The September 2010 issue of the Gold Mine Cost Report, published by ABN AMRO Bank and VM Group Haliburton Mineral Services, examines the changes in gold mine production cash costs in Q2 2010. This issue shows how growth in average gold mining cash costs slowed to 1.8%, to $558/oz, which was the smallest quarter-on-quarter increase since Q1 09.

On a year-on-year basis, the average cash cost for gold mines escalated by 18.4%, from $471/oz in Q2 09, down from 21% in Q1 10 vs. Q1 09. This slowdown in cash costs marks a modest improvement in operating efficiencies in South Africa, Oceania and North America, which offset advances in Latin America and elsewhere. However, South African gold mine production remains much more expensive per ounce of gold than anywhere else, with upper 9th decile costs at $927/oz. This is unlikely to change in the foreseeable future.