TIDMHOC
RNS Number : 0927W
Hochschild Mining PLC
21 April 2021
_____________________________________________________________________________________
21 April 2021
Production Report for the 3 months ended 31 March 2021
Ignacio Bustamante, Chief Executive Officer said:
"We have delivered another solid start to the year with all our
operations in line with expectations and remain on track to meet
our 2021 production and cost targets. Our 2021 brownfield
exploration programme has commenced and includes drilling at all
three of our mines with early results from the Angela North vein at
Inmaculada indicating significant high grade additions to the
already substantial resource base."
Operational highlights
-- Q1 2021 attributable production: ([1])
o 52,843 ounces of gold
o 2.8 million ounces of silver
o 85,738 gold equivalent ounces
o 7.4 million silver equivalent ounces
-- Strong operational recovery from 2020 Covid-19 disruption
-- On track to deliver overall 2021 production target of
360,000-372,000 gold equivalent ounces or 31.0-32.0 million silver
equivalent ounces
-- 2021 all-in sustaining costs on track to meet $1,210 and
$1,250 per gold equivalent ounce guidance ($14.1 and $14.5 per
silver equivalent ounce)
Exploration highlights
-- Inmaculada drilling already adding significant high grade resources from Angela North vein
-- Further promising results at San Jose
-- 2021 drilling campaigns already started at Pallancata, Corina, Cochaloma and Palca targets
ESG highlights
-- Lost Time Injury Frequency Rate of 1.85 (2020: 1.38) ([2])
-- Accident Severity Index of 1,429 (2020: 474) ([3])
-- Water Consumption of 229lt/person/day (2020: 231lt/person/day)
-- Domestic waste generation of 0.97 kg/person/day (2020: 1.18kg/person/day)
-- ECO score of 5.63 out of 6 (2019: 5.74) ([4])
-- All mines operating in compliance with strict Covid-19 protocols
Strong financial position
-- Total cash of approximately $245 million as at 31 March 2021
($232 million as at 31 December 2020)
-- Net cash of approximately $38 million as at 31 March 2021
($22 million as at 31 December 2020)
-- Current Net Cash/LTM EBITDA of approximately 0.125x as at 31 March 2021
________________________________________________________________________________________
A conference call will be held at 2.00pm (London time) on
Wednesday 21 April 2021 for analysts and investors.
Dial in details as follows:
International Dial in: +44 330 336 9434
UK Toll-Free Number: 0800 279 7209
US/Canada Toll Free: 888-394-8218
Pin: 9777931
Please dial into the call approximately ten minutes before the
2.00pm start time.
A recording of the conference call will be available on demand
on the Company's website: www.hochschildmining.com
________________________________________________________________________________________
Overview
In Q1 2021, Hochschild delivered attributable production of
85,738 gold equivalent ounces or 7.4 million silver equivalent
ounces and achieved a solid start to the year at its key flagship
Inmaculada operation which benefited from better than expected
grades.
The Company reiterates that its all-in sustaining cost for 2021
is on track to be in line with the guidance of between $1,210 and
$1,250 per gold equivalent ounce (or $14.1 and $14.5 per silver
equivalent ounce).
TOTAL GROUP PRODUCTION
Q1 2021 Q4 2020 Q1 2020 12 mths
2020
-------- -------- --------
Silver production
(koz) 3,321 3,719 3,536 11,821
Gold production
(koz) 62.31 65.67 68.42 207.08
Total silver equivalent
(koz) 8,680 9,366 9,420 29,631
Total gold equivalent
(koz) 100.93 108.91 109.53 344.54
Silver sold (koz) 3,182 3,803 3,103 11,846
Gold sold (koz) 61.14 66.57 57.69 207.77
------------------------- -------- -------- -------- --------
Total production includes 100% of all production, including
production attributable to Hochschild's joint venture partner at
San Jose.
ATTRIBUTABLE GROUP PRODUCTION
Q1 2021 Q4 2020 Q1 2020 12 mths
2020
-------- -------- --------
Silver production
(koz) 2,829 3,187 2,984 9,808
Gold production
(koz) 52.84 56.97 59.43 175.24
Silver equivalent
(koz) 7,373 8,087 8,095 24,879
Gold equivalent
(koz) 85.74 94.03 94.12 289.29
------------------- -------- -------- -------- --------
Attributable production includes 100% of all production from
Arcata, Inmaculada, Pallancata and 51% from San Jose.
Production
Inmaculada
Product Q1 2021 Q4 2020 Q1 2020 12 mths
2020
-------- ------------ --------
Ore production (tonnes
treated) 337,480 340,854 308,896 948,937
Average grade silver
(g/t) 158 152 151 154
Average grade gold
(g/t) 3.92 4.23 4.37 4.33
Silver produced
(koz) 1,419 1,393 1,391 4,034
Gold produced (koz) 39.80 43.55 46.45 129.17
Silver equivalent
(koz) 4,842 5,138 5,385 15,143
Gold equivalent
(koz) 56.31 59.75 62.62 176.09
Silver sold (koz) 1,414 1,404 1,179 4,020
Gold sold (koz) 39.65 44.05 39.72 129.70
------------------------ -------- ------------ -------- --------
Inmaculada's first quarter production was 39,803 ounces of gold
and 1.4 million ounces of silver which amounts to gold equivalent
output of 56,301 ounces which was slightly ahead of expectations
and was due to marginally higher than planned tonnage and
grades.
Pallancata
Product Q1 2021 Q4 2020 Q1 2020 12 mths
2020
-------- ------------ --------
Ore production (tonnes
treated) 126,950 186,454 142,506 519,611
Average grade silver
(g/t) 240 231 250 247
Average grade gold
(g/t) 0.85 0.81 0.90 0.87
Silver produced
(koz) 897 1,241 1,019 3,679
Gold produced (koz) 3.18 4.37 3.61 12.93
Silver equivalent
(koz) 1,171 1,617 1,330 4,790
Gold equivalent
(koz) 13.61 18.80 15.46 55.70
Silver sold (koz) 771 1,287 961 3,654
Gold sold (koz) 2.72 4.56 3.33 12.80
------------------------ -------- ------------ -------- --------
In the first quarter, Pallancata produced 897,000 ounces of
silver and 3,183 ounces of gold bringing the silver equivalent
total to 1.2 million ounces. Tonnage and grade were lower than
expectations although this was mostly due to the temporary effect
of changing shift schedules.
San Jose (the Company has a 51% interest in San Jose)
Product Q1 2021 Q4 2020 Q1 2020 12 mths
2020
-------- -------- --------
Ore production (tonnes
treated) 101,345 110,019 84,903 401,202
Average grade silver
(g/t) 344 345 466 357
Average grade gold
(g/t) 6.53 5.62 7.57 5.63
Silver produced
(koz) 1,005 1,085 1,126 4,108
Gold produced (koz) 19.33 17.75 18.35 64.99
Silver equivalent
(koz) 2,667 2,611 2,705 9,697
Gold equivalent
(koz) 31.01 30.36 31.45 112.76
Silver sold (koz) 997 1,112 963 4,172
Gold sold (koz) 18.77 17.97 14.64 65.28
------------------------ -------- -------- -------- --------
San Jose once again delivered a steady start to the year despite
the traditionally shorter operational period due to the scheduled
hourly workers holiday which was taken in the first few weeks of
January this year. Tonnage and grade in the quarter were in line
with expectations resulting in production of 1.0 million ounces of
silver and 19,329 ounces of gold which makes 2.7 million silver
equivalent ounces.
It is with deep regret that the Company reports an accident at
the operation towards the end of the period which claimed the life
of one of our contractors during the preparation of scheduled
electrical maintenance work. A detailed investigation has been
carried out and an action plan comprising internal communications
and changes to operating procedures will be implemented across all
operations.
Average realisable prices and sales
Average realisable precious metal prices in Q1 2021 (which are
reported before the deduction of commercial discounts) were
$1,703/ounce for gold and $24.4/ounce for silver (Q1 2020:
$1,623/ounce for gold and $14.2/ounce for silver).
Brownfield exploration
Inmaculada
In Q1 2021, the exploration team carried out 1,519m of potential
drilling and 12,236m of resource drilling from 14 drill holes
mostly testing the Angela North structure. Selected results are
below:
Vein Results (resource drilling)
Angela North IMS-21-056: 5.9m @ 2.5g/t Au & 99g/t Ag
IMS-21-062: 9.7m @ 91.7g/t Au & 3,013g/t
Ag
IMS-21-063: 2.1m @ 6.5g/t Au & 217g/t Ag
IMS-21-065: 7.0m @ 3.7g/t Au & 198g/t Ag
IMS-21-066: 2.4m @ 4.3g/t Au & 386g/t Ag
IMS-21-067: 1.0m @ 2.4g/t Au & 234g/t Ag
IMS-21-070: 1.5m @ 2.1g/t Au & 156g/t Ag
IMS-21-071: 1.4m @ 3.6g/t Au & 123g/t Ag
IMS-21-072: 2.0m @ 1.8g/t Au & 109g/t Ag
IMS-21-075: 3.1m @ 5.5g/t Au & 341g/t Ag
IMS-21-077: 2.7m @ 1.4g/t Au & 103g/t Ag
IMS-21-078: 9.1m @ 14.1g/t Au & 1,639g/t
Ag
IMS-21-087: 5.6m @ 12.6g/t Au & 494g/t
Ag
------------------------------------------
Ramal Angela North 1 IMS-21-056: 1.6m @ 2.0g/t Au & 151g/t Ag
------------------------------------------
Ramal Angela North 2 IMS-21-056: 0.8m @ 5.4g/t Au & 572g/t Ag
------------------------------------------
During the second quarter, the team will continue with 10,000m
of potential and resource drilling in Angela North and Juliana
North.
Pallancata
At Pallancata, 1,907m of potential drilling was carried out
testing the continuity of the Pallancata vein, the Falla NW and
Pablo Piso vein structures. Quartz veins were intercepted but so
far without economic value. At Cochaloma, 800m of potential
drilling in the Esperanza vein was executed, also intercepting a
quartz structure but again without economic value.
In Corina, 2,095m were drilled in the Calvario, Clara, Anomalia
NE and Corina veins. Selected results are below:
Vein Results (resource drilling)
Corina DHCOR-21-026: 1.6m @ 6.0g/t Au & 39g/t
Ag
DHCOR-21-028: 1.6m @ 3.1g/t Au & 22g/t
Ag
----------------------------------------
For Q2, in Pallancata, 2,000m of potential drilling is planned
in the Pallancata and Pablo veins, 1,000m in Cochaloma, and 2,000m
in Corina vein.
San Jose
In Q1 2021, 1,792m of resource drilling was executed targeting
the Isabel and Ramal Isabel veins and the team also carried out
1,396m of potential drilling targeting the Escondida vein and the
North Telken area close to Cerro Negro.
Vein Results (resource drilling)
Isabel SJD-2210: 1.2m @ 4.9g/t Au & 552g/t Ag
SJD-2211: 1.0m @ 3.7g/t Au & 376g/t Ag
SJD-2241: 1.0m @ 8.2g/t Au & 499g/t Ag
SJM-179: 1.3m @ 3.7g/t Au & 586g/t Ag
----------------------------------------
Ramal Isabel 1 SJD-2210: 0.8m @ 2.2g/t Au & 772g/t Ag
SJD-2241: 0.8m @ 1.6g/t Au & 337g/t Ag
----------------------------------------
Ramal Isabel 2 SJD-2241: 2.0m @ 1.1g/t Au & 309g/t Ag
----------------------------------------
Vein Results (potential drilling)
Escondida SJM-529: 2.0m @ 62.5g/t Au & 5,571g/t Ag
-----------------------------------------
Drilling continues in the second quarter, with 1,000m of
resource drilling in the Escondida vein and the continuation of
drilling at the Betania structure (Saavedra) in May, once the
geology and geochemistry is complete.
Financial position
Total cash was approximately $245 million as at 31 March 2021
resulting in a net cash position of approximately $38 million.
On 8 February 2021, the Group signed agreements to hedge the
sale of 4,000,000 ounces of silver at $27.10 per ounce for 2021 and
a further 4,000,000 ounces of silver at US$26.86 per ounce for
2022. This is to protect cashflows from the Pallancata mine in the
next two years with the existing resource base.
_____________________________________________________________________________________
Enquiries:
Hochschild Mining PLC
Charles Gordon +44 (0)20 3709 3264
Head of Investor Relations
Hudson Sandler
Charlie Jack +44 (0)207 796 4133
Public Relations
_____________________________________________________________________________________
About Hochschild Mining PLC
Hochschild Mining PLC is a leading precious metals company
listed on the London Stock Exchange (HOCM.L / HOC LN) with a
primary focus on the exploration, mining, processing and sale of
silver and gold. Hochschild has over fifty years' experience in the
mining of precious metal epithermal vein deposits and currently
operates three underground epithermal vein mines, two located in
southern Peru and one in southern Argentina. Hochschild also has
numerous long-term projects throughout the Americas.
_____________________________________________________________________________________
Forward looking statements
This announcement may contain forward looking statements. By
their nature, forward looking statements involve risks and
uncertainties because they relate to events and depend on
circumstances that will or may occur in the future. Actual results,
performance or achievements of Hochschild Mining PLC may, for
various reasons, be materially different from any future results,
performance or achievements expressed or implied by such forward
looking statements.
The forward looking statements reflect knowledge and information
available at the date of preparation of this announcement. Except
as required by the Listing Rules and applicable law, the Board of
Hochschild Mining PLC does not undertake any obligation to update
or change any forward looking statements to reflect events
occurring after the date of this announcement. Nothing in this
announcement should be construed as a profit forecast.
Note
The information contained within this announcement is deemed by
the Company to constitute inside information as stipulated under
the Market Abuse Regulation (Regulation (EU) No.596/2014). Upon the
publication of this announcement via a Regulatory Information
Service, this inside information is now considered to be in the
public domain.
LEI: 549300JK10TVQ3CCJQ89
- ends -
[1] All equivalent figures assume the average gold/silver ratio
for 2020 of 86x.
[2] Calculated as total number of accidents per million labour
hours
([3]) Calculated as total number of days lost per million labour
hours.
[4] The ECO Score is an internally designed Key Performance
Indicator measuring environmental performance in one number and
encompassing numerous fronts including management of waste water,
outcome of regulatory inspections and sound environmental practices
relating to water consumption and the recycling of materials.
This information is provided by RNS, the news service of the
London Stock Exchange. RNS is approved by the Financial Conduct
Authority to act as a Primary Information Provider in the United
Kingdom. Terms and conditions relating to the use and distribution
of this information may apply. For further information, please
contact rns@lseg.com or visit www.rns.com.
RNS may use your IP address to confirm compliance with the terms
and conditions, to analyse how you engage with the information
contained in this communication, and to share such analysis on an
anonymised basis with others as part of our commercial services.
For further information about how RNS and the London Stock Exchange
use the personal data you provide us, please see our Privacy
Policy.
END
DRLDBLFLFZLEBBL
(END) Dow Jones Newswires
April 21, 2021 02:00 ET (06:00 GMT)
Hochschild Mining (LSE:HOC)
Historical Stock Chart
From Apr 2024 to May 2024
Hochschild Mining (LSE:HOC)
Historical Stock Chart
From May 2023 to May 2024