Gold Resource meets 2018 gold and silver production targets as Mexico mines deliver ‘solid results’

Gold Resource Corp (NYSEAMERICAN:GORO) said preliminary results indicate that it had met its gold and silver production targets for the fourth quarter and full year 2018.

The miner said Monday in a press release that it produced 26,838 gold ounces and 1,672,034 silver ounces last year. The Colorado-based company’s targets were 27,000 gold ounces and 1.7 million silver ounces, plus or minus a 10% range.

READ: Gold Resource expands Arista Mine Switchback vein system, discovers two new veins

Fourth-quarter gold and silver production totaled 7,974 ounces and 330,605 ounces, according to Gold Resource. The company reported preliminary annual base metal production of 1,652 tons of copper, 7,280 tons of lead and 19,808 tons of zinc.

“In addition to achieving annual precious metal production targets, the team successfully delivered significantly increased base metal production,” Gold Resource CEO and President Jason Reid said in a statement.

He credited the mining unit in Oaxaca, Mexico, with delivering “solid production results” and said the commissioning of the Isabella Pearl mine in Nevada, planned for June, is expected to add significantly to the company’s gold production.

Higher elevations

The increase in base-metal production was directly related to the development and mining of the lower levels of the switchback vein system at its Arista mine in Oaxaca, according to Reid. He added that as operations move to higher elevations levels, precious-metal grades are expected to increase while base metal grades should decrease.

Gold Resource said it has returned $111 million to its shareholders in monthly dividends since commercial production started in July 2010. The company offers shareholders the option to convert cash dividends into physical gold and silver and take delivery.

Shares of Gold Resource dropped $0.05 to $4.25 in Friday’s New York trading.

Contact Dennis Fitzgerald at [email protected]

Story by ProactiveInvestors