Australia to propose tax incentives for critical minerals
The proposed law will set up a tax incentive worth 10% of relevant processing and refining costs for 31 critical minerals.
Australia’s Newcrest Mining on Thursday reported a 17% sequential drop in first-quarter gold production, hurt by planned maintenance shutdowns at its mines, but said a rebound in the December quarter would help it meet its annual forecast.
The country’s largest gold miner said output from its key Cadia mine in New South Wales and the Lihir mine in Papua New Guinea slipped by more than a fifth each in the quarter.
The company said weather also played spoilsport at Lihir as the La Niña weather pattern in the Pacific led to drought conditions that limited water supply and restricted plant throughput.
Total production of the precious metal fell to 527,115 ounces (oz) in the three months to September as a result, compared with 637,032 oz in the June quarter and a UBS estimate of 557,000 oz.
The company’s quarterly copper output declined to 32,459 tonnes from 38,671 tonnes in the June quarter.
“We expect gold and copper production to be higher in the December quarter on lower planned maintenance and remain on track to meet fiscal 2023 guidance,” Chief Executive Officer Sandeep Biswas said.
Gold miners have already had a volatile 2022, as bullion prices were swayed by global central banks raising interest rates and the fallout of the Russia-Ukraine crisis.
(By Shashwat Awasthi and Archishma Iyer; Editing by Devika Syamnath and Anil D’Silva)
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