Driller says past quarter is ‘most  promising  start  to  any  fiscal  year  ever’

Creative Commons image by Steve Snodgrass.

West African based drilling company, Geodrill (TSE:GEO), says Q1 revenue increased by 20% and metres drilled were up by 7% compared to Q1 2016.

Geodrill stock was up 1.18% to 2.15. It’s 52-week range is $1.10 to $2.82.

“Building on a highly successful 2016, this year has begun in earnest with significant multi‐rig contracts with top tier producers following a successful bidding season,” says Dave Harper, President and CEO of Geodrill Limited.

The company says it invested $1.8M into CAPEX. The company won new contracts with Ashanti Gold in Ghana and in Guimbi Gold SARL in Mali.

“The first quarter has been very busy preparing and mobilizing additional rigs and equipment, investing significantly in safety and skills training to meet the increased activity. As a result, costs increased in the early part of the quarter, however costs and margins normalized by quarter end. This has been our most promising start to any fiscal year ever.”

Last year was not a good year for drillers overall. According to a report by SNL Metals and Mining, 2016 exploration budgets at the 1,580 companies covered by the study totalled $6.9 billion, the lowest in 11 years.

Creative Commons image by Steve Snodgrass