FRESNILLO : 4Q 2017 Silver Production Rose 20%

By Adam Clark

Fresnillo PLC (FRES.LN) said Wednesday that its fourth-quarter silver production rose 20% against the prior year, citing the start-up of phase-two operations at its San Julian mine in Mexico.

The U.K.-listed miner said it produced 16 million ounces of silver in the final quarter of 2017.

Silver production rose 11% from the previous quarter as San Julian operated at full capacity, while the company benefited from higher ore grades at its Fresnillo mine and a higher volume of ore processed at its Saucito operation, it said.

In 2017 as a whole, the company produced 58.7 million ounces of silver, up 17% from 2016, it said. Fresnillo said this was in line with its previous guidance.

Fresnillo said its gold production for the quarter fell 13% from a year earlier to 232,051 ounces due to a reduction of gold inventories at its Herradura mine.

Gold production for 2017 overall was 911,132 ounces, the company said. Fresnillo said this exceeded guidance, but was down 2.6% compared with 2016 due to the reduced Herradura inventories and lower ore grades.

Fresnillo said that in 2018 it expects to produce between 67 million and 70 million ounces of silver, and 870,000 to 900,000 ounces of gold. The company said its 2018 exploration budget is $200 million, including capitalized expenses.

Write to Adam Clark at [email protected]; @AdamDowJones