Grasberg is the world's biggest gold mine again, but Newmont, the biggest producer, owns most of the biggest mines

摘要

With the 2001 operating results now in from all the leading gold miners, Grasberg, in Indonesia, has once again emerged as the largest gold mine in the world.The year was a triumph in terms of production for this vast copper/gold open pit, as it increased output by over 1.1 Moz, or 48 percent, to a record 3.5 Moz and entrenched its number one position.The principal reason for the dramatic increase was an improvement in head grade, but higher mill throughput also contributed. The head grade averaged 1.41 g/t during the year, compared with 1.10 g/t in 2000.Lower grades were mined in the final quarter of 2001 and manager Freeport-McMoRan Copper & Gold has warned that this situation will continue until later in 2002, depressing gold output for this year.