Closed gold mine 'lost 2,471 oz'

A gold mine in South Africa which was forced to temporarily cease operations last week has detailed the amount of gold output lost due to the closure.

Mining in Kloof 's number four shaft, owned by Gold Fields, was suspended after an earth tremor caused the death of two employees in a cave-in last Thursday (June 26th).

Spokesperson Andrew Davidson told Reuters that the loss amounted to 2,471 ounces (70 kilograms) of gold.

"We shut the shaft on Thursday and Friday and then lost some production at the entire mine on Friday after we stopped blasting awaiting clearance to resume operations," he said.

The news could act to support gold prices thanks to supply and demand fundamentals - demand for the precious metal is continuing to rise, particularly in developing countries, while the amount miners are able to produce declines year-on-year.

Kloof produced 175,500 ounces in the quarter ending in March, a 24 percent fall from 230,800 ounces in the three months ending in December.

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