Newcrest Mining Ltd. is set to miss its fiscal 2018 guidance, as it has no set timetable for the restart of its Cadia East gold-copper mine in New South Wales, Australia, The Australian reported March 16, citing CEO Sandeep Biswas.
The company declared force majeure on copper concentrate shipments at the Cadia East mine after it halted operations March 9 due to a tailings dam breach discovered after seismic activity.
Production forecast for the 2018 financial year is between 650,000 and 750,000 ounces of gold.
According to the report, the company is making arrangements for an alternative plan to place the tailings in the old Cadia open pit, but securing the New South Wales government's approval for the plan will take up to six months.
On the other hand, Newcrest is also considering the restart of mining and stockpiling of ore as an alternative to using the tailings dam.
Last year, the company hit the lower end of its full-year 2017 production guidance, partly as a result of the suspension of mining at the Cadia East mine, also due to seismic activity.
