B2Gold Corp. is pleased to announce its gold production and revenue for the three and six months ended June 30, 2014. All dollar figures are in United States dollars unless otherwise indicated.
Highlights from the 2014 second quarter/first-half include:
2014 Second Quarter Highlights
- Gold production of 85,704 ounces, an increase of 4% over the second quarter of 2013
- Successful change-out of the Masbate SAG mill in June
- Gold revenue of $120.3 million on sales of 93,330 ounces at an average price of $1,289 per ounce
- 2014 production guidance remains unchanged
- Continued construction of the Otjikoto mine on budget and schedule
- Entered into a Merger Implementation Agreement with Papillon Resources Limited on June 3, 2014
2014 First-Half Highlights
- Gold production of 182,007 ounces, an increase of 13% over the same period in 2013
- Gold revenue of $249.3 million on sales of 192,325 ounces at an average price of $1,296 per ounce
Gold Production
Consolidated gold production in the second quarter of 2014 was 85,704 ounces, approximately 5% below budget, but approximately 4% higher than in the same quarter last year. As expected, gold production in the second quarter of 2014 was lower than in the first quarter of 2014 mainly due to the change-out of the Masbate SAG mill in June. The change-out of the Masbate SAG mill was successfully implemented and the new SAG mill is now in operation and performing its function flawlessly after a short period of commissioning. The Company's 2014 annual consolidated production guidance of 395,000 to 420,000 ounces of gold remains unchanged.
In the first-half of 2014, consolidated gold production totaled 182,007 ounces, 12,026 ounces below budget. However, consolidated production guidance for the year remains unchanged as the planned mine development at the Masbate and Limon Mines are expected to be completed and meet budget in the second half of the year (see "Operations" section below). For the first-half of 2014, budgeted gold production (of 194,033 ounces) was expected to be lower than in the second half of the year (of 207,355 ounces), due to a number of factors including the SAG mill replacement in June at the Masbate Mine.
The Company is projecting another record year for gold production in 2014. Company-wide production in 2014 from the Masbate, Libertad and Limon Mines is expected to be in the range of 395,000 to 420,000 ounces of gold at a operating cash cost of $667 to $695 per ounce. All-in sustaining cash costs are forecast to be in a range of $1,025 to $1,125 per ounce of gold. The production forecast for 2014 does not include any estimated gold production from the Otjikoto development project in Namibia as any revenue earned from the sale of pre-commercial production will be credited to mineral property development costs prior to commercial production. With the first full-year of gold production from the Otjikoto gold project in Namibia scheduled for 2015, the Company is projecting 2015 gold production of 555,000 ounces, based on current assumptions.
Gold Revenue
Gold revenue for the second quarter of 2014 was $120.3 million on sales of 93,330 ounces at an average realized price of $1,289 per ounce compared to $122.6 million on sales of 86,239 ounces at an average realized price of $1,422 per ounce in the second quarter of 2013. Gold revenue declined only marginally (2%), as an 8% increase in sales volume largely offset a 9% decrease in the average realized gold price.
For the first six months of 2014, consolidated gold revenue was $249.3 million on sales of 192,325 ounces at an average price of $1,296 per ounce compared to $277.5 million on sales of 181,281 ounces at an average price of $1,531 per ounce in the first-half of 2013. Gold revenue in the first-half of 2013 included the sale of 20,811 ounces, relating to the Masbate Mine's gold bullion inventory acquired on January 16, 2013.