Soma Gold Corp. (TSX-V:SOMA) told investors it achieved gold production of 6,796 gold equivalent (AuEq) ounces at its 100% owned El Bagre gold mine in Colombia in the first quarter of 2023.
The company said production was 99.2% of forecast despite a seven-day interruption during the general strike in the el Bagre region. It was also 32.6% ahead of the same period last year. The full-year forecast production for 2023 remains unchanged at 35,500 AuEq ounces, it added.
"The civil unrest in Antioquia that disrupted operations at the company's Cordero Mine and the el Bagre milling complex was a result of the Government's efforts to curtail illegal alluvial mining in the regional river systems,” Soma Gold president and CEO Javier Cordova said in a statement. “Our relationship with the community remains strong, and our operations were temporarily halted only to ensure our employees' safety.”
READ: Soma Gold starts the year with record gold production at El Bagre gold mine in Colombia
“Despite the lost week of production and the associated ramp-up period when production re-started, the team has made great strides in increasing production in accordance with our 2023 operating plan,” Cordova added.
The company also announced the addition of Jean-Francois Meilleur as its vice president of capital markets. Meilleur will be responsible for leveraging the operational and financial successes of the company to facilitate further organic and inorganic growth, it said.
Soma Gold Corp. (TSX-V:SOMA) is a mining company focused on gold production and exploration. The company owns two adjacent mining properties in Antioquia, Colombia with a combined milling capacity of 675 tonnes per day (tpd) (permitted for 1,400 tpd). The El Bagre Mill is currently operating and producing. Internally generated funds are being used to finance a regional exploration program.
The company also owns an exploration property near Tucuma, Para State, Brazil that is currently under option to Ero Copper Corp.
Contact the author at stephen.gunnion@proactiveinvestors.com