VANCOUVER, BRITISH COLUMBIA, Jan 13, 2009 (Marketwire via COMTEX News Network) --
MinefindersCorporation Ltd. (TSX:MFL)(NYSE Alternext US:MFN) announced today thatmetal production totaled approximately 3,093 ounces of gold and 57,378ounces of silver in the fourth quarter of 2008. As previously reported,the first pour of gold and silver dore from the Company's flagshipDolores Mine in Chihuahua, Mexico took place in mid-November, 2008.Shipments to the refiner commenced in early December.
TheCompany sold 2,440 ounces of gold and 42,800 ounces of silver in the2008 fourth quarter, all in December. The average realized price wasapproximately US$843 per ounce of gold and approximately US$10.69 perounce of silver. Pre-commercial production operating costs, net ofsales revenue, are capitalized to mine development costs until thecommencement of commercial production which is expected in the secondquarter of 2009. Management expects to disclose complete fourth quarterand fiscal 2008 financial results in March 2009.
"Minefindersenters 2009 with a strengthened balance sheet and anticipates positiveoperating cash flow by the end of the first quarter as a result ofsteadily growing low-cost gold and silver production," commented MarkBailey, President and Chief Executive Officer. "Our top priorities areachieving commercial production at Dolores in the second quarter,optimizing operational efficiencies and costs, and executing on growthopportunities for the company."
Previously reported productiontargets for 2009 and 2010 remain unchanged and these projections willbe refined as actual recoveries and leach cycles become available.Grades in ore stacked to the leach pad and solution grade to the pondcontinue to increase and mining and processing operations at Doloresare proceeding well toward commercial production.
The threestage crushing and stacking rates are at sustained levels of 15,000tonnes per day and crushing and stacking rates are expected to reachdesign capacity of 18,000 tonnes per day this month. As more tonnescome under leach, gold and silver production will continue to escalateto commercial production levels with life of mine production expectedto exceed 1.7 million ounces of gold and 64 million ounces of silverover a 15-year mine life. To date over one million ore tonnes have beenstacked to the leach pad and 950 thousand ore tonnes are currentlyunder leach.
Recent photos of operations at Dolores can be viewed at www.minefinders.com in the Dolores Gallery.
Qualified Person
MarkBailey MSc., P.Geo., is the "qualified person" with overallresponsibility for the Dolores Project and is responsible for thecontents of this news release.
About Minefinders
Minefindersis a precious metals mining and exploration company and operates themulti-million ounce Dolores gold and silver mine in Mexico. The Companycontinues its exploration efforts on other prospective projects inMexico to build a quality pipeline of precious metals projects forfuture growth.
MINEFINDERS CORPORATION LTD.
Mark H. Bailey, President and Chief Executive Officer
Thisrelease contains certain "forward-looking statements" and"forward-looking information" as defined under applicable Canadian andU.S. securities laws. Forward-looking statements generally can beidentified by the use of forward-looking terminology such as "may,""will," "expect," "intend," "estimate," "anticipate," "believe,""continue" or similar terminology. Forward-looking statements are basedon forecasts of future results, estimates of amounts not yetdeterminable and assumptions of management that, while believed bymanagement to be reasonable, are inherently subject to significantbusiness, economic and competitive uncertainties and contingencies.Certain of the statements made herein by Minefinders, areforward-looking and subject to important risk factors anduncertainties, both known and unknown, many of which are beyond theCompany's ability to control or predict. Known and unknown factorscould cause actual results to differ materially from those projected inthe forward-looking statements. Those factors are described or referredto under the heading "Risk Factors" of Minefinders' Annual InformationForm for the year ended December 31, 2007 and under the heading "Risksand Uncertainties" of Minefinders' Management's Discussion and Analysisfor the year ended December 31, 2007, both of which are incorporated byreference herein and are available on SEDAR at www.sedar.com. Althoughthe Company has attempted to identify important factors that couldcause actual actions, events or results to differ materially from thosedescribed in forward-looking statements, there may be other factorsthat cause actions, events or results not to be as anticipated,estimated or intended. There can be no assurance that forward-lookingstatements will prove to be accurate, as actual results and futureevents could differ materially from those anticipated in suchstatements.
SOURCE: Minefinders Corporation Ltd.
MinefindersCorporation Ltd. Mike Wills Investor Contact (604) 687-6263 (604)687-6267 (FAX) Email: mike@minefinders.com Website: www.minefinders.com
Copyright (C) 2009 Marketwire. All rights reserved.