RioZim’s diamond production drops 3 pc
Diamond production at RZM Murowa (Private) Limited, went down by 3 percent to 414 000 carats during the year to December 31, 2023 compared to 426 000 carats recorded during the prior year.
The resources firm is an associate of the listed diversified mining group, RioZim Limited.
This comes as mining activities from pits at the diamond producer, remained suspended and material processed was obtained from the pre-mined low-grade tailings stockpiles.
However, the achieved grades were reduced in the current year due to the inhomogeneity of the stockpiles resulting in lower carats being achieved.
According to an update for the year under review, the group recorded a share of loss from the associate of $5,4 billion in contrast to the share of profit of $102,1 million in the prior year due to the reduced carats in the current year.
Despite the subdued performance, the group is hopeful of improvements in the current year and going forward on the back of current work which includes extending life of pits.
“After the various interventions on the stabilisation of the 500TPH Plant at RZM Murowa in the current year, the key focus is on extending the life of mine.
“Extensive exploration and development work is planned in the ensuing year to delineate more open pit resources to extend the life of the pits and complement the existing stockpiles,” said RioZim in an operational update for the group for the review year.
Overall, RioZim’s total production for the year was 940 kilogrammes, which was a slight 1 percent increase from prior year production of 928 kilogrammes.
According to the group, the subdued production volumes were due to persistent plant breakdowns largely experienced at Cam & Motor Mine, which struggled with breakdowns in its milling section resulting in reduced throughput.
Dalny remained under full care and maintenance during the year. The gold price maintained its growth trajectory from the beginning of the year and averaged US$1 913 per ounce for the year which was an 8 percent increase from the prior year’s average price of US$1 766 per ounce.
The improvement in gold production and gold prices increased the group’s revenue during the year to $216,1 billion compared to $20,6 billion achieved in the prior year.
The increase in exchange rates in the current year also contributed to the enormous increase in revenue in local currency terms compared to the prior year.
Notwithstanding the notable growth in production and favourable gold prices, the financial performance was weighed down by the macroeconomic environment which remained turbulent and challenging.
The period was characterised by rising cost of production driven by inconsistent power supply and spiralling exchange rates which subsisted throughout the year. Resultantly, the group recorded a net loss for the year, widening to $95 billion from $20 billion in the prior year period.-ebusiness
