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LONDON (Alliance News) - Altyn PLC on Wednesday said its loss doubled in 2018 following a decline in gold production at its mine in Kazakhstan.
The stock was 7.5% lower in early trade at 0.37 pence a share.
The exploration and development company reported a \pretax loss of USD4.0 million in 2018 compared to USD1.9 million a year earlier, as revenue declined to USD19.4 million from USD21.7 million.
Gold output in the year decreased to 15,282 ounces from 16,717 a year earlier, reflecting a lower gold grade achieved.
The total cash cost of production, which includes administrative costs but excludes depreciation and provisions, amounted to USD1,235 per ounce, up from USD1,075 an ounce in 2017. The operating cash cost was USD865 per ounce versus USD774 per ounce the year before.
During 2018, the company sold 14,990 ounces of gold, down from 16,747 ounces sold in 2017. The average price achieved per ounce in 2018 was USD1,292, broadly flat compared to last year's USD1,293.
Looking forward, Altyn expects its gold output to increase in 2019, as it intends to continue exploration at Karasuyskoye site, with additional spending of USD1.7 million.
In 2018, the company invested USD1.6 million to develop its exploration site at Karasuyskoye, with test production achieving 500 tonnes of ore.
