Centamin's 4Q Operating Profit More Than Doubles

(REUTERS) -- Miner Centamin, which operates the first modern gold mine in Egypt, more than doubled its fourth-quarter operating profit and said it expects 2012 production to rise by more than 20 percent from last year, with cash costs easing.

Operating profit for the final three months of 2011 came in at $37.5 million, marginally below some analysts' expectations, but up from $18.4 million a year previously.

Egypt-focused Centamin, which announced a 35 percent jump in 2011 gold production to 202,698 ounces earlier this month, said on Monday it expected 2012 production to hit 250,000 ounces.

Cash costs are expected to dip to $550 per ounce this year from $556 over 2011, but will be above $473 hit in the fourth quarter.

Centamin's London-listed shares, which have risen 13 percent in the last month, were up 1.5 percent to 97.7 pence at 0808 GMT, valuing the firm at about 1.06 billion pounds ($1.66 billion).