Acacia Mining saw a bounce in production last quarter, the company said this morning, as a takeover battle for the gold firm heated up.
Acacia, which mines in Tanzania, said that production shot up by 51 per cent compared to the three months prior.
Read more: Shareholder Barrick undermined our efforts to negotiate $190bn tax bill, Acacia says
Gold output hit 158,774 ounces in the three months to the end of June. Net cash rose by $27m to $125m.
Shares rose on the news this morning, hitting highs of 177.8p, or up 4.1 per cent.
It comes a day after a significant shareholder came out against a takeover bid by Barrick Gold.
Barrick, which already owns around 64 per cent on Acacia, has proposed a $787m bid for the firm.
It hopes the deal would help end a tax dispute with the Tanzanian regime of President John Magufuli.
Magufuli claims that Acacia owes $190bn in back taxes, and has slapped the firm with an export ban on a gold ore.
Acacia has complained that Barrick went over its head to negotiate with Magufuli, and cut it out of the process.