Sumatra Copper & Gold is continuing to improve productivity at its Tembang Gold-Silver Project in southern Sumatra, Indonesia. During the June quarter the company produced 7602 gold equivalent ounces, up from 6916 in the previous quarter.

This total comprised 6387 ounces of gold, up from 5406 ounces in the March quarter, and 91,012 ounces of silver, down from 121,569 ounces in the previous quarter. There was an increased contribution to the quarterly total from the Belinau underground mine.

The company says productivity improvements are resulting from the availability of additional development faces with the June quarter gold equivalent production being equal to an annual rate of 35,000 gold equivalent ounces.

The mill feed gold grade for the June quarter was 2.65 grams/tonne (g/t) gold equivalent, up from the previous quarter of 2.44 g/t.

Sumatra has completed development and stoping on Level 3 East and West in the flagship Belinau underground mine with decline development extended to Level 4. This month the underground contractor is starting to focus on accelerating decline development to Level 5 and Level 6.

During the June quarter underground pumping systems were established, effectively controlling water inflows.

Apart from the Tembang operation, Sumatra has an extensive exploration portfolio with projects ranging from brownfield, near-production opportunities to strategically located greenfield holdings.