Comstock reports loss cut, better margins

Comstock Mining, Inc., of Virginia City reported Tuesday a quarterly net income loss on June 30 of $220,000, down from a loss of $7.2 million in the same quarter of 2014.

For the first half of 2015, the gold and silver mining company reported, revenues were $11.4 million, which was a 2 percent drop from the same period the previous year. It pegged the decrease to lower gold prices. It reported producing 9,270 ounces of gold and 116,594 ounces of silver during the period.

Comstock, which trades on the NASDAQ exchange under the symbol LODE, said costs applicable to mining revenue were $6.9 million for the first half of the year, a $3.3 million reduction from the same period in 2014. The firm noted that amounted to a 33 percent cut and was part of operational cost-cutting efforts. It said the efforts resulted in a 39 percent gross margin over the first half of 2015.

The company said it expects cash costs of mining revenue are going to stay below $650 per ounce of gold during the third quarter. The LODE stock price closed Tuesday at 45 cents per share, down three cents.