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AngloGold Ashanti (NYSE: AU) plans to spend up to $900 million (C$1.26 billion) expanding three operating mines as it targets another 300,000 to 450,000 oz. of annual gold production by 2030.
The three-year investment budget ranges from $750 million to $900 million and covers Geita in Tanzania, Siguiri in Guinea and Cuiabá in Brazil, the company said in its quarterly results Thursday. Obuasi’s ongoing ramp-up in Ghana forms a separate part of the growth strategy.
“These are high-return, capital efficient projects at our operating mines,” CEO Alberto Calderon said, “that are expected to provide high-margin ounces and unlock further value from our portfolio.”
The expansions would draw on existing plants and mine infrastructure to add output while limiting construction risk. They come as higher gold prices strengthen earnings, but rising costs and heavier investment absorb more of the cash generated by operations.
Geita
Geita accounts for most of the proposed spending, with $480 million to $580 million earmarked for work aimed at lifting annual output to about 600,000 oz. by 2030.
Plans include additional processing capacity and a paste backfill plant to open access to higher-grade underground ore, according to the results presentation.
At Cuiabá, spending of $200 million to $250 million would support roughly 75,000 additional ounces annually. Siguiri’s $70-million development program targets about 100,000 additional ounces a year through new pits supplying higher-grade ore.
Higher costs
Earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization rose 12% from a year earlier to $1.57 billion in the third quarter. AngloGold received an average $4,239 per oz. for its gold, up 21% from $3,490.
Free cash flow, however, fell 22% to $722 million as investment and tax payments increased and gold sales declined. The company ended September with net cash of $1.26 billion.
Total cash costs increased 3.6% from the second quarter to $1,534 an ounce. All-in sustaining costs reached $2,170 an ounce, 26% above a year earlier. Higher royalties and fuel costs contributed to cost pressures, alongside sustaining investment and lower production.
AngloGold maintained its annual production forecast of 2.8 million to 3.17 million oz. after producing 2.16 million oz. in the first nine months.
The company also disclosed that a worker died in an August rockfall at the Sukari underground mine in Egypt. Operations stopped for an investigation and have since resumed.
Shares closed Thursday 0.7% stronger at $88.56 in New York.