Newmont Cuts 2026 Gold Cost Outlook to About $1,520 an Ounce

Newmont has improved its 2026 outlook for gold all-in sustaining costs to approximately $1,520 per ounce, a roughly 10% reduction from the guidance it gave at the beginning of the year. The revision was disclosed with the company’s October 22 third-quarter results and follows a quarter in which Newmont produced about 1.3 million ounces of gold. 23

The lower outlook is consequential because it changes the company’s expected cost base for the full year without changing its stated production and capital plans. Management said continued operational execution, disciplined cost management and stronger realised prices for copper, silver and other co-products enabled the revision. That wording matters: the cited cost measure is gold all-in sustaining cost on a by-product basis, meaning that revenue from metals produced alongside gold contributes to the calculation. It is not solely a measure of mine-site gold operating performance. 3

Newmont reported third-quarter gold all-in sustaining costs of $1,454 per ounce on that basis, below its revised full-year forecast. The quarter also included production of 23,000 tonnes of copper and 11 million ounces of silver, commodities that can support the by-product calculation when prices and output are favourable. 3 A full-year cost improvement therefore reflects both management’s operating measures and the contribution of those co-products, rather than establishing that gold production alone has become structurally cheaper.

The company’s quarterly gold output was broadly consistent with the second quarter, according to management’s earnings commentary. It is nevertheless relying on a stronger final period to finish the year: Newmont expects fourth-quarter gold production of 1.4 million ounces, which it says would be its strongest quarter of 2026. Four managed operations are expected to drive the increase. 23

That expectation is now a key operating test of the maintained annual plan. Newmont said it remains on track to meet full-year production and capital targets, but the projected fourth-quarter acceleration has yet to occur. Management also cautioned that the timing and severity of weather effects could influence fourth-quarter production and costs. 3 The revised cost outlook will be more durable if the anticipated volume increase arrives without an offsetting rise in spending or operational disruption.

Financially, the third quarter supplied considerable support for the company’s position. Newmont generated $2.8 billion of cash flow from operations after working capital and $1.9 billion of free cash flow during the quarter, while adjusted net income reached $2.20 a share. Through the first nine months of 2026, free cash flow totalled $7.3 billion, matching approximately the amount generated during all of 2025, according to its chief financial officer. 2 Newmont also returned about $1.9 billion to shareholders through dividends and share repurchases since its previous earnings call. 2

The cost revision thus improves the near-term financial framework around Newmont’s existing plan, rather than signaling a higher production target. It also arrives as the company advances the Red Chris Block Cave expansion in British Columbia. Newmont expects a funding decision early next year; construction could ramp up in 2027, with commercial production targeted for 2033. 2 That longer-dated project does not affect the 2026 target, but it underscores why sustained cash generation and cost control are strategically relevant.

For the remainder of the year, the central question is whether Newmont can translate its expected 1.4-million-ounce fourth quarter into delivery against the full-year plan while preserving the improved $1,520-per-ounce cost outlook. The third-quarter update offers stronger expected margins, but its support from co-product prices means both operational delivery and commodity conditions will remain important to the final result.