Endeavour Achieves Commercial Production at BIOX Expansion and
Lafigué Growth Projects
ENDEAVOUR ACHIEVES COMMERCIAL PRODUCTION
AT BIOX EXPANSION AND LAFIGUÉ GROWTH PROJECTS
HIGHLIGHTS:
• Commercial production achieved on budget and on schedule
at the Sabodala-Massawa BIOX Expansion and the Lafigué mine on 1
August 2024
• Organic growth phase completed improving the quality of
the portfolio and underpinning the transition to a phase focused on
free cash flow generation
• BIOX Expansion achieved commercial production; operating
with 94% plant availability at 80% of nameplate capacity, with
average recoveries of above 72% during July and August
• Lafigué mine achieved commercial production only one
month after the first gold pour; operating with 87% plant
availability at 72% of nameplate capacity, with average recoveries
of above 95% during August
• The Group remains on track to achieve its full-year
production guidance with AISC near the top end of the guided
range |
London,
13 September
2024 – Endeavour Mining plc
(LSE:EDV, TSX:EDV, OTCQX:EDVMF) (“Endeavour”, the “Group” or the
“Company”) is pleased to announce that it has achieved commercial
production at both its Sabodala-Massawa BIOX Expansion in Senegal
and at its Lafigué mine in Côte d’Ivoire, effective as of 1 August
2024. Both projects have been completed on budget and on schedule,
with the full ramp up to nameplate capacity underway.
Ian Cockerill, CEO, commented: “We are
pleased to have achieved commercial production at both of our
organic growth projects, fully de-risking construction and ramp-up
activities. Both projects will drive stronger operating performance
in the second half of the year, underpinning our Group production
guidance, while adding low-cost production, extending mine life
visibility, and increasing the geographic diversification of the
portfolio.
I congratulate our entire in-house project’s
team for the successful delivery of these two projects, and for
their continued industry leading project delivery over the last 10
years, successfully completing the construction of five growth
projects on budget and on schedule, all in under two years. We will
now transition the team to focus on our asset level optimisation
initiatives and technical studies, ahead of our next growth phase,
with the construction of the potential tier one Assafou project
from 2026.
The completion of this phase of growth is a
significant milestone for Endeavour. With our higher quality
portfolio, we will transition to a phase focused on free cash flow
generation that will support enhanced shareholder returns, through
additional supplemental returns, while we simultaneously reduce our
leverage, as we continue to execute on our strategy.”
Sabodala-Massawa BIOX
Expansion
The BIOX Expansion achieved its first gold pour
from the gravity circuit on 18 April 2024 and its first gold pour
from the BIOX circuit on 28 April 2024. Commercial production was
achieved on 1 August 2024, less than four months after the first
gold pour.
All circuits are operating in-line with
expectations and during July and August combined, 160kt of ore was
processed at a grade of 2.8g/t gold. Processing rates exceeded
2,580 tonnes per day, equivalent to 80% of nameplate capacity, and
plant availability was above 94%. Average metallurgical recoveries
were above 72% as we processed lower grade transitional ore during
the ramp up, while mining activities have now advanced into fresh
ore in the Massawa Central Zone, supporting higher grades and
higher recovery rates for the remainder of the year.
During July and August, throughput rates, plant
availability and recovery rates consistently exceeded our
commercial production criteria for a period of at least 30 days and
all major capital expenditure has been completed with the project’s
construction team having now largely demobilised, completing the
successful handover to the operation’s team.
Figure 1: BIOX®
processing plant overview
(please refer to figure in the attached
release)
Lafigué Mine
The Lafigué processing plant achieved its first
gold pour on 28 June 2024 and commercial production was achieved on
1 August 2024, approximately one month after the first gold
pour.
All circuits are operating in-line with
expectations and during August, 241kt of ore was processed at a
grade of 1.8g/t gold. Processing rates exceeded 7,700 tonnes per
day, equivalent to 72% of nameplate capacity and overall plant
availability was above 87% with average gold recovery rates above
95%.
During July and August, the throughput rate,
plant availability and recovery rates exceeded our commercial
production criteria for a period of at least 30 days and the
project’s construction team completed the handover to the
operation’s team.
Figure 2: Lafigué
processing plant overview
(please refer to figure in the attached
release)
ABOUT THE SABODALA-MASSAWA MINE
The Sabodala-Massawa mine was acquired by
Endeavour in February 2021, as part of its acquisition of Teranga.
Endeavour owns a 90% stake in the Sabodala-Massawa mine, with the
remaining 10% owned by the Government of Senegal.
Located approximately 630km east-southeast of
Dakar, the capital of Senegal, the Sabodala-Massawa mine consists
of several open pit operations on the highly prospective Birimian
Greenstone Belt. Non-refractory ore is treated at a 4.0Mtpa CIL
plant that achieved commercial production in November 2009. In
2021, Endeavour expedited the completion of the initial upgrades at
the existing CIL plant and simultaneously advanced the definitive
feasibility study for the addition of a refractory ore processing
plant to confirm the economic viability of processing the
high-grade refractory ores from the Massawa Central Zone and
Massawa North Zone deposits.
In April 2022, Endeavour launched the
construction of the 1.2Mtpa BIOX circuit to process the large
refractory ore resource with first gold achieved on 18 April 2024
and commercial production achieved on 1 August 2024. As at 31
December 2023, Proven and Probable reserves totalled 53.1Mt at 2.05
g/t containing 3.5Moz of gold and Measured and Indicated resources
(inclusive of reserves) totalled 88.2Mt at 1.92 g/t containing
5.4Moz of gold. For the full year ended 31 December 2023,
Sabodala-Massawa produced 294koz at an AISC of $767/oz. As
previously guided, following the mining and processing of
lower-than-expected grades with lower associated recoveries through
the CIL plant in H1-2024, Sabodala-Massawa production is expected
to be below the bottom end of its production guidance of 360koz -
400koz at an all-in sustaining cost (“AISC”) above the top end of
its $750 - $850/oz guidance range. Production is expected to be
strongly H2-2024 weighted due to the ramp-up of the BIOX expansion
project.
Sabodala-Massawa is Endeavour’s largest
exploration focus in 2024 with a guided spend of $25 million. The
exploration programme is focussed on converting existing resources
to reserves and expanding non-refractory and refractory resources
for the existing CIL processing plant and the new BIOX® Expansion
respectively. The exploration programme remains on track to achieve
its 5-year target of discovering an additional 2.3 - 2.7Moz of
Indicated resources by the end of 2025.
ABOUT THE LAFIGUÉ MINE
The Lafigué mine is located towards the northern
end of the Birimian aged Oumé-Fetekro greenstone belt, in
north-central Côte d’Ivoire, approximately 500km from Abidjan by
road. The Lafigué deposit is located in the northeast part of the
Fetekro exploration permit, adjacent to existing infrastructure,
including sealed paved roads and high voltage grid power. Endeavour
has an 80% ownership stake in the Lafigué mine (with 10% owned by
the Ivorian Government and 10% owned by SODEMI, a state-owned
mining company) and a 100% ownership stake in the remainder of the
Fetekro exploration licence.
Endeavour began exploration on the Fetekro
property in March 2017, following a strategic assessment of its
exploration tenements which identified the project as a top
priority target. To date, only a limited portion of the Fetekro
property has been explored, as the priority has been the
delineation of the Lafigué deposit. A maiden Mineral Resource
Estimate for the Lafigué deposit was published on 29 October 2018
and subsequently updated on 3 September 2019, 18 August 2020 and 15
May 2022. A Preliminary Economic Assessment (“PEA”) was published
on 18 August 2020 and a Preliminary Feasibility Study (“PFS”) was
completed with the effective date of 31 December 2020.
Construction of the Lafigué project in Côte
d'Ivoire was launched in Q4-2022, following the completion of a
Definitive Feasibility Study (“DFS”) which confirmed Lafigué’s
potential to be a cornerstone asset for Endeavour. The 2022 DFS
contemplates a 12.8 year LOM with average annual production of
203koz at a low AISC of $871/oz, with an initial capital cost of
$448 million. The project DFS displayed robust economics at an
$1,800/oz gold price assumption including an after-tax
NPV5% of $870m and an after-tax IRR of 33%. First gold
was poured on 28 June 2024 and commercial production was achieved
on 1 August 2024. The Lafigué mine is expected to produce 90-110koz
of gold at a sector leading AISC of $900-975/oz in H2-2024, inline
with its initial guidance, with production increasing to
approximately 200koz in FY-2025.
As at 31 December 2023, Proven and Probable
reserves totalled 49.8Mt at 1.69 g/t containing 2.7Moz of gold and
Measured and Indicated resources (inclusive of reserves) totalled
46.2Mt at 2.04 g/t containing 3.0Moz of gold.
Given the strong exploration potential,
Endeavour is targeting the discovery of 1.2 – 1.8Moz of Indicated
resources across the Lafigué mining permit and the wider Fetekro
exploration permit area over the 2021 to 2025 period at a discovery
cost of $14/oz. To date 0.6Moz, or 50% of the lower end of the
target, has been discovered.
QUALIFIED PERSONS
Ross McMillan, SVP Technical Services of
Endeavour Mining plc., a Fellow of the Australasian Institute of
Mining and Metallurgy, is a "Qualified Person" as defined by
National Instrument 43-101 - Standards of Disclosure for Mineral
Projects ("NI 43-101") and has reviewed and approved the technical
information in this news release.
CONTACT INFORMATION
Jack Garman |
Brunswick Group LLP in London |
Vice President, Investor Relations |
Carole Cable, Partner |
+44 203 011 2723 |
+44 207 404 5959 |
jack.garman@endeavourmining.com |
ccable@brunswickgroup.com |
ABOUT ENDEAVOUR MINING PLC
Endeavour Mining is one of the world’s
senior gold producers and the largest in West Africa, with
operating assets across Senegal, Cote d’Ivoire and Burkina Faso and
a strong portfolio of advanced development projects and exploration
assets in the highly prospective Birimian Greenstone Belt across
West Africa.
A member of the World Gold Council,
Endeavour is committed to the principles of responsible mining and
delivering sustainable value to its employees, stakeholders and the
communities where it operates. Endeavour is listed on the London
and Toronto Stock Exchanges, under the symbol EDV.
For more information, please visit
www.endeavourmining.com.
CAUTIONARY NOTE REGARDING
FORWARD-LOOKING INFORMATION
This news release contains "forward-looking
statements" within the meaning of applicable securities laws.
All statements, other than statements of historical fact, are
"forward-looking statements". Generally, these forward-looking
statements can be identified by the use of forward-looking
terminology such as "expects", "expected", "budgeted", "forecasts",
and "anticipates".
Forward-looking statements, while based on
management's best estimates and assumptions, are subject to risks
and uncertainties that may cause actual results to be materially
different from those expressed or implied by such forward-looking
statements, including but not limited to: risks related to the
successful integration of acquisitions; risks related to
international operations; risks related to general economic
conditions and credit availability, actual results of current
exploration activities, unanticipated reclamation expenses; changes
in project parameters as plans continue to be refined; fluctuations
in prices of metals including gold; fluctuations in foreign
currency exchange rates, increases in market prices of mining
consumables, possible variations in ore reserves, grade or recovery
rates; failure of plant, equipment or processes to operate as
anticipated; accidents, labour disputes, title disputes, claims and
limitations on insurance coverage and other risks of the mining
industry; delays in the completion of development or construction
activities, changes in national and local government regulation of
mining operations, tax rules and regulations, and political and
economic developments in countries in which Endeavour operates.
Although Endeavour has attempted to identify important factors that
could cause actual results to differ materially from those
contained in forward-looking statements, there may be other factors
that cause results not to be as anticipated, estimated or intended.
There can be no assurance that such statements will prove to be
accurate, as actual results and future events could differ
materially from those anticipated in such statements. Accordingly,
readers should not place undue reliance on forward-looking
statements. Please refer to Endeavour's most recent Annual
Information Form filed under its profile at www.sedarplus.ca for
further information respecting the risks affecting Endeavour and
its business.
- EDV - Commercial Production at Organic Growth Projects
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