Fast-growing Agnico-Eagle may boost dividend, still eyes acquisitions
miningweekly.com
By: Liezel Hill
31st July 2009
TORONTO (miningweekly.com) – Toronto-based Agnico-Eagle Mines will consider using some of its growing cash flow to raise its dividend next year, and continues to look for early-stage acquisition opportunities, CEO Sean Boyd said on Thursday.
The company is nearing the final lap of a five-mine construction marathon, which means that capital expenditure commitments should taper off when the fifth new operation, Meadowbank, in Canada, starts up early next year.
Agnico spent $909-million last year, and has budgeted some $550-million in capital expenditure this year, $240-million of which will be spent in the second half.
In 2010, capital spending should decline to less than $300-million.
However, the company will also not be sitting on its hands, as it is already studying expansion opportunities at most of its operations, and this week approved growth projects at both the Goldex mine, in Quebec, and the Pinos Altos operation, in Mexico.
At Goldex, crushing capacity will be increased to 8 000 t/d, from 6 900 t/d, and the company is also looking at opportunities to extend the life of the mine, Boyd said.
At Pinos Altos, Agnico has approved the development of a standalone openpit, heap leach operation on the Creston Mascota deposit, to the north-west of the Pinos Altos gold and silver reserve.
Further, Boyd said the company sees potential for more satellite deposits on the large Pinos Altos land package, as exploration continues to turn up good results.
“There is certainly lots of upside...we are really, in our view, just scratching the surface at Pinos Altos.”
The firm is also studying potential expansions at Meadowbank, as well as the Kittila mine, in Finland, which declared commercial production as of May 1.
Both studies are scheduled for completion by year end.
Agnico expects to produce between 550 000 oz and 575 000 oz of gold in 2009, increasing to 1,2-million ounces next year, to around 1,4-million ounces from 2012 to 2014, as the new mines ramp up.
As far as acquisitions are concerned, the company continues to consider opportunities to add to its project pipeline.
“We are certainly looking at smaller, earlier stage development-potential assets, with a resource on it that we think can be quickly put into a reserve base and then eventually built into a mine over a three to five-year horizon,” Boyd said.
Agnico-Eagle shares jumped 7,44% on Thursday, to C$61,08 apiece by 16:10 in Toronto.
On Wednesday, the company reported second quarter net income of $1,2-million, compared with net income of $8,3-million in the same period a year earlier. |
