While year after year the list of top gold producers doesn’t change too much, it is always worth knowing which companies are at the top of the gold producer pyramid. So while it is no surprise that the likes of Barrick Gold, Newmont and Anglogold Ashanti top the 2013 gold producer list, it might be interesting to note that last year, newcomer Sibanye Gold slipped into ninth spot… in its first year of production.
The 2013 Gold and Silver Mining Focus report by Metals Focus has been released. Here is the list of 2013 top gold producers.
Barrick Gold (TSX:ABX, NYSE:ABX)
Barrick Gold produced 7.17 million ounces of gold in 2013, down 3 percent from 2012′s level of 7.42 million ounces. The company expects to produce between 6 million and 6.5 million ounces of gold in 2014, according to its 2013 annual report. Barrick had two top-producing mines in 2013: the Cortez and the Goldstrike mines tied with 0.24 million ounces of production each. The company forecasts lower production in 2014 for the Cortez mine and higher production for the Goldstrike mine.
Newmont (TSX:NMC, NYSE:NEM)
Newmont produced 5.07 million ounces of gold in 2013, an increase of 2 percent over last year’s 4.98 million ounces. The bulk of the company’s gold production in 2013 was from Nevada, where Newmont’s Juniper mill is located, as well as its Phoenix, Carlin North Area and Emigrant production sites. The mills had higher tonnage and grades in 2013, and higher leach production also contributed to the production in Nevada, according to the report. Newmont also has projects on other continents, according to its 2013 annual report.
AngloGold Ashanti (NYSE:AU)
AngloGold Ashanti produced 4.11 million ounces of gold in 2013, up 4 percent from its 2012 output of 3.94 million ounces. The company’s largest production comes from continental Africa, specifically from its Geita mine in Tanzania, where 459,000 ounces were produced in 2013. South Africa was the second most productive area for AngloGold Ashanti in 2013, with the Mponeng mine in West Wits the standout production site with 354,000 million ounces of gold. In its 2013 annual report, AngloGold Ashanti estimates it will produce between 4.2 million and 4.5 million ounces of gold in 2014.
Goldcorp (TSX:G, NYSE:GG)
Goldcorp produced 2.67 million ounces of gold in 2013, up 11 percent from 2.4 million ounces last year. The company expects to produce between 3 million and 3.15 million ounces of gold in 2014. Its top-producing mine for 2013 was the Red Lake mine, which produced 493,000 ounces of gold. Red Lake is located in Ontario, and is one of the world’s most productive gold mines, according to the company’s website.
Kinross (TSX:K,NYSE:KGC)
Kinross produced 2.55 million ounces of gold in 2013, up 5 percent from its 2012 level of 2.42 million ounces. The company expects to produce between 2.5 million and 2.7 million ounces of gold in 2014. Its most productive mine was the Kupol mine in Russia, having produced 550,188 ounces of gold in 2013. The Kupol project is in the Chukotka Autonomous Okrug of the Far East Region of the Russian federation.
Newcrest (TSX:NM, ASX:NCM)
Newcrest produced 2.36 million ounces of gold in 2013, up 14 percent from 2.07 million ounces in 2012. For the 2014 financial year, Newcrest expects to produce between 2 and 2.3 million ounces of gold, according to its 2013 annual report. Its most productive mine in 2013 was the Lihir project in Papua New Guinea, which produced 649,340 ounces of gold. According to the company’s annual report, Lihir is one of the largest gold deposits in the world.
Gold Fields (NYSE:GFI)
Gold Fields produced 1.84 million ounces of gold in 2013, a drop of 40 percent from its 3.08 million ounces of production in 2012. Gold Fields’s top producing mine in 2013 was the Cerro Corona mine in Peru, with 314,000 ounces of gold, according to its 2013 annual report. The company also operates in Australasia, South Africa and West Africa. Gold Fields forecasts production in 2014 of around 2.2 million ounces of gold, according to its annual report.
Polyus (LSE:POLG)
Russia-based gold company Polyus produced 1.65 million ounces of gold in 2013, up 5 percent from its 1.57 million ounces of the metal in 2012. Its top producing mine was Olimpiada, with 691,000 ounces of gold produced there in 2013. Olimpiada is in Eastern Siberia, Russia, and is the company’s largest single operation, according to its website.
Sibanye (NYSE:SBGL)
Sibanye produced 1.43 million ounces of gold in 2013, its first year of production. Sibanye was part of Gold Fields until 2013, and if the two companies are combined, their output increased 6 percent year-over-year, according to Moneyweb. Sibanye’s most productive project was the Driefontein operation, southwest of Johannesburg, South Africa. The mine produced a total of 6 million ounces in 2013.
Harmony Gold (NYSE:HMY)
Harmony produced 1.14 million ounces of gold in 2013, down 10 percent from 1.26 million ounces in 2012. The company expects its production will increase to between 1.3 million and 1.4 million ounces of gold in 2014. Its Target 1 mine – located, like all its projects, in South Africa - was most profitable. Mining strikes in South Africa disrupted the company’s profits and production in 2013, but this situation isn’t expected to recur in the year to come.
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