GOLD Fields said interim headline share earnings ended June 30 would be as much as 135% higher owing to increased sales and a higher gold price.
Share earnings were estimated to be 43 US cents to 47 cents while headline share earnings would be 42 and 46 cents per share, an increase of between 133% and 156%.
The second quarter will be the first full quarter over which Chris Griffith, appointed CEO in April, has presided. He is expected to provide firmer details of his vision for the company after 13 years under the leadership of Nick Holland. Holland reached retirement age as set down in Gold Fields’ corporate governance structure.
The Johannesburg-headquartered gold producer said attributable gold equivalent production for the period increased marginally year on year to 1.10 million ounces compared to 1.09 million oz in the first half of the previous financial year.
Earnings were also assisted by a reduction in the loss of financial instruments partially offset by higher net operating costs and higher tax.
All-in sustaining costs (AISC) for the interim totalled $1,093/oz compared to $987/oz in the first half of the 2020 financial year, an increase of 11%. All-in costs were a fifth higher as project capital ramped up at the group’s Salares Norte project in Chile.
For the second quarter, attributable group gold-equivalent production was 563,000 oz, higher than the 541,000 oz in the first quarter of the current financial year.
Gold Fields is due to publish its numbers on August 19.
