Article from Vientiane Times
Monday August 9, 2010 Issue 186
Times Reporters
Sepon mine has achieved production of 34,282 tonnes of copper and 54,631 ounces of gold in its first 6 months.Production for the full year 2010 remains on track for 67,000 to 70,000 tonnes of copper cathode and 95,000 to 100,000 ounces of gold.
According to MMG LXML, gold production increased 15 percent to 29,258 ounces during the second quarter compared to 25,373 ounces of gold at the same time last year. However, copper production during the quarter remained steady due to the onset of the wet season and complex unexploded ordinance clearance requirements in the mine area.
The Sepon Copper Expansion Project is making solid progress with 84 percent of works completed. The expansion is expected to be finished by early next year.The second high-voltage power line project, which links the project into the national grid, has also recently been completed.
The US$60.4 million copper expansion is set to Sepon gold and copper production on targetincrease copper production capacity at the Sepon project from around 65,000 to 80,500 tonnes per annum.Group Manager for Corporate Affairs Asia Richard Taylor said “MMG’s Sepon operation has performed well in 2010. We have met our milestones and remain focused on our safety, community and environmental responsibilities.”
The mining sector has been criticised this year, but there are positive stories about the sector’s contribution to national economic development that should be highlighted, he said Metal prices in the world market softened considerably during the second quarter, driven by negative macroeconomic sentiment and concern over financial difficulties in several European nations as well the softening of the Chinese economic stimulus, according to MMG LXML. Three-month prices at the London Metal Exchange were also down for the second quarter by between 16 and 26 percent depending on the metal
