All figures are in United States dollars. All production figures reflect payable metal quantities and are on a 100% basis, unless otherwise stated. For references denoted with NG, refer to the “Non-GAAP and Other Financial Measures” disclosure at the end of this news release for a description of these measures.
TORONTO, May 14, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — Centerra Gold Inc. (“Centerra” or the “Company”) (TSX: CG and NYSE: CGAU) today reported its first quarter 2024 operating and financial results.
President and CEO, Paul Tomory, commented, “Centerra had a strong quarter of operating performance with production and costs outperforming our expectations. At Mount Milligan, we continued to advance a site-wide optimization program, implementing tangible initiatives in several areas, including concentrate management, mine operations and mine-to-mill optimization. We are also focused on a preliminary economic assessment to evaluate the substantial mineral resources at the Mount Milligan mine to unlock value beyond its current 2035 mine life. At Öksüt, we remain on track with elevated production in the first half of the year, in line with our guidance.
“In the first quarter of 2024, our cash and cash equivalents increased to $647.6 million, despite making the $24.5 million payment related to the additional agreement with Royal Gold. We have been active on share buybacks in late February and March, delivering on our disciplined capital allocation strategy. Looking ahead, in the second quarter we expect to make tax and annual royalty payments in Türkiye, totalling approximately $105 million, which will impact our cash balance. We continue to believe that Centerra is well positioned to achieve its 2024 guidance, as we are delivering on our value maximizing strategy for the Company’s portfolio of assets,” concluded Mr. Tomory.
First Quarter 2024 Highlights
Operations
Financial
Other
Table 1 – Overview of Consolidated Financial and Operating Highlights
2024 Outlook
The Company’s 2024 outlook previously disclosed in the MD&A for the year ended December 31, 2023, filed on SEDAR+ at www.sedarplus.ca and EDGAR at www.sec.gov/edgar , is unchanged except for the following revisions: the Kemess Project’s reclamation costs have been revised down from the range of $24 to $30 million to the range of $19 to $25 million and the expected Öksüt Mine taxes have been increased from the range of $46 to $52 million to the range of $54 to $60 million due to higher gold prices. The Company notes that except for the changes highlighted above the rest of the outlook remains unchanged. The Company’s full year 2024 outlook, as adjusted, and comparative actual results for the three months ended March 31, 2024 are set out in the following table:
Molybdenum Business Unit
Project Evaluation, Exploration, and Other Costs
The Company’s 2024 outlook for the Goldfield Project, Kemess Project, corporate administration, and other exploration projects and comparative actual results for the three months ended March 31, 2024 are set out in the following table:
Mount Milligan Mount Milligan produced 48,317 ounces of gold and 14.3 million pounds of copper in the first quarter of 2024. Mining activities were carried out in phases 6, 7, and 9 of the open pit. A total of 12.3 million tonnes were mined in the first quarter of 2024. Process plant throughput for the first quarter of 2024 was 5.2 million tonnes, averaging 56,728 tonnes per day. Mount Milligan is on track for its 2024 gold production guidance of 180,000 to 200,000 ounces and copper production guidance of 55 to 65 million pounds. Both gold and copper production are expected to be evenly weighted throughout the year, however, gold and copper sales in the second half of 2024 are expected to contribute approximately 55% of the annual sales.
Gold production costs in the first quarter 2024 were $954 per ounce, in line with $946 per ounce last quarter. AISC on a by-product basis NG was $688 per ounce, 27% lower than last quarter, due to lower sustaining capital expenditures and higher by-product credits. The Company expects gold production costs and AISC on a by-product basis NG to be higher in the second quarter of 2024 as a result of a lower percentage of annual sales in the first half of 2024 (as noted above), along with higher expected sustaining capital expenditures. Mount Milligan is on track for its full year 2024 gold production costs guidance and AISC on a by-product basis NG guidance.
In the first quarter 2024, sustaining capital expenditures at Mount Milligan were $4.1 million, focused on the tailings storage facility, projects related to water sourcing and access, equipment overhauls, and equipment purchases. The Company maintains the 2024 sustaining capital guidance at Mount Milligan and expects the sustaining capital spending to increase throughout the year.
In the first quarter of 2024, Centerra made progress on its site-wide optimization program at Mount Milligan, initially launched in the fourth quarter 2023 and focused on a holistic assessment of occupational health and safety, as well as improvements in mine and plant operations. This program covers all aspects of the operation to maximize the potential of the orebody, setting up Mount Milligan for long-term success to 2035 and beyond. Notable achievements in the first quarter of 2024 were observed in key areas, including:
On February 14, 2024, Centerra announced that the Company has entered into an additional agreement with Royal Gold relating to Mount Milligan, which has resulted in a life of mine extension to 2035 and established favourable parameters for potential future mine life extensions. Centerra has initiated a preliminary economic assessment (“PEA”) to evaluate the substantial mineral resources at the Mount Milligan mine with a goal to unlock additional value beyond its current 2035 mine life. The PEA is expected to be completed in first half of 2025.
Öksüt
Öksüt produced 63,024 ounces of gold in the first quarter of 2024. Mining activities were focused on phase 5 and phase 6 of the Keltepe pit and in phase 2 of the Güneytepe pit. In the first quarter 2024, a total of 3.7 million tonnes were mined and 1.0 million tonnes were stacked at an average grade of 1.44 g/t. The Company is on track to achieve its production 2024 guidance with approximately 60% of the annual production weighted to the first half of the year.
Gold production costs and AISC on a by-product basis NG for the first quarter 2024 at Öksüt were $587 per ounce and $823 per ounce, respectively. These costs per ounce were higher compared to last quarter primarily due to increased mining and hauling costs and higher weighted average costs per ounce in the remaining inventory, as well as decreased gold production and sales. Öksüt is on track to achieve its gold production costs guidance and AISC on a by-product basis NG guidance for 2024.
In the first quarter 2024, sustaining capital expenditures at Öksüt were $11.3 million, focused on capitalized stripping and water treatment plant construction.
In 2024, Öksüt’s current income tax paid is expected to be approximately $95 to $105 million, with approximately $75 million to be paid in the second quarter of 2024, assuming no change in the exchange rate between the Turkish lira and US dollar. Additionally, the annual Turkish government royalty payment will be made in the second quarter 2024. This is expected to be approximately $30 million. Together, these cash payments will require a cash outflow in the second quarter 2024 of approximately $105 million.
In the first quarter 2024, the Molybdenum Business Unit sold 2.9 million pounds of molybdenum, generating revenue of $63.4 million with an average realized price of $20.47 per pound. As part of Centerra’s previously disclosed 2024 guidance, the Langeloth Metallurgical Facility (“Langeloth”) is expected to complete an acid plant maintenance shutdown in the second quarter 2024. A portion of Langeloth’s full year sustaining capital expenditure guidance is related to this planned outage. Molybdenum sales are not expected to be impacted by the acid plant maintenance shutdown as Langeloth has sufficient inventory levels to maintain a steady level of sales. As part of Centerra’s strategy to maximize the value for each asset in its portfolio, the Company has recently completed a commercial optimization plan at Langeloth, geared at increasing profitability and evaluating its future potential. Details of the commercial optimization plan and the value potential at Langeloth will be announced in conjunction with the Thompson Creek Mine feasibility study in late summer of 2024.
In the first quarter of 2024, the Thompson Creek Mine progressed with early works in the main open pit area that are expected to continue through 2024. The costs of these activities are expected to be expensed until a limited notice to proceed is authorized by the Board of Directors, a matter to be considered following completion of the feasibility study.
First Quarter 2024 Operating and Financial Results Webcast and Conference Call
Centerra invites you to join its 2024 first quarter conference call on Tuesday, May 14, 2024, at 9:00 a.m. Eastern Time. Details for the webcast and conference call are included below.
Webcast
Conference Call
For detailed information on the results contained within this release, please refer to the Company’s Management’s Discussion and Analysis (“MD&A”) and financial statements for the quarter ended March 31, 2024, that are available on the Company’s website www.centerragold.com or SEDAR+ at www.sedarplus.ca .
About Centerra Centerra Gold Inc. is a Canadian-based mining company focused on operating, developing, exploring and acquiring gold and copper properties in North America, Türkiye, and other markets worldwide. Centerra operates two mines: the Mount Milligan Mine in British Columbia, Canada, and the Öksüt Mine in Türkiye. The Company also owns the Goldfield Project in Nevada, United States, the Kemess Project in British Columbia, Canada, and owns and operates the Molybdenum Business Unit in the United States and Canada. Centerra’s shares trade on the Toronto Stock Exchange (“TSX”) under the symbol CG and on the New York Stock Exchange (“NYSE”) under the symbol CGAU. The Company is based in Toronto, Ontario, Canada.
For more information:
Lisa Wilkinson Vice President, Investor Relations & Corporate Communications (416) 204-3780 lisa.wilkinson@centerragold.com
Lana Pisarenko Senior Manager, Investor Relations (416) 204-1957 lana.pisarenko@centerragold.com
Additional information on Centerra is available on the Company’s website at www.centerragold.com , on SEDAR+ at www.sedarplus.ca and EDGAR at www.sec.gov/edgar .
Caution Regarding Forward-Looking Information:
This document contains or incorporates by reference “forward-looking statements” and “forward-looking information” as defined under applicable Canadian and U.S. securities legislation. All statements, other than statements of historical fact, which address events, results, outcomes or developments that the Company expects to occur are, or may be deemed to be, forward-looking statements. Such forward-looking information involves risks, uncertainties and other factors that could cause actual results, performance, prospects and opportunities to differ materially from those expressed or implied by such forward-looking information. Forward-looking statements are generally, but not always, identified by the use of forward-looking terminology such as “believe”, “continue”, “expect”, “evaluate”, “finalizing”, “forecast”, “goal”, “ongoing”, “plan”, “potential”, “preliminary”, “project”, “restart”, “target” or “update”, or variations of such words and phrases and similar expressions or statements that certain actions, events or results “may”, “could”, “would” or “will” be taken, occur or be achieved or the negative connotation of such terms.
Such statements include, but may not be limited to: statements regarding 2024 guidance, outlook and expectations, including production, cash flow, costs including care and maintenance and reclamation costs, capital expenditures, depreciation, depletion and amortization, taxes and cash flows; exploration potential, budgets, focuses, programs, targets and projected exploration results; gold and copper prices; the timing and amount of future benefits and obligations in connection with the Additional Royal Gold Agreement; a Preliminary Economic Assessment at Mount Milligan Mine and any related evaluation of resources or a life of mine beyond 2035; a feasibility study regarding a potential restart of the Thompson Creek Mine; an initial resource estimate at the Goldfield Project including the success of exploration programs or metallurgical testwork; the Company’s strategic plan; increased gold production at Mount Milligan and the success of any metallurgical reviews including the blending of elevated pyrite bearing high-grade gold, low-grade copper ore and any recoveries thereof; the optimization program at Mount Milligan including any improvements to occupational health and safety, the mine and the plant and any potential costs savings resulting from the same; the expected gold production at Öksüt Mine in 2024; the new multi-year contract with the existing mining and hauling services provider at Öksüt Mine; royalty rates and taxes, including withholding taxes related to repatriation of earnings from Türkiye; project development costs at Thompson Creek Mine and the Goldfield Project; the decommissioning of the Kemess South TSF sedimentation pond and associated works; financial hedges; and other statements that express management’s expectations or estimates of future plans and performance, operational, geological or financial results, estimates or amounts not yet determinable and assumptions of management.
The Company cautions that forward-looking statements are necessarily based upon a number of factors and assumptions that, while considered reasonable by the Company at the time of making such statements, are inherently subject to significant business, economic, technical, legal, political and competitive uncertainties and contingencies. Known and unknown factors could cause actual results to differ materially from those projected in the forward-looking statements and undue reliance should not be placed on such statements and information.
Risk factors that may affect the Company’s ability to achieve the expectations set forth in the forward-looking statements in this document include, but are not limited to: (A) strategic, legal, planning and other risks, including: political risks associated with the Company’s operations in Türkiye, the USA and Canada; resource nationalism including the management of external stakeholder expectations; the impact of changes in, or to the more aggressive enforcement of, laws, regulations and government practices, including unjustified civil or criminal action against the Company, its affiliates, or its current or former employees; risks that community activism may result in increased contributory demands or business interruptions; the risks related to outstanding litigation affecting the Company; the impact of any sanctions imposed by Canada, the United States or other jurisdictions against various Russian and Turkish individuals and entities; potential defects of title in the Company’s properties that are not known as of the date hereof; the inability of the Company and its subsidiaries to enforce their legal rights in certain circumstances; risks related to anti-corruption legislation; Centerra not being able to replace mineral reserves; Indigenous claims and consultative issues relating to the Company’s properties which are in proximity to Indigenous communities; and potential risks related to kidnapping or acts of terrorism; (B) risks relating to financial matters, including: sensitivity of the Company’s business to the volatility of gold, copper, molybdenum and other mineral prices; the use of provisionally-priced sales contracts for production at the Mount Milligan Mine; reliance on a few key customers for the gold-copper concentrate at the Mount Milligan Mine; use of commodity derivatives; the imprecision of the Company’s mineral reserves and resources estimates and the assumptions they rely on; the accuracy of the Company’s production and cost estimates; persistent inflationary pressures on key input prices; the impact of restrictive covenants in the Company’s credit facilities which may, among other things, restrict the Company from pursuing certain business activities or making distributions from its subsidiaries; changes to tax regimes; the Company’s ability to obtain future financing; sensitivity to fuel price volatility; the impact of global financial conditions; the impact of currency fluctuations; the effect of market conditions on the Company’s short-term investments; the Company’s ability to make payments, including any payments of principal and interest on the Company’s debt facilities, which depends on the cash flow of its subsidiaries; the ability to obtain adequate insurance coverage; changes to taxation laws in the jurisdictions where the Company operates and (C) unanticipated ground and water conditions; risks related to operational matters and geotechnical issues and the Company’s continued ability to successfully manage such matters, including: the stability of the pit walls at the Company’s operations leading to structural cave-ins, wall failures or rock-slides; the integrity of tailings storage facilities and the management thereof, including as to stability, compliance with laws, regulations, licenses and permits, controlling seepages and storage of water, where applicable; periodic interruptions due to inclement or hazardous weather conditions or operating conditions and other force majeure events; the risk of having sufficient water to continue operations at the Mount Milligan Mine and achieve expected mill throughput; changes to, or delays in the Company’s supply chain and transportation routes, including cessation or disruption in rail and shipping networks, whether caused by decisions of third-party providers or force majeure events (including, but not limited to: labour action, flooding, landslides, seismic activity, wildfires, earthquakes, COVID-19, or other global events such as wars); lower than expected ore grades or recovery rates; the success of the Company’s future exploration and development activities, including the financial and political risks inherent in carrying out exploration activities; inherent risks associated with the use of sodium cyanide in the mining operations; the adequacy of the Company’s insurance to mitigate operational and corporate risks; mechanical breakdowns; the occurrence of any labour unrest or disturbance and the ability of the Company to successfully renegotiate collective agreements when required; the risk that Centerra’s workforce and operations may be exposed to widespread epidemic or pandemic; seismic activity, including earthquakes; wildfires; long lead-times required for equipment and supplies given the remote location of some of the Company’s operating properties and disruptions caused by global events; reliance on a limited number of suppliers for certain consumables, equipment and components; the ability of the Company to address physical and transition risks from climate change and sufficiently manage stakeholder expectations on climate-related issues; regulations regarding greenhouse gas emissions and climate change; significant volatility of molybdenum prices resulting in material working capital changes and unfavourable pressure on viability of the molybdenum business; the Company’s ability to accurately predict decommissioning and reclamation costs and the assumptions they rely upon; the Company’s ability to attract and retain qualified personnel; competition for mineral acquisition opportunities; risks associated with the conduct of joint ventures/partnerships; risk of cyber incidents such as cybercrime, malware or ransomware, data breaches, fines and penalties; and, the Company’s ability to manage its projects effectively and to mitigate the potential lack of availability of contractors, budget and timing overruns, and project resources.
Additional risk factors and details with respect to risk factors that may affect the Company’s ability to achieve the expectations set forth in the forward-looking statements contained in this document are set out in the Company’s latest 40-F/Annual Information Form and Management’s Discussion and Analysis, each under the heading “Risk Factors”, which are available on SEDAR+ ( www.sedarplus.ca ) or on EDGAR ( www.sec.gov/edgar ). The foregoing should be reviewed in conjunction with the information, risk factors and assumptions found in this document.
The Company disclaims any intention or obligation to update or revise any forward-looking statements, whether written or oral, or whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise, except as required by applicable law.
Non-GAAP and Other Financial Measures
This document contains “specified financial measures” within the meaning of NI 52-112, specifically the non-GAAP financial measures, non-GAAP ratios and supplementary financial measures described below. Management believes that the use of these measures assists analysts, investors and other stakeholders of the Company in understanding the costs associated with producing gold and copper, understanding the economics of gold and copper mining, assessing operating performance, the Company’s ability to generate free cash flow from current operations and on an overall Company basis, and for planning and forecasting of future periods. However, the measures have limitations as analytical tools as they may be influenced by the point in the life cycle of a specific mine and the level of additional exploration or other expenditures a company has to make to fully develop its properties. The specified financial measures used in this document do not have any standardized meaning prescribed by IFRS and may not be comparable to similar measures presented by other issuers, even as compared to other issuers who may be applying the World Gold Council (“WGC”) guidelines. Accordingly, these specified financial measures should not be considered in isolation, or as a substitute for, analysis of the Company’s recognized measures presented in accordance with IFRS.
Definitions
The following is a description of the non-GAAP financial measures, non-GAAP ratios and supplementary financial measures used in this document:
Certain unit costs, including all-in sustaining costs on a by-product basis (including and excluding revenue-based taxes) per ounce, are non-GAAP ratios which include as a component certain non-GAAP financial measures including all-in sustaining costs on a by-product basis which can be reconciled as follows:
Adjusted net earnings (loss) is a non-GAAP financial measure and can be reconciled as follows:
Free cash flow (deficit) is a non-GAAP financial measure and can be reconciled as follows:
Sustaining capital expenditures and non-sustaining capital expenditures are non-GAAP measures and can be reconciled as follows:
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