Alio Gold Inc. (TSX, NYSE AMERICAN: ALO) (“Alio
Gold” or the “Company”) today reported its third quarter 2019
results.
Third Quarter 2019 Summary
- Gold production1 of 17,787 ounces
at cash costs1,2 of $1,239/oz.
- Loss of $127.1 million, or $1.50
per share, inclusive of $119.2 million in impairments to mineral
properties and other assets.
- Cash used in operating activities
was $1.6 million.
- Cash and cash equivalents of $13.2
million, net working capital3 of $45.3 million as of September 30,
2019.
“In the third quarter, the Company was
challenged by the continued low overall equipment availability of
the aged mine fleet at the Florida Canyon Mine. We announced in
early October the acquisition of a new loading and haulage fleet
for Florida Canyon. This new equipment, a significant portion of
which is already in operation, will have an immediate, meaningful
positive impact on operations. Mine fleet availabilities in the
third quarter were below 50%, and frankly, we did well to operate
at roughly an operating cash flow neutral position,” said Mark
Backens, President and CEO. “Heading into the fourth quarter we are
expecting to see increased mined tonnage, which will set the stage
for improved production and cash generation in 2020. Our priority
over the next few quarters is to demonstrate the true value of
Florida Canyon, and we are allocating resources in line with that
vision. Given this commitment and with the cessation of mining at
San Francisco and activities at Ana Paula curtailed, we have taken
significant impairments to both the San Francisco Mine and the Ana
Paula Project as we continue to pursue opportunities to realize
value from these assets. Finally, we will be providing 2020
production and cost guidance to the market later this month.”
Production and Financial
Summary
($ thousands, except where indicated) |
Three monthsSeptember 30 |
Nine monthsSeptember 30 |
|
2019 |
2018 |
2019 |
2018 |
Gold produced (ounces) |
17,787 |
23,606 |
62,500 |
60,420 |
Gold sold (ounces) |
18,267 |
23,038 |
63,964 |
60,613 |
Metal revenues ($) |
$27,011 |
$27,941 |
$86,873 |
$77,512 |
Net (loss) earnings from mine
operations ($) |
($7,247) |
$913 |
($4,560) |
$11,754 |
Net (loss) earnings ($) |
($127,141) |
($3,720) |
($129,370) |
$2,794 |
Net (loss) earnings per share,
basic ($) |
($1.50) |
($0.04) |
($1.53) |
$0.04 |
Cash flows (used in) provided
by operating activitiesa ($) |
($1,571) |
($4,194) |
$589 |
($16,635) |
By-product cash costs1,2 (per
ounce) ($) |
$1,239 |
$1,102 |
$1,164 |
$1,011 |
AISC1,4 (per ounce) ($) |
$1,369 |
$1,293 |
$1,314 |
$1,291 |
Average
realized gold price per gold ounceb ($) |
$1,375 |
$1,271 |
$1,315 |
$1,297 |
a After changes in non-cash working capitalb The
average realized gold price includes realized gain (loss) on
derivatives
Florida Canyon Mine
(100%-owned)
The Florida Canyon Mine was acquired through the
acquisition of Rye Patch Gold Corp. (“Rye Patch”) which was
finalized on May 25, 2018. Florida Canyon is a past-producing mine,
which was restarted by Rye Patch in 2017, with commercial
production declared on January 1, 2018.
During Q3 2019, the Florida Canyon Mine produced
9,620 ounces of gold and 6,793 ounces of silver. Production for the
quarter was negatively impacted by very low mining equipment
availability. Mechanical availability for the principal mining
fleet for the quarter averaged below 50%. Primary causes for the
low availability are the aged condition of the equipment where
multiple pieces of equipment have over 90,000 operating hours and
required addressment of safety deficiencies regarding fluid leaks.
The unsustainable condition of the mine fleet has been addressed by
procurement of new loading and hauling equipment as press released
on October 8, 2019. The new equipment will be phased into
production over the 4th quarter and will remove the principal cause
of the low production in the previous quarters.
Metallurgical recovery and process operations
continue to meet expectations.
Work continues to optimize the mine with
improved equipment productivity and mining capacity with a view to
optimize efficiency resulting in significant gains in productivity,
ounces produced and cost reduction.
Capital expenditures for fiscal 2019 are
expected to total approximately $15.0 million primarily comprised
of $2.7 million for the storm water diversion channel, $2.1 million
for down payment on the new mining equipment and $8.2 million for
construction of the Phase II leach pad.
The diversion channel is 85% complete and will
be completed during Q4 2019. Completion of the structure is
required before ore can be processed on the new Phase II leach pad.
Given the current state of completion, the Company does not foresee
any delays with regard to leaching of new ore on the Phase II leach
pad arising from completion of the storm water diversion channel.
The structure will be completed on time and on budget.
Final approvals for the construction of the
Phase II leach pad were received on October 2nd. Total capital for
the leach pad is expected to be approximately $14.9 million with
construction completed in early Q2 2020. The Company has also
received regulatory approvals for phased construction which
facilitates early leach operations on the new pad which will result
in improved operating efficiencies. Current design capacity is
sufficient for approximately three years of production. Additional
capacity can be realized by increasing the height of the heap which
is subject to regulatory approval. The Company is very advanced in
negotiating the debt financing to fund the construction of the
project.
San Francisco Mine
(100%-owned)
During the quarter, operations at the San
Francisco mine continued with processing of low grade stock piles
resulting in the placement of 12,809 ounces onto the pad. The
Company anticipates the low grade stock will be exhausted during Q4
2019 after which crushing will cease and operations will solely
focus on recovery of the residual inventory ounces.
Cash flow from operations from the quarter were
used to service dated accounts payable.
The Company is currently exploring
value-maximizing alternatives for the operation.
Financial performance
Please refer to the Company's financial
statements, related notes and accompanying Management Discussion
and Analysis for a full review of the San Francisco and Florida
Canyon operations and Ana Paula Project. This can be viewed on the
Company’s website at www.aliogold.com, on SEDAR at www.sedar.com
and EDGAR at www.sec.gov.
About Alio Gold
Alio Gold is a gold mining company. We are
focused on the safe and profitable production of gold from our
cornerstone asset, the 100% owned Florida Canyon Mine in Nevada,
USA. The Company also owns the San Francisco Mine in Sonora, Mexico
and the development stage Ana Paula Project in Guerrero,
Mexico.
Footnotes:
- Production and costs include the
Florida Canyon Mine and the San Francisco Mine.
- Non-GAAP Measures: Cash cost per
gold ounce and cash cost per gold ounce on a by-product basis.Cash
cost per gold ounce and cash cost per gold ounce on a by-product
basis are non-GAAP performance measures that management uses to
assess the Company’s performance and its expected future
performance. The Company has included the non-GAAP performance
measures of cash cost per gold ounce and cash cost per gold ounce
on a by-product basis throughout this document. In the gold mining
industry, these are common performance measures but they do not
have any standardized meaning. As such, they are unlikely to be
comparable to similar measures presented by other
issuers.Management believes that, in addition to conventional
measures prepared in accordance with GAAP, certain investors use
this information to evaluate the Company’s performance and ability
to generate cash flow. Accordingly, presentation of these measures
is to provide additional information and should not be considered
in isolation or as a substitute for measures of performance
prepared in accordance with GAAP.The cash cost per gold ounce is
calculated by dividing the operating production costs by the total
number of gold ounces sold. The cash cost per gold ounce on a
by-product basis is calculated by deducting the by-product silver
credits per gold ounce sold from the cash cost per gold ounce.Cash
cost per gold ounce is calculated for the San Francisco Mine and
the Florida Canyon Mine in the same manner as on a consolidated
basis.For further details, refer to the Company’s Management
Discussion and Analysis for the three and nine months ended
September 30, 2019 and 2018.
- Net working capital is
calculated by deducting current liabilities from current
assets.
- Non-GAAP Measure: All-in sustaining
cost per gold ounce.Cash cost per gold ounce on a by-product basis
(“cash cost”) are non-GAAP performance measures that management
uses to assess the Company’s performance and its expected future
performance. In the gold mining industry, these are common
performance measures but they do not have any standardized meaning.
As such, they are unlikely to be comparable to similar measures
presented by other issuers.The Company has adopted an all-in
sustaining cost per ounce on a by-product basis performance measure
which is calculated in accordance with the guidance note issued by
the World Gold Council. Management uses this information as an
additional measure to evaluate the Company’s performance and
ability to generate cash.All-in sustaining costs on a by-product
basis include total production cash costs, corporate and
administrative expenses, sustaining capital expenditures and
accretion for site reclamation and closure costs. These reclamation
and closure costs represent the gradual unwinding of the discounted
liability to rehabilitate the area around San Francisco and Florida
Canyon at the end of their mine lives. The Company believes this
measure to be representative of the total costs associated with
producing gold; however, this performance measure has no
standardized meaning. As such, there are likely to be differences
in the method of computation when compared to similar measures
presented by other issuers.AISC calculated for the Florida Canyon
Mine and the San Francisco Mine excludes corporate and
administrative expenses and accretion for site reclamation and
closure.For further details, refer to the Company’s Management
Discussion and Analysis for the three and nine months ended
September 30, 2019 and 2018
Cautionary Note Regarding
Forward-Looking Statements
Certain statements and information contained in
this news release constitute “forward-looking statements” within
the meaning of applicable U.S. securities laws and “forward-looking
information” within the meaning of applicable Canadian securities
laws, which we refer to collectively as “forward-looking
statements”. Forward-looking statements are statements and
information regarding possible events, conditions or results of
operations that are based upon assumptions about future economic
conditions and courses of action. All statements and information
other than statements of historical fact may be forward-looking
statements. In some cases, forward-looking statements can be
identified by the use of words such as “seek”, “expect”,
“anticipate”, “budget”, “plan”, “estimate”, “continue”, “forecast”,
“intend”, “believe”, “predict”, “potential”, “target”, “may”,
“could”, “would”, “might”, “will” and similar words or phrases
(including negative variations) suggesting future outcomes or
statements regarding an outlook.
Forward-looking statements in news release
include, but are not limited to, statements which relate to future
events. Such statements include estimates of future gold prices,
current and future gold production at the San Francisco Mine and
the Florida Canyon Mine (“the Mines”), the LOM of the Mines,
revenue and cash flows generated by the operation of the Mines,
operating, capital, cash, closure and all in sustaining costs
associated with the Mines, gold grades and recovery at the Mines,
mining rates, strip ratios at the Mines and future taxes payable by
the Company and its subsidiaries; the Mines’ mineral resource and
reserve estimates; and estimates, forecasts and statements with
respect to mine plans and designs, including with respect to the
replacement of the Florida Canyon mining fleet, the expansion to
the leach pad and key infrastructure around the crushing circuit at
the Florida Canyon Mine and the benefits expected to be derived
therefrom, and planned activities to improve reliability and
operating efficiency and reduce operating and sustaining capital
cost requirements at the Florida Canyon Mine.
Such forward-looking statements are based on a
number of material factors and assumptions, including, but not
limited to: the successful completion of development projects,
planned expansions or other projects within the timelines
anticipated and at anticipated production levels; the accuracy of
gold price, production, revenue, capital expenditure, cost, reserve
and resource, grade, mining, strip ratio, recovery, mine life, net
present value, and tax estimates and other assumptions, projections
and estimates made in respect of the Mines; that mineral resources
can be developed as planned; interest and exchange rates; that
required financing and permits will be obtained; general economic
conditions, that labour disputes, flooding, ground instability,
fire, failure of plant, equipment or processes to operate are as
anticipated and other risks of the mining industry will not be
encountered; that contracted parties provide goods or services in a
timely manner; that there is no material adverse change in the
price of gold, silver or other metals; competitive conditions in
the mining industry; title to mineral properties costs; and changes
in laws, rules and regulations applicable to the Company.
Forward-looking statements involve known and unknown risks,
uncertainties and other factors which may cause actual results,
performance or achievements, or industry results, to differ
materially from those anticipated in such forward-looking
statements. The Company believes the expectations reflected in such
forward-looking statements are reasonable, but no assurance can be
given that these expectations will prove to be correct and you are
cautioned not to place undue reliance on forward-looking statements
contained herein.
Some of the risks and other factors which could
cause actual results to differ materially from those expressed in
the forward-looking statements contained in this news release
herein by reference include, but are not limited to: decreases in
the price of gold; competition with other companies with greater
financial and human resources and technical facilities; maintaining
compliance with governmental regulations and expenses associated
with such compliance; ability to hire, train, deploy and manage
qualified personnel in a timely manner; ability to obtain or renew
required government permits; failure to discover new reserves,
maintain or enhance existing reserves or develop new operations;
risks and hazards associated with exploration and mining
operations; accessibility and reliability of existing local
infrastructure and availability of adequate infrastructures in the
future; environmental regulation; land reclamation requirements;
ownership of, or control over, the properties on which the Company
operates; maintaining existing property rights or obtaining new
rights; inherent uncertainties in the process of estimating mineral
reserves and resources; reported reserves and resources may not
accurately reflect the economic viability of the Company’s
properties; uncertainties in estimating future mine production and
related costs; risks associated with expansion and development of
mining properties; currency exchange rate fluctuations; directors’
and officers’ conflicts of interest; inability to access additional
capital; problems integrating new acquisitions and other problems
with strategic transactions; legal proceedings; uncertainties
related to the repatriation of funds from foreign subsidiaries; no
dividend payments; volatile share price; negative research reports
or analyst’s downgrades and dilution; and other factors contained
in the section entitled “Risk Factors” in the Company’s annual
information form dated March 19, 2019, and filed on the Company’s
SEDAR profile.
Although the Company has attempted to identify
important factors that could cause actual results or events to
differ materially from those described in the forward-looking
statements, you are cautioned that this list is not exhaustive and
there may be other factors that the Company has not identified.
Furthermore, the Company undertakes no obligation to update or
revise any forward-looking statements included in, or incorporated
by reference in, this news release if these beliefs, estimates and
opinions or other circumstances should change, except as otherwise
required by applicable law.
For further information, please
contact:Mark BackensPresident &
CEO604-682-4002info@aliogold.com
Neither the TSX nor its Regulation Services
Provider (as that term is defined in the policies of the TSX) nor
the New York Stock Exchange American accepts responsibility for the
adequacy or accuracy of this news release.
Grafico Azioni Alio Gold (AMEX:ALO)
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Da Dic 2024 a Gen 2025
Grafico Azioni Alio Gold (AMEX:ALO)
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