Mexico-focused silver and gold miner Fresnillo PLC said Oct. 23 that output for the full year is likely to hit the lower end of guidance of 55 million ounces to 58 Moz of silver, including silverstream, and 880,000 to 910,000 ounces of gold.
Total silver output in the third quarter, including silverstream, dipped 14.5% yearly to 13.28 million ounces, mainly due to lower ore grades at the Saucito, Fresnillo and San Julián mines. The company expects silver output to rise in the fourth quarter thanks to processing higher ore volumes and grades at Fresnillo and Saucito.
Gold production for the third quarter dropped 6.9% year over year to 209,752 ounces. Output will rise in the December quarter once the company completes the 13th leaching pad at the Herradura mine and speeds up recovery rates, it said.
Byproduct lead production grew 19.0% to 15,561 tonnes, and byproduct zinc output was up 10.5% to 25,340 tonnes.