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(Alliance News) - Centamin PLC on Thursday reported improved revenue and profit for 2022 and left production guidance for the new year unchanged, but it cut its dividend by 44%.
Centamin is a London-based gold producer with interests in Egypt, Burkina Faso and the Ivory Coast. Its production is from the Sukari mine in Egypt, near the Red Sea.
The company said revenue in 2022 rose 7.5% to USD788.4 million from USD733.3 million in 2021. Pretax profit grew 11% to USD171.0 million from USD153.6 million.
It produced 440,974 ounces of gold in 2022, up from 415,370 a year earlier, and sold 438,638 ounces compared to 407,252 in 2021.
Adjusted earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation amounted to USD319.1 million, down from USD328.8 million. Basic earnings per share was down by 29% to 6.29 cents from 8.81 cents.
Chief Executive Officer Martin Horgan said: "Centamin made great progress in 2022, a year in which we celebrated the Sukari gold mine producing its 5 millionth ounce underpinning the quality of the orebody which has 6 million ounces in mineral reserves remaining and identified further upside potential. We spent the past year successfully progressing our reinvestment plan and remain on track to consistently return Sukari to production levels towards 500,000 ounces per annum from 2024."
For 2023, Centamin maintained its gold production guidance range at 450,000 to 480,000 ounces, which would at best be an 8.8% rise from 440,974 ounces in 2022. It expects gold production to be weighted 55% towards the second half.
The company also guided USD840 to USD990 per ounce cash cost in 2023, similar to 2022 levels. It guided an all-in sustaining cost of USD1,250 to USD1,400 per ounce. Spot gold was priced at USD1,917.73 an ounce early Thursday.
Centamin declared a 2.5 cents per share final dividend, halved from a year earlier. It total payout for 2022 amounted to 5 cents per share, down 44% from 9 cents a year prior.
Shares were down 1.2% at 105.85 pence each on Thursday morning in London.
By Xindi Wei, Alliance News reporter
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