Pretivm Records Third Quarter 2020 Operating and Financial Results; Brucejack Continues to Deliver Strong Cash Flow and Remains On-Track to Achieve 2020 Guidance
Third Quarter (“Q 3 ”) and First Nine Months (“ YTD ”) 2020 Highlights:
G old production – Q 3 : 86,136 o unces ; YTD : 259,443 ounces
AISC 1 – Q 3 : $ 1,016 per ounce of gold sold ; YTD : $ 971 per ounce of gold sold
F ree cash flow 1 – Q 3 : $ 66.8 million ; YTD : $ 191.4 million
Production and sales volume on - track , unaffected by COVID-19
End of quarter cash balance: $ 1 75 . 0 million
All amounts are in US dollars unless otherwise noted. This release should be read in conjunction with the Company’s Financial Statements and Management’s Discussion and Analysis (“MD &A”) for the three and nine months ended September 30 , 2020 and 2019 , available on the Company’s website and on SEDAR and EDGAR.
VANCOUVER, British Columbia, Oct. 29, 2020 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Pretium Resources Inc. (TSX/NYSE:PVG) (“Pretivm” or the “Company”) announces operating and financial results for the third quarter and first nine months 2020 (see “Key Operating Metrics” and “Key Financial Metrics” tables below).
“Brucejack continues to deliver strong cash flow and we remain on target to meet our annual production, free cash flow and AISC guidance,” said Jacques Perron, President and Chief Executive Officer of Pretivm. “In the first nine months of the year, the mine produced just over 259,000 ounces of gold generating $448.0 million in revenue and $191 million in free cash flow.”
2020 Guidance
2020 Production Guidance Maintained
The Company produced 259,443 ounces of gold during the first nine months of 2020 and expects to meet 2020 gold production guidance at the Brucejack Mine of 325,000 ounces to 365,000 ounces. Production is planned to continue in the fourth quarter 2020 at an average rate of approximately 3,500 tonnes per day due to planned maintenance and an increased focus on waste management from increased lateral development with the objective of operating at the nominal rate of 3,800 tonnes per day at the end of the quarter. The average annual gold grade is expected to remain in the guidance range between 7.6 grams per tonne and 8.5 grams per tonne at an average gold recovery of 97.0%.
Management believes 2020 production guidance remains achievable assuming there is no new significant impact on operations at the Brucejack Mine, including due to the novel coronavirus (“COVID-19”) pandemic. We have taken precautions to mitigate the risk of COVID-19. However, the COVID-19 pandemic and any future emergence and spread of similar pathogens could have a material adverse impact on our business, operations and operating results, financial condition, liquidity and market for our securities.
2020 Financial Guidance Maintained
Total cash costs1 and all-in sustaining costs (“AISC”) were $763 and $971 per ounce of gold sold, respectively, for the first nine months of 2020. Management expects to achieve our total cash costs guidance range of $750 to $860 per ounce of gold sold and AISC guidance range of $960 to $1,120 per ounce of gold sold.
AISC estimates include costs associated with lateral development at a rate of approximately 1,000 meters per month through 2020. In addition, the AISC estimates include costs associated with enhanced COVID-19 protocols, infill definition diamond drilling and a high-density test reverse circulation (“RC”) drilling grade control program to increase the volume of grade information necessary to enhance mine planning and optimize gold production.
Sustaining capital expenditures for the year, a component of AISC, are expected to be between $30.0 and $33.0 million, which includes additional definition drilling and mill building repairs. Other capital expenditures include approximately $10.0 to $15.0 million in expansion capital expenditures and approximately $10.0 million for regional exploration.
2020 Free Cash Flow Forecast Maintained
Free cash flow for the first nine months of 2020 was $191.4 million at an average realized gold price1 of $1,758 per ounce. We expect to achieve our 2020 free cash flow forecast range of $205 million to $275 million which was based on an average realized gold price of $1,800 per ounce.
While operating under the COVID-19 safety protocols, the Company will focus on preserving liquidity in the form of cash and cash equivalents and reducing the amount outstanding under its existing Loan Facility.
