KJMoe sent me this, it could give us an idea on production costs.
Here is an excerpt from Newmont Gold where Ronald Atwood was supposed to reside. This was their report for their Peru site and gives a little bit of info on cost of production ect..
Peru
The year was a pivotal one for Minera Yanacocha. Annual production topped a million ounces
for the first time and total reserves increased 127 percent to 13.9 million ounces (7.1 million
equity ounces). In response to a court ruling, which has been appealed to the Peruvian
Supreme Court, Newmont also increased its holding in Yanacocha to 51.35 percent from 38
percent.
Located at 14,000 feet in the Andes Mountains of northern Peru, Minera Yanacocha is Latin
America's leading gold producer with production of 1.05 million ounces, up 30 percent from
1996. Newmont's equity share of 530,900 ounces was up 72 percent. Total cash costs of
$95 an ounce were among the lowest in the world and down $12 from the prior year.
Yanacocha's porous ore allows for high gold recovery using heap leaching without crushing.
Costs also benefit from a low waste-to-ore ratio.
During 1997, $113.7 million was invested to develop a third leach pad, a second
Merrill-Crowe gold recovery plant and a fourth mine, Cerro Yanacocha. Capital expenditures
of $85 million are planned for 1998 to sustain annual production above one million ounces for
years to come. After depletion, 7.8 million ounces were added to reserves from the Yanacocha
Sur and Oeste deposits and a portion of the newly-discovered La Quinua deposit. An
optimization study is under way to determine the most economic plan for future production.
Minera Yanacocha's workforce of 337 employees and 3,775 contractors is drawn largely from
surrounding towns; over 95 percent are Peruvian.
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