Shares of Eldorado Gold plunged 10% to $31.00 after the Canadian miner reported a Q3 earnings miss and gutted its 2026 production outlook, raising fresh questions about whether its marquee Greek copper-gold project is a wealth creator or a capital sinkhole.
• The Numbers Fell Short Across the Board. Revenue came in at $511.9 million, well below the $674.5 million Wall Street expected, while adjusted earnings of $0.49 per share missed the $0.81 consensus.
Production slipped to 106,351 ounces, down from 115,190 a year earlier. Even with gold prices running near record levels — the realized price hit $4,326/oz versus $3,527 a year ago — the company couldn't convert that tailwind into the earnings investors were pricing in.
• The Guidance Cut Is the Real Damage. Eldorado slashed its full-year 2026 gold production target to 425,000–475,000 ounces from 495,000–600,000 ounces — a reduction of up to 21% at the midpoint. Kisladag is producing lower-grade ore, and the Olympias expansion has been pushed to Q1 2027.
Skouries itself now expects just 10,000–35,000 ounces of gold this year, versus the prior 60,000–100,000-ounce target. Fewer ounces produced means less cash flowing in precisely when the balance sheet needs it most.
• Skouries Keeps Getting More Expensive. Project capital for Skouries has ballooned to roughly $1.425 billion, up from $1.315 billion , itself already inflated by a $143 million revision announced in early 2025. Including McIlvenna Bay's $23 million overrun, the total extra bill across both growth projects is $183 million.
New CEO Christian Milau conceded the ramp-up "has taken longer and cost more than we expected." For shareholders, every dollar of overrun is a dollar delayed from dividends or debt repayment.
• Management Asks for Patience Into 2027. Eldorado says both new projects will reach full capacity around mid-2027 and pledges to prioritize balance-sheet strength and shareholder returns.
Commercial production at Skouries and McIlvenna Bay is still targeted for late Q4 2026. But the credibility gap is widening: Skouries has now breached its budget multiple times, and each revision pushes the payoff further out. Until management proves it can deliver steady ounces at a predictable cost, the stock is likely to trade as a show-me story — not a growth premium.