5
| Gold Fields Results
The Group NCE, which includes capitalised project costs decreased
from R377,663 per kilogram (US$1,355 per ounce) in the December
quarter to R369,050 per kilogram (US$1,291 per ounce) in the March
quarter. This decrease was as a result of the lower capital
expenditure and lower operating costs partly offset by the lower
production. The NCE margin for the Group increased from 20 per
cent to 21 per cent.
NCE excluding capitalised project costs, decreased from R369,023
per kilogram (US$1,324 per ounce) in the December quarter to
R363,188 per kilogram (US$1,271 per ounce) in the March quarter
due to lower costs and capital expenditure partially offset by lower
production. The NCE margin improved from 21 per cent to 22 per
cent.
The Group NCE for capital projects decreased from R7,910 per
kilogram (US$28 per ounce) in the December quarter to R5,863 per
kilogram (US$21 per ounce) in the March quarter. Actual
expenditure for the March quarter at Chucapaca (51 per cent) and
APP amounted to R18 million (US$2 million) and R47 million (US$5
million) respectively. In addition, R26 million (US$3 million) was
spent on building of camp facilities at the Salares Norte project in
Chile.
In the South Africa region, at South Deep NCE per kilogram
decreased from R672,974 per kilogram (US$2,414 per ounce) to
R627,514 per kilogram (US$2,195 per ounce) due to the increase in
production and lower capital expenditure partially offset by the higher
costs. The NCE margin improved from negative 40 per cent to
negative 33 per cent due to the lower NCE partially offset by the
lower gold price received.
At the West Africa region, NCE per ounce increased from US$1,200
per ounce in the December quarter to US$1,237 per ounce in the
March quarter due to the lower production partially offset by the lower
costs and capital expenditure. The NCE margin decreased from 30
per cent to 24 per cent in the March quarter due to the lower gold
price received.
At the South America region, NCE per ounce decreased from
US$798 per ounce in the December quarter to US$728 per ounce in
the March quarter due to the decrease in operating costs and capital
expenditure partially offset by the decrease in production. The NCE
margin at Cerro Corona, however, increased from 49 per cent to 54
per cent due to the higher gold price received and the lower NCE.
At the Australasia region, NCE per ounce decreased from A$1,344
per ounce (US$1,395 per ounce) in the December quarter to A$1,163
per ounce (US$1,206 per ounce) in the March quarter due to lower
capital expenditure and lower costs partially offset by a decrease in
production. The NCE margin increased from 19 per cent in the
December quarter to 26 per cent in the March quarter due to the
lower NCE partially offset by the lower gold price received.
Balance sheet
Net debt (long-term loans plus the current portion of long-term loans
less cash and deposits) increased from R10,820 million (US$1,263
million) at the end of December 2012 to R13,096 million (US$1,411
million) at the end of March 2013.
Operational review
Cost and revenue optimisation initiatives through Business Process
Re-engineering (BPR)
The BPR process continues to review all operational production
processes and associated cost structures from the stope to the mill.
New business blueprints and appropriate organisational structures
were implemented to support sustainable gold output at an NCE
margin of 20 per cent in the short-to-medium term and 25 per cent in
the long-term from the Group’s operations.
South Africa region
South Deep
Progress against the Mine Health and Safety Council (MHSC)
milestone, that no machine or piece of equipment such as pneumatic
development rock drills, pneumatic stope rock drills, hydropower rock
drills and drill rigs, fans and winches may generate a sound pressure
level in excess of 110dB (A) after December 2013, is ongoing. The
number of measurements expressed as a percentage of noise
measurements of machinery and equipment emitting noise in excess
of 110dB (A) increased from 1.7 per cent in the December quarter to
3.2 per cent in the March quarter. Silencing of equipment is ongoing,
with continued focus on defective silencers on equipment. The
percentage of employees exposed to >85 dB (A) was 52.4 per cent in
the December quarter compared to 56.7 per cent in the March
quarter. This measurement is without ear protection, which is
currently provided and almost universally used, subject only to those
areas of non-compliance. Studies indicate that with the proper use of
currently available ear protection devices no employee will be subject
to a sound pressure level in excess of 85dB (A).
The Group continues to pursue best practice in the area of dust
control in accordance with the MHSC. In order to improve upon dust
exposure targets, the Group is targeting the following core initiatives:
·
Building health rooms at the training centers to coach employees
on potential exposures and wearing of respiratory personal
protective equipment - planned completion date is June 2013 ;
·
Using foggers, a water mist spray system, to trap dust particles
liberated in haulages and tipping points to prevent dust from
entering the main air stream;
·
Treating footwalls in haulages with binding chemicals sprayed
from a specially designed car pulled by a loco to prevent dust
from being liberated into intake airways; and
·
Analysing individual filters to assist in determining exposure
levels.
West Africa region
Tarkwa
BPR initiatives are ongoing. The major BPR projects for 2013
include:
·
Extending life of heavy mining equipment through improved haul
road conditions;
·
Increasing CIL throughput through the installation of a tipper car
on the North heap leach crusher conveyor to supplement the CIL
feed rate. The current circuit is limited by the primary crusher
feeding equipment capacity. The cross over from the North heap
leach crusher will assist in maintaining the CIL crusher ore
stockpile levels and increase the CIL milling rate from 1,460
tonnes per hour to 1,500 tonnes per hour by the end of the June
2013 quarter; and
·
Acceleration of waste strip through the implementation of a larger
sized load and haul fleet. The improved flexibility is also
designed to ensure a continuous ore supply to the plant. This
project has the potential to increase the annual mining volume by
an estimated 10 per cent by the end of the June 2013 quarter.
Damang
BPR initiatives are ongoing. The major BPR projects for 2013
include:
·
Continued savings from owner mining and maintenance
initiatives implemented in early 2011;
·
Optimisation of the plant circuit to achieve the maximum recovery
rate of 89 per cent under current blend conditions which include:
·
Installation and commissioning of the inline leach reactor
was completed in the December quarter. The unit is
performing as expected with high recovery rates being
achieved on the gravity concentrate;
·
Commissioning of the pre-leach thickener project to control
the circuit water balance and optimise gravity circuit feed
rates is planned for the June 2013 quarter;
·
The secondary crusher upgrade project is planned to be
completed by the end of June 2014. This is expected to
underpin the 630 tonnes per hour milling rate on an all-
hard-blend;
·
An additional CIL leach tank is being added to the circuit to
improve the residence time and circuit reliability, planned
for the end of the September 2013 quarter; and
·
Other smaller plant circuit optimisation projects, including
oxygen addition optimisation, are planned for 2013.