(Kitco News) - Elevated gold prices were the driving force behind robust annual production in Australia, according to Melbourne-based gold consultants Surbiton Associates.
In the firm’s latest quarterly report, analysts said that annual Australian gold demand totaled 300 tonnes. Gold mine production for the quarter ending in June 2025 was 76 tonnes, three tonnes—or four percent—more than in the previous quarter.
The report said that annual production rose to its highest level since the 2022–2023 financial year, and fell just short of the record output of 328 tonnes set in 1999–2000.
The report noted that while production remains strong, companies have been taking advantage of higher prices to process lower-grade ore.
“Australian gold production is partly limited by the amount of low-grade stockpiled material being blended in with the ore fed to the treatment plants,” the firm said. “This was maintained at a little more than 15 per cent of total feed for the June quarter. Such a practice makes optimum use of gold resources and can extend the life of an operation.”
Although production did not surpass its all-time highs, the sector continues to benefit from record-high gold prices. The report noted that the value of Australia’s 2024–2025 production was just over A$50 billion (USD$32.8 billion). Gold is now Australia’s fourth most valuable export, behind iron ore, coal, and liquefied natural gas.
“The gold mining industry in Australia is highly efficient, very productive and vitally important,” said Dr. Sandra Close, a director of Surbiton Associates. “The value of gold exports alone are about half of Australia’s exports of farming, forestry and fishing products combined.”
