Gold miners cash in: Lundin’s record quarter kicks off Q3 season
Lundin Gold’s Fruta del Norte mine produced a record 153,736 ounces in the third quarter and sold gold at an average $4,299 an ounce, up from $3,634 a year earlier.
Third-quarter production season has started, and the first big number is a record. Lundin Gold’s Fruta del Norte mine in Ecuador produced 153,736 ounces of gold in the quarter, its strongest ever, according to Mining Weekly.
The quarter in numbers
| Measure | Q3 2026 |
|---|---|
| Gold produced | 153,736 oz (record) |
| Grade | 10.1 g/t |
| Gold sold | 148,326 oz |
| Average realised price | $4,299/oz (Q3 2025: $3,634/oz) |
| 2026 production guidance | 475,000–525,000 oz (on track) |
As reported by Mining Weekly, 9 October 2026.
Why the realised price matters
A miner’s realised price is the average it actually received for the gold it sold, which can differ from the spot price because sales happen across the quarter. Lundin’s rose from $3,634 to $4,299 an ounce year on year — an 18% increase on every ounce sold, with no change to the mine itself. At 148,326 ounces, that works out to roughly $638 million of gold sold in the quarter (our arithmetic from the reported figures, not a reported revenue number).
That is the basic operating leverage of a gold miner. Much of the cost of running a mine is fixed: the same tunnels, mill and workforce whether gold is $3,600 or $4,300. So when the price rises, most of the increase falls through to the margin. A 10.1 g/t grade also helps — that is high for an underground mine, and every extra gram in a tonne of ore is gold that costs very little more to recover.
Not every miner is in the same position
Higher prices lift every producer’s revenue, but costs are rising too. The same day Lundin reported its record, Caledonia Mining cut its production guidance and raised its cost outlook — the other side of the story, which we cover in Not every gold miner is winning. High prices are also making miners more willing to spend on growth, as Fortuna’s $200M Senegal deal shows.
What to watch as results come in
- Realised price against spot. It shows how well each company captured the quarter’s prices.
- All-in sustaining costs (AISC). The fullest common measure of what an ounce costs to produce, and the number that determines the margin.
- Guidance. Whether producers hold, raise or cut their full-year targets with one quarter left.
For where the gold price stands today, see the live gold price.
Every figure here is as reported by the publications listed under Sources, at the time they reported it. Prices move; the live gold price has the current one. Nothing on this page is investment advice.
Sources 1
- Lundin Gold’s Fruta del Norte mine delivers its strongest-ever quarterly production Mining Weekly · 9 Oct 2026