Mining Journal > Finance > Stockpile: Centamin shares higher on project stability in Egypt, production guidance

Centamin Egypt Ltd was back in favour on the London main market this week following the release of the company’s December-end quarterly report.

The gold miner has struggled so far this year, shedding more than a quarter of its value during January. However, Centamin gained close to 10% after releasing positive news regarding the Sukari project.

Centamin confirmed that Sukari had been unaffected by the political turmoil in Egypt, and said it “remains confident” that a resolution to Egypt’s situation would “not negatively impact on the company’s investment”.

Centamin is targeting production this year of 250,000-290,000oz from the operation, at average cash costs of about US$450/oz.

Gold was on course to finish the week in higher territory due to the conflict in Egypt, and on uncertainty in the Middle East as a whole. Peaking at a two-week high of over US$1,356/oz on February 3, bullion was seen as safe haven as the political uncertainty continues in the region.

The week’s top mover was Aquarius Platinum Ltd, adding more than 10% after delivering its second quarter production results.

Aquarius, the fourth-largest producer of the metal, reported that output in the quarter to end-December rose 14% from a year earlier to 127,579oz, as revenue and cash margins shot up.

In particular, output in the quarter rose strongly at the company’s flagship Kroondal project, Aquarius said.

Anglo-American led the majors with a 9% advance in what was generally a positive week for all miners on the main board. On February 4, Anglo completed the US$346 million sale of its Black Mountain Mining zinc interests in South Africa to Vedanta Resources plc. BHP Billiton, Rio Tinto and Xstrata plc all added around 6%.

One company that did take a hammering was junior Central Rand Gold. The share price of the southern Africa-focused miner almost halved after revealing that ore reserves at its operations were under threat from rising water levels.

On AIM, African Aura Mining Inc hit a new high during the week after an update on the Ndablama property in Liberia was released. The company gained more than 35% on news of encouraging early results from the first eight holes of the ongoing drill programme at the site.

Baobab Resources rose 17% on the back of positive results from the Monte Muande joint venture project in Mozambique. The company has the right to earn up to 90% equity in the project with North River Resources.

GGG Resources plc, formerly known as Central China Goldfields, was 14% higher after financial advisory group Collins Stewart described the company as the most exciting of the exploration variety on the market.

Other notable movers amongst the small-caps included Goldstone Resources Ltd and Anglo Asian Mining plc, which added 36% and 19%, respectively.

Condor Resources plc was the biggest faller on AIM, with a drop of more than 19% after being one of last week’s best performing stocks. The company recently announced that drilling at its La India concession in Nicaragua was close to starting.
 
European Nickel plc was 12% down on the release of its December-end quarterly report. During the period the company fast-tracked the feasibility study at the Acoje project but placed the Caldag operation on care and maintenance.

Other notable fallers included Horizonte Minerals plc and Scotgold Resources Ltd, which each shed about 10%.