Endeavour Mining Corporation (TSX:EDV) (OTCQX:EDVMF) is pleased to announce that the first gold pour from the Ity CIL project in Cote d’Ivoire took place on March 18, 2019, ahead of schedule and under-budget. The first pour yielded approximately 1,800 ounces of gold.

Approximately 135,160 tonnes of ore have been processed since ore was introduced into the CIL processing plant on February 20, 2019. Commercial production is expected to be declared in early Q2-2019 with performance trial testing soon to commence, as the crushing, milling and CIL circuits have quickly attained a stable nameplate capacity of 4 million tonnes per annum.

Following the performance tests already conducted, Endeavour launched optimization and de-bottlenecking work which is expected to increase the plant nameplate capacity by 1Mtpa to 5Mtpa, at a minimal cost of $10-15 million. The volumetric upsize work mainly comprises an upgrade in pipes and pumps, and a second 50-tonne oxygen plant with no additional mining fleet required. These plant upgrades are expected to be completed during scheduled plant maintenance shut-downs throughout the next six months.

Sabastien de Montessus, President & CEO, stated: “As we approach commercial production, I would like to acknowledge the hard work of our in-house construction team for successfully delivering the Ity CIL Project ahead of schedule and under-budget, with an exceptional safety record of over 8.5 million hours without a lost time injury. This first gold pour and the remarkably quick ramp-up period is a transformational event for Endeavour as the Ity CIL project will quickly contribute to Group’s cash generation potential.

Given its current 15-year mine life and strong exploration potential, our ability to increase the plant size by 1Mtpa to 5Mpta for minimal additional capex represents a very compelling investment and is in line with our focus on capital allocation efficiency and return on capital employed criteria. With this upgrade, Ity has the potential to produce circa 300koz of gold per annum at a low AISC.”   

The Ity CIL project capex spend is tracking under-budget compared to the initial budget of $412 million. As construction is tracking ahead of schedule and below budget, Endeavour decided to conduct additional works such as the construction of a fuel farm, buiding exploration facilities, and an additional $7 million of crop compensation and resettlement related to prospective exploration grounds. Due to these additional works, and the $10-15 million required for the above-stated plant upgrade to 5Mtpa, the total project capex spend is expected to amount to circa $420 million.  

Image 1: First gold bars at the Ity CIL project

Image 2: Team picture with gold bars

An $11 million exploration program totaling approximately 71,000 meters of drilling has been planned for 2019, with the aim of delineating additional resources at the Le Plaque target, and testing other targets such as Floleu, Daapleu SW and Samuel.

As previously guided, Ity is expected to produce 160-200koz in 2019 at an AISC of $525-590/oz, with the bottom-end of production guidance corresponding to the 4Mtpa nameplate capacity while the top-end factors in upsides such as an earlier start date, an expedited ramp-up and the plant producing above its nameplate.

QUALIFIED PERSONS

Clinton Bennett, Endeavour’s Vice-President of Technical Services – a Member of the Australasian Institute of Mining and Metallurgy, is a “Qualified Person” as defined by National Instrument 43-101 – Standards of Disclosure for Mineral Projects and has reviewed and approved the technical information in this news release.

ABOUT ENDEAVOUR MINING CORPORATION

Endeavour Mining is a TSX listed intermediate African gold producer with a solid track record of operational excellence, project development and exploration in the highly prospective Birimian greenstone belt in West Africa. Endeavour is focused on offering both near-term and long-term growth opportunities with its project pipeline and its exploration strategy, while generating immediate cash flow from its operations.

Endeavour operates 4 mines across Cote d’Ivoire (Agbaou and Ity) and Burkina Faso (Hounda, Karma) which are expected to produce 615-695koz in 2019 at an AISC of $760-810/oz.