Financials : 2021-03-29 07:00 ET - News Release
VANCOUVER, British Columbia., March 29, 2021 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- K92 Mining Inc. (“K92” or the “Company”) (TSX: KNT; OTCQX: KNTNF) is pleased to announce results from its financial statements for the three and twelve months ended December 31, 2020.
Safety
- Strong safety record continues and one of the best safety records in the Australasia region since start of operations.
- Proactive and focused management of COVID-19. K92 continues to operate and has strong preventative and response plans.
Production
Fourth Quarter 2020
- Record quarterly tonnage of 68,932 tonnes treated, a 127% increase from Q4 2019.
- Record quarterly gold equivalent (“AuEq”) production of 29,820 oz, or 28,809 oz gold, 493,584 lbs copper and 10,395 oz silver, representing a 26% AuEq increase from Q4 2019(1).
- Cash costs of US$639/oz gold and all-in sustaining costs (“AISC”) of US$768/oz gold ounce(2).
- Long hole stoping on both the K1 and K2 Veins has provided a notable positive impact on operational flexibility.
Full Year 2020
- Record annual tonnage of 230,365 tonnes treated, an 81% increase from 2019.
- Record annual gold equivalent production of 98,872 oz or 95,109 oz gold, 1,853,078 lbs copper and 36,067 oz silver, representing a year-over-year AuEq increase of 20%.
- Cash costs of US$651/oz gold and AISC of US$782/oz gold ounce.
Financials
Fourth Quarter 2020
- Sold 28,112 oz of gold, 512,203 lbs of copper and 10,594 oz of silver. Gold concentrate inventories of 5,451 oz as of December 31, 2020, a quarterly decrease of 408 oz.
- Record quarterly revenue of US$48.0 million, increasing 44% from Q4 2019.
- Operating cash flow (before working capital adjustments) for the three months ended December 31, 2020 of US$18.9 million or US$0.09 per share and earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization (“EBITDA”) of US$22.7 million or US$0.10 per share.
- Net income for the three months ended December 31, 2020 of US$10.9 million or US$0.05 per share.
- Quarterly gross margin of 53%.
- Balance sheet significantly strengthened during Q4, with cash increasing by US$10.3 million to US$51.5 million and debt decreasing by US$2.1 million to US$4.9 million as at December 31, 2020.
Full Year 2020
- Sold 93,273 oz of gold, 1,827,368 lbs of copper and 36,655 oz of silver.
- Record annual revenue of US$159.1 million, increasing 56% from 2019.
- Operating cash flow (before working capital adjustments) for the twelve months ended December 31, 2020 of US$76.5 million or US$0.35 per share and EBITDA of US$79.6 million or US$0.37 per share.
- Net income for the twelve months ended December 31, 2020 of US$42.0 million or US$0.19 per share.
- Annual gross margin of 54%.
Growth
- Successful commissioning of the Stage 2 Plant Expansion to double throughput capacity to 400,000 tonnes per year and continued development of the twin incline following the lifting of the State of Emergency in June 2020.
- Stage 3 Expansion Preliminary Economic Assessment announced on July 27, 2020, outlining a potential Tier 1 asset, with ~318,000 ounces per annum AuEq run-rate production at a life of mine average AISC cost of US$362 per gold ounce net of by-product credits.
• At $1,500/oz gold, $18/oz silver and $3.00/lb copper prices, the estimate after-tax NPV5% is US$1.5 billion and is fully funded from mine cash flow. At US$1,900/oz gold prices the estimated after-tax NPV5% is US$2.0 billion. - Underground development on the Judd Vein #1, marking the first significant exploration undertaken by K92 on the near-mine infrastructure, underexplored, +2.5km strike vein system. A Phase 1 underground drill program commenced during the quarter after reporting the preliminary results.
- Number of drill rigs increased to 10 at the end of the year, with plans to drill Kora, Kora South, Karempe and Judd epithermal vein systems, plus the Blue Lake porphyry concurrently.
For complete details of the annual audited consolidated financial statements and associated management’s discussion and analysis, please refer to the Company’s website or profile on SEDAR (www.sedar.com). All amounts are in U.S. dollars unless otherwise indicated.
John Lewins, K92 Chief Executive Officer and Director, stated, “2020 represented another transformational year for K92. In terms of operations, Kainantu delivered record throughput, production and development, and finished the year particularly strong, with multiple quarterly records achieved in the fourth quarter. In the third quarter, K92 achieved two major growth milestones: the completion of the Stage 2 Plant Expansion commissioning, and; the Stage 3 Expansion PEA study. The Stage 2 Plant Expansion, has already delivered a notable step-change in terms of the capabilities of the operation, doubling throughput capacity from 200,000 tpa (~550 tpd) to 400,000 tpa (~1,100 tpd). The Stage 3 Expansion PEA has outlined a Tier 1 Asset, expanding to 1 mtpa throughput with run-rate production of ~318kozpa AuEq, LOM average AISC of $362/oz Au and capital costs funded from mine cash flow at $1,500/oz.
On exploration, Kainantu doubled the number of drill rigs to 10, providing a significant boost to not only the rate of drilling but our capacity to drill multiple targets concurrently. In the second half of the year, this resulted in high grade mineralization recorded at both the underexplored Karempe and Judd vein systems. The results from Judd are particularly encouraging with JDD0006 recording 7.25 m at 256.09 g/t Au, 113 g/t Ag and 0.42 % Cu (258.01 g/t AuEq, 5.30m true width) on the J1 vein (see November 9, 2020 press release), representing one of the highest-grade intersections drilled by K92. Importantly, underground development has supported the Judd drilling results, with the latest 65-metre development extension on the Judd 1235 Level recording an average 3.8 metres vein thickness at 18.70 g/t AuEq (17.13 g/t Au, 0.82% Cu and 37 g/t Ag) (see January 26, 2021 press release). Exploration results have increased our conviction for a higher throughput rate for the Stage 3 Expansion Definitive Feasibility Study and resulted in more drill rigs being added through 2021.
Lastly, I would like to highlight that this transformational year was achieved in one of the most challenging environments globally due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The dedication and resourcefulness of our workforce has been exemplary, and the support of government has also been a major factor in our success.”