Eden Roc turns profit at African gold mine

Miners say it all the time, so it must be true: there is no substitute for grade.

The motto would seem to apply to Eden Roc Minerals (edn-t), which announced record gold production of 11,670 oz. and net income of $1.4 million for the second quarter. By comparison, the company posted a loss of $1.2 million for the same period last year and a loss of $1.6 million for the first three months of 1997.

Average cash production costs at the company’s gold mine in West Africa were US$173 per oz. in the latest quarter, compared with US$261 per oz. in the same period last year and US$368 per oz. in the first quarter of 1997.

The dramatic turnaround is largely due to an increase in grade, which averaged 4.9 grams per tonne in the second quarter, compared with 1.92 grams in 1996.

Eden Roc holds a 68% interest in the Afema gold mine in Ivory Coast, with the remainder held by a government-owned entity.

The improved operating results also reflect the addition of an adsorption-disorption recovery plant and carbon regeneration kiln, which allowed the company to process higher volumes of gold solutions throughout the early part of the rainy season.