Great Panther Mining Limited (TSX:GPR, NYSE:GPL) told investors it continues to work towards realizing the full potential of its Tucano gold mine in Brazil, as the company posted third quarter results.
The precious metals producer told investors that output in the three months had been lower than planned, with 4Q also expected to be challenging, but that mining will focus in the first half of 2022 on the TAP AB, Tap C pits of Tucano, along with accelerated development of the high-grade underground mine at Urucum North.
As reported in October, Great Panther temporarily suspended mining at the Urucum Central South (UCS) open pit to improve safety there. Work then began on a new pushback on the west wall of the UCS pit.
"We expect Q4 to be another challenging quarter due to the previously reported temporary suspension of mining in the UCS pit and incremental pushback requirements," said Rob Henderson, CEO of Great Panther, in a statement.
"Limited mining of ore was authorized by the geotechnical committee to continue in the southern portion of the pit."
READ: Great Panther releases update for Urucum Central South pit at the Tucano project
Henderson also noted the firm intended to 'ramp down' mining in UCS at the end of the year and resume the pushback in mid-2022, when "seasonally drier conditions were expected".
"We expect to navigate through these challenging times in order to realize the full potential of the Tucano mine while optimizing and improving operations as we head into 2022," he added.
"To that end, strong exploration results achieved during the third quarter demonstrate the prospectivity of our portfolio and extensive land package and are contributing to our objective of extending mine life both from the open pits and underground. We remain committed to the company's growth through extensive exploration in 2022 as well as actively pursuing accretive acquisition opportunities in South America."
In the three months to September 30, the company produced 22,444 ounces of gold-equivalent from across its mines, down from 39,788 in 3Q, 2020, and sold 21,542 gold-equivalent ounces (3Q, 2020: 40,489 ounces).
Revenue came in at US$38,351 (3Q, 2020: US$77,019), while all-in-sustaining-costs (AISC), excluding corporate G&A, was US$2,247 per gold ounce sold, compared with US$1,023 for the third quarter of 2020.
The net loss for the quarter was US$18 million compared with a net income of US$18.6 million in the same period of 2020.
Other highlights during the period included favorable exploration results, including high-grade intercepts from the underground zone at Urucum North (URN) and the identification of a new regional gold trend within a 20 kilometer (km) radius of the Tucano plant.
The company also secured US$25 million in new credit facilities with Asahi Refining Canada Ltd. and Samsung C&T U.K. Ltd. and re-established a US$25 million At-The-Market (ATM) equity facility.
Great Panther is a growing gold and silver producer focused on the Americas. It owns assets in Brazil, Mexico, and Peru that include three operating gold and silver mines, an advanced development project, and a large land package with district-scale potential.
Contact the author at giles@proactiveinvestors.com