Industria
Q4-2024 Production Results and Operational Highlights
Serabi Gold plc (“Serabi” or the “Company”) (AIM:SRB, TSX:SBI, OTCQX:SRBIF), the Brazilian focused gold mining and development company, is pleased to announce the Company's fourth quarter production results and operating highlights for FY2024 (all financial amounts are expressed in U.S. dollars unless otherwise indicated).
Q4-2024 QUARTER HIGHLIGHTS & 2025 GUIDANCE
Mike Hodgson, CEO of Serabi, commented:
“2024 was a highly successful year for Serabi with many milestones achieved. These include a 13% increase in annual gold production, permitting progress at Coringa with the renewal for three years of the trial mining permit, the successful build and commissioning of the Coringa classification plant out of cashflow, whilst ending the year with a healthy cash position.
The fourth quarter in particular was excellent for Serabi, as gold production of 10,022 ounces was a five-year high and resulted in a year-end total of 37,520 ounces. Throughout 2024, gold production improved and we expect this to continue into 2025.
Whilst our growth is clearly Coringa focused, it has been very welcome news to see Palito grades improve significantly during the fourth quarter, with mined and milled grades exceeding 6.10 g/t gold. It is not a coincidence that this grade improvement has occurred as we have been able to cease the more dilutive mechanised mining in the Chico da Santa zone, and returning to a selective mining method. Grade improvements are also due to some exceptional grades coming out of the Barrichello zone which is expected to be contributing significantly to 2025 gold production.
The Coringa mine continued to perform exceptionally well with ore being mined in the Serra zone at levels 260m and 225m, with development on levels 225m, 195m and 165m, and the Serra ramp now approaching level 130m. The fourth quarter also saw the Meio portal and ramp development commence with the mineralisation at Meio intersected in December. Meio is expected to contribute significantly to Coringa production in 2025.
Lastly, the Coringa classification plant was commissioned in December and so far has been yielding formidable results. As previously reported, Serabi is now pre-concentrating mined ore at Coringa and trucking this preconcentrated product to the Palito Complex for further processing, ~200km to the north by road. The economic benefits of this option were formally documented in the NI 43-101 compliant PEA Technical Report filed November 2024.”
OPERATIONAL RESULTS
(1) The table may not sum due to rounding.
(2) Production numbers are subject to change pending final assay analysis from refineries.
Total production for the fourth quarter was 10,022 ounces. Total ore mined during the quarter was 50,327 tonnes at 6.19 g/t compared to 58,682 tonnes at 5.48 g/t for the third quarter of 2024. The increase in grade is driven by the return to selective mining methods from the bulk mining methods previously utilised in the Chica da Santa sector, which removed dilution associated with the bulk mining methods. Additionally, the higher grades in the fourth quarter of 2024 are driven by the increased grades mined in the Barrichello zone which is expected to contribute significantly to 2025 production. The Palito Complex process plant treated 52,363 tonnes of ROM ore during the quarter, with an average grade of 6.21 g/t of gold, compared with 54,579 tonnes at 5.59 g/t gold in the third quarter of 2024.
A total of 3,511 metres of horizontal development has been completed for the quarter of which 1,925 metres was ore development. The balance was the ramp, crosscuts and stope preparation development.
The Coringa orebody continues to perform well. Production was focused on the levels of 260m and 225m, with development now complete or nearly complete on the levels of 225m, 195m, and 165m whilst the Serra ramp now approaching 130m. Coringa has 2.5 fully developed levels ahead of stoping.
FINANCE UPDATE
Cash balances at the end of December 2024 were $22.2 million, in comparison to the cash balances at the end of December 2023 of $11.6 million. On 7 January 2024, the Group completed a $5.0 million unsecured loan arrangement with Itau Bank in Brazil which carried an interest coupon of 8.47 per cent. This loan was fully repaid on 6 January 2025. The Company is in the final stages of executing another loan facility with a more favourable interest rate. The Company had a net cash balance at the end of Q4-2024 (after interest bearing loans and lease liabilities) of $16.2 million (31 December 2023: net cash $5.0 million).
FY2025 PRODUCTION GUIDANCE
The Company expects FY2025 consolidated gold production of 44,000 – 47,000 ounces.
About Serabi Gold plc
Serabi Gold plc is a gold exploration, development and production company focused on the prolific Tapajós region in Para State, northern Brazil. The Company has consistently produced 30,000 to 40,000 ounces per year with the Palito Complex and is planning to double production in the coming years with the construction of the Coringa Gold project. Serabi Gold plc recently made a copper-gold porphyry discovery on its extensive exploration licence. The Company is headquartered in the United Kingdom with a secondary office in Toronto, Ontario, Canada.
The information contained within this announcement is deemed by the Company to constitute inside information as stipulated under the Market Abuse Regulations (EU) No. 596/2014 as it forms part of UK Domestic Law by virtue of the European Union (Withdrawal) Act 2018.
The person who arranged for the release of this announcement on behalf of the Company was Andrew Khov, Vice President, Investor Relations & Business Development.
Enquiries
SERABI GOLD plc
Michael Hodgson t + 44 (0)20 7246 6830
Chief Executive m +44 (0)7799 473621
Andrew Khov m +1 647 885 4874
Vice President, Investor Relations &
Business Development
e contact@serabigold.com
www.serabigold.com
BEAUMONT CORNISH Limited
Nominated Adviser & Financial Adviser
Roland Cornish / Michael Cornish t +44 (0)20 7628 3396
PEEL HUNT LLP
Joint UK Broker
Ross Allister t +44 (0)20 7418 9000
TAMESIS PARTNERS LLP
Joint UK Broker
Charlie Bendon/ Richard Greenfield t +44 (0)20 3882 2868
CAMARCO
Financial PR - Europe
Gordon Poole / Emily Hall t +44 (0)20 3757 4980
HARBOR ACCESS
Financial PR – North America
Jonathan Patterson / Lisa Micali t +1 475 477 9404
Copies of this announcement are available from the Company's website at www.serabigold.com.
See www.serabigold.com for more information and follow us on twitter @Serabi_Gold
GLOSSARY OF TERMS
The following is a glossary of technical terms:
Assay Results
Assay results reported within this release include those provided by the Company's own on-site laboratory facilities at Palito and have not yet been independently verified. Serabi closely monitors the performance of its own facility against results from independent laboratory analysis for quality control purpose. As a matter of normal practice, the Company sends duplicate samples derived from a variety of the Company's activities to accredited laboratory facilities for independent verification. Since mid-2019, over 10,000 exploration drill core samples have been assayed at both the Palito laboratory and certified external laboratory, in most cases the ALS laboratory in Belo Horizonte, Brazil. When comparing significant assays with grades exceeding 1 g/t gold, comparison between Palito versus external results record an average over-estimation by the Palito laboratory of 6.7% over this period. Based on the results of this work, the Company's management are satisfied that the Company's own facility shows sufficiently good correlation with independent laboratory facilities for exploration drill samples. The Company would expect that in the preparation of any future independent Reserve/Resource statement undertaken in compliance with a recognized standard, the independent authors of such a statement would not use Palito assay results without sufficient duplicates from an appropriately certificated laboratory.
Forward-looking statements
Certain statements in this announcement are, or may be deemed to be, forward looking statements. Forward looking statements are identified by their use of terms and phrases such as ''believe'', ''could'', “should” ''envisage'', ''estimate'', ''intend'', ''may'', ''plan'', ''will'' or the negative of those, variations or comparable expressions, including references to assumptions. These forward-looking statements are not based on historical facts but rather on the Directors' current expectations and assumptions regarding the Company's future growth, results of operations, performance, future capital and other expenditures (including the amount, nature and sources of funding thereof), competitive advantages, business prospects and opportunities. Such forward looking statements reflect the Directors' current beliefs and assumptions and are based on information currently available to the Directors. Several factors could cause actual results to differ materially from the results discussed in the forward-looking statements including risks associated with vulnerability to general economic and business conditions, competition, environmental and other regulatory changes, actions by governmental authorities, the availability of capital markets, reliance on key personnel, uninsured and underinsured losses and other factors, many of which are beyond the control of the Company. Although any forward-looking statements contained in this announcement are based upon what the Directors believe to be reasonable assumptions, the Company cannot assure investors that actual results will be consistent with such forward looking statements.
Qualified Persons Statement
The scientific and technical information contained within this announcement has been reviewed and approved by Michael Hodgson, a Director of the Company. Mr Hodgson is an Economic Geologist by training with over 30 years' experience in the mining industry. He holds a BSc (Hons) Geology, University of London, a MSc Mining Geology, University of Leicester and is a Fellow of the Institute of Materials, Minerals and Mining and a Chartered Engineer of the Engineering Council of UK, recognizing him as both a Qualified Person for the purposes of Canadian National Instrument 43-101 and by the AIM Guidance Note on Mining and Oil & Gas Companies dated June 2009.
Notice
Beaumont Cornish Limited, which is authorised and regulated in the United Kingdom by the Financial Conduct Authority, is acting as nominated adviser to the Company in relation to the matters referred herein. Beaumont Cornish Limited is acting exclusively for the Company and for no one else in relation to the matters described in this announcement and is not advising any other person and accordingly will not be responsible to anyone other than the Company for providing the protections afforded to clients of Beaumont Cornish Limited, or for providing advice in relation to the contents of this announcement or any matter referred to in it.
Neither the Toronto Stock Exchange, nor any other securities regulatory authority, has approved or disapproved of the contents of this news release
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