Sapphire miner Richland Resources (LON:RLD) expects production to increase by two-thirds in the current quarter as its Capricorn in Australia mine ramps up.
The miner produced 156,000 carats above the current cut-off of 4mm from the operation in Queensland in the three months to September, with the current quarter forecast to see this rise to 250,000cts.
Average grades were 7 carats per tonnes at an estimated cash cost of less than US$3/ct. Some 21,628 tonnes of ore was mined.
Sapphires that were smaller than 4mm in diameter have been stock-piled for future sorting and grading.
A first sale of a parcel of 1,200cts was sold at US$14.30 per carat, though this was a customer specific order said the company.
Bernard Olivier, chief executive, said: “Sales strategy is currently focused on customer specific parcels to ensure that we get as much down-stream commitments and market penetration as possible.”
He added that more than half of the third quarter’s 150,000 carats were produced in September following extensive work and modifications to the processing plant.
“We continue to keep a tight control on costs as evident from the estimated total cash cost per carat of less than $3/ct."