Red 5 produced 53,017 ounces of gold (oz) from the King of the Hills (KOTH) project in Western Australia during the December 2023 quarter.
This was achieved from 1.24 megatons of ore being processed at an average head grade of 1.45 grams per tonne and a gold recovery of 91.2 per cent.
The strong December quarter performance marks the third successive quarter of production Red 5 has had above 50,000oz, as the company produced 55,009oz during the September 2023 quarter and 61,705oz during the June 2023 quarter.
Red 5 also produced 108,026oz during the first half of the 2023–24 (FY24) financial year, positioning it to achieve the upper end of its FY24 production guidance of 195,000–215,000oz.
The company’s gold sales during the December quarter equalled to 53,087oz at an average realised price of $2619 per ounce, and the process plant achieved an annualised throughput run rate of 6.1 megatons per annum between November 18 and December 31 2023.
“This followed the completion of extended maintenance shutdowns in October and November that were primarily focussed on improving longer term crusher reliability,” Red 5 said.
“All three mines (KOTH open pit, KOTH underground and Darlot underground) continue to perform well for the quarter, delivering the expected tonnes and grade.”
As of December 31 2023, Red 5 has $53.2 million in cash, trade receivables and bullion, with the bullion totalling $4.5 million.
The company’s total outstanding debt has been reduced to $102.8 million from September’s $112.8 million, following the repayment of $10 million during the December quarter.
Its net debt position also reduced by $18.6 million for the quarter to $49.6 million, and robust cash generation allowed the company to make a voluntary additional debt repayment of $2 million.
This was on top of the scheduled $8 million principal repayment, which Red 5 said helped further de-risk and strengthen its balance sheet.
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