ASX Round-Up: Syrah Resources and OceanaGold in the Spotlight

For investors focused on the resource space, a good way to track companies listed in Australia is to look at the S&P/ASX 300 (INDEXASX:XKO). The index includes all S&P/ASX 200 (INDEXASX:XJO) companies as well as about 100 smaller-cap companies, and as of April 2015 accounted for 74 percent of the Australian equities market. Specifically, the S&P/ASX 300 Metal & Mining (INDEXASX:XMM) division is a great source for companies to watch.
The Investing News Network is thus profiling companies on the S&P/ASX 300 Metal & Mining index. This week’s companies are Syrah Resources (ASX:SYR) and OceanaGold (ASX:OGC,TSX:OGC).

Syrah Resources is a diversified miner with a portfolio of exploration projects in Africa and Australia. The company’s main focus is its flagship Balama graphite–vanadium project in Mozambique. Syrah provided a project development update for Balama in September, with production from the project still on track for Q1 2017.
The company also completed a fully underwritten AU$211-million capital raising in September to advance Balama, which is set to be the world’s largest graphite producer once it begins operations.

OceanaGold is a gold and copper producer. It has long-standing operations in New Zealand, and its flagship Didipio mine is in the Philippines; it began commercial production in 2013. The company grew its portfolio this year, acquiring Romarco Minerals in July and with it the US-based Haile gold mine. The business combination put the company in line to become the world’s lowest-cost gold producer.
On Thursday, OceanaGold put out its financial and operational results for the third quarter of the year, including data for the first nine months of 2015. The company produced 297,663 ounces of gold and 17,518 tonnes of copper during 2015’s first nine months; that includes 120,664 ounces of gold and 5,219 tonnes of copper in Q3.
 
Securities Disclosure: I, Kristen Moran, hold no direct investment interest in any company mentioned in this article. 
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