VANCOUVER, BRITISH COLUMBIA--(Marketwired - Aug. 14, 2014) - Trevali Mining Corporation ("Trevali" or the "Company") (TSX:TV)(LMA:TV)(OTCQX:TREVF)(FRANKFURT:4TI) has released its financial results for the three and six months ended June 30, 2014, posting second quarter ("Q2") operations income of $1.9 million from the Santander Mine in Peru on concentrate sales revenue of $19.9 million. The Company had a net loss for Q2 of $4.5 million, primarily attributable to a non-recurring item incurred from the recent disposition of its Tingo Hydroelectric project.
Q2-2014 Results Highlights:
- Working capital increased to $54.6 million
- Decrease in Santander operation costs per tonne milled from US$50.12 to US$45.12 as optimization measures commence
- Concentrate sales revenue of $19.9 million
- Income from Santander operations of $1.9 million
- Production of 12-million payable pounds of zinc, 4.4-million payable pounds of lead and 186,800 payable ounces of silver at a site cash cost(4) of US$0.39 per pound of payable Zinc Equivalent ("ZnEq")(1) produced
- Realized selling prices for zinc, lead and silver of US$0.92 per pound, US$0.95 per pound and US$19.55 per ounce respectively
- EBITDA(3) of ($0.3 million)
Trevali will hold a conference call on August 15, 2014, at 10:30 a.m. Eastern Time (7:30 a.m. Pacific Time) to discuss these results. Call-in details are provided at the end of this release. This release should be read in conjunction with Trevali's unaudited condensed consolidated financial statements and management's discussion and analysis for the three and six months ended June 30, 2014, which is available on Trevali's website and on SEDAR. All financial figures are in Canadian dollar unless otherwise stated.
"The decrease in Q2 revenue, versus the first quarter of this year, was due to lower production at Santander as the Company modifies its mine plan to encompass thicker zones of mineralization in the Magistral Norte-Rosa and Magistral Central zones," stated Dr. Mark Cruise, Trevali's President and CEO. "It is anticipated that income from mining operations will increase going forward as the Company commences exploiting these significantly thicker zones of mineralization, with widths increasing up to plus-25 metres, in the second half of this year. Ongoing site optimization and strengthening commodity prices, in particular zinc, also provides the potential to increase operational revenues in the latter part of the year."
| Summary Financial Results ($millions, except per-share amounts) | ||||||
| Q2-2014 | YTD-2014 | |||||
| Revenues | $ | 19.9 | $ | 44.0 | ||
| Income from Santander mining operations | $ | 1.9 | $ | 5.7 | ||
| Net income (loss) | $ | (4.5 | ) | $ | (3.9 | ) |
| Basic Income per share | (0.01 | ) | (0.01 | ) | ||
| Santander Mine Production Statistics | ||||||
| Q2-2014 | YTD-2014 | |||||
| Tonnes mined | 152,733 | 308,763 | ||||
| Tonnes milled | 175,384 | 349,204 | ||||
| Average head grades: | 4.20 | % | 4.47 | % | ||
| Zinc | 1.42 | % | 1.66 | % | ||
| Lead | 1.44 | 1.70 | ||||
| Silver | oz/ton | oz/ton | ||||
| Average recoveries: | ||||||
| Zinc | 88 | % | 87 | % | ||
| Lead | 84 | % | 85 | % | ||
| Silver | 70 | % | 72 | % | ||
| Concentrate produced DMT (dry metric tonnes): | ||||||
| Zinc | 13,048 | 28,688 | ||||
| Lead-Silver | 3,680 | 8,190 | ||||
| Concentrate grades | ||||||
| Zinc (%) | 49 | 49 | ||||
| Lead (%) | 57 | 57 | ||||
| Silver (ounce/ton) | 48.8 | 52.1 | ||||
| Payable metal production: | ||||||
| Zinc (pounds) | 12,044,583 | 26,642,473 | ||||
| Lead (pounds) | 4,420,428 | 9,886,778 | ||||
| Silver (troy ounces) | 186,824 | 455,423 | ||||
| Site cash cost(4) per ZnEq(1) lb Payable Produced | US$0.39 | US$0.36 | ||||
| Total cash cost(4) per ZnEq(1) lb Payable Produced | US$0.88 | US$0.78 | ||||
| Cash cost per tonne milled | US$45.12 | US$47.79 | ||||
| Santander Mine Sales Summary | ||||
| Q2-2014 | YTD-2014 | |||
| Zinc Concentrate (DMT) | 13,019 | 26,809 | ||
| Lead Concentrate (DMT) | 3,556 | 7,886 | ||
| Payable Sold Zinc (lbs) | 11,760,521 | 24,456,901 | ||
| Payable Sold Lead (lbs) | 4,179,783 | 9,376,263 | ||
| Payable Sold Silver (ozs) | 180,795 | 430,220 | ||
| Total Concentrate Revenues | US$18,242,806 | US$40,092,306 | ||
| Average Realized Metal Price: | ||||
| Zinc (per lb) | US$0.92 | US$0.92 | ||
| Lead (per lb) | US$0.95 | US$0.96 | ||
| Silver (per oz) | US$19.55 | US$20.01 | ||
| Zinc Equivalent Payable lbs Sold(2) | 19,866,662 | 43,523,662 | ||
| Zinc Equivalent Payable lbs Produced(1) | 20,528,315 | 46,773,295 | ||
| (1) ZnEq Payable Pounds Produced = ((Zn Payable lbs Produced x Zn Price)+(Pb Payable lbs Produced x Pb Price)+(Cu Payable lbs Produced x Cu Price)+(Au oz Payable Produced x Au Price)+(Ag oz Payable Produced x Ag Price))/Zn Price. |
| (2) ZnEq Payable Pounds Sold = ((Zn Payable lbs Sold x Zn Price)+(Pb Payable lbs Sold x Pb Price)+(Cu Payable lbs Sold x Cu Price)+(Au oz Payable Sold x Au Price)+(Ag oz Payable Sold x Ag Price))/Zn Price. (All metal prices are the average realized metal price for the period). |
| (3) EBITDA (earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization) is calculated by considering Company's earnings before interest payments, tax, depreciation, and amortization are subtracted for any final accounting of its income and expenses. The EBITDA of a business gives an indication of its current operational profitability and is a NON-IFRS measure. |
| (4) Refer to Non-IFRS Measures in the June 30, 2014 Management Discussion and Analysis |
Santander Operations, Peru
Production:
During the quarter the Company's contract miner, Glencore subsidiary Los Quenuales, mined 152,733 tonnes from the Magistral deposits and processed 175,384 tonnes of mineralized material through the Mill at average head grades of 4.20% zinc, 1.42% lead and 1.44 ounces per ton silver to produce 13,048 tonnes of zinc and 3,680 tonnes of lead-silver concentrate. Mill availability was 99.7% during the period with average Mill recoveries of 88% zinc, 84% lead and 70% silver respectively.
The Company shipped and sold 13,019 tonnes of zinc concentrates containing 11,760,521 pounds of payable zinc and 3,556 tonnes of lead-silver concentrates containing 4,179,783 pounds of payable lead and 180,795 ounces of payable silver.
The Company had gross revenues of $19.87 million for the quarter. Income from mining operations was $1.87 million and the net loss for the second quarter was $4.5 million, mainly attributed to the loss on the disposal of the Company's hydroelectric asset.
All concentrates are purchased by Glencore under our offtake agreement. Provisional realized commodity prices in USD were $0.92 per pound zinc, $0.95 per pound lead and $19.55 per ounce silver.
Site cash operating costs during the second quarter was US$0.39 per zinc equivalent pound produced.
Revenues were lower in the second quarter compared to the first quarter of this year, and unit costs were costs were higher than in the first quarter as a result of lower production of zinc, lead and silver while the Company was modifying mine plans to encompass the thicker zones of mineralization in Magistral North-Rosa and Central during the second quarter.
The Santander operations team is currently finalizing modifications of the Magistral mine plan to encompass significantly thicker zones of mineralization in Magistral Norte-Rosa and Central zones at lower planned mining levels scheduled to be extracted during the second half of the year.
During the first half of the year exploited mineral widths ranged from 4-to-6 metres. In the second half of the year (currently estimated from September onwards) average mineral zone widths are anticipated to increase to 15 to plus-25 metres. The net result of this will be a significant increase in mineralized tonnes per vertical metre and per metre development, which should result in increased operational efficiencies. Additionally incorporation of the Rosa zone into the mine plan will result in the delivery of increased Pb-Ag mineralization to the Mill.
Elsewhere Trevali continues working hard to technically support our contractors on a variety of optimization initiatives including but not limited to ongoing training and improved mining practices that are anticipated to yield additional cost savings. Examples include improved drill-blast practices, mining fleet availability, improved ground support installation (use of cable bolts for anticipated wider mining widths), modification of the mining method used to extract wide zones to transverse primary-secondary stoping and adding fill consolidation to the primary stopes to maintain high extraction ratios in these wider zones.
Outlook:
During the quarter the Company discovered two new zones of high grade polymetallic mineralization at the Magistral Central deposit of the Santander Mine. The new zones, Fatima North and South, occur in the footwall (or behind) the currently defined Magistral Central deposit and returned 6.7 metres of 12.95% Zn, 0.74% Pb, 2.47 oz/t Ag and 4.47 metres of 7.45% Zn, 2.85% Pb, 6.30 oz/t Ag respectively. They remain open for expansion to the East and at depth and are interpreted to be geologically similar to the Rosa Zone. They are thought to represent a later phase of high-grade replacement mineralization along a set of roughly East-West trending feeder structures/veins which broadly trend towards the Company's Puajanca Deposit. Both newly discovered zones are readily accessible for incorporation into the Santander mine plan. The Company has mobilized an underground drill rig to site and has commenced a 4-5,000 metre drill campaign to further explore and define the newly discovered Fatima and Rosa zones, and to convert current inferred tonnes to a higher confidence category.
The Company will continue to optimize surface, processing plant and underground operations at Santander during the forthcoming quarters in order to maximize operational efficiencies.
Guidance:
The Company maintains its 2014 annual Santander production guidance estimated at approximately 670,000 to 690,000 tonnes of mill throughput, with average head grades estimated at 4.0% to 4.2% zinc, 1.5% to 1.7% lead and 1.4 oz/ton to 1.6 oz/ton silver to produce, in payable metals, 42-45 million pounds of zinc; 15-17 million pounds of lead and 700,000 to 720,000 ounces of silver. (Please see Cautionary Note Regarding on Forward Looking Statements at the end of this document.)
Caribou Mine and Mill, New Brunswick
Detailed engineering and associated work programs at the Caribou Mine and Mill continue to progress. Dewatering of the underground workings is ongoing. During the quarter the Company tendered and awarded underground development with seven established Canadian contractors expressing interest.
Rehabilitation of the mine service accesses, raises, portal and ramp commenced. Refurbishing the primary mine ventilation fans took place and the mine ventilation is now fully operational. Electrical contractors reviewed and tested the surface, mill and mine electrical distribution systems, power lines, cables, substations and switchgear with no major faults found and all systems are now in operation. The site fresh water pump house and systems have been rebuilt to supply water for the mine and mill refurbishment program. The site potable water system was completely overhauled and defective equipment replaced. All main engineering and administration offices were cleaned and repaired and work is underway for the mill refurbishment.
The SAG mill replacement contract (to remove the old SAG mill and install the new one) was tendered and awarded with work scheduled to commence late in the third quarter. Engineering tenders are being sought for the copper circuit addition to the mill circuit.
Financial Results
During the three months ended June 30, 2014, the Company recorded a net loss of $4,501,000 compared to a loss of $2,100,000 in the same period of the prior year, or a loss of $0.01 per share (2013 - loss of $0.01). The majority of the loss is attributable to a non-recurring item incurred from the recent disposition of its Tingo Hydroelectric project.
Revenues of $19,860,000 (2013 - $Nil) were due to the sale of 13,019 tonnes of zinc concentrates containing 11.8 million pounds of payable zinc sold and 3,556 tonnes of lead-silver concentrates containing 4.2 million pounds of payable lead and 180,800 ounces of payable silver sold. Provisional realized commodity prices in USD were $0.92 per pound zinc, $0.95 per pound lead and $19.55 per ounce silver. There were no revenues in the prior period.
Total mine operating expenses of $17,987,000 (2013 - $Nil) is related to the sale of concentrate to Glencore. Costs consisted of direct site production costs of $8,679,000 related to mining, milling and camp, lab and surface maintenance facilities. Smelting, refining and freight costs were $6,440,000 and royalty expense were $640,000. The Company also charged $2,228,000 of depreciation and amortization. There were no such operating costs in the 2013 corresponding comparable period.
Q2-2014 Financial Results Conference Call
The Company will host a conference call and audio webcast at 10:30 a.m. Eastern Time on Friday, August 15, 2014 to review the financial results. Participants are advised to dial in 5-to-10 minutes prior to the scheduled start time of the call.
| Conference call dial-in details: |
| Toll-free (North America): 1-800-769-8320 |
| Toronto and international: 1-416-340-8530 |
| Audio Webcast: http://www.gowebcasting.com/5673 |
Qualified Person and Quality Control/Quality Assurance
EurGeol Dr. Mark D. Cruise, Trevali's President and CEO, and Paul Keller, P.Eng, Trevali's Chief Operating Officer, are qualified persons as defined by NI 43-101, have supervised the preparation of the scientific and technical information that forms the basis for this news release. Dr. Cruise is not independent of the Company as he is an officer, director and shareholder. Mr. Keller is not independent of the Company as he is an officer and shareholder.
ABOUT TREVALI MINING CORPORATION
Trevali is a zinc-focused, base metals mining company with one producing operation currently in Peru and an advanced-stage mine under development in Canada.
In Peru, the Company is actively producing zinc and lead-silver concentrates from its Santander mine and 2,000-tonne-per-day metallurgical plant.
In Canada, Trevali owns the Caribou mine and mill, Halfmile mine and Stratmat deposit all located in the Bathurst Mining Camp of northern New Brunswick. The Company is currently advancing its 3,000-tonne-per-day Caribou Mill Complex and mine towards scheduled 2015 production.
All of the Company's deposits remain open for expansion.
The common shares of Trevali are listed on the TSX (symbol TV), the OTCQX (symbol TREVF) and on the Lima Stock Exchange (symbol TV). For further details on Trevali, readers are referred to the Company's web site (www.trevali.com) and to Canadian regulatory filings on SEDAR at www.sedar.com.
On Behalf of the Board of Directors of
TREVALI MINING CORPORATION
Mark D. Cruise, President
This news release contains "forward-looking statements" within the meaning of the United States private securities litigation reform act of 1995 and "forward-looking information" within the meaning of applicable Canadian securities legislation. Statements containing forward-looking information express, as at the date of this news release, the Company's plans, estimates, forecasts, projections, expectations, or beliefs as to future events or results and the company does not intend, and does not assume any obligation to, update such statements containing the forward-looking information. Such forward-looking statements and information include, but are not limited to statements as to: the accuracy of estimated mineral reserves and resources, anticipated results of future exploration, and forecast future metal prices, anticipated results of future electrical sales and expectations that environmental, permitting, legal, title, taxation, socio-economic, political, marketing or other issues will not materially affect estimates of mineral reserves. These statements reflect the Company's current views with respect to future events and are necessarily based upon a number of assumptions and estimates that, while considered reasonable by the Company, are inherently subject to significant business, economic, competitive, political and social uncertainties and contingencies.
These statements reflect the Company's current views with respect to future events and are necessarily based upon a number of assumptions and estimates that, while considered reasonable by the company, are inherently subject to significant business, economic, competitive, political and social uncertainties and contingencies. Many factors, both known and unknown, could cause actual results, performance or achievements to be materially different from the results, performance or achievements that are or may be expressed or implied by such forward-looking statements contained in this news release and the company has made assumptions and estimates based on or related to many of these factors. Such factors include, without limitation: fluctuations in spot and forward markets for silver, zinc, base metals and certain other commodities (such as natural gas, fuel oil and electricity); fluctuations in currency markets (such as the Peruvian sol versus the U.S. dollar); risks related to the technological and operational nature of the Company's business; changes in national and local government, legislation, taxation, controls or regulations and political or economic developments in Canada, the United States, Peru or other countries where the Company may carry on business in the future; risks and hazards associated with the business of mineral exploration, development and mining (including environmental hazards, industrial accidents, unusual or unexpected geological or structural formations, pressures, cave-ins and flooding); risks relating to the credit worthiness or financial condition of suppliers, refiners and other parties with whom the Company does business; inadequate insurance, or inability to obtain insurance, to cover these risks and hazards; employee relations; relationships with and claims by local communities and indigenous populations; availability and increasing costs associated with mining inputs and labour;
the speculative nature of mineral exploration and development, including the risks of obtaining necessary licenses and permits and the presence of laws and regulations that may impose restrictions on mining,; diminishing quantities or grades of mineral reserves as properties are mined; global financial conditions; business opportunities that may be presented to, or pursued by, the Company; the Company's ability to complete and successfully integrate acquisitions and to mitigate other business combination risks; challenges to, or difficulty in maintaining, the Company's title to properties and continued ownership thereof; the actual results of current exploration activities, conclusions of economic evaluations, and changes in project parameters to deal with unanticipated economic or other factors; increased competition in the mining industry for properties, equipment, qualified personnel, and their costs. Investors are cautioned against attributing undue certainty or reliance on forward-looking statements. Although the Company has attempted to identify important factors that could cause actual results to differ materially, there may be other factors that cause results not to be as anticipated, estimated, described or intended. The Company does not intend, and does not assume any obligation, to update these forward-looking statements or information to reflect changes in assumptions or changes in circumstances or any other events affecting such statements or information, other than as required by applicable law.
Trevali's production plans at Caribou-Halfmile-Stratmat and Santander are based only on Indicated and Inferred Mineral Resources and not Mineral Reserves and do not have demonstrated economic viability. Inferred Mineral Resources are considered too speculative geologically to have the economic considerations applied to them that would enable them to be categorized as Mineral Reserves, and there is therefore no certainty that the conclusions of the production plans and Preliminary Economic Assessment (PEA) will be realized. Additionally where Trevali discusses exploration/expansion potential, any potential quantity and grade is conceptual in nature and there has been insufficient exploration to define a mineral resource and it is uncertain if further exploration will result in the target being delineated as a mineral resource.
We advise US investors that while the terms "measured resources", "indicated resources" and "inferred resources" are recognized and required by Canadian regulations, the US Securities and Exchange Commission does not recognize these terms. US investors are cautioned not to assume that any part or all of the material in these categories will ever be converted into reserves.
This news release does not constitute an offer to sell or a solicitation of an offer to buy any of the securities in the United States. The securities described herein have not been and will not be registered under the United States Securities Act of 1933, as amended, or the securities laws of any state and may not be offered or sold within the United States, absent such registration or an applicable exemption from such registration requirements.
The TSX has not approved or disapproved of the contents of this news release.
Contact Information:
Steve Stakiw
Vice President,
Investor Relations and Corporate Communications
(604) 488-1661 / Direct: (604) 638-5623
sstakiw@trevali.com