As Glass Earth seeks to uncover new gold deposits, to either on-sell or expand with joint-venture partners, it has warned of the need for more capital-raising to achieve those aims.
The drain on finances for exploration expenditure has seen several gold prospects ''culled'' from Glass Earth's portfolio, including in Otago and the central volcanic region in the North Island, in order to focus on key targets.
Glass Earth shares were down more than 4%, at a year-low of 11c yesterday, having hit 48c last October.
The $C2.97 million of alluvial (loose) gold revenue from Otago was undermined by increased mining costs, including establishment, commissioning and refurbishment of plant costing $C4.12 million, prompting a before-tax loss of $C1.45 million from the Maniototo mining.
The after-tax loss for the calendar year 2012 was up from $C1.71 million in 2011 to $C11.1 million from the writing off of accumulated exploration costs of $C7.7 million, generally for exploration during 2005-08.
During the calendar year, Glass Earth raised capital of $C5.8 million, and at the end of December had $C2.6 million cash in hand.
Chief executive of Toronto and New Zealand-listed Glass Earth, Simon Henderson, said the exploration industry worldwide had been ''severely diminished by acquisition and merger, dramatically reducing the commitment to greenfields exploration.
''Glass Earth intends to exploit a potential valuable gap by generating and managing the early stages of resource identification and development of world-class gold deposits,'' Mr Henderson said.
While relying on tenements around the Maniototo for cash flow, much of Glass Earth's exploration focus is around the Hauraki region of the central North Island in joint ventures with Newmont Mining Corp on Glass Earth's Waihi West exploration permit.
In a discussion and analysis paper, Glass Earth said the company's efforts ''will depend heavily on how it manages its funding requirements, either through joint venture, placer cash generation or equity fundraising''.
Noting that the global financial crisis was ''not a temporary passing phase'', Glass Earth said the holding costs of some gold targets in the central volcanic region had become too high against the probability of finding enough funds to test them further.
''Similar culling of lesser-ranked targets have been reluctantly made in respect of Otago and Muirs South,'' the report said. Under way in the volcanic region is the prospects WKP, the adjacent Neavesville and Muirs reef, while in Otago the Sparrowhawk and Garibaldi prospects are awaiting funding for drilling programmes.
Aside from ongoing drill testing and sampling around the Ophir gold project in Otago and nearby Garibaldi prospect, Mr Henderson delivered a technical report in February looking at four other Otago and Southland projects, in the valleys of Manuherikia, Maniototo and Waikaia, where alluvial gold lies in shallow gravels, 1m-11m below the surface.
Glass Earth has also been granted prospecting permits around North Otago, in the Kakanui and Hawkdun ranges, with stream and soil sampling under way, including at a permit near Moeraki.
