The Rio 2016 Summer Olympic Games is being billed as the “Biggest Sporting Event on the Planet.” It’s difficult to argue against that claim as more than 11,000 athletes will be competing in 28 sports and 42 disciplines for the event’s ultimate prize: the gold medal.

The “podium value” of the gold medal at the Rio 2016 Olympics is approximately $564, based on the price of gold at $43.76 per gram and the price of sterling silver at 61 cents per gram, as of Thursday. This is in line with the 2014 Sochi Winter Olympic Games (about $566, even though that medal was 31 grams heavier). However, it is a long way off from the approximate $708 record price of the 2012 London gold medal, due to the record high price of gold and silver at the time.

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The Rio 2016 Olympics gold medal (Photo credit: Rio 2016/Alex Ferro)

If the entire medal was made of gold it would be valued at nearly $22,000, which is why 1912 was the last time all-gold medals were awarded.

A total of 2,488 medals were produced for the Rio 2016 Olympics (812 gold, 812 silver and 864 bronze) by the Mint of Brazil. All of the medals are the same size and weight, with a diameter of 85 millimeters and a weight of 500 grams, making them the heaviest medals in the history of the Summer Olympics and tied for the largest medal in the Summer games. At least three Winter Olympic medals were larger and heavier.

Each of the 812 Olympic gold medals is plated with six grams of gold (the minimum required by the International Olympic Committee) with 99.9 percent purity. The remaining 494 grams is made of silver with 92.5 percent purity (the standard for sterling silver), according to the Mint of Brazil. The purity silver standard also is a minimum IOC requirement.

Each of the 812 silver medals contains 500 grams of sterling silver. The podium value is about $305. The 864 bronze medals contain 475 grams of copper (95%) and 25 grams of zinc (5%). The bronze medals have little intrinsic value.

For the first time in history, according to Rio Olympic officials, the medals are designed in a curved dome-shape, higher in the center, so the thickness ranges from 6 mm to 11 mm.

Sustainable Design

The medals were produced with methods that the Rio 2016 Olympic officials described as “symbols of sustainability and accessibility.” More than 30 percent of the silver used in the production of the medals are recycled from mirrors, waste solders and X-ray plates. The gold is mined entirely free of mercury. More than 40 percent of the copper used in the production of the bronze medals came from the industrial waste of the Mint of Brazil through a process that was developed internally.

(Photo credit: Rio 2016/Alex Ferro)

The medals come with a sustainably sourced wooden box with a miniature sculpture of the Rio 2016 logo (Photo credit: Rio 2016/Alex Ferro)

Even the ribbons that are attached to the medals were well thought out with half of the materials woven from recycled polyester polyethylene terephthalate (PET) yarn (recycled post consumer polyester made from bottles). Each medal comes with a sustainably sourced wooden box, certified by the Forest Stewardship Council, that contains a miniature sculpture of the Rio 2016 logo.

The front of each medal has the Rio 2016 logo framed by laurel leaves (which were given as awards for the ancient Olympics). The reverse reveals the traditional etching of Nike NKE -0.38%, the Greek goddess of victory, in the foreground and the Greek Panathnaic Stadium in the background. Above Nike is the engraving of “XXXI Olympiad” and the Olympic Rings. Adding a personal touch, the name of the event in which the medal was awarded is engraved by laser along its outer edge.

Paralympic medals with new sound innovation

The 2,642 Paralympic award medals were made by the Mint of Brazil and are of the same weight, dimensions and materials as the Olympic medals. The design is highlighted by a trail of seeds that wraps from the front to the reverse side of the medal. Olympic officials say the seeds represent “the courage, persistence and development of athletes.” The Rio 2016 Paralympic Games logo is on both sides of the medal, with Braille inscriptions on the front side.

The front and reverse sides of the three Rio 2016 Paralympic medals (Photo credit: Rio 2016/Alex Ferro)

For the first time the medals come with sound, so visually impaired athletes can identify the medal’s color. Metal ball bearings were placed inside the medals which rattle when shaken. The gold medal makes the loudest noise and the bronze the weakest.

More than 100 employees in various professional fields—including, art, sustainability, engineering and production—were involved in the making of the 5,130 medals.

(Kitco News) – Yamana Gold Inc. (TSX: YRI; NYSE: AUY) reported late Thursday that the company returned to second-quarter profitability as production and prices rose.

Officials also said Yamana has agreed to sell the Mercedes mine in Mexico to Premier Gold Mines and has decided to recommission the C1 Santa Luz project in Brazil.

Net earnings in the second quarter were $32.9 million, or 3 cents per share, a turnaround from a net loss of $7 million, or a penny, for the same three months in 2015.

Adjusted earnings from continuing operations were $5.4 million, or a penny per share. By contrast, the company posted an adjusted loss of $8.3 million, or penny per share, for the same period of 2015.

Second-quarter gold production was 313,086 ounces, up 7% from 293,707 ounces in the second quarter of 2015. Year-on-year increases at mines included 36% at Jacobina, 19% at Mercedes, 7% at Gualcamayo, 6% at Canadian Malartic, 7% at Pilar and 21% at Fazenda Brasileiro, plus 13,058 ounces from recently acquired Riacho dos Machados. These were partly offset by decreases at Chapada of 43% and Minera Florida of 8%.

Yamana Gold (NYSE: AUY) – Delayed Quote

Silver output fell to 1.8 million ounces in the April-June period from 2.4 million a year ago, although this was in line with expectations. “Mine sequencing at certain locations continues to extract from areas with lower silver grades,” the company said.

Copper production in the second quarter fell to 23.2 million pounds from 33.6 million a year ago, which the company blamed on poor weather conditions and the unplanned shutdown of the primary gyratory crusher at Chapada.

All-in sustaining costs rose to $964 per ounce of gold from $860 in the year-ago period. On a co-product basis, AISC were $949 per ounce of gold for the second quarter, compared to $941 a year ago. Cash costs were impacted by the troubles at Chapada and foreign-exchange rates, particularly strengthening of the Brazilian real, Canadian dollar and Chilean peso, Yamana said. The company revised its consolidated co-product AISC for 2016 to $880 to $920 an ounce, compared to $868 for 2015.

Meanwhile, the average realized price of gold for the quarter was $1,267 per ounce, up 6% from $1,195 a year ago. The average realized silver price was $16.82 per ounce, up 3% from $16.28. The average copper price fell 23% to $2.12 a pound from $2.75.

Yamana declared a third-quarter dividend of $0.005 per share, with shareholders of record at the close of business on Sept. 30, 2016 entitled to payment on Oct. 14.

“The company continues to focus on operational execution, namely tracking or exceeding operational guidance, as it advances efforts to create further value within its portfolio including the ramp-up of RDM towards expected steady-state production in early 2017, and development of C1 Santa Luz towards production in 2018 and Cerro Moro earlier that year,” Yamana said in its earnings statement. “The company is targeting continuous production growth, and will continue to evaluate opportunities for optimizations and other operational improvements across its portfolio to further increase its production profile.”

The company said it is on track to meet gold and silver production guidance for the year and expects second-half output to be higher than in the first half.

Yamana also said it aims to reduce net debt by at least $300 million by the end of 2017. The company said it expects to do this through “organic generation of cash flow from the growing production profile in the second half of the year, underpinned by higher prevailing gold prices.” Net free cash flow increased 68% year-on-year in the second quarter, Yamana said.

Yamana Gold Announces Sale Of Mercedes Mine

Yamana said it has agreed to sell its interest in the Mercedes mine in Mexico to Premier Gold Mines (TSX: PG) for consideration, in the form of cash and equity securities, valued at $140 million at the time of negotiations.

The deal includes cash of of $122.5 million, approximately 6 million Premier shares, and approximately 3 million Premier share purchase warrants exercisable at C$4.75 per for two years from closing of the transaction.

“The company expects to use the proceeds from the transaction to to reduce the company’s net debt position,” Yamana said.

The deal also calls for Yamana to receive a 1% net smelter return, payable either after six years or once cumulative production from the mine hits 450,000 gold-equivalent ounces, officials said.

Recommissioning of the C1 Santa Luz project in Brazil will help the company replace production from Mercedes beginning in 2018, Yamana said. C1 Santa Luz has proven and probable mineral reserves of 1.2 million ounces of gold. The mine life is forecast at 10 years with average annual production of 114,000 ounces of gold over the first seven years, including over 130,000 ounces in the first full year, Yamana said.

By Allen Sykora of Kitco News; asykora@kitco.com