Griffin Mining reports near-doubling of annual profit

(Sharecast News) - Griffin Mining said on Tuesday that annual profit nearly doubled in 2025, as higher gold and silver prices and lower costs offset reduced production at its Caijiaying mine in China.

The AIM-traded miner reported revenue of $137.5m for the year ended 31 December, up 1.8% from $135.1m in 2024.

Gross profit rose to $60.3m from $51.3m, while operating profit increased to $30.8m from $17.3m.

Pre-tax profit rose to $32.6m from $17.9m, and profit after tax increased to $22.1m from $11.4m. Basic earnings per share doubled to 12.1 cents from 6.08 cents.

Griffin said the results were affected by nationwide restrictions on the supply of explosives to the Caijiaying mine, as well as the slow ramp-up in operations after production was suspended in the fourth quarter of 2024 following a fatality at the mine.

Throughput fell 4.9% year-on-year after the company was asked by Chinese county, city and provincial authorities to reduce operations as part of a safety initiative that ran until the end of 2025.

Griffin said the resulting explosives restrictions reduced throughput by about 250,000 tonnes, but added that cooperation with the initiative was essential to securing permits for the commissioning of Zone II and continued production from Zone III.

Zinc metal in concentrate production fell 7.8% to 36,346 tonnes, while gold in concentrate production declined 6.5% to 15,096 ounces.

Silver in concentrate production rose 23.6% to 340,653 ounces, and lead in concentrate production increased 25.2% to 1,621 tonnes.

Zinc concentrate sales revenue fell to $79.7m from $96.1m, reflecting lower volumes and a lower average received price.

Lead and precious metals concentrate sales rose to $64.6m from $46.5m, helped by stronger gold, silver and lead prices and higher silver output.

The average price received for gold rose to $3,274 an ounce from $2,228, while the silver price increased to $32.0 an ounce from $24.3.

The average zinc price received declined to $2,211 per tonne from $2,414.

Cost of sales fell 8.0% to $77.2m, as less ore was mined, hauled and processed.

Production costs per tonne of ore processed declined to $69.4 from $71.7, helped by lower haulage and processing costs, although mining costs per tonne rose because of fixed mine service costs and additional drilling and geological work.

Operating expenses fell 13.0% to $29.6m from $34.0m, partly because the prior year included $6.2m of share incentive charges.

Griffin generated $53.9m of operating cash flow, compared with $19.6m in 2024, and ended the year with cash and cash equivalents of $47.5m, down from $48.8m.

During the year, the company spent $20.4m buying back its own shares.

Attributable net asset value per share rose to $1.58 from $1.47.

Chairman Mladen Ninkov described 2025 as "a momentous year" for Griffin, citing the renewal of the Caijiaying mining licence to 2054, the first production blast in Zone II and continued drilling of high-grade gold below existing development.

"The first landmark achievement was the renewal of the Caijiaying Mine's Mining Licence to 2054 which secured the long term future of the Caijiaying Mine and allowed for the continued extraction of the known resource," he said.

He said the first production blast in Zone II marked "a key milestone in the commissioning and final safety approval process", adding that ore was now expected to be mined from Zone II for the duration of the current licence.

Ninkov also said drilling of the Yuan Long high-grade gold lode had confirmed down-plunge continuity below and along strike from existing development.

The orebody remained open to the south and at depth, with further drilling and underground development planned.

Griffin said the Caijiaying mine had moved to operate on 100% renewable energy generated from solar and wind power, while also placing all tailings underground through paste-fill as part of China's Green Mining initiative.

Looking ahead, the company said the operational outlook for 2026 was positive, with an expected return to 1.5 million tonnes per annum of production during the year and new mining areas coming online.

"For 2026 the operational outlook is positive with an expected return to 1.5 million tonnes per annum production during the year and new mining areas coming online," Ninkov said.

"The benefits of investment in people, safety and modern infrastructure will enable safe, sustainable production well into the future."

At 1231 BST, shares in Griffin Mining were up 1.5% at 317.7p.

Reporting by Josh White for Sharecast.com.

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