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AREQUIPA, Peru -(Dow Jones)- South Africa's Gold Fields Ltd. (GFI) said Wednesday that it plans to present the environmental impact study for its Chucapaca gold project in Peru in the second quarter of 2012. Gold Fields's South American head Juan Luis Kruger said during a presentation at the Perumin mining conference that the company plans to complete Chucapaca's feasibility study also in the second quarter of 2012. He said that the approval of Chucapaca's environmental impact study, a key permit required to develop projects, is expected in the first quarter of 2013. Construction is slated to begin in 2013 and production will start in 2015, Kruger said. Gold Fields has a 51% stake in the project while Compania de Minas Buenaventura SAA (BVN) holds a 49% stake. Chucapaca has estimated gold resources of 5.6 million gold equivalent ounces. Kruger said a new resource update is expected soon. Gold Fields's only producing mine in South America is Cerro Corona, located in northern Peru. Kruger told reporters that Cerro Corona is expected to produce 360,000 to 380,000 ounces of gold equivalent in 2011 and 320,000 to 340,000 ounces in 2012. "When we go deeper in the pit the grades begin to fall," Kruger said. Copyright © 2011 Dow Jones Newswires