 62,843 metres of drilling in the June quarter alone which cost $6.4 million.
This work mainly focused on resource definition and expansion drilling across MMGO and the Redcliffe Project for which a mineral resource update is currently underway.
To assist with the exploration work, Dacian Gold announced a $40 million placement and $3.7 million share purchase plan (SPP) in May.
As the $15.9 million from the second tranche of the placement and the SPP weren’t received until post-quarter, Dacian Gold had $41.8 million in cash and gold on hand on June 30. This compares favourably to the $28.3 million it had at the end of the March quarter.
The gold producer repaid about $5.2 million in debt during the quarter which reduces its total debt to $16.2 million.
Looking ahead, drilling is ongoing across its WA assets and Dacian expects to complete its life-of-mine plan for Mt Morgans and Redcliffe during the September quarter.
In terms of production, the company’s FY22 guidance is between 100,000 and 110,000 ounces of gold at an AISC of between $1550 and $1700 per ounce.
Company shares were down 3.23 per cent and trading at 30 cents at 2:05 pm AEST.