Over the quarter to end-September Metals X achieved a number of corporate landmarks, while its joint venture Renison tin mine hit a quarterly production record of 1,831 tonnes of tin-in-concentrate. With A$133 million in cash and working capital at the end of the quarter, the company announced that it would begin paying annual dividends to shareholders equivalent to 30% of net profits. The company’s annual general meeting will vote on a proposal for a 1 or 4 share consolidation. Metals X has also been added to the S&P ASX 300 index from last month.
Over recent years the 50:50 Bluestone Mines Tasmania venture has invested heavily in mine development at Renison, but investment is now tapering off. In the latest quarter the volume of ore mined and processed remained steady, but the average head grade increased to 1.56% tin. The increase in tin concentrate production resulted in a fall in total costs of sales (including capital charges) to A$20,731/tonne.
In a statement the company said that: “operations have matured such that process capacity is no longer dictated by the mine output and increasing ore stocks have been building up ahead of the processing plant. The focus of mining is now on optimisation and grade maximisation whilst maintaining productivity.”
