DENVER, May 6 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Vista Gold Corp. ("Vista")
(TSX & NYSE Amex: VGZ) provides the following updates on its
principal project activities, announces the financial results for
the quarter ended March 31, 2009, as filed on May 6, 2009 with the
U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission and the relevant Canadian
securities commissions in its Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q, and a
conference call with management scheduled for Wednesday, May 13,
2009, at 10:00 A.M. (EDT). Paredones Amarillos In February 2009,
Vista retained the Roberts and Schaefer Company ("R&S") to
conduct a review of the proposed Paredones Amarillos gold project
process facility lay-out and the proposed design of the crushing,
material handling and milling area as presented in the bankable
feasibility study for the project. R&S' study is nearing
completion and several design improvements have been identified
that have the potential to improve operating efficiencies and to
reduce the estimated capital costs for the proposed processing
facility. Vista has retained R&S to undertake a complete
re-estimate of the process area capital and operating costs. Vista
has also retained SRK Consulting to complete a re-estimation of the
project capital and operating costs and expects these cost up-dates
by the end of the second quarter of 2009. The bankable feasibility
study was completed on and dated September 5, 2008, when prices for
contracted services and raw materials were higher than today. In
addition there has been a favorable change in the Mexican Peso - US
dollar exchange rate since the completion of the study in September
2008. The new estimates will reflect current economic conditions.
Vista is currently waiting for notification of the status of the
Temporary Occupation Permit ("TOP"), for the project, which is a
pre-requisite for the Change of Land Use Permit. The TOP approval
process continues in accordance with the established procedures;
however, it is uncertain whether a further administrative review
involving a site visit will be required. In addition to the TOP,
Vista expects to receive approval of a permit for a development
drilling program within the next few weeks. Vista will provide
additional information regarding the status of permits at the
earliest opportunity. Mt. Todd Vista has recently completed the
first stage of a comprehensive metallurgical test program which was
initiated in 2008 using core drilling samples obtained during the
2007 and 2008 drilling programs at Mt Todd. The program examined
various approaches to recovering the gold and to determine the
principal operating parameters; including recovery, power and steel
consumptions for crushing and grinding and principal reagents
consumption. Vista has retained TetraTech of Golden, Colorado, to
complete a new Preliminary Economic Evaluation ("PEA") for the Mt.
Todd project. The results of the metallurgical test program and the
previously announced resource estimate (refer to Vista's press
release dated January 26, 2009) will be incorporated into the PEA
which is expected to be released in the near future. Financial
Results Our consolidated net loss for the three-month period ended
March 31, 2009, was US$1.9 million or $0.05 per share compared to a
consolidated net loss of US$2.1 million or $0.06 per share for the
same period in 2008. The decrease in the consolidated net loss of
US$0.2 million from the respective prior period is primarily due to
a decrease in the loss from discontinued operations of US$0.2
million as there were no disposals during the 2009 period and a
decrease in corporate administration and investor relations expense
of US$0.3 million. Also, for the 2009 period, there was a future
income tax benefit of US$0.2 million compared to a future income
tax loss of US$0.3 million for the same period during 2008.
Offsetting these amounts was an increase in interest expense of
US$0.4 million, an increase in exploration, property evaluation and
holding costs of US$0.09 million, an increase in the write-down of
marketable securities of US$0.1 million and a decrease in interest
income of US$0.08 million. Net cash used in operating activities
was US$1.1 million for the three-month period ended March 31, 2009,
compared to US$1.2 million for the same period in 2008. The
decrease of US$0.1 million is the result of a decrease of non-cash
items of US$0.1 million and a decrease in cash used for accounts
payable, accrued liabilities and other of US$0.1 million, which is
partially offset by a decrease in the consolidated net loss of
US$0.02 million. Net cash used in investing activities decreased to
US$1.1 million for the three-month period ended March 31, 2009,
from US$18.1 million for the same period in 2008. The decrease of
US$17.0 million is mostly due to a decrease in the additions to
property, plant and equipment of US$16.1 million. With the
completion of a brokered private placement on March 7, 2008, of
US$30.0 million of principal amount of senior secured notes (the
"Notes"), we have used US$16.0 million of the proceeds towards the
purchase of gold processing equipment to be used at our Paredones
Amarillos project, which included the costs of relocating the
equipment to Edmonton, Alberta, Canada. There was no similar
purchase during the three-month period ended March 31, 2009. There
was no cash provided by or used in financing activities for the
three-month period ended March 31, 2009. Net cash provided by
financing activities was US$31.5 million for the three-month period
ended March 31, 2008. During the three-month period ended March 31,
2008 we completed a brokered private placement, in which we offered
and sold US$30.0 million principal amount of the Notes. Proceeds to
Vista after legal and other fees were US$28.5 million. Also, during
the three-month period ended March 31, 2008, warrants exercised
produced cash proceeds of US$2.9 million and stock options
exercised produced cash proceeds of US$0.1 million. There were no
warrants or stock options exercised in the three-month period
ending March 31, 2009. At March 31, 2009, our total assets were
US$76.6 million, compared to US$75.8 million at December 31, 2008,
representing an increase of US$0.8 million. At March 31, 2009, we
had working capital of US$19.4 million compared to US$21.2 million
at December 31, 2008, representing a decrease of US$1.8 million.
This decrease relates primarily to a reduction in cash balances
from year end, which is offset by an increase in our marketable
securities balances due to better market conditions. The principal
component of working capital at both March 31, 2009 and December
31, 2008, is cash and cash equivalents of US$11.0 million and
US$13.3 million, respectively. Other components include marketable
securities (March 31, 2009 - US$9.4 million; December 31, 2008 -
US$8.2 million) and other liquid assets (March 31, 2009 - US$0.6
million; December 31, 2008 - US$0.6 million). On April 3, 2009,
Vista announced that it had sold all of its 1,529,848 shares of
Allied Nevada Gold Corp. ("Allied") for US$9.0 million. These
shares had a book value of US$2.2 million and when sold, resulted
in a realized gain of US$6.8 million. The proceeds from this
transaction increased the Company's unaudited cash balance to
approximately US$20.5 million. In May 2007, Vista completed a
transaction that resulted in the formation of Allied and the
transfer of Vista's Nevada properties to Allied. The Allied shares
sold by Vista were retained in connection with this transaction to
facilitate the payment of any taxes payable by Vista in respect of
the transaction. Vista has determined that there are no other taxes
payable by it in respect of the transaction and made the decision
to sell the Allied shares at the appropriate time and use the cash
for project development requirements. On April 17, 2009, we
announced that we filed a preliminary short form base shelf
prospectus in Canada with certain Canadian securities commissions
and a corresponding shelf registration statement in the United
States with the Securities and Exchange Commission ("SEC"). On
April 27, 2009, we announced that we filed a final short form base
shelf prospectus in Canada and an amended Form S-3 with the SEC.
The Form S-3 was declared effective on April 30, 2009. Selected
financial results are tabulated below: Selected Financial Data
Three Months Ended March 31, 2009 2008 U.S. $000's, except loss per
share (restated) Results of operations Net loss $(1,880) $(2,123)
Basic and diluted loss per share (0.05) (0.06) Net cash used in
operations (1,182) (1,207) Net cash used in investing activities
(1,102) (18,113) Net cash provided by financing activities - 31,544
Financial position March 31, December 31, 2009 2008 (restated)
Current assets $20,939 $22,012 Total assets 76,604 75,765 Current
liabilities 1,580 803 Total liabilities 25,906 24,527 Shareholders'
equity 50,698 51,238 Working capital 19,359 21,209 The Annual
General Meeting of Vista's shareholders was held on May 4, 2009.
Re-elected to the Board of Directors for a one-year term were John
M. Clark, W. Durand Eppler, C. Thomas Ogryzlo, Tracy A. Stevenson,
Michael B. Richings and Frederick H. Earnest.
PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP was re-appointed independent auditors.
In addition, shareholders approved the amendments to Vista's stock
option plan described in the information circular for the meeting,
and the unallocated options issuable under the plan. The amendments
to Vista's stock option plan included an amendment to provide for
the automatic extension of the expiry date of options that expire
during a black-out period to the date that is 10 business days
after the end of the blackout period. The approval of unallocated
options was required because Vista's stock option plan is a rolling
stock option plan and under the rules of the Toronto Stock
Exchange, shareholders are required to approve all unallocated
stock options issuable under a rolling stock option plan every
three years. Further information regarding these matters may be
found in the information circular for the meeting. Management
Conference Call To review Vista's Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q for
the fiscal quarter ending March 31, 2009, including our Management
Discussion & Analysis, visit either http://www.sedar.com/,
http://www.sec.gov/ or http://www.vistagold.com/. A conference call
with management to review our financial results for the quarter
ended March 31, 2009 and corporate and project activities is
scheduled on Wednesday, May 13, 2009 at 10:00 a.m. EDT. Toll-free
in North America: 1-866-782-8903 International: 1-647-426-1845 This
call will also be web-cast and can be accessed at the following web
location: http://www.snwebcastcenter.com/event/?event_id=403 This
call will be archived and available at http://www.vistagold.com/
after May 13, 2009. Audio replay will be available for three weeks
by calling in North America: 1-866-245-6755, passcode 596915. If
you are unable to access the audio or phone-in on the day of the
conference call, please feel free to email questions to Connie
Martinez, Manager - Investor Relations, (email: ) and we will try
to address these questions prior to or during the conference call.
About Vista Gold Corp. Since 2001, Vista has acquired a number of
gold projects with the expectation that higher gold prices would
increase their value. For more information about our projects,
including technical studies and resource estimates, please visit
our website at http://www.vistagold.com/. Vista is undertaking
programs to advance its Paredones Amarillos project and has
completed a bankable feasibility study and purchased certain long
delivery equipment items for use at the project. If the remaining
permits are received by mid-year and financing arrangements for the
Paredones Amarillos project are completed during the second half of
the year, Vista has prepared a development schedule which
anticipates that the project would be in production during 2011. A
preliminary assessment for the Mt. Todd project in Australia was
completed in 2007 and additional technical studies are underway,
with the preparation of a preliminary feasibility study targeted
for 2009. Vista's other holdings include the Guadalupe de los Reyes
project in Mexico, Yellow Pine project in Idaho, the Awak Mas
project in Indonesia, and the Long Valley project in California.
Reported financial results in this press release are approximate.
For exact amounts please see Vista's Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q
as filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission on May 6,
2009. Forward-Looking Statements This press release contains
forward-looking statements within the meaning of the U.S.
Securities Act of 1933 and U.S. Securities Exchange Act of 1934 and
forward-looking information within the meaning of Canadian
securities laws. All statements, other than statements of
historical facts, included in this press release that address
activities, events or developments that Vista expects or
anticipates will or may occur in the future, including such things
as financial and operating results and estimates; potential funding
requirements and sources of capital; plans for budgeting financial
recoveries; the timing, performance and results of feasibility
studies including the timing and receipt of required land use,
environmental and other permits for the Paredones Amarillos project
and timing for starting and completion of drilling and testing
programs at the Paredones Amarillos project; plans to confirm the
validity of the Change of Land Use Permit and to obtain the
Temporary Occupation Permit for the Paredones Amarillos project and
timing for confirmation of the status of those and other permits;
anticipated changes in capital and operating costs; anticipated
timing of commencement of construction and commencement of
production at the Paredones Amarillos project; plans for evaluation
of the Mt. Todd project including estimates of silver, copper and
gold resources; preliminary assessment results; results of drilling
programs and prospects for exploration and conversion of resources
at the Mt. Todd project and plans for a feasibility study at the
Mt. Todd project; Vista's future business strategy; competitive
strengths; goals; operations; reserve and resource estimates;
plans; potential project development; future share price and
valuation; future gold prices; Vista's potential status as a
producer including plans, timing and targeted initial production
levels; and other such matters are forward-looking statements and
forward-looking information. When used in this press release, the
words "estimate", "plan", "anticipate", "expect", "intend",
"believe" and similar expressions are intended to identify
forward-looking statements and forward-looking information. These
statements involve known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other
factors which may cause the actual results, performance or
achievements of Vista to be materially different from any future
results, performance or achievements expressed or implied by such
statements. Such factors include, among others, risks relating to
general economic conditions, delays and incurrence of additional
costs in connection with our Paredones Amarillos project, including
uncertainty relating to timing and receipt for required
governmental permits; uncertainty relating to timing and receipt of
the Temporary Occupation Permit and for confirmation of the
validity of the Change of Land Use Permit for the Paredones
Amarillos project, uncertainty of feasibility study results and
preliminary assessments and of estimates on which such results are
based; risks relating to delays in commencement and completion of
construction at the Paredones Amarillos project and Mt. Todd
project; risks of significant cost increases; risks of shortages of
equipment or supplies; risks that Vista's acquisition, exploration
and property advancement efforts will not be successful; risks
relating to fluctuations in the price of gold; the inherently
hazardous nature of mining-related activities; uncertainties
concerning reserve and resource estimates; potential effects on
Vista's operations of environmental regulations in the countries in
which it operates; risks due to legal proceedings; risks relating
to political and economic instability in certain countries in which
it operates; risks related to repayment of debt; risks related to
increased leverage; and uncertainty of being able to raise capital
on favorable terms or at all; as well as those factors discussed in
Vista's latest Annual Report on Form 10-K and Quarterly Report on
Form 10-Q and other documents filed with the U.S. Securities and
Exchange Commission and Canadian securities commissions. Although
Vista has attempted to identify important factors that could cause
actual results to differ materially from those described in
forward-looking statements and forward-looking information, 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. Except as required by law, Vista assumes no obligation
to publicly update any forward-looking statements or
forward-looking information, whether as a result of new
information, future events or otherwise. For further information,
please contact Connie Martinez at (720) 981-1185, or visit the
Vista Gold Corp. website at http://www.vistagold.com/. DATASOURCE:
Vista Gold Corp. CONTACT: Connie Martinez of Vista Gold Corp.,
+1-720-981-1185 Web Site: http://www.vistagold.com/
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