PRECIOUS METALS

Yamana shares gain on 2019 performance

Canadian gold major's Jacobina and El Peñón mines deliver exceptional production results

Staff Reporter

This article is 5 years old. Images might not display.

The Toronto-headquartered company reported 2019 gold output of 900,339oz, with a strong December quarter profile of 221,595oz lifting total production above the top-end of its annual guidance of 899,000oz.

The Americas-focused company's strong December-quarter silver output of 2.97Moz was also enough to take the full-year total above guidance of 10Moz to 10.64Moz, the company said.

As a result, the full-year gold-equivalent (Au-eq) output of 1.024Moz also exceeded the annual guidance of 1,01Moz.

Yamana said the Jacobina mine in Brazil posted record quarterly production of 41,774oz gold and all-time-high full-year output at 159,499oz. This was more than the company's revised guidance of 152,000oz announced in June.

The El Peñón mine in Chile also posted its highest quarterly and yearly production since "rightsizing" the operation in late 2016, Yamana said. Gold output for the quarter was 48,131oz and full-year total came in at 159,515oz, above the expected 150,000oz.

The company said it expected all-in sustaining costs to be in line with prior estimates and adjustments, including about US$30/oz of Au-eq from the removal of production from Chapada in the second half of the year.

Yamana plans to release fourth-quarter and full-year 2019 financial results after the market closes on February 13.

Improving metals prices combined with the company's solid operational performance have prompted it to hike its dividend policy last month to C5c per share annually, effective from the current quarter. The company has in recent quarters divested assets in Argentina and Brazil as it seeks to increase its appeal to investors as a cash-generating, dividend-paying precious metals producer.

The company's equity (TSX:YRI) has rebounded in the past 12 months, gaining more than 53% to $4.99 on Wednesday, which capitalises it at $4.7 billion (US$3.6 billion).

 

Expert-led Insights reports and Analytics tools built on robust data, rigorous analysis and expert commentary covering mining Risk, Projects, ESG, Leadership, and Investor Sentiment.

Expert-led Insights reports and Analytics tools built on robust data, rigorous analysis and expert commentary covering mining Risk, Projects, ESG, Leadership, and Investor Sentiment.

editions

ESG Index 2025: Benchmarking the Future of Sustainable Mining

The ESG Index provides an in-depth evaluation of the ESG performance of 60+ of the world’s largest mining companies. It assesses companies across 10 weighted indicators within 6 essential ESG pillars.

editions

Leadership Insights 2025

Leadership Insights reveals key trends in priority mining issues through interviews with 15+ top mining company executives and an industrywide survey.

editions

Mining IQ Risk Analytics

Risk Analytics offers interactive access to World Risk Insight data, allowing you to customise risk views, benchmark jurisdictions, explore data behind scores and read expert commentary to guide your decision-making.

editions

Project Pipeline Index 2025

View our 50 top mining projects, handpicked using a unique, objective selection process from an expanded database of 600+ global assets.