Q3 2024 Production and Operations Review
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Anglo Asian Mining plc ("Anglo Asian" or the "Company"), the AIM listed gold, copper and silver producer focused in Azerbaijan, provides the following production, sales and operational review for the three months to 30 September 2024 ("Q3 2024"or the "Quarter") and nine months to 30 September 2024 ("9M 2024").
Operational highlights
- Authorisation to raise the Group's tailing dam wall received on 5 August 2024
o First lift of 2.5 metres on track to be completed in November 2024
- Production restarted from its agitation leaching plant in September 2024
o 1,369 ounces of gold produced in September 2024 (August 2024: 824 ounces)
- Maiden JORC Mineral resources estimate for the Garadag deposit published on 24 September 2024 confirming approximately 900,000 tonnes of copper metal hosted in 285 million tonnes of mineralisation with average grades of 0.32 per cent. copper
o Garadag is a considerable asset in delivering the growth strategy of transitioning to a mid-tier producer in the medium term
Q3 and 9M 2024 Production update
- Total Q3 2024 production of 3,040 gold equivalent ounces ("GEOs") (Q3 2023: 5,295 GEOs)
o Copper production of 11 tonnes (Q3 2023: 250 tonnes)
o Gold production of 2,956 ounces (Q3 2023: 4,156 ounces)
o Silver production of 3,315 ounces (Q3 2023: 5,656 ounces)
- Total 9M 2024 production of 8,310 GEOs (9M 2023: 28,686 GEOs)
o Copper production of 111 tonnes (9M 2023: 2,120 tonnes)
o Gold production of 7,660 ounces (9M 2023: 18,779 ounces)
o Silver production of 16,061 ounces (9M 2023: 50,352 ounces)
Q3 2024 Sales and cash update
- Total gold bullion sales of 3,220 ounces at an average price of $2,497 per ounce (Q3 2023: 2,900 ounces at an average price of $1,949 per ounce)
- $3.7 million proceeds of Caterpillar financing received in the Quarter
- Net debt position of $14.0 million at 30 September 2024 (30 June 2024: $12.0 million) as a result of the partially suspended production during the year
- Inventory valued at $2.7 million at 30 September 2024 (30 June 2024: $3.6 million)
The Company maintains its full year 2024 ("FY 2024") production guidance of 15,000 to 19,500 GEOs.
Having restarted regular production from its agitation leaching plant in September 2024, the Group remains on schedule to restart its flotation processing in November 2024 with first production from the Gilar mine in December 2024.
Anglo Asian CEO Reza Vaziri commented:
"This quarter has been a turning point for the Company as we move towards fully restarting production after a year of partial shutdown. Our agitation leaching production restarted in September, with only minor snagging, and the effect on our production was felt immediately. Despite only limited agitation leaching production in September, our doré production increased in the month to 1,369 ounces from 824 ounces in August.
"The restart of agitation leaching production has generated considerable momentum for the Company. Adding to this momentum is the opening of the flotation plant in November and mining the first ore from Gilar, which remains on track to commence in December. We are also benefiting from the recent increases in the gold price. I look forward to updating everybody on our progress in the months ahead."
Note that all references to "$" are to United States dollars.
Q3 2024 Production overview
Gold production of 2,956 ounces (Q3 2023: 4,156 ounces):
o 2,955 ounces contained within gold doré
§ 2,349 ounces from heap leaching
§ 606 ounces from agitation leaching
o 1 ounce from sulphidisation, acidification, recycling and thickening ("SART") processing
- Copper production of 11 tonnes from SART processing (Q3 2023: SART processing 43 tonnes and flotation 207 tonnes)
- Silver production totalled 3,315 ounces (Q3 2023: 5,656 ounces):
o 1,979 ounces contained within gold doré
§ 415 ounces from agitation leaching
§ 1,564 ounces from heap leaching
o 1,336 ounces from SART processing
Q3 2024 Sales overview
- Total gold bullion sales of 3,220 ounces at an average price of $2,497 per ounce (Q3 2023: 2,900 ounces at an average price of $1,949 per ounce)
- There were no concentrate sales (Q3 2023: 2,358 dmt with a value of $3.1 million)
Q3 2024 Financials overview
- Cash of $8.1 million ($7.9 million at 30 June 2024) including restricted cash
- Debt of $22.1 million ($19.9 million at 30 June 2024)
- Net debt of $14.0 million ($12.0 million at 30 June 2024)
- Unsold gold doré and copper concentrate inventory of $2.7 million at 30 September 2024
The Company mined the following ore during FY 2023 and the nine months to 30 September 2024:
| 12 months to 31 December 2023 | 6 months to 30 June 2024 | 3 months to 30 September 2024 | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mine | Ore mined | Average gold grade | Ore mined | Average gold grade | Ore mined | Average gold grade |
| (tonnes) | (g/t) | (tonnes) | (g/t) | (tonnes) | (g/t) | |
| Open pit | 1,180,695 | 0.38 | 287,321 | 0.78 | 12,803 | 0.33 |
| Gadir - u/g | 109,320 | 1.64 | 94,290 | 1.78 | 31,019 | 1.03 |
| Gedabek - u/g | - | - | - | - | - | - |
| Total | 1,290,015 | 0.49 | 381,611 | 1.03 | 43,822 | 0.83 |
The Company processed the following amounts and grades of ore by leaching for FY 2023 and the nine months to 30 September 2024:
| Quarter ended | Ore processed | Gold grade of ore processed | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Heap leach pad crushed ore (tonnes) | Heap leach pad ROM ore (tonnes) | Agitation leaching plant* (tonnes) | Heap leach pad crushed ore (g/t) | Heap leach pad ROM ore (g/t) | Agitation leaching plant* (g/t) | |
| 31 March 2023 | 94,518 | 196,595 | 62,006 | 0.74 | 0.49 | 1.30 |
| 30 June 2023 | 56,522 | 202,788 | 105,213 | 0.75 | 0.46 | 1.40 |
| 30 September 2023 | 25,690 | 34,621 | - | 0.83 | 0.45 | - |
| 31 December 2023 | - | - | - | - | - | - |
| FY 2023 | 176,730 | 434,004 | 167,219 | 0.76 | 0.48 | 1.40 |
| 31 March 2024 | 120,528 | - | - | 0.68 | - | - |
| 30 June 2024 | 110,225 | 9,698 | - | 0.59 | 0.52 | - |
| H1 2024 | 230,753 | 9,698 | - | 0.66 | 0.52 | - |
| 30 September 2024 | 110,152 | - | 18,009 | 0.65 | - | 2.03 |
* includes previously heap leached ore.
The Company processed the following amounts of ore and contained metal by flotation for FY 2023 and the nine months ended 30 September 2024:
| Quarter ended | Ore processed | Gold content | Silver content | Copper content |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| (tonnes) | (ounces) | (ounces) | (tonnes) | |
| 31 March 2023 | 192,516 | 1,487 | 19,787 | 1,133 |
| 30 June 2023 | 190,593 | 1,033 | 10,380 | 1,191 |
| 30 September 2023 | 62,369 | 478 | 4,358 | 363 |
| 31 December 2023 | - | - | - | - |
| FY 2023 | 445,478 | 2,998 | 34,525 | 2,687 |
| 31 March 2024 | - | - | - | - |
| 30 June 2024 | - | - | - | - |
| H1 2024 | - | - | - | - |
| 30 September 2024 | - | - | - | - |
The following table summarises gold doré production and sales at Gedabek for FY 2023 and the nine months 30 September 2024:
| Quarter ended | Gold produced* (ounces) | Silver produced* (ounces) | Gold sales** (ounces) | Gold Sales price ($/ounce) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 31 March 2023 | 5,965 | 2,841 | 5,719 | 1,895 |
| 30 June 2023 | 7,375 | 3,593 | 4,787 | 1,992 |
| 30 September 2023 | 4,001 | 1,488 | 2,900 | 1,949 |
| 31 December 2023 | 2,975 | 1,610 | 2,416 | 2,004 |
| FY 2023 | 20,316 | 9,532 | 15,822 | 1,951 |
| 31 March 2024 | 2,259 | 1,512 | 3,925 | 2,080 |
| 30 June 2024 | 2,433 | 1,532 | 2,075 | 2,350 |
| H1 2024 | 4,692 | 3,044 | 6,000 | 2,174 |
| 30 September 2024 | 2,955 | 1,979 | 3,220 | 2,497 |
Note
* including Government of Azerbaijan's share
** excluding Government of Azerbaijan's share
The gold and silver production from agitation and heap leaching for FY 2023 and the nine months ended 30 September 2024 is as follows:
| Quarter ended | Gold | Silver | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Agitation leaching (ounces) | Heap leaching (ounces) | Total (ounces) | Agitation leaching (ounces) | Heap leaching (ounces) | Total (ounces) | |
| 31 March 2023 | 2,105 | 3,860 | 5,965 | 1,077 | 1,764 | 2,841 |
| 30 June 2023 | 3,463 | 3,912 | 7,375 | 1,735 | 1,858 | 3,593 |
| 30 Sept 2023 | - | 4,001 | 4,001 | - | 1,488 | 1,488 |
| 31 Dec 2023 | - | 2,975 | 2,975 | - | 1,610 | 1,610 |
| FY 2023 | 5,568 | 14,748 | 20,316 | 2,812 | 6,720 | 9,532 |
| 31 March 2024 | - | 2,259 | 2,259 | - | 1,512 | 1,512 |
| 30 June 2024 | - | 2,433 | 2,433 | - | 1,532 | 1,532 |
| H1 2024 | - | 4,692 | 4,692 | - | 3,044 | 3,044 |
| 30 Sept 2024 | 606 | 2,349 | 2,955 | 415 | 1,564 | 1,979 |
The following table summarises copper concentrate production from both the Company's SART and flotation plants at Gedabek for FY 2023 and the nine months ended 30 September 2024:
| Concentrate | Copper | Gold | Silver | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| production* | content* | content* | content* | |
| (dmt) | (tonnes) | (ounces) | (ounces) | |
| 2023 | ||||
| Quarter ended 31 March | ||||
| SART processing | 364 | 191 | 26 | 8,750 |
| Flotation | 4,544 | 665 | 762 | 11,095 |
| Total | 4,908 | 856 | 788 | 19,845 |
| Quarter ended 30 June | ||||
| SART processing | 272 | 145 | 16 | 10,316 |
| Flotation | 5,613 | 869 | 479 | 8,101 |
| Total | 5,885 | 1,014 | 495 | 18,417 |
| Quarter ended 30 September | ||||
| SART processing | 85 | 43 | 4 | 2,194 |
| Flotation | 1,316 | 207 | 151 | 1,974 |
| Total | 1,401 | 250 | 155 | 4,168 |
| Quarter ended 31 December | ||||
| SART processing | 29 | 18 | 4 | 1,264 |
| Flotation | - | - | - | - |
| Total | 29 | 18 | 4 | 1,264 |
| 2024 | ||||
| Quarter ended 31 March | ||||
| SART processing | 89 | 54 | 7 | 4,893 |
| Flotation | - | - | - | - |
| Total | 89 | 54 | 7 | 4,893 |
| Quarter ended 30 June | ||||
| SART processing | 77 | 46 | 5 | 4,809 |
| Flotation | - | - | - | - |
| Total | 77 | 46 | 5 | 4,809 |
| Quarter ended 30 September | ||||
| SART processing | 19 | 11 | 1 | 1,336 |
| Flotation | - | - | - | - |
| Total | 19 | 11 | 1 | 1,336 |
Note
* including Government of Azerbaijan's share.
The following table summarises total copper concentrate production and sales for FY 2023 and nine months to 30 September 2024. Note that sales of concentrates are initially recorded at provisional amounts until agreement of final assay:
| Concentrate | Copper | Gold | Silver | Concentrate | Concentrate | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| production* | content* | content* | content* | sales** | sales** | |
| (dmt) | (tonnes) | (ounces) | (ounces) | (dmt) | ($000) | |
| Quarter ended | ||||||
| 31 March 2023 | 4,908 | 856 | 788 | 19,845 | 1,147 | 2,743 |
| 30 June 2023 | 5,885 | 1,014 | 495 | 18,417 | 5,501 | 7,678 |
| 30 September 2023 | 1,401 | 250 | 155 | 4,168 | 2,358 | 3,066 |
| 31 December 2023 | 29 | 18 | 4 | 1,264 | 2,186 | 2,306 |
| FY 2023 | 12,223 | 2,138 | 1,442 | 43,694 | 11,192 | 15,793 |
| 31 March 2024 | 89 | 54 | 7 | 4,893 | 71 | 295 |
| 30 June 2024 | 77 | 46 | 5 | 4,809 | 260 | 1,002 |
| H1 2024 | 166 | 100 | 12 | 9,702 | 331 | 1,297 |
| 30 September 2024 | 19 | 11 | 1 | 1,336 | - | - |
* including Government of Azerbaijan's share
** excludes Government of Azerbaijan's share
9M 2024 Financial review
The Company's net debt increased from $10.2 million at 1 January 2024 to $14.0 million at 30 September 2024 as follows:
| H1 2024 | Q3 2024 | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| $m | $m | $m | $m |
| 1 Jan / 1 July 2024 | (10.2) | (12.0) | |
| Revenue | 14.6 | 8.1 | |
| VAT refund | 1.9 | 0.4 | |
| Interest income | 0.2 | - | |
| Operating costs | (19.2) | (9.6) | |
| Capital expenditure | (1.5) | (0.6) | |
| Debt servicing | (0.8) | (0.3) | |
| Trafigura advance | 3.0 | - | |
| Outflow in the period | (1.8) | (2.0) | |
| 30 June / 30 Sept 2024 | (12.0) | (14.0) |
Note the $3.0 million advance from Trafigura has been treated as a prepayment and not included in net debt.
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