Southeast Asia-focused miner PanAust has blamed a destructive wet season for rising costs and a decline in full year copper production.
Copper concentrate production for calendar 2011 will be at the lower end of the 62,000 to 65,000 tonne guidance range, down from 68,000 tonnes last year.
However, the fall would be slightly offset by high gold and silver prices and production of the precious metals at the higher end of guidance.
The company’s flagship Phu Kham mine in Laos produced 15,184 tonnes of copper, at an average cash cost of $US1.04 per pound, (after gold and silver credits), for the three months to June 30, it said in its quarterly report on Monday.
The mid-cap copper and gold producer produced 15,029 tonnes of copper in concentrate during the March quarter, at a cost of 90 US cents per pound (after gold and silver credits), beating expectations.
Cash costs for copper production for the full year would be 95 US cents to $US1.05 per ounce, the company said.
High rainfall during the wet season had caused the loss of production for five days in June and July and the closure of an access road.
A contractor excavator working for PanAust was killed after being swept away in a rain-triggered landslide earlier this month.
“Access to relatively high-grade ore will be postponed until September,” PanAust said.
PanAust expects to produce 50,000 to 55,000 ounces of gold and 450,000 to 500,000 ounces of silver in 2011.
Precious metals would account for about 30 per cent of revenue, at current prices of about US$4.40/lb copper, US$1,600/oz gold and US$40/oz silver.
Copper is the third most widely used metal and has traded at record highs in 2011, amid worries about supply shortages.
Earlier this month, PanAust increased the expected mine life at Phu Kham to 14 years as total ore reserve tonnes were increased by 37 per cent.
It is also on track to commission a second gold-silver mine in Laos in December.
Shares in PanAust, which was elevated into the S&P/ASX 100 in April, closed down four cents at $4.23.
