, /CNW/ - ("New Gold") (TSX and NYSE MKT:NGD) today announces that a minor pit wall movement occurred at its in on . Approximately 800,000 tonnes of material moved on the northeast pit wall. Importantly, no one was injured, however, as a precautionary measure, mining in the area below the pit wall movement has been temporarily suspended. is working with geotechnical experts to evaluate the area and assess the impact on the company's near-term mine plan and production at Cerro San Pedro. The objective is to develop a plan for the safe resumption of mining in the area below the movement, however, if it is determined that this area will not be accessible until the next phase of mining, scheduled to take place in 2014, the company's preliminary estimate is that approximately 15,000 ounces of gold production would be carried forward from 2013 into future periods. The cost to mine and recover these ounces is not expected to increase by a material amount.
"Our primary focus is on ensuring the safety of our team and, as a result, we have stopped mining activity below the area of the ground movement," stated, President and Chief Executive Officer. "We are currently assessing the ground conditions and plan to adjust our mine plan to maximize our 2013 production, however, any ounces that cannot be accessed this year as a result of the slide are expected to be mined in the coming two years."
Separately, in the last month, recoveries from the Cerro San Pedro leach pad have been below the company's targets. is evaluating various alternatives to restore the recovery rates to historical levels.
anticipates that Cerro San Pedro's 2013 production will be below original expectations, however, efforts to mitigate the impact of the pit wall movement and lower recovery rates are already underway. will provide further details on the 2013 outlook for Cerro San Pedro, including the amount of production that is expected to be carried forward to future periods, as well as any potential impact on the consolidated company as part of its third quarter results.