Salares Norte lifts Gold Fields: production and capex implications for mine planners
Reviewed by Tom Sullivan
First reported on MINING.com
30 Second Briefing
Salares Norte in Chile is set to exceed 2026 guidance and underpin Gold Fields’ push towards the top of its 2.4–2.6 Moz production target, offsetting weaker output at Gruyere in Western Australia and Tarkwa in Ghana, where high turnover, fleet under-utilisation and potential loss of the licence threaten volumes. Harsh Atacama winter conditions that halted Lundin Mining’s Caserones and briefly Los Pelambres have not derailed Salares Norte’s ramp-up this year, after frozen pipes did so in 2024. Stronger gold prices and volumes have cut net debt 34% to $1.3bn and support a Windfall capex envelope of $1.7–1.9bn, with projected all-in costs of $2,075–2,300/oz pending EIA approval and FID.
Technical Brief
- Salares Norte only reached commercial production in 2024 after relocating endangered short‑tailed chinchillas from the pit area.
- In 2024, early sub‑zero conditions froze surface piping at Salares Norte during the development‑to‑ramp‑up transition, delaying throughput.
- Gruyere’s guidance risk is linked to declining productivity and mining fleet under‑utilisation driven by high operator turnover.
- Tarkwa’s output risk is compounded by potential loss of the mining licence next year, beyond current operational underperformance.
- Net debt dropped from $1.98 billion to $1.3 billion year‑on‑year, despite a $1.23 billion final dividend payment.
- Net debt to adjusted EBITDA improved from 0.26× to 0.19×, materially increasing balance‑sheet capacity for project capex.
- Free cash flow before discretionary spend is forecast to roughly double to $2.39–2.64 billion, supporting self‑funded project pipelines.
- Windfall, planned at ~300,000 oz/year, awaits EIA approval before final investment decision and execution schedule are locked.
- All‑in sustaining costs at Windfall are projected at $1,800–2,000/oz, with total all‑in costs $2,075–2,300/oz including growth capital.
Our Take
Gold Fields appears frequently in our gold-price coverage, including July and August 2026 futures pieces, so the strong Salares Norte contribution and 2026 guidance come against a backdrop of volatile bullion trading that has whipsawed sector equity valuations.
The recent note on Liebherr-Australia supplying large hydraulic excavators to Gold Fields’ Gruyere mine in Western Australia suggests the group is simultaneously refreshing its Australian fleet while ramping Salares Norte in Chile, which may help sustain the low net debt-to-EBITDA ratio even as capex cycles overlap.
With Lundin Mining’s Caserones and Antofagasta’s Los Pelambres also in northern Chile, the Atacama region is becoming a dense cluster of large gold–copper–molybdenum operations in our database, which typically tightens competition for skilled labour and water rights and can influence operating cost baselines across all three companies.
Prepared by collating external sources, AI-assisted tools, and Geomechanics.io’s proprietary mining database, then reviewed for technical accuracy & edited by our geotechnical team.
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