Ariana Resources PLC (LON:AAU) has forecast that 2020 gold production at its Kiziltepe mine in Turkey will be around 30% above its feasibility plan for this stage of the operational mine life.
The AIM-listed firm said gold production for the year will be around 18,000 ounces of gold with an average grade expected to be at 2.5 grams per tonne.
READ: Ariana Resources finishes 2019 with record quarter at Kiziltepe
Throughput to the mill, meanwhile, is expected to be around 205,000 tonnes, a 37% increase over the feasibility plan.
Ariana’s managing director, Kerim Sener, said that the recent fall in the price of oil will result in a “positive effect” on the company’s mining and processing costs, while gold prices had continued to remain at levels “substantially higher” than forecast.
“These, along with other positive trends including the declining value of the Turkish Lira, reinforce the economics of the Kiziltepe operation”, he added.
Sener also said that the firm was taking “extensive precautions” against coronavirus and was “not anticipating disruption” to production at the site.
Ariana’s shares were 2.3% lower at 2.1p in early trading.