Companies: POG   

Russian gold producer Peter Hambro Mining lifted production nine per cent to 134,300 oz in the first half of this year.

Directors of the AIM-quoted company say it is ‘on track’ to meet its 2008 production target of 350,000 to 400,000 oz of gold after increasing output from its Pokrovskiy mine from 116,800 oz to 127,800 oz in the six months to June, although the average grade declined from 3.6 to 3.2 grammes of gold per tonne of ore. A new operation at Pioneer went into production after expected teething troubles and yielded an initial 3,600 oz of gold, while Peter Hambro’s Omchak joint venture produced around 8,400 oz and alluvial gold production reached 4,800 oz.

The company says its average realised gold sale price for the period rose some 35 per cent to $901 an ounce, and unit operating costs remained ‘in line with Russian inflation’. Last month, Peter Hambro, which has appointed former armed forces chief Lord Guthrie to the board, led a consortium investing £40 million into Toronto-listed Rusoro Mining, with gold-producing and exploration assets in politically sensitive Venezuela.

A rip-roaring stock market success from their 130p float in 2002 to £17.10 in May 2006, Peter Hambro shares have subsequently retreated from that and now trade at £10.94, up 9p this morning, valuing the company at nearly £88 million. However, Peter Hambro and his colleagues are reputed to have good connections in influential Russian circles, which ought to reduce the perceived political risk of operating under the Putin regime, and the shares should outperform several others in the sector.  

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Peter Hambro Mining	AIM	£174.69m	215.25p	31.25p
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Other company articles:
Output rises at Peter Hambro			21/07/2008
Exploration Insights			28/04/2008
P. Hambro sees more growth			21/04/2008
Output cheer from Peter Hambro			24/01/2008
Exploration Insights			05/10/2007