GOLDEN, Colo., April 14, 2015 /PRNewswire/ -- Golden Minerals
Company (NYSE MKT: AUMN; TSX: AUM) ("Golden Minerals" or "the
Company") announces preliminary results of mining activities at the
Velardena Properties for the quarter ending March 31, 2015.
During the first quarter 2015, Golden Minerals generated
concentrates containing approximately 94,000 payable ounces of
silver and 460 payable ounces of gold, totaling 126,000 payable
ounces of silver equivalents1. Previous guidance
indicated first quarter 2015 payable output of between 100,000 and
150,000 ounces of silver equivalents. The Company also
generated approximately 270,000 payable pounds of lead and 365,000
payable pounds of zinc in the first quarter 2015.
Cash costs per payable silver ounce, net of by-product credits
were approximately $23.50 in the
first quarter 2015 and are trending down, in line with
previously-published guidance for the quarter of between
$20 and $30 per payable silver ounce,
net of by-product credits. See "Non-GAAP Financial Measures"
below.
Average grades of material processed during the first quarter
2015 were 178 grams per tonne (gpt) silver and 2.7 gpt gold, an
improvement over December 2014
average grades of 127 gpt silver and 1.3 gpt gold. Grade
improved as the proportion of mined material delivered from stopes
increased while the proportion of material delivered from access
drives decreased, resulting in decreased dilution. The
Company expects continued grade improvement during the second
quarter 2015 as the proportion of stoped material increases and the
mine continues to focus on dilution control procedures.
The sulfide mill continued to ramp up during the first quarter
2015 and averaged approximately 260 tonnes per day (tpd) in March,
near its full capacity of 285 tpd.
Previous full-year guidance remains unchanged, with 2015 output
expected at between 0.8 and 1.0 million payable silver equivalent
ounces1 and cash costs per payable silver ounce, net of
byproduct credits, of between $12.00 and
$15.00. Figures assume prices of $17 per ounce silver and $1,250 per ounce gold.
1 Payable silver equivalent ounces include silver and
gold but exclude lead and zinc, with silver equivalents calculated
at 70:1 silver to gold.
About Golden Minerals
Golden Minerals is a Delaware
corporation based in Golden,
Colorado. The Company is primarily focused on mining its
Velardena Properties and the exploration of properties in
Argentina and Mexico.
Non-GAAP Financial Measures
Cash costs per payable silver ounce, net of by-product credits
is a non GAAP financial measure calculated by the Company as set
forth below, and may not be comparable to similar measures reported
by other companies.
Cash costs per payable silver ounce, net of by-product credits,
were calculated based on the mining plan and include all direct and
indirect costs associated with the physical activities that
generate concentrate products for sale to customers, including
mining to gain access to mineralized materials, mining of
mineralized materials and waste, milling, third-party related
treatment, refining and transportation costs, on-site
administrative costs and royalties. Cash costs do not include
depreciation, depletion, amortization, exploration expenditures,
reclamation and remediation costs, sustaining capital, financing
costs, income taxes, or corporate general and administrative costs
not directly or indirectly related to the Velardena Properties.
By-product credits include revenues from gold, lead and zinc
contained in the products sold to customers. Cash costs,
after by-product credits, were divided by the quantity of payable
silver sold in the period to determine cash costs, after by-product
credits, per payable ounce of silver. Cost of sales
calculated in accordance with GAAP, which includes adjustments for
inventory changes and excludes net revenue from by-products and
third-party treatment, refining and transportation costs, which are
reported as part of revenue in accordance with GAAP], is the most
comparable financial measure to cash costs.
Forward-Looking Statements
This press release contains forward-looking statements within
the meaning of Section 27A of the Securities Act and Section 21E of
the Exchange Act and applicable Canadian securities legislation,
including statements regarding including the Company's anticipated
improvement in average grades of material processed in the second
quarter 2015 and guidance regarding 2015 payable silver equivalent
output and cash costs per payable silver ounce, net of by-product
credits and assumed silver and gold prices for the forecast of cash
costs. These statements are subject to risks and
uncertainties, including: lower than assumed silver and gold
prices, higher than anticipated costs of mining and processing;
delays or problems in mining or processing or the anticipated
ramp-up in making saleable concentrates at the Velardena
Properties; variations in material grade and metallurgical
characteristics of processed material; delays or failures in
receiving government approvals or permits or suspensions of
existing approvals and permits; failure to achieve anticipated
metal recoveries or anticipated mining or processing results
including expected quantities of anticipated saleable products;
failures of new mine plan, stope development and slusher techniques
to meet expectations; changes in interpretations of geological,
geostatistical, metallurgical, mining or processing information and
interpretations of the information resulting from future mining and
processing experience; reliability of metallurgical testing results
and changes in interpretation based on processing results;
technical, permitting, mining, metallurgical, recovery or
processing issues; problems that delay or reduce underground mine
and stope construction; operational changes or problems; failure of
mined material to meet expectations; failure of veins mined to meet
expectations; increases in costs and declines in general economic
conditions; and changes in political conditions, in tax, royalty,
environmental and other laws in Mexico, and financial market conditions.
Golden Minerals assumes no obligation to update this
information. Additional risks relating to Golden Minerals may
be found in the periodic and current reports filed with the
Securities Exchange Commission by Golden Minerals, including the
Company's Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended
December 31, 2014.
For additional information please visit
http://www.goldenminerals.com/ or contact:
Golden Minerals Company
Karen Winkler
Director of Investor Relations
(303) 839-5060
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SOURCE Golden Minerals Company