VANCOUVER, Jan. 16, 2018 /CNW/ - Amerigo Resources Ltd.
("Amerigo" or the "Company") (TSX: ARG) announced today production
results for the year 2017 and Q4-2017 from Minera Valle Central
("MVC"), the Company's 100% owned operation located near Rancagua,
Chile.
Operational Highlights:
In 2017, MVC produced record quantities of copper and
molybdenum. MVC produced 62.5 million pounds of copper at a cash
cost of $1.64 per pound, pursuant to
a tolling agreement with Codelco's Division El Teniente. Annual
molybdenum production was 1.6 million pounds.
The Company's robust performance met its 2017 guidance of
production of 60 to 65 million pounds of copper at a cash cost of
$1.60 to $1.75 per pound, and exceeded guidance of
production of 1.5 million pounds of molybdenum.
In Q4-2017, MVC produced 15.6 million pounds of copper at a cash
cost of $1.66 per pound, and 0.4
million pounds of molybdenum.
Construction of MVC's Cauquenes Phase Two expansion is on track
for completion in Q3-2018, with full production expected in
Q4-2018. The project will increase MVC's production to 85 to 90
million pounds per year, at an estimated cash cost of $1.45 to $1.60 per
pound.
In 2018, Amerigo expects to produce 65 to 70 million pounds of
copper and 1.8 million pounds of molybdenum, at a cash cost of
$1.45 to $1.60 per pound.
Rob Henderson, Amerigo's
President and CEO, stated "MVC performed strongly again in 2017.
The completion of the Cauquenes expansion in the second half of the
year will increase production and lower unit costs, enabling
Amerigo to further benefit from improved copper prices expected in
2018."
Summary of 2017
Production Results:
|
|
|
2017
|
Q4-2017
|
Q3-2017
|
Q2-2017
|
Q1-2017
|
Fresh
tailings
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Tonnes
processed
|
43,718,332
|
11,290,794
|
11,152,930
|
10,708,437
|
10,566,171
|
|
Copper
grade
|
0.118%
|
0.123%
|
0.117%
|
0.110%
|
0.120%
|
|
Copper
recovery
|
19.2%
|
19.7%
|
19.8%
|
20.8%
|
16.7%
|
|
Copper produced
(millions of pounds)
|
21.784
|
6.030
|
5.700
|
5.404
|
4.651
|
Historic
tailings
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Tonnes
processed
|
22,658,605
|
5,650,522
|
5,716,546
|
5,522,301
|
5,769,236
|
|
Copper
grade
|
0.249%
|
0.247%
|
0.240%
|
0.253%
|
0.255%
|
|
Copper
recovery
|
31.6%
|
31.2%
|
32.4%
|
33.4%
|
29.6%
|
|
Copper produced
(millions of pounds)
|
39.265
|
9.596
|
9.786
|
10.290
|
9.594
|
Maricunga toll
processing
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Copper produced
(millions of pounds)
|
1.466
|
-
|
-
|
0.570
|
0.896
|
Total copper produced
(millions of pounds)
|
62.515
|
15.625
|
15.487
|
16.262
|
15.141
|
Total copper
delivered (millions of pounds)
|
62.593
|
15.970
|
15.251
|
16.197
|
15.175
|
Cash cost ($/pound
copper)
|
1.64
|
1.66
|
1.69
|
1.53
|
1.71
|
Release of 2017 Annual Financial Results:
The Company will release 2017 annual financial results at market
open on Wednesday February 21, 2018,
followed by an investor conference call on Thursday February 22, 2018 at 11:00 am Pacific Standard Time/2:00 pm Eastern Standard Time.
Call Participation:
To participate in the call, please dial 1-866-225-0198
(Toll-Free North America) and let the operator know you wish to
participate in the Amerigo Resources conference call. Media are
invited to attend on a listen-only basis. Following management's
discussion of the quarterly results, the analyst and investment
community will be invited to ask questions.
About the Company:
Amerigo Resources Ltd. is an innovative copper producer with a
long-term partnership with Corporación Nacional del Cobre de
Chile ("Codelco"), the world's
largest copper producer. Amerigo produces copper concentrate at the
MVC operation in Chile by
processing fresh and historic tailings from Codelco's El Teniente
mine, the world's largest underground copper mine. Tel: (604)
681-2802; Fax: (604) 682-2802; Web: www.amerigoresources.com;
Listing: ARG:TSX.
Cautionary Note Regarding Forward-Looking
Information
This news release contains certain forward-looking information
and statements as defined in applicable securities laws
(collectively referred to as "forward-looking statements"). These
statements relate to future events or the Company's future
performance. All statements other than statements of historical
fact are forward-looking statements. The use of any of the words
"anticipate", "plan", "continue", "estimate", "expect", "may",
"will", "project", "predict", "potential", "should", "believe" and
similar expressions is intended to identify forward-looking
statements. Although the Company believes that these assumptions
were reasonable when made, because these assumptions are inherently
subject to significant uncertainties and contingencies which are
difficult or impossible to predict and are beyond the Company's
control, the Company cannot assure that it will achieve or
accomplish the expectations, beliefs or projections described in
the forward-looking statements. These forward-looking statements
involve known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors
that may cause actual results or events to differ materially from
those anticipated in such statements. These forward-looking
statements include but are not limited to, statements
concerning:
- a forecasted increase in production and a reduction in
operating costs;
- our strategies and objectives;
- our estimates of the availability and quantity of tailings, and
the quality of our mine plan estimates;
- prices and price volatility for copper and other commodities
and of materials we use in our operations;
- the demand for and supply of copper and other commodities and
materials that we produce, sell and use;
- sensitivity of our financial results and share price to changes
in commodity prices;
- our financial resources and our expected ability to meet our
obligations for the next 12 months;
- interest and other expenses;
- domestic and foreign laws affecting our operations;
- our tax position and the tax rates applicable to us;
- the timing and costs of construction and tolling/production of,
and the issuance and maintenance of the necessary permits and other
authorizations required for, our expansion projects, including the
expansion for the Cauquenes deposit and the timing of ramp-up to
full production from Cauquenes;
- our ability to procure or have access to financing and to
comply with our loan covenants;
- the production capacity of our operations, our planned
production levels and future production;
- potential impact of production and transportation
disruptions;
- hazards inherent in the mining industry causing personal injury
or loss of life, severe damage to or destruction of property and
equipment, pollution or environmental damage, claims by third
parties and suspension of operations
- our planned capital expenditures (including our plan to upgrade
our existing plant and operations) including the timing and cost of
completion of our capital projects;
- estimates of asset retirement obligations and other costs
related to environmental protection;
- our future capital and production costs, including the costs
and potential impact of complying with existing and proposed
environmental laws and regulations in the operation and closure of
our operations;
- repudiation, nullification, modification or renegotiation of
contracts;
- our financial and operating objectives;
- our environmental, health and safety initiatives;
- the outcome of legal proceedings and other disputes in which we
may be involved;
- the outcome of negotiations concerning metal sales, treatment
charges and royalties;
- disruptions to the Company's information technology systems,
including those related to cybersecurity;
- our dividend policy; and
- general business and economic conditions.
Inherent in forward-looking statements are risks and
uncertainties beyond our ability to predict or control, including
risks that may affect our operating or capital plans; risks
generally encountered in the permitting and development of mineral
projects such as unusual or unexpected geological formations,
negotiations with government and other third parties, unanticipated
metallurgical difficulties, delays associated with permits,
approvals and permit appeals, ground control problems, adverse
weather conditions, process upsets and equipment malfunctions;
risks associated with labour disturbances and availability of
skilled labour and management; fluctuations in the market prices of
our principal commodities, which are cyclical and subject to
substantial price fluctuations; risks created through competition
for mining projects and properties; risks associated with lack of
access to markets; risks associated with availability of and our
ability to obtain both tailings from Codelco's Division El
Teniente's current production and historic tailings from tailings
deposit; risks with respect to completion of all phases of the
Cauquenes expansion, the ability of the Company to draw down funds
from bank facilities and lines of credit, the availability of and
ability of the Company to obtain adequate funding on reasonable
terms for expansions and acquisitions, including all phases of the
Cauquenes expansion; mine plan estimates; risks posed by
fluctuations in exchange rates and interest rates, as well as
general economic conditions; risks associated with environmental
compliance and changes in environmental legislation and regulation;
risks associated with our dependence on third parties for the
provision of critical services; risks associated with
non-performance by contractual counterparties; title risks; social
and political risks associated with operations in foreign
countries; risks of changes in laws affecting our operations or
their interpretation, including foreign exchange controls; and
risks associated with tax reassessments and legal proceedings. Many
of these risks and uncertainties apply not only to the Company and
its operations, but also to Codelco and its operations. Codelco's
ongoing mining operations provide a significant portion of the
materials the Company processes and its resulting metals
production, therefore these risks and uncertainties may also affect
their operations and in turn have a material effect on the
Company.
Actual results and developments are likely to differ, and may
differ materially, from those expressed or implied by the
forward-looking statements contained in this news release. Such
statements are based on a number of assumptions which may prove to
be incorrect, including, but not limited to, assumptions about:
- general business and economic conditions;
- interest rates;
- changes in commodity and power prices;
- acts of foreign governments and the outcome of legal
proceedings;
- the supply and demand for, deliveries of, and the level and
volatility of prices of copper and other commodities and products
used in our operations;
- the ongoing supply of material for processing from Codelco's
current mining operations;
- the ability of the Company to profitably extract and process
material from the Cauquenes tailings deposit;
- the timing of the receipt of and retention of permits and other
regulatory and governmental approvals;
- the availability of and ability of the Company to obtain
adequate funding on reasonable terms for expansions and
acquisitions, Including all phases of the Cauquenes expansion;
- the ability of the Company to draw down funds from bank
facilities and lines of credit;
- our costs of production and our production and productivity
levels, as well as those of our competitors;
- changes in credit market conditions and conditions in financial
markets generally;
- our ability to procure equipment and operating supplies in
sufficient quantities and on a timely basis;
- the availability of qualified employees and contractors for our
operations;
- our ability to attract and retain skilled staff;
- the satisfactory negotiation of collective agreements with
unionized employees;
- the impact of changes in foreign exchange rates and capital
repatriation on our costs and results;
- engineering and construction timetables and capital costs for
our expansion projects;
- costs of closure of various operations;
- market competition;
- the accuracy of our preliminary economic assessment (including
with respect to size, grade and recoverability) and the geological,
operational and price assumptions on which these are based;
- tax benefits and tax rates;
- the outcome of our copper concentrate sales and treatment and
refining charge negotiations;
- the resolution of environmental and other proceedings or
disputes;
- the future supply of reasonably priced power;
- our ability to obtain, comply with and renew permits and
licenses in a timely manner; and
- our ongoing relations with our employees and entities with
which we do business.
Future production levels and cost estimates assume there are no
adverse mining or other events which significantly affect budgeted
production levels.
We caution you that the foregoing list of important factors and
assumptions is not exhaustive. Other events or circumstances could
cause our actual results to differ materially from those estimated
or projected and expressed in, or implied by, our forward-looking
statements. Except as required by law, we undertake no obligation
to update publicly or otherwise revise any forward-looking
statements or the foregoing list of factors, whether as a result of
new information or future events or otherwise.
SOURCE Amerigo Resources Ltd.