Acacia Mining tumbles after lowering full-year guidance

Shares in Acacia Mining plunged over 13% early on Tuesday after the miner revealed its production in the third quarter was weaker than expected and lowered its full-year guidance.

The London-listed company said production in the third quarter amounted to approximately 164,000 ounces of gold, lower than originally anticipated, as production at its Tanzania-based Bulyanhulu and Buzwagi mines was hit by a number of short-term issues.

"I am personally very disappointed in the operational performance in the third quarter, which saw a succession of small issues impact Buzwagi and the ramp up at Bulyanhulu,” said group chief executive Brad Gordon.

“We have addressed each of these to ensure they do not impact future performance.”

In a trading update released on Tuesday, the FTSE 250 group said it expects production to improve in the fourth quarter, although it anticipates full-year production to be broadly flat compared with the 718,851 ounces delivered in 2014 and below its previous guidance for 750,000-800,000 ounces.

Meanwhile, Acacia said it was implementing new measures to save money, due to the lower gold price environment.

Acacia shares were down 14.33% to 223.00p at 0833 BST on Tuesday.