Q1 2025 IAMGOLD Corp Earnings Call
Thank you for standing by. This is the conference operator.
Welcome to the IM Gold first quarter, 2025, operating and financial results conference call and webcast. As a reminder today, our participants are in listen only mode and the conference is being recorded. After the presentation, there will be an opportunity to ask questions.
To join the question cue, you may press star than one on your telephone keypad. Should you need assistance during the conference call today, you may signal an operator by pressing star then zero.
Speaker Change: At this time, I would like to turn the conference over to Graeme Jennings, VP, Investor Relations and Corporate Communications for I Am Gold. Please go ahead, Mr. Jennings.
Graeme Jennings: Thank you, operator, and welcome everyone to our conference call today.
Renaud Adams: Joining us on the call are Renaud Adams, President, Chief Executive Officer, Martin Penusen, Chief Financial Officer, Bruno Lemelin, Chief Operating Officer, Annie Torquilla Lagasse, Chief Legal and Strategy Officer, and Dorina Quinn, Chief People Officer.
Renaud Adams: We are calling today from 9 Gold Toronto Office, which is located on 2013 territory on the traditional lands of many nations, including the Mississaugas of the Credit, Anishinaabe, Chippewa, Houtiner Shonee, and the Wendat peoples.
Renaud Adams: At Iron Gold, we believe respecting and upholding Indigenous rights is found upon relationships that foster trust, transparency and mutual respect.
Renaud Adams: Please note that our remarks on this call will include four looking statements and refer to non-IFRS measures. We encourage you to refer to the cautionary statements and disclosures on non-IFRS measures, including the presentation and the reconciliation of these measures in our most recent MDNA, each under the heading non-GAAP financial measures.
Renaud Adams: With respect to the technical information to be discussed, please refer to the information in the presentation under the heading Qualified Person and Technical Information.
Renaud Adams: The slides referenced on this call can be viewed on our website.
Renaud Adams: I will now turn the call over to our present and CEO Renaud Adams.
Renaud Adams: Thank you Graham and good morning everyone and thank you for joining us and I know it's a busy morning with earnings results so we'll do our best to move things along.
Renaud Adams: I am going to begin the year with the modest production of 161,000 ounces, with yet to achieve several key milestone that further position the company for a much stronger remainder of the year.
Renaud Adams: We remain very confident in our 2025 Attributal Production Guidance target of 735 to 820,000 ounces.
Renaud Adams: which stronger, quarterly production expected from the each of operations, committed a remainder of the year.
Renaud Adams: At Cote, we have recently celebrated the best months of operations in March and April , achieving monthly throughput of 1 million tons process with the plan operating now at the 90 percent
Renaud Adams: This progress positions us well to complete the ramp-up to an inflate production of 36,000 tons per day by the end of the year.
Renaud Adams: Meanwhile, we believe we have a significant amount of value yet to uncover.
Renaud Adams: This year, we are conducting a significant drill program in the Colony and Goslin zones in support of a technical report in 2026, incorporating a mine plan that will bring the zones together into a unified superfit at online and larger-scale operation.
Renaud Adams: Billed off a significant portion of the over 20 million ounces of resources in this town, making go of one of the largest gold mines in Canada.
Renaud Adams: Aris Akami, we will continue to the safe operation of the mine for parsing the ability to maximize cash flow generations and dividend payment out of the country.
Renaud Adams: As mining moves deeper into the pit in Q2, we expect to see improvements in great reconciliation and stronger quality gold productions for the remainder of the year.
Renaud Adams: And at Westwood, our focus is on expanding our underground mining areas and continuing our strong record of resource to reserve conversion.
Renaud Adams: Westwood made significant strike last year to become the positive cash for the inner reading assets.
Renaud Adams: And we believe there is a significant potential to improve the value further through the drill bit and are increasing the speed of higher grain materials to the mill.
and of itself is a form of that return.
Renaud Adams: Taking together with a pre-paced behind us by Meteor, IMGO will be an 800,000 ounce figure producer with full exposure to gold price and significant cash low generation from three cash lowing assets.
Renaud Adams: For the up-trading of the fraction, I'll talk about it yet in our full new tier.
meets her peers on the price to cash robases.
Renaud Adams: Further, with the co-the-expansion scenario and the rapid growth of our delegates amongst the lakes I think back
Renaud Adams: which combined have nearly 9 million ounces of global resources, means I am going to go out for a robust organic growth portfolio with them our own backyard.
Now let's dive into the first floor.
Renaud Adams: Operating performance always starts with safety as ensuring all of our plays in contract at the Oklahoma Safety is priority number one. In the first quarter, our total record of all injury frequency rate was 0.6 to 7.
Renaud Adams: A slight, a slight optic from the prior choir.
Renaud Adams: instituted a new safety program in control with a focus on critical risk management and visible leadership to reduce high potential incidents.
Renaud Adams: Additionally, yesterday the company released its 2020 Sustainability Report, which mark the 18th year of IMGOL disclosing the sustainability topics and information that are most material to our stakeholder and our business.
Renaud Adams: As an organization and member of the community, we are proud of our dedication to responsible of all mining practices.
Recall in the minute the item from the culture
Speaker Change: Looking at operation, I am both started a year with a tributal production of 161,000 ounces.
Renaud Adams: As both Goathe and was with production, was lighter than the prior court, personally observed by modestly, higher production, and if it can.
The first water was expected to be the lioness.
Renaud Adams: Water of Production this year, Judith Rampoff, and Associated Maintenance Activity at Coatate, limiting throughput early in the year, and the expectation of the transitions to higher grade in the second half of the year for Coatate.
Renaud Adams: and Westwood production degrees from the prior quarter. What is expected to
Renaud Adams: Its recent track record of strong performance has still developed and continues to improve flexibility in the mind.
Renaud Adams: Cash cost average, 1,459 per ounce, and all in sustaining cost average, 1,198 per ounce of the first water. Costs are expected to decline, quarter of the quarter as production ramps up, and we remain confident in our kind cost guidance for the year.
Renaud Adams: While lighter, the first quarter production of 161,000 ounces represents a net increase of 7% year over a year, having increased margin largely driven by the additions of go-to-go
Renaud Adams: which moved from Fursdall in March 2024 to 90% plus name plate in March 2025.
Renaud Adams: This resulted in an increase of our mind-side free cashflow to 140 million in Q1 compared to 46 million in the same period of the prior year.
Renaud Adams: With that, I will pass a call over to our CFO to walk us through our financial results in position, Martin.
Thank you Renaud, and good morning everyone.
Renaud Adams: In terms of financial position, at the end of the quarter, Arm Gold had $316.6 million in cash and cash equivalence and net date of $82.3 million.
Renaud Adams: The company has 210 million grown on the creative facility and approximately 420 8.5 million
resulting in liquidity at March 31 of approximately 745.9 million
Renaud Adams: We know that within our cash and cash equivalence, 200 million was held by Sakan Bikina Faso, 46.9 million was held by Dakota Gold and Incorporated Joint Venture, and 16.6 million was held in the corporate treasury.
Renaud Adams: Regarding our excess cash that is acclaimed, this cash is repaid areas through dividend payments of which the company will receive it shared based on its ownership.
So 90% currently, Nate of David in Taxis
Renaud Adams: The size of the dividend is the pinion of cashhole and the projected cash narration of this account.
Renaud Adams: Last year, we declared a 190 million dividend in the second quarter, with the company receiving its net share in September and October . We expect a similar process this year in which we will be declaring our dividend the second quarter, with disbursement in the second half of the year.
Renaud Adams: On the date side of the balance sheet, this year offers a significant inflection point for alcohol, with the increase in gold prices of providing us with the ability to accelerate our plan to reduce the amount of costs of our date, the amount and cost of our date.
Renaud Adams: One element of this that we are making good progress on is our delivery into the goal pre-py arrangement.
Renaud Adams: During the first quarter of this year, the company delivered 3.37.500 answers into the gold
and we are 75% complete [inaudible]
with the last 37, 1500 answers deliverable during the second quarter.
Renaud Adams: This is a conservable amount of data the company has repaid.
Renaud Adams: The cash for impact is delivering into the 37,500 ounces total.
Abroximately 107 million during the quarter
Thank you.
Renaud Adams: Suspect to the quarter-end, a third of draw 1,500 ounces was delivered in April , reducing the outstanding balance of ounces, reminding to be delivered into the pre-buy arrangements.
to 25,000 answers as of today.
Renaud Adams: The company can start to repay its 400-million-term loan at the end of May in $20-million installments at 104% of the face value and 101% of the face value that we paid after May 2026
Renaud Adams: The term learned has relatively hard interest in our other days in our capital structure, and responsibly paying down the facility, who would achieve our objective, reduce the
Renaud Adams: Looking at the Castro Waterfall for the first quarter at the bottom of side seven
Renaud Adams: We can see the impact of delivering into a gold prepayment, as I don't know operating cashflowers, cash from operating entities, including the non-cash revenue of $77.7 million before financing charges that was received from the gold prepay was entered into
Renaud Adams: And I'm going with a perceived ending $7 million if the $37,500 answers were sold in the market here in the quarter.
Renaud Adams: By July this year, the pre-publications will be completed and ungold will be fully expressed the gold price of the time when we expect to see increases in production.
Looking at the quarter and financial results.
Revenue titled 477.1 million, from styles of 174,000 gold ounces.
at an average relies price of $2,731 per ounce.
including the impact of the goalkeeper's arrangement.
Renaud Adams: Excluding the impact that the GOP pays, our average real estate price was $2,909 per ounce.
Renaud Adams: The strong gold price translated to an adjusted EBDA of 204.5 million, compared to 152.5 million in the first quarter 2024.
Renaud Adams: Adopted earnings were £55.2 million in the first quarter, 14 cents per share.
Renaud Adams: Mindside free cash flow was 57.6 million on Cartay, 65.4 million as is the can, and 16.6 million at Westwood, 139.6 million for the quarter.
Renaud Adams: As we look at it for our goal, we are continuously analysing what the appropriate graphical structure is for an organisation of this size with its basic classroom generation.
Renaud Adams: Ultimately, we look forward to discussing the potential of returning valid or shareholders with a three-shave bye-back to the evidence.
Renaud Adams: But first, we need to ensure that we achieve our targets and that the business is appropriately funded and we have reduced our date to appropriate levels.
Renaud Adams: And with that, I will pass the call to Bruno Lehmann.
Bruno Lehmann: Thank you, Martin. Starting with Kotigo, it was a critical first water at Kotigo, with the first winter at full production.
Bruno Lehmann: As it is the case for any ramp up of a large mining project, there's a learning curve for the operations and maintenance fees.
Bruno Lehmann: They learn the stress point in every process and make adjustment to adapt to real condition.
Bruno Lehmann: During the first quarter, we experienced Alex accelerated maintenance in our grinding area However, we managed to operate without major interruptions due to weather
Bruno Lehmann: We also eat new records for stability and utilization in March, with continued improvement to April .
Bruno Lehmann: This is very positive progress for an operation of the site. A year ago, on March 31st, Cody
Bruno Lehmann: Commercial Production was then achieved effectively four months after starting production.
Bruno Lehmann: And now we have hit the 90% monkey milestone about 11 months after pulling first goal.
Bruno Lehmann: This is a great achievement and we remain on target towards our goal to achieve full main plate of 36,000 tons per day Before the end of the year, again within the 20-month estimate as projected initially
Bruno Lehmann: Looking at the quarter, Co-T produced 73,000 ounces on the 100% basis in the first quarter.
Bruno Lehmann: Production was lower in the quarter due to lower tons process and the revised grade profile of the mine.
Bruno Lehmann: We need to know that the mine moves away from segregated uppiling to a more efficient and
Bruno Lehmann: Mining activity total 10.8 million tons in the first quarter, essentially flat from Q4 2014.
Bruno Lehmann: Or mine decreased slightly to 3.1 million tons with a necessitated increase in the strip
Bruno Lehmann: The average grade of mine ore was 0.78 gram per ton in the quarter, which reflects the updated mining schedule, as mining activities expand the field
Sold.
Potez, transition toward the Bach-Mining Model, and reduces Rehemley.
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Speaker Change: Further, we saw an increase in the volume of blasted ore in the fifth-provide greater flexibility in supporting the Plannial Feeds this year.
Bye.
Speaker Change: The mining process improvements and the starts of the transition towards bulk mining saw some image of benefit as we saw decreased in our mining units cost.
Speaker Change: To $3.49 per ton down from $4.19 per ton in the prior water.
Speaker Change: Cust are expected to continue to decrease over the course of the year as mining operations continue to ramp up closer to the target of one million pound a week and real link is reduced.
Speaker Change: On the processing side, Neil Truepot in the first water total 2.1 million tons as a result of maintenance and repair activities on the HPGR in January and February as we discussed on our last training course.
Speaker Change: The changeover of the HBGR roles was completed in February 2025 and we continue to make improvements to increase the lifespan of the planned equipment.
Speaker Change: For the HPGR, this includes adding some water to reduce the generation of abrasive dust, revising the roller liner material, and entering that replacement set of rollers is always at at 5 and ready to go.
Speaker Change: Once the repairs were completed in February , the plant was able to resume its momentum, achieving a record monthly throughput of 1 million tons in March or 90% of main plate.
Speaker Change: This performance continued in April , as over the last 30 days, Cote Averich 34,500 tons per day, or 96% of namesake, with the record 14 days in which the plant operated above namesake capacity.
Speaker Change: Headgrades in the first quarter average 1.17 gram per tonne which were in line with our guidance of 1.1, 1.2 gram per tonne
Speaker Change: which feed material comprise of a combination of direct feed ore and stock plants.
Speaker Change: Recovery in the plant has reached 93% in the water, the muddest step up as we sell the gravity circuit come online in the park.
Speaker Change: The reconciliation between the reserve models, great control models, and newsfeed continues in line within expected turns.
Speaker Change: Netting Coss was $20.18 per tonne meal during the first three months.
Speaker Change: Jim Cuss were elevated in the first water due to the lower tons process, higher parts and contactor costs, from the increased maintenance activities, and Cuss associated with the reefing circuit to support the little feed during maintenance period.
Speaker Change: Unit curves are expected to decrease over the course of the year as throughput increases towards main plate capacity and as operation the maintenance processes stabilize.
For example, Winder, Example,
In March, when Pothi processed one minute and tons
Russell Tinkas, Average
Speaker Change: Around $15 a ton, further improvements can be expected with the installation of the additional secondary plasher that should reduce the use of the refee circuit and the related costs.
Speaker Change: Looking ahead, we remain confident in our co-tago production guidance of 360 to 400,000 ounces on the one other person basis, which is actually a doubling of production from last year to this year.
by the end of the year.
Speaker Change: The installation of the second cone crusher in Q4 will provide further capacity and redundancy in the dry side of the plan in support of the operation and potential future expansion.
Speaker Change: The installation will require a new today's shutdown, which is accounted for in the current guidance.
Speaker Change: Of course, achieving nameplate is just a start of our plans for a value creation at Coothy.
Speaker Change: Since initial design, the project has seen considerable resource growth where the original mine plan called for a 36,000 ton per day plan.
Speaker Change: Targeting just over 7 million ounces of reserves, and yet, now, Cody and Gosling don't, combined for over 16.2 million ounces of measured and indicated, and 4.2 million ounces of impaired and resources.
are over 20 million ounces together.
Speaker Change: Therefore, our plan this year is to conduct a third real program.
Speaker Change: of 45,000 meters focusing on the resource conversion at Guscone in support of a technical report in 1926 that outlined the seemingly upside laser-based combining coating in Guscone into a super-fit.
Speaker Change: In the face water, we completed about 12,000 meter of discolour and pride to spring break up.
Speaker Change: Several components of the plant has been designed for 42,000 tons per day, and we have seen many, many days about 40,000 tons per day over the last year.
Speaker Change: Long term of Putin's strategy for mining and weapons is subsequently in the gold environment where we are in, is to maximize and monetize the number of funds of our mind as we become
Speaker Change: As currently designed, Cody as a mining capacity to average an annual or mining rate of approximately 50,000 tons per day, Depsus, our current main play processing of
36,000 stunts released.
Speaker Change: As part of the 2026 technical report, we will look to find the right balance to increase the scope of processing rates with the mining rates targeting a larger, reserve phase of the court data thanks to perfect.
Speaker Change: We believe the results of this will outline a low capital intensive path forward in forcing Cody Gold's position as one of the largest gold mines in the operation.
Speaker Change: Turning to Quebec, the first quarter at which we saw a step down with production of 24,000 ounces, which was about 10,000 ounces less than the quarterly average last year.
Speaker Change: Pumped ground mining volumes were generally in line with 89,000 tons mine or 987 tons per day.
Speaker Change: However, Underground Headgrade came in at 6.28g per tonne compared to 8.78g per tonne in the same period last year
Speaker Change: that required stoke sequencing and increased dilution in certain stokes. We have seen blasting
Speaker Change: An Improvement in April , and we expect to see strong volumes from underground this year, as the number of stoves drilled and loaded is nearly double what they were last year.
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Speaker Change: Meal throughput in the first water was 282,000 tons at the average blended ed grade of 2.89 gram per ton, and 91 per cent of the coffees.
Speaker Change: Nila Divinity, Rich 94% in the quarter, a good achievement and reflective of our team's ongoing maintenance effort.
Speaker Change: Tashka and audience sustain costs came in above our guidance ranges for the year due to the lower production volumes with Tashka's averaging $1,527 an audience sustain averaging $2,124 an ounce.
Speaker Change: The costs are expected to fall within guidance range, same here as volume increase in the remaining nine months of the year.
Speaker Change: Looking ahead, we remain confident in Westwood's ability to meet of production guidance with production of 125 to 140,000 ounces.
Speaker Change: Bill Grantx.par material will come to you to the new seat in 2020-17. However, should Bill Christ remain where they are, there's a strong potential for further expansion and the expansion of the Yodges Fifth, which will be, if otherwise, us this year.
Speaker Change: Finally, looking at this again, we saw a modest step up in production from the court water last year
with attributable production of 86,000 ounces.
Speaker Change: My name activity total of 10.9 million tons mine in the quarter with 2.4 million tons of ore mine translates into a strip ratio of 3.4 to 1, a decline from prior quarters as tripping activities required to open up by 6 and 7 both into the view mirror.
Speaker Change: Ben Triput in the first quarter was 3.1 million fans, which is in line with a typical quarter at with no constraints on supply chain.
Overage head grades were 1.08
Speaker Change: Graham Perkpan in the quarter, which reflects mining in the upper benches of phase seven.
Speaker Change: Great, great time to reconcile slightly below the reserve model in the earlier stages of mining a new face.
Speaker Change: and conversely to the positive as mining moves deeper into a phase as was experienced in the first half of 2024 when mining activities were on the later stages of phase 5.
Speaker Change: On a cost basis, S.I.K. reported cash costs of $1557 per ounce and all interesting costs of [inaudible]
to start the year.
Speaker Change: Cuff are expected to improve as production improves through the year.
Speaker Change: As a whole, a second cost has increased over the last few years due to higher landed fuel prices in country as well as higher supply chain and transportation costs impacted by the security situation
Speaker Change: Perter has the gold price increases, there's an impact to cost due to rail fees [inaudible]
Speaker Change: For example, in the first water oil tease at Concept 4, $203 per ounce.
Speaker Change: At the cost seen here, the mill is expected to operate a throughput and headrate in line with the current life of mine, though as mining moved deeper into phase 6 and 7
Speaker Change: In the second half of the year, graves are expected to reconcile positive view over this period.
Speaker Change: Wild the cost of operations in the country as risen over the recent years, as I can remain the world-class mine position to generate strong free cash flows as waste-prepping expenditures are expected to decrease year-over-year.
Speaker Change: Finally, it is work I like the work on going as our second largest gold mining camp, the Midigan and Monthly Project in Shibuya, Munchabat.
Speaker Change: The first quarter we completed over 8,000 meter of reading on our 13,000 meter program targeting the extension of the Nilligan deposit.
Speaker Change: Milligan's mineral resources, as Smith was updated earlier this year, which sub-inscaded ounces increased to 3.1 million ounces, with an average rate of
0.95 gram per ton
Speaker Change: and an additional 5.2 million ounces in inferred at similar grade. That again, mineralization remains open up alongside in a depth with some of the most encouraging results as you can see in the diagram here.
Speaker Change: In addition, the drilling program at the Monster Lake Project is also ongoing targeting high-grade underground structures
Renaud Adams: With that, I will pass it back to Renaud. Thank you, Bruno. So, we look forward to the result of this program. As Maligan has seen, rapid growth from a relatively conservative drill program over the last two years.
Renaud Adams: When you combine Nelligan with a high grade satellite monster leg deposit, they are nearing 9 million ounces of resources from this mining camp already.
Renaud Adams: Positioning now again at the relatively early stage among the largest gold projects in Canada, with significant potential for Prudograbo
Renaud Adams: They can together, there is no question that our Shibugamo asset offers significant organic growth potential in the very mining-friendly jurisdictions in Canada.
Renaud Adams: So, thank you all, it is really an exciting time for IMGOL and we're very, very positive about what the rest of 2020 by Halls for the company.
Renaud Adams: Cortese entering the second quarter at 90% loss throughput rate with further improvements to the comm, including the second gone Crusher installation later this year.
Renaud Adams: Westwood currently has record on the ground inventory ready to blast to drive off productions for the remainder of the year. The Sakan is moving into higher grade in the second half of the year.
Renaud Adams: and there is substantial growth to come through the drill bit at Coatty and Nelligan.
Renaud Adams: So stay tuned and thank you for your support. With that, I would like to pass the call back to the operator for the Q&A operator
Speaker Change: Thank you. We will now begin the question and answer session.
Speaker Change: To join the Question Q, you may press star then one on your telephone keypad. You will hear and atone acknowledgement acknowledging your request. If you are using a speakerphone, please pick up your handset before pressing the keys. If you would like to withdraw your question, please press star then two.
We will now pause momentarily to assemble our roster.
Speaker Change: And today's first question that comes from Anita Soni, with CIBC World Markets Please
Anita Soni: Good morning, Renaud and team. Just firstly, congratulations on getting Kote up to the the 96 K-10, sorry 96, a percent throughput rate in the last 30 days.
Anita Soni: Secondly, I thought a question on the mining rates in the grades that you were delivering from the pit.
Speaker Change: I think it was .78 and which was a little bit lower than what you delivered as a processing head grade. Can you just give me an idea of where your stock pile level stand, particularly the high grade and medium grade portions and kind of give me some color on like how that
Speaker Change: One, firstly, how long is that 0.78, the lower grades while you try to open up the pit going to persist?
Speaker Change: and then, like, are you mining higher grades? Like, are you sort of upgrading the direct or seed and supplementing that to the middle while you do that .78? Just trying to get understanding how the grades and the throughput are going to evolve over the course of the year.
Renaud Adams: So I'll ask you, Bruno, for more detail, but just as a general comment and he says, I just want to bring this conversation back to when we released in OR.
and Guidance for the Year.
Renaud Adams: and just reminded everyone that for the first six months of the year there was already a plan.
Renaud Adams: to be at the lower grade as, you know, Bruno, the teens and the co-they are focused, you know, on reposition in the faces and so forth. So we were already kind of planning that we would be a little bit lower, but we will be using stockpile and in a second. So I'll pass it to Bruno for more detail on it, but to me...
Renaud Adams: There is no real surprises there. Maybe slightly a little lower on the mining side, but because we continue to mill, or we were mining, milling at the lower rate, then the mining so you could still increase your grade to the mill, to the one, to the one, to the one, to the one, to the one, to the one.
Renaud Adams: But no real surprises and maybe reminded last year was a bit the same too. I hope you could mind that the reserve grade might increase your million grade by nearly 50%.
Renaud Adams: But now we're slowing down this, we go more direct feed, we avoid any harm necessary.
A Selective Mining in Sofar, Sabrina No.
Bruno Lehmann: Good morning, Anita, that's exactly right. In the coming quarters, the great mine is going to increase more toward the 1 gram per tonne.
Bruno Lehmann: We're also going to be mining more or great or mine.
Bruno Lehmann: Over time, so there will be some selectivity for sure, but we're trying to minimize that segregation, so we can mind closer to reserve rates. So all in all, we're going to be within 1.1, 1.2.
Bruno Lehmann: We have close to 2 billion tons of grading at over 8.8 gram per tonne and we have 8 million tons grading at 0.55 gram per tonne. So whenever sometime we need to...
Bruno Lehmann: To use the stockpile to feed the stockpile diaries in average around 0.8 grams to tonne but for the next water, the grain of the ore mine is going to be higher than 0.78 to answer your question.
Bruno Lehmann: Okay, thank you. And then just in terms of the grades at Estecane, I think you said the back half of the year would see positive grade reconciliation. I think I also had a declining grade profile for the year. So does that mean with positive grade reconciliation that should be more of a flat profile for the year?
Bruno Lehmann: It's going to be quite flat to be honest for the remainder of the year.
Bruno Lehmann: It's going to be a great death, it's going to be above the 1 gram per tonne [inaudible]
Bruno Lehmann: And because we're mining more ore than we are processing, we're going to be slightly selecting our grade materials for the new process. We also expect to see some good or to see the reconciliation to be as good as what we see right now.
Bruno Lehmann: So maybe Anita just to add to this, if you look at 2024 it was a bit of the opposite, right?
Bruno Lehmann: Of course, we need to use what we see in reserve, you know, to plan some part, but very likely that we see the same phenomena that we see in other cases and there are some transitions to the better zones that people see here.
Bruno Lehmann: to see if I can kick him on the headbrake. So we're definitely expecting a stronger than Q1.
Bruno Lehmann: But as we know, we remain conscious with prevention to not to overstate what we could potentially see as great but we should normally see the same phenomena because we are in some ways in deep resum.
Bruno Lehmann: And then just on the unit cost at S.A.K., the processing cost came in better than I had expected more.
Speaker Change: I mean, better than any of the quarters we posted last year. So is there anything, you know, driving that in particular is that currency or, you know, is that something that will persist over, you know, the rest of the year or is that, um, just maybe just sort of a one-time new one?
Speaker Change: No, nothing specific to go ahead, Martin. Morning, Anita. One thing that is happening is I believe if the can is running at a bit of our throughput right, which is driving down the Theun. So it's a bit absorbing some of the fixed costs
Speaker Change: Okay, I'll leave it there and get back into the queue. Thanks.
Yeah. Yeah.
Thank you.
Speaker Change: Again, if you do have a question, please press starry than one on your telephone keypad.
Speaker Change: And the next question comes from Muhammad Sidhida with National Bank. Please proceed.
Mohamed Siddida: I don't know one team out, thanks for taking my question. And maybe just to follow up on Anita's unit costs improvement at S&K. I was just wondering if this was also maybe positively impacted or if you expect to see any positive impact from the lower fuel prices or diesel prices that we're seeing. Any comments on that?
Renaud Adams: So, the total cost that we spent at ICANN was actually in line with what we expected to spend in line of prior years as well.
Renaud Adams: Fuel costs in Burkina are taxed a bit longer to adjust to the market prices, so we've not seen the reduction in oil prices coming in there, so it is really because we are processed a bit. It's more a unit to put impact that is driving it.
Renaud Adams: And maybe I could add to this, I mean, when you look at the previous water, I wouldn't necessarily say about the mining cost where this is where I lower, I think you were in line, I was previous, but we didn't know it's that.
Renaud Adams: of Red auctions of the nailing processing costs in one water, and Marthin Norris contacted us water, but in the last year we were systematically more like in the...
Renaud Adams: 1850 and so far, RG's and 1850. Yes, some yet good results, but...
Renaud Adams: We'll see in the next water, sometimes it's just a bit of the timing of certain expenses and so forth, but we're definitely confident that we could repeat at least minimum repeat, but we achieve that [inaudible]
Speaker Change: Great, thank you. And then just my second question would be at Westwood, given the lower grade and the quarter because of the temporary equipment challenges. Could you maybe give us a little bit more color into what the grades may look into Q2? Is Q2 expected to be slightly still impacted by that or should we see a material improvement into Q2 at Westwood? Thank you.
Renaud Adams: So as we're not to add some comments to it, so definitely we're going to see an increase as we
Renaud Adams: So with the change of the mining sequencing, of course we're going to lower grade, you know, the tool, but it's there that
Renaud Adams: The total gun, so it's just a matter of retransitioning back into and there is no reason that you do not see the same as we were reminding last year, you know, as we were approaching the end of the year, we're not.
Renaud Adams: Yes, so one of the great for which wood is going to be for the underground mine is going to be around over in between 8 and 12, so depending on the sequencing that's going to be...
Renaud Adams: We're going to be in, so the goal for us is always to try to be as close to the reserve grade on the round that's also like 9-10 gram per tonne.
Renaud Adams: So this is what we see for the next waters and for the year.
Speaker Change: Right, thank you. And if I could maybe cite in one last question, Jason Burkina on the security situation and maybe the commentary made recently better Prime Minister, Renaud, did you have any additional comments in color on that? Thank you very much.
Speaker Change: I think internally we remain extremely confident, like the security situations, you know, wouldn't see worse than see the others, so we continue to operate another quarter without any disruptions you didn't know in the supply chain been so far.
Speaker Change: To me and to us, there is really nothing new happening, there's a lot of talking and so forth but you know it's the same information has been reposited you know from the last year and so forth.
Prima
Speaker Change: There is a question a bit on the timing of certain of the aspect, but I think we're relationship and work with the government remains very strong.
would never...
Speaker Change: Even remotely close to think that, as I can, it could be referred and those are calm. And if any, a lot of it is the interpretation. So, no, we remain very confident to continue to operate.
Speaker Change: strong operations, maintain the security, you know, allowing us to to operate at 100% capacity and so forth and so forth. We haven't we haven't seen anything but the strong support from the government and all that or so.
Speaker Change: So now we do not see it as an increased risk [inaudible]
Great, thank you, and congrats on the good part of our equity.
Thank you.
Tanya Jakuskinek: And the next question comes from Panya Jakusconek with Scotia Bank, please proceed.
Tanya Jakuskinek: It seemed to remember it was at much lower pricing than $3,000.
Speaker Change: and now that we have the increased royalty rates from the government, it's over $3,000, they get to 8%. Can you remind me if your cash cost guidance reflects that?
This is for ESSA Camp.
Speaker Change: So, I'll give it to Marthinus, thanks for that. Good morning, Tanya. So, our cash cost guidance assumes the dividends and the increases, but our gold price assumption in our guidance was $2,500
Speaker Change: So, if we look at our forecast, even with that increase, we still expect to come within the
Yes.
Okay.
Speaker Change: Okay, I just wanted to make sure because everyone's guidance is at that 25, 2600 and all of these things that are moving up and you just want to make sure that
Speaker Change: That still is reflective in that guy. Okay, so thank you so much for that and then just maybe continuing on just again I think when we last spoke we were expecting a week Q1 and then the strongest would be the Q4
Speaker Change: with a stronger second half. Do we have an ability too? So we obviously have improvement happening as it can seem to be flatish?
Speaker Change: So, at the second, it's going to be clearly a stronger H2 than the H1 thing.
Speaker Change: because as you know, as we leap deeper into phase 6 and 7, we're going to see the other grade.
in the second half of the year.
For Westwood, we should see like the resumed.
Speaker Change: of the average production that we have enjoyed over the last quarters, over 30,000 low amounts per quarter.
Speaker Change: Encoated, that's going to be a continuous ramp up, gradual ramp up, almost linear, toward the end of the year.
So, so clearly that's often half the-
Speaker Change: Tanya, so clearly the second half will be stronger as you combine.
Renaud Adams: The three elements that Bruno is mentioning, of course we have some tie-in to do with a crosser and so forth, but globally speaking we see the three minds pretty strong in the second half with some sort of a bit of a transition in you
Peter Wright to all of those aspects of the year.
Renaud Adams: I think it's really the second half that's going to highlight that video.
Renaud Adams: Yeah, so maybe Q2, just a bit better than Q1, and then you have the bump up in Q3, Q4, yeah, okay, that's mine. This is mine should get from well in Q2 compared to Q1.
Renaud Adams: And then maybe coming back to what Martin was just saying when he talked about the balance sheet and he said, you know, ultimately looking to return to shareholders through share buybacks, dividends, etc. Maybe we can kind of review what do you need to see both from an operational standpoint and a balance sheet standpoint before you would be comfortable in thinking about shareholder returns.
Speaker Change: Well, I was let Brent Martin to describe how we think, you know, but, you know, definitely we don't see this company, you know, like...
Speaker Change: and difficulties in alter-carrier, certain level of that, but I would definitely see on this year, we want to see your reductions of our net debt cost and volume.
Speaker Change: We don't miss a serious company with the need to go up so if they freak out, you know, on a pretty bastard and out that tree in a very short term.
Speaker Change: But Marthin, maybe you could act not, you know, you could ask it is, but for us it's really about bringing D-level and cost to the what we call the best in class and then after that rethinking our work capital on location. [inaudible]
Martin: Yes, thanks for no, and our focus will remain over the next 12 months to continue to perform [inaudible]
Martin: It depends on how we would look at it. First priority is reducing the level of date and our process of date.
Martin: and then once we get to the back end of that, we're bending on what the goal process is.
Martin: It will impact the middle of next year or end of next year to see if there are options available but it's art because as you know the gold price has been very volatile so our approach would just be to continue to focus on performing and executing on our date and then evaluate options when we're ready.
Speaker Change: Do you have a net set to eat the dog targets that you want to get to before and that would capture a gold price that you want to get to before you would start thinking about capital returns?
Speaker Change: Anita, to Imitate Ratio, at the moment, is about 1.1. We would like for it to be at 1 or less than 1.
Speaker Change: But you can't look at that when the gold price is about 3000 so you need to look at what it would be if the gold price is lower as well. And that's why we say we continue to look at that not just based on what.
Speaker Change: The current gold classes, but also what it would potentially be when we are making those decisions.
Yes, I think we have fair statement, the gold pre-pays.
Speaker Change: What was the big refinement, the big impact on cash, we continue doing that and then...
Speaker Change: There's a lot of, with 200 million gold on a credit facility and the 400 on the
Tanya Jakuskinek: The Second Lean, so those are our so big plans we have. But I think as you mentioned Tanya, so as you hit like mid-next year and all, should the gold price remain, and all I said delivers, I think we're gonna be in a pretty good shape in the second half next year. [inaudible]
Yeah.
Speaker Change: And what can I ask an exploration question? I wanted to go back to the Shibugumu camp and that emerging district and maybe just a little.
Speaker Change: You know, someone can explain to me like, so what, you know, what are you, how do you see this camp evolving and how do you see yourself, you know, in this camp, do you think you can do this on your own, would you bring a partner in for this?
Speaker Change: Maybe some color on how this camp and your involvement in it.
Speaker Change: Now, thank you for that. So, what I like about this is not like a kind of a one-source-up if you, if you're looking at, you know, the map and sketches, you know.
Speaker Change: It's really a camp, it's not just limited to one, so yes, we're thinking big when it comes to it now again months away.
Speaker Change: We have seen as well the hit ratios of our drilling in the last two years, which is also pretty exceptional, and it comes in New Zealand open.
Speaker Change: and there's an order area within the camp we haven't really touched. But how do I see it? I see it eventually at large and go resource-based in the camp.com lines open, and Peter Ball type of beverage can be in great width.
Speaker Change: on the ground highway like two things that we're good at doing and and the combinations of both approach from day one will give you a lot of flexibility. Thank you very much.
Speaker Change: Over the next two years, what I keep reminding everyone internally, because everyone excited about Malvegan is...
Speaker Change: Drill, Drill, like, our objective in the next two years, you know, 25-25-6
Speaker Change: I've benefited some through a filter we've taken this earlier this year is to build a resource bank.
Speaker Change: A large open fit-a-ball resource-based combine with a pretty decent
Speaker Change: on the ground hybrid. So this is the objective of the next two years.
Speaker Change: I don't like to look at too much of the mindability of it, and then in the short term I prefer to think that we don't know yet how big that could be, but I don't see how this scam could not be a 15 million plus [inaudible]
and this over the overtime.
and this is where we're focusing on.
Speaker Change: So by the time we put the next study at Colty out there, it is our objective to have position already now again to a certain point as as if we can look at it as the next. [inaudible]
Speaker Change: When it comes to bringing partners, I think the situation has changed significantly. This company will over the last few years. I don't see any need at all early.
Speaker Change: I think we have more than the capacity, talent and resources to bring this resource base to the next level. But we would always consider the diversity aspect when it comes to the next phase and so forth. It's early stage, at this stage we don't have plans to bring. [inaudible]
Speaker Change: But we have an excellent experience of partnering with someone in building world class, so we don't need to survey it.
Speaker Change: Say that these won't happen but we just don't need to absolutely don't see the need for a partner at this stage [inaudible]
Speaker Change: and preferring to bring this a barged little resource base at the 100% level.
Speaker Change: Yeah, I was looking at it far from a talent perspective, right? Because there's only so much on it. Yeah. Well good luck with the drilling and thank you for the slide look forward to hearing more about it as you drill away over the next two years. Thank you very much for the slide look forward to hearing more about it as you drill away over the next two years
Awesome. Thank you.
Speaker Change: Our next question comes from Mike Carey MacRury with Canacor Genuity, please proceed.
Carrie McRurie: Hi, good morning guys. I'm just a question on Asacan. You know, your reserves are at 1,500.
Carrie McRurie: I'm just trying to begin to remind us what the mine life you're assuming there is and you know if your reserves were at 2000 or 2500 you know what's the mine life extension potential there?
Alpesa Therberham
Graham: Good morning, Terry. Of course, with the gold price increasing close to a thousand dollars over the last six months, we'll have to revisit our gold price assumption when advising our mineral resources and mineral reserves. So this is good.
Speaker Change: A good question. We're going to change our current assumption and we will certainly add an impact on our second mind. Right now we have enough material up until 2029.
Speaker Change: We this year we decided to have a more intense reading campaign.
to...
Speaker Change: See what could be the potential of the FACAN inside the tent, as you know, with the security situation.
Speaker Change: We're not exploring too much outside the premise of the mind.
Speaker Change: And so far what we're seeing is we're seeing the deposits coming to expand more and more in that debt.
Speaker Change: So we're looking at different phases and that will have to be evaluated.
Speaker Change: with any new gold prize assumptions. So I think we'll be able to come up with...
Speaker Change: New information once we have a new mining plan that will dictate how many years we could gain according to those new gold price assumptions and according to those new black model coming from exploration.
Speaker Change: I like to add to this that while definitely, you know, we see the industry and I think it's just a matter of fun you will see some, you know, increase in the global price use for reserves. We have quite a bit of a gap here.
Speaker Change: But I also want to stress that our strategy is largely to improve and increase through the drill bit.
Speaker Change: So, don't want this company to be depending on the gold price, you know, to the farm or to increase and so far. So, gold price will go price helps in a lot of ways, you know, in that repayment and so far in the cash line.
But it's important to measure performance.
Speaker Change: and financial buying how good we are to execute, and I think we've come in normal on the last two years in that way. So I expect POS to use the gold price to increase our ad drilling efforts. So this is where I want to see most of the answers coming.
Thank you very much.
Speaker Change: Hey, great, that's it from me and Tim Gratz on the progress I've got there.
Thank you.
Speaker Change: The next question is from Lawson Winder with Bank of America Securities. Please proceed.
Speaker Change: Hi, yeah, thank you. I'll be right there in the morning when I'm at GM Tech for the update. Can I ask about Westwood and the potential to expand my life at the Open Pit and add additional resources from Grand Duke? What is it that's being considered? Is there a conversion of some of that in Ferdinand?
Speaker Change: resource to the planet, and would you be able to give us an idea of what we're talking about in terms of ounces, like there's about a 1.8 million ounce inferred resource there. It would be a large piece of that, the open petable material.
and Marthinus Theunissen.
David Smith,
Speaker Change: Good morning Lawson, so the Gadzik is a what we call the clear swing producer, very low grade, and what it does is it helps by the lies in the middle.
Speaker Change: It's a constant feed as opposed to the feed coming from underground that's a little bit more coming in a heathetic manner.
So we
Speaker Change: But we have milk capacity that exceeds that, so we want to capture that excess capacity to monetize.
Speaker Change: Any kind of source that would be in and around the Dwayon Westwood complex. So, get out and pick out the check marks.
Speaker Change: However, now I think we are at a certain limit under which we need to evaluate if further expansion would be making sense because it will require capital and moving some infrastructure so there's always like a limit. [inaudible]
Speaker Change: which you can expand, and that's what we're going to be evaluating. Otherwise, Jessica's been very good for us, giving us like...
Speaker Change: 30, 40,000 go down to a year, 20 something and it's a stabilizer, we see it as a stabilizer as the underground operation progresses.
Speaker Change: And that's all the same thing, too, as you know, from my previous film, and I think
Speaker Change: I think that there is a non-believeable opportunity at what's good here to improve the valuation to crystallizing more reserves. We have a resource base over a three-mail analysis.
Speaker Change: and I'll just release the last year and technical report leaving that to a million ounce.
Speaker Change: Art Confidence, of course, and how we see what's live over the next year, there's more and a few more millions. So, there is a good room and, of course, an idea as well to the drill bit to convert some and put maybe a bit of modernization in my opinion, but a bit of a place.
Speaker Change: Interesting, of course, it did have to increase reserve and valuation.
Speaker Change: Okay, I guess what this question is, one is what are the underground process improvements that you're actually working on and then thinking of those, what is the potential to expand beyond that thousand times per day and like what's kind of
Speaker Change: What's the theoretical limit given in the ground conditions and other considerations around the geology and geotech?
So, to answer the question...
Actually, we're aiming at a thousand times per day.
Speaker Change: We are seeing good days at 1100. Ultimately, what we would like to achieve is 1200 tons per day and we believe that the limit would be closer to 1300 tons per day without changing too much of the infrastructure. [inaudible]
Speaker Change: Most of the improvement would come with improvement on the ground transportation of your. That's what we did. We made some capital investment on our trucks and scootrams and holly or past systems.
Speaker Change: and as well in terms of mind design and blasting techniques using up all the upper
Speaker Change: So all in all, we're doing a lot of great improvement month after month [inaudible]
Speaker Change: And we see, I would say, 30% improvement potential, but yet to be captured.
Speaker Change: Okay, very helpful. And look, I appreciate you guys making time here. I'm just realizing we're about two minutes past the hour. If I can, I'd like to ask one more question just thinking around capital allocation.
Speaker Change: in the balance sheet and how it's set to improve quite materially here. In the context of the recent Canadian asset sales from Newmont and Barrick now having the ongoing process to sell Hemwell, how does M&A compete with the internal options including expansions at Coatay and in the projects of Chubu-Gumma.
Thank you.
Speaker Change: Howdy, I'm B.C. I could be smart, and it's more than some B.C. like, if you're really looking at our court fraud, you're right, we're next year we're going to put them in a new technical report out there, let's go get it.
had a significant and greatly deserved response.
Speaker Change: I would just talk about the Nelligan and so forth. So when you're looking at our, you know, organic potential organic girls for the next years to come, we truly do not see at this stage of her company the need.
Speaker Change: and the short term activity, not we're going to focus on our assets.
Speaker Change: Down the road, I mean, we'll see, right? Not the road, we'll see, but at this stage...
Speaker Change: For us it's more than complete. It creates more value to focus on organic growth than I am.
Speaker Change: and sorry for the diagram noise. We're competing with the window cleaners so well. Perfect timing, sorry.
and all the back pieces of written in the North.
Speaker Change: That's great, you're coming here loud and clear. Thank you so much.
Thank you. Thanks.
Speaker Change: And this does conclude today's question and answer session. At this time I would like to hand the call back over to Graeme Jennings for any closing remarks.
Graeme Jennings: Thank you very much, operator. Thank you, everyone, for joining us this morning. As always, if you have any additional questions, please reach out to Renaud or myself. Thanks. Thank you all, be safe and have a great day.
Thank you. Thank you.
Graeme Jennings: Thank you. This brings to a close today's conference call. You may now disconnect your lines. Thank you for participating and have a pleasant day.
Theunissen, Marthinus Theunissen
Thank you.
This Is A True Story
Theunissen Winder,