(Kitco News) - Australian gold production was firing on all cylinders between April and June, rising by 9% compared to the first three months of the year, according to Melbourne-based gold mining consultants Surbiton Associates.
According to the firm's quarterly report, Australian gold companies produced 83 tonnes of gold in the final quarter of the 2021-2022 financial year.
"This brings Australian total gold mine production to 317 tonnes for the financial year ended 30 June 2022, worth around A$26 billion," the report said.
Dr. Sandra Close, a Surbiton director, said that producers were able to end the financial year on a high note by pushing their treatment plants and treating higher-grade ore.
She added that although gold prices have struggled since March, Aussie producers still had a strong incentive to push production higher.
"In the second quarter of 2022, the US dollar price of gold fell by US$125 per ounce, but the Australian dollar gold price actually rose by almost A$42 an ounce due to a US 6 cent movement in the exchange rate," Close said.
Although the June quarter saw strong production, Close noted that the industry faces some challenges, including rising input costs due to inflation and a shortage of skilled workers.
The report noted that two new mines was a factor in pushing production higher during the quarter. The two mines are located in Western Australia, Red 5's King of the Hills and Calidus Resources' Warrawoona project.
"When in full production, these could add more than 10 tonnes of gold output a year," the report said.
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