African gold miner Ashanti Goldfields Ltd on Wednesday reported record gold production of 1.74 million ounces for calendar 2000, up 11 percent on 1999 when company came close to collapse.

Ashanti, Ghana's largest gold miner, also reported a seven percent fall in cash operating costs to $190 per ounce. Fourth-quarter output was almost flat at 438,280 ounces.

Ashanti went to the brink of collapse in 1999 when it suffered huge losses on its hedge book. Last October, it sold half of its prized Geita mine in Tanzania to AngloGold Ltd to shore up its balance sheet.