Gran Colombia sees production boost in August

Gran Colombia Gold produced a total of 20,644 oz. of gold in August, up 14% over the previous month, the company reported on Monday. This brings total production for the first two months of the third quarter to 38,755 oz., up 5% over the same two-month period last year. Gran Colombia’s total production of 143,230 oz. for the first eight months of 2020 — compared with 155,359 oz. in the first eight months of the previous year — reflects the impact of COVID-19 on its mining operations, predominantly in the second quarter of this year. However, the company still expects 2020 annual production to range between 218,000 and 226,000 oz. of gold. The Colombia-focused miner is currently the largest underground gold producer in the country. At its Segovia operations, Gran Colombia processed an average of 1,293 t/d of ore in August, up from 1,155 t/d last month, with an average head grade of 15.4 g/t gold. This resulted in 17,901 oz. of gold production, accounting for nearly 87% of its total output for the month. Segovia’s total gold production for the first eight months of 2020 amounted to 129,082 oz. compared with 138,850 oz. in the first eight months last year, reflecting the impact of COVID-19 on its operations from late March through mid-April. Elsewhere, at the Marmato underground mine, which is now owned by Gran Colombia’s spinoff company Caldas Gold, operations benefited from an increased availability of workers and the implementation of action plans to begin to improve mining practices. As such, Caldas Gold saw an increase in its daily processing rate to an average of 1,034 t/d in August, up about 23% from last month, with an average head grade of 3.0 g/t, up from 2.2 g/t last month. This brings total production from the Marmato mine for the first eight months of 2020 to 14,148 oz., compared with 16,509 oz. in the first eight months of last year, also reflecting the disruptions caused by COVID-19 on mining operations from late March through July of this year. Gran Colombia’s shares rose 3.2% to a one-month high by 1:20 p.m. EDT Monday. The company’s market capitalization currently stands at $413.1 million.