Iamgold Q4 gold production down 20 percent

Iamgold Corp. (IMG-T) said on Monday its quarterly gold production fell 20 percent, but flagged a near doubling in capital spending for 2012.

The Toronto-based mid-tier gold mining company's gold production for the fourth quarter came in at 253,000 attributable ounces.

The company set a capex budget of $880 million US for 2012. In 2011, the projected budget was $460 million.

In 2011, the company produced 4.6 million kilograms of niobium within the guidance range of $15 to $17 per kilogram, compared with 4.4 million kilograms produced at an average margin of $18 per kilogram in 2010, it said in a statement.

Iamgold expects attributable gold production for 2012 to be 840,000 to 910,000 ounces at a cash cost of $670 to $695 per ounce, it said in a statement.

The company also expects to produce 4.6 million to 5.1 million kilograms of niobium in 2012 at a margin of between $15 and $17 per kilogram.