08:23 AM EDT, 04/10/2024 (MT Newswires) -- Amerigo Resources ( ARREF ) on Wednesday said first-quarter copper production from its Minera Valle Central mine in Chile fell 3.2% but topped guidance.

The company said the mine produced 16-million pounds of copper in the period, down from 16.52-million pounds in the year-prior quarter. Cash costs per pound rose 2.6% to US$1.96, up from US$1.91 a year earlier.

Molybdenum output rose to 0.32-million pounds from 0.3 million pounds.

The company said its copper output was 2% over its guidance targets, while molybdenum production was 4% higher than expectations.

Amerigo reiterated its return of capital strategy, maintaining its C$0.03 per share quarterly dividend and continuing the share buybacks that have repurchased and canceled 20.1-million shares since September, 2021. It said it is committed to returning cash to shareholders but offered no detail on any planned improvements to the plan.

"The current combination of excellent operational results from MVC and strengthening copper prices are similar to 2021. Then, the substantial operational cash flow generated by the company positioned us to refinance and reduce our bank debt and roll out Amerigo's very successful capital return strategy. Today, three years later, Amerigo's considerably stronger balance sheet will allow these anticipated cash flows to be further focused on our capital return strategy," chief executive Aurora Davidson said in a release.

The company's shares closed up C$0.03 to C$1.62 Tuesday on the Toronto Stock Exchange.