China Gold resumes full production in Mongolia, shares rise

China Gold International Resources Corp. Ltd. [CGG-TSX, 2099-HKEx] says the overall operations at its CSH gold mine in inner Mongolia have returned to full production.

The open pit operation at CSH is nearing the end of its lifespan. With the increased pit depth, the stability of the open pit slopes is becoming more and more important in determining the operating plan.

The mining rate at CSH was reduced at the end of the third quarter and in the fourth quarter in order to enhance the management and maintenance of open pit slopes. The work on slope maintenance has been completed and mining activities, including mining, hauling, crushing and heaping have returned to normal operating levels.

“The resumption of full mining activities at CSH Mine has laid a solid foundation for enhancing the company’s financial and production performance in 2024,’’ the company said in a press release.

China Gold shares advanced on the news, rising 2.6% or 15 cents to $5.82. The shares are currently trading in a 52-week range of $7.65 and $4.09.

China Gold is a gold and base metal company incorporated in British Columbia. It also operates the Jiama Copper Gold Polymetallic mine in Tibet.

China Gold recently announced the gradual resumption of certain operations at its Jiama mine following the receipt of approval from the Lhasa Municipal Government. This development was in line with previous announcements in relation to the overflow of the Guolanggou Tailings Dam at Jiama.

The company said the resumption of operations includes the underground void management and the restart of the phase one processing plant with a daily processing capacity of 6,000 tonnes. The company said the tailings produced from processing operations will all be back filled to the underground voids through the backfilling system. China Gold said it has carried out a plan for the full resumption of operations, and the restart of the Phase 1 processing plant is the first step in the overall plan.

“The repair and reinforcement work at the Guolanggou Tailings Dam has been completed, and the safety assessment report has been completed, awaiting acceptance and approval by the government,’’ the company said, adding that the review process of the subsequent tailings discharge plan is occurring simultaneously. “The company will continue to proceed towards the resumption of full production on its discharge capacity at the Jiama Mine,’’ China Gold said.

In the first nine months of 2023, China Gold said its gold production fell by 32% to 122,463 ounces from 178,844 ounces in the same period in 2022. Total copper production was down 69% to 44 million pounces from 142.3 million pounds

The company said the decrease in production and profit was mainly attributed to the suspension of operations at the Jiama Mine since March 27, 2023 due to the overflow at the Guolanggou tailings pond. As a result of the suspension, the company did not record any product sales form the mine during the second and third quarter of 2023, with the exception of a minor amount of molybdenum.