LUCA REPORTS STRONG Q4 2023 AND ANNUAL FINANCIAL RESULTS
Luca Mining Corp. reports strong Q4 2023 and annual financial results, with total production of 11,808 ounces of gold equivalent in Q4, significant contributions from Campo Morado and Tahuehueto, improved grades and recoveries, decreased costs, and positive outlook for 2024. Full-year 2023 production reached 55,719 ounces of gold equivalent, favorable operational metrics, and optimistic growth prospects for the company.
Strong production results in Q4 2023 and full-year 2023 with increased total production of gold equivalent compared to previous periods.
Significant contributions from Campo Morado and Tahuehueto mines, accounting for a substantial portion of the total production.
Improved grades for gold, silver, and copper, along with enhanced metallurgical recoveries, showcasing operational efficiency.
Decreased Cash Cost and All In Sustaining Cost in Q4 2023, indicating cost efficiency improvements.
Positive outlook for 2024 with anticipated growth and shareholder value creation, supported by ongoing optimization programs at Campo Morado and Tahuehueto.
Decreased grades for zinc and lead in Q4 2023 compared to the previous period, potentially impacting overall mineral recovery rates.
Slight increase in production costs per tonne in Q4 2023, which could have implications for cost management strategies in the future.
Net loss reported for the financial year, signaling potential financial challenges that need to be addressed for sustainable growth.
Despite positive outlook, the company experienced a significant loss per share in 2023, which might raise concerns among investors.
Fourth Quarter 2023
- Total production amounted to 11,808 ounces of gold equivalent ("AuEq"), which was comprised of 3,155 ounces of gold, 155,763 ounces of silver, 2,730 tonnes of zinc, 671 tonnes of copper and 558 tonnes of lead.
- Out of the total production for Q4,
Campo Morado accounted for 8,658 gold equivalent ounces, which is approximately73% of the total production. Tahuehueto contributed 3,150 ounces of equivalent gold, representing27% of the total production. - The Company's two plants processed a consolidated 130,210 tonnes of ore with average grades of 1.40 grams per tonne ("g/t") for gold, 75.63 g/t for silver,
2.49% ,0.64% and0.68% per tonne for zinc copper and lead respectively. - Overall, grades increased by
52% ,16% , and36% , for gold, silver and copper respectively, while grades for zinc and lead decreased by9% and1% respectively, over Q4 2022. - Metallurgical recoveries improved substantially over the fourth quarter 2022, averaging
53.8% for gold,49.2% for silver,84.1% for zinc,80.2% for copper and62.6% for lead - Cash Cost was
US per AuEq ounce and All In Sustaining Cost ("AISC") was$1,244 US per AuEq ounce a decrease of$1,437 6% and4% decrease respectively from Q3 2024. Production cost increase slightly to per tonne in Q4 2023 from$78 per tonne in Q3 2023, a$77 1% increase.
Ramon Perez , President, and Interim CEO, commented, " I am pleased to share some exciting updates regarding our recent financial performance and production milestones.
As we reflect on Q4 2023 results, it's evident that our optimization initiatives at
We recently released our Q1 2024 production of 14,148 ounces of gold equivalent compared to 11,808 ounces of gold equivalent in Q4 2023 and can see the results of our hard work materializing.
The momentum at Tahuehueto remains strong as we continue to progress towards our ambitious goal of reaching 1,000 tons per day in commercial production. Furthermore, the optimization program at
Looking ahead, we anticipate that the positive trajectory observed in Q4 2023 and in Q1 2024 will persist throughout the second quarter and the remainder of the 2024 year. These developments affirm our commitment to driving growth and shareholder value creation."
Full Year 2023
- Total production amounted to 55,719 ounces of gold equivalent, which comprised 11,832 ounces of gold, 688,125 ounces of silver, 15,243 tonnes of zinc, 2,618 tonnes of copper and 2,688 tonnes of lead.
Campo Morado accounted for 43,089 gold equivalent ounces, which is approximately77% of total production.- The Company's two plants processed a consolidated 665,132 tonnes of ore with average grades of 1.29 g/t for gold, 75.46 g/t for silver,
2.85% ,0.59% and0.74% per tonne for zinc, copper and lead respectively. - Overall, grades increased by
49% ,20% ,2% , for gold, copper and lead respectively and decreased for for zinc and silver by7% and4% , respectively, compared to the year ended December 31, 2022. - Metallurgical recoveries for the 2023 year improved substantially over the 2022 year, averaging at
33.2% for gold,46.3% for silver,80.4% for zinc,66.6% for copper and54.3% for lead.
CONSOLIDATED | Year Ended | ||
December 31 2023 | December 31 2022 | Change 2023 vs 2022 | |
Operating | |||
Tonnes milled | 665,132 | 787,344 | (16 %) |
Gold produced (oz) | 11,832 | 5,994 | 97 % |
Silver produced (oz) | 688,126 | 787,540 | (13 %) |
Zinc produced (tonnes) | 15,243 | 17,958 | (15 %) |
Copper produced (tonnes) | 2,618 | 2,157 | 21 % |
Lead produced (tonnes) | 2,688 | 2,479 | 8 % |
AuEq produced (oz) (1) | 55,719 | 57,377 | (3 %) |
Gold sold (oz) | 9,951 | 2,790 | 257 % |
Silver sold (oz) | 495,527 | 499,326 | (1 %) |
Zinc sold (tonnes) | 11,148 | 13,290 | (16 %) |
Copper sold (tonnes) | 1,697 | 1,009 | 68 % |
Lead sold (tonnes) | 803 | 739 | 9 % |
Au/Eq sold (oz) (1) | 39,645 | 36,212 | 9 % |
Cost per tonne ($US)(7) | 65 | 50 | 1 % |
Cash cost per Au/Eq ounce ($US) (1)(2) | 1,219 | 1,082 | 13 % |
AISC per Au/Eq ounce ($US) (1)(3) | 1,405 | 1,286 | 9 % |
Financial | $ | $ | |
Net Revenue | 68,275 | 59,208 | 15 % |
Cost of Sales | 66,806 | 56,201 | 19 % |
Mine operating profit | 1,469 | 3,007 | (51 %) |
Mine operating cashflow before taxes(6) | 5,497 | 5,458 | 1 % |
Net loss | (14,996) | (11,607) | 29 % |
EBITDA(4) | (6,426) | (4,777) | 35 % |
Adjusted EBITDA(4) | (5,665) | (4,547) | 25 % |
Realized gold price per ounce ($US) (5) | 1,958 | 2,114 | (7 %) |
Realized silver price per ounce ($US) (5) | 23.37 | 20.89 | 12 % |
Realized zinc price per tonne ($US) (5) | 2,514 | 3,245 | (23 %) |
Realized copper price per tonne ($US) (5) | 8,394 | 8,224 | 2 % |
Realized lead price per tonne ($US) (5) | 2,093 | 2,210 | (5 %) |
Working capital(7) | (50,716) | (46,275) | 10 % |
Shareholders | |||
Loss per share – basic and diluted | (0.15) | (0.34) | (68 %) |
Weighted average shares outstanding | 103,556,634 | 34,157,486 | 334 % |
1. | Gold equivalents are calculated using an 83.02:1 (Ag/Au), 0.0006:1 (Au/Zn), 0.002:1 (Au/Cu) and 0.0005:1 (Au/Pb) ratio for 2023; and 83.49:1 (Ag/Au), 0.0008:1 (Au/Zn), 0.002:1 (Au/Cu) and 0.0005:1 (Au/Pb)ratio for 2022, respectively. |
2. | Cash cost per gold equivalent ounce include mining, processing, and direct overhead. See Reconciliation to IFRS on page 24 of the MD&A and below in this news release. |
3. | AlSC per Au/Eq oz include mining, processing, direct overhead, corporate general and administration expenses, on-site exploration, reclamation and sustaining capital. See Reconciliation to IFRS on page 24 of the MD&A and below in this news release. |
4. | See Reconciliation of earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation, and amortization on page 24. of the MD&A and below in this news release. |
5. | Based on provisional sales before final price adjustments, treatment, and refining charges. |
6. | Mine operating cash flow before taxes is calculated by adding back depreciation, and depletion to mine operating profit (loss). See Reconciliation to IFRS on page 23 of the MD&A and below in this news release. |
7. | See Reconciliation to IFRS on page 24 of the MD&A and below in this news release. |
Ramon Perez, President and Interim CEO, further commented, "We had a year of transformational achievements at our operations –and this has set the stage for transformational financial growth in 2024 and beyond. We are already seeing excellent growth in revenues and cash flow. Last year was a building year. We implemented a planned reduction in throughput at Campo Morado to carry out the CMIP and we continued to build out Tahuehueto. As the Company completes these projects, and ramps up production toward the end of 2024 and into 2025, the Company expects costs to decrease on a per tonne basis. We have an exciting new chapter ahead of us."
Luca Mining (TSX-V: LUCA, OTCQX: LUCMF, Frankfurt: Z68) is a diversified Canadian mining company with two
The
The Tahuehueto Gold, Silver Mine is a new underground operation in Durango State,
The Company expects its operations to start generating positive cash flows in 2024. Luca Mining is focused on growth with the aim of maximizing shareholder returns.
For more information, please visit: www.lucamining.com
On Behalf of the Board of Directors
(signed) "Ramon Perez"
Ramon Perez, President and Interim CEO
Qualified Persons
The technical information contained in this News Release has been reviewed and approved by Mr. Chris Richings, Vice-President Technical at Luca Mining as the Qualified Person for the Company as defined in National Instrument 43-101.
Cautionary Note Regarding Production Decisions and Forward-Looking Statements
It should be noted that Luca declared commercial production at
Positive operating cash flow is defined as excluding capital, debt repayment and Trafigura financing.
Statements contained in this news release that are not historical facts are "forward-looking information" or "forward-looking statements" (collectively, "Forward-Looking Information") within the meaning of applicable Canadian securities laws. Forward Looking Information includes, but is not limited to, disclosure regarding the planned program to improve mining operations at
Neither TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in the policies of the TSX Venture Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.
NON-IFRS FINANCIAL MEASURES
The Company has disclosed certain non-IFRS financial measures and ratios in this MD&A, as discussed below. These non-IFRS financial measures and non-IFRS ratios are widely reported in the mining industry as benchmarks for performance and are used by Management to monitor and evaluate the Company's operating performance and ability to generate cash. The Company believes that, in addition to financial measures and ratios prepared in accordance with IFRS, certain investors use these non-IFRS financial measures and ratios to evaluate the Company's performance. However, the measures do not have a standardized meaning under IFRS and may not be comparable to similar financial measures disclosed by other companies. Accordingly, non-IFRS financial measures and non-IFRS ratios should not be considered in isolation or as a substitute for measures and ratios of the Company's performance prepared in accordance with IFRS.
Non-IFRS financial measures are defined in National Instrument 52-112 – Non-GAAP and Other Financial Measures Disclosure ("NI 52- 122") as a financial measure disclosed that (a) depicts the historical or expected future financial performance, financial position or cash flow of an entity, (b) with respect to itscomposition, excludes an amount that is included in, or includes an amount that is excluded from, the composition of the most directly comparable financial measure disclosed in the primary financial statements of the entity, (c) is not disclosed in the financial statements of the entity, and (d) is not a ration, fraction, percentage or similar representation.
A non-IFRS ratio is defined by 52-112 as a financial measure disclosed that (a) is in the form of a ration, fraction, percentage or similar representation, (b)has a non-IFRS financial measure as one or more of its components, and (c) is not disclosed in the financial statements.
Working Capital
Working capital is a non-IFRS measure that is a common measure of liquidity but does not have any standardized meaning. The most directly comparable measure prepared in accordance with IFRS is current assets and net of current liabilities. Working capital is calculated by deducting current liabilities from current assets. Working capital should not be considered in isolation or as a substitute from measures prepared in accordance with IFRS. The measure is intended to assist readers in evaluating our liquidity.
December 31 | December 31 | ||
2023 | 2022 | ||
$ | $ | ||
Current assets | 24,225 | 27,894 | |
Current liabilities | 74,941 | 74,169 | |
Working capital | (50,716) | (46,275) |
Mine Operating Cash Flow Before Taxes
Mine operating cash flow before taxes is a non-IFRS measure that does not have a standardized meaning prescribed by IFRS and therefore may not be comparable to similar measures presented by other issuers. Mine operating cash flow is calculated as revenue minus production costs, transportation andselling costs and inventory changes. Mine operating cash flow is used by management to assess the performance of the mine operations, excluding corporate and exploration activities and is provided to investors as a measure of the Company's operating performance.
Year ended | |||||
December 31 2023 | December 31 2022 | ||||
$ | $ | ||||
Revenues | 68,275 | 59,208 | |||
Production cost | (58,640) | (50,741) | |||
Royalties | (2,546) | (1,987) | |||
Inventory changes | (1,592) | (1,022) | |||
Mine operating cash flows before taxes | 5,497 | 5,458 |
EBITDA
EBITDA is a non-IFRS financial measure, which excludes the following from net earnings:
- Income tax expense;
- Finance costs;
- Amortization and depletion.
Adjusted EBITDA excludes the following additional items from EBITDA:
- Share based compensation;
- Non-recurring impairments (reversals);
- Loss (gain) on Settlement of debt;
- Significant other non-routine finance items.
Adjusted EBITDA per share is calculated by dividing Adjusted EBITDA by the basic weighted average number of shares outstanding for the period.
Management believes EBITDA is a valuable indicator of the Company's ability to generate liquidity by producing operating cash flow to fund workingcapital needs, service debt obligations, and fund capital expenditures. Management uses EBITDA for this purpose. EBITDA is also frequently used by investors and analysts for valuation purposes whereby EBITDA is multiplied by a factor or "EBITDA multiple" based on an observed or inferred relationshipbetween EBITDA and market values to determine the approximate total enterprise value of a Company.
EBITDA is intended to provide additional information to investors and analysts. It does not have any standardized definition under IFRS and should not be considered in isolation or as a substitute for measures of operating performance prepared in accordance with IFRS. EBITDA excludes the impact of cash costs of financing activities and taxes, and the effects of changes in operating working capital balances, and therefore is not necessarily indicative of operating profit or cash flow from operations as determined by IFRS. Other companies may calculate EBITDA and Adjusted EBITDA differently.
Three months ended | |||||
December 31 2023 | September 30 2023 | June 30 2023 | March 31 2023 | December 31 2022 | |
$ | $ | $ | $ | $ | |
Net loss per financial statements | (3,745) | (4,616) | (5,371) | (1,264) | (3,805) |
Depreciation and depletion – cost of sales | 887 | 1,038 | 1,232 | 871 | 1,483 |
Depreciation and depletion – general and administration | 123 | 119 | 106 | 103 | 49 |
Interest and finance costs (income), net | 661 | 871 | 793 | 1,766 | 1,070 |
EBITDA | (2,074) | (2,588) | (3,240) | 1,476 | (1,203) |
Share based compensation | 259 | 344 | 496 | 485 | 24 |
Gain on settlement of debt | (823) | - | - | - | - |
Adjusted EBITDA | (2,638) | (2,244) | (2,744) | 1,961 | (1,179) |
Year ended | |||||
December 31 | December 31 | December 31 | |||
2023 | 2022 | 2021 | |||
$ | $ | $ | |||
Net (loss) income per financial statements | (14,996) | (11,607) | 36,265 | ||
Depreciation and depletion – cost of sales | 4,028 | 2,451 | 538 | ||
Depreciation and depletion – general and administration | 451 | 139 | 123 | ||
Interest and finance costs (income), net | 4,091 | 4,240 | 6,222 | ||
EBITDA | (6,426) | (4,777) | 43,148 | ||
Share based compensation | 1,584 | 230 | 2,018 | ||
Reversal of impairment of assets | - | - | (16,340) | ||
Gain on settlement of debt | (823) | ||||
Adjusted EBITDA | (5,665) | (4,547) | 28,826 |
Realized Price per Ounce and Realized Price per Tonne
Realized price per ounce or per tonne are based on provisional prices received from the sales of gold, silver, zinc, copper and lead before price adjustments and treatment and refining charges.
Cash Cost per Au/Eq Ounce, All-In Sustaining Cost per Au/Eq Ounce and Production Cost per Tonne
Cash costs per silver equivalent oz and production costs per tonne are measures developed by precious metals companies in an effort to provide acomparable standard; however, there can be no assurance that the Company's reporting of these non-IFRS measures and ratios are similar to those reported by other mining companies. Cash costs per silver equivalent ounce and total production cost per tonne are non-IFRS performance measures used by the Company to manage and evaluate operating performance at its operating mining unit, in conjunction with the related IFRS amounts. They are widely reported in the silver mining industry as a benchmark for performance, but do not have a standardized meaning and are disclosed in addition to IFRSmeasures. Production costs include mining, milling, and direct overhead at the operation sites. Cash costs include all direct costs plus royalties and special mining duty. Total production costs include all cash costs plus amortization and depletion, changes in amortization and depletion in finished goods inventory and site share-based compensation. Cash costs per silver equivalent ounce is calculated by dividing cash costs and total production costs by thepayable silver ounces produced. Production costs per tonne are calculated by dividing production costs by the number of processed tonnes. The following tables provide a detailed reconciliation of these measures to the Company's direct production costs, as reported in its consolidated financial statements.
All-in Sustaining Costs ("AISC") is a non-IFRS performance measure and was calculated based on guidance provided by the World Gold Council ("WGC"). WGC is not a regulatory industry organization and does not have the authority to develop accounting standards for disclosure requirements. Other mining companies may calculate AISC differently as a result of differences in underlying accounting principles and policies applied, as well as differences in definitions of sustaining capital expenditures. AISC is a more comprehensive measure than cash cost per ounce and is useful for investors and management to assess the Company's operating performance by providing greater visibility, comparability and representation of the total costs associatedwith producing silver from its current operations, in conjunction with related IFRS amounts. AISC helps investors to assess costs against peers in the industryand help management assess the performance of its mine.
AISC includes total production costs (IFRS measure) incurred at the Company's mining operation, which forms the basis of the Company's total cash costs. Additionally, the Company includes sustaining capital expenditures, corporate general and administrative expense, operating lease payments and reclamation cost accretion. The Company believes this measure represents the total sustainable costs of producing silver and gold concentrate from current operations and provides additional information of the Company's operational performance and ability to generate cash flows. As the measure seeks to reflect the full cost of silver and gold concentrate production from current operations, new projects capital at current operation is not included. Certainother cash expenditures, including share-based payments, tax payments, dividends and financing costs are also not included.
The following tables provide detailed reconciliations of these measures to cost of sales, as reported in notes to our consolidated financial statements:
Consolidated three months ended | Consolidated year ended | ||||||
December 31 | September 30 | June 30 | March 31 | December 31 | December 31 | ||
$ | $ | $ | $ | $ | $ | ||
Cost of sales | 16,803 | 15,851 | 16,793 | 17,358 | 66,806 | 56,201 | |
Inventory changes | (1,064) | 1,039 | (809) | (759) | (1,592) | (1,022) | |
Royalties | (963) | (631) | (424) | (528) | (2,546) | (1,987) | |
Depreciation | (887) | (1,038) | (1,232) | (871) | (4,028) | (2,451) | |
Production cost(4) | 13,889 | 15,221 | 14,328 | 15,200 | 58,640 | 50,741 | |
Add: | |||||||
Treatment and selling costs | 6,112 | 7,500 | 9,706 | 9,667 | 32,985 | 30,083 | |
Total cash cost(2) | 20,001 | 22,721 | 24,034 | 24,867 | 91,625 | 80,824 | |
General and administrative-corporate | 2,400 | 2,020 | 2,411 | 1,739 | 8,570 | 6,160 | |
Lease payments | 500 | 531 | 263 | 260 | 1,477 | 2,161 | |
Sustaining capital expenditures | 206 | 456 | 1,031 | 2,301 | 3,994 | 6,947 | |
Total All-in sustaining cost(3) | 23,107 | 25,728 | 27,739 | 29,167 | 105,666 | 96,092 | |
Tonnes milled | D | 130,211 | 147,732 | 185,953 | 201,237 | 665,133 | 787,344 |
Gold equivalent ounces produced(1) | E | 11,808 | 12,813 | 14,703 | 16,395 | 55,719 | 57,377 |
USD$(5) | |||||||
Production cost (4) | A | 10,200 | 11,349 | 10,666 | 11,243 | 43,456 | 38,972 |
Total cash cost(2) | B | 14,689 | 16,941 | 17,892 | 18,393 | 67,901 | 62,077 |
Total All-in sustaining cost(3) | C | 16,970 | 19,183 | 20,650 | 21,573 | 78,306 | 73,803 |
Production cost per tonne(4) | A/ | 78 | 77 | 57 | 56 | 65 | 50 |
Cash cost per AuEq ounce | B/ | 1,244 | 1,322 | 1,217 | 1,122 | 1,219 | 1,082 |
All-in sustaining cost per | C/ | 1,437 | 1,497 | 1,404 | 1,316 | 1,405 | 1,286 |
Mining cost per tonne | 27 | 27 | 21 | 21 | 23 | 18 | |
Milling cost per tonne | 37 | 34 | 27 | 26 | 30 | 22 | |
Indirect cost per tonne | 14 | 16 | 9 | 9 | 12 | 10 | |
Production cost per tonne(4) | 78 | 77 | 57 | 56 | 65 | 50 | |
Mining | 3,478 | 4,042 | 3,864 | 4,286 | 15,668 | 13,694 | |
Milling | 4,846 | 4,986 | 4,955 | 5,098 | 19,885 | 17,451 | |
Indirect | 1,876 | 2,321 | 1,847 | 1,860 | 7,904 | 7,826 | |
Production cost | 10,200 | 11,349 | 10,666 | 11,243 | 43,456 | 38,972 |
1. | Gold equivalents are calculated using an 85.07:1 (Ag/Au), 0.0006:1 (Au/Zn), 0.002:1 (Au/Cu) and 0.0005:1 (Au/Pb) ratio for Q4, 2023; 84.37:1 (Ag/Au), 0.0007:1 (Au/Zn), 0.002:1 (Au/Cu) and0.0005:1 (Au/Pb) ratio for Q4 2022; 83.02:1 (Ag/Au), 0.0006:1 (Au/Zn), 0.002:1 (Au/Cu) and 0.0005:1 (Au/Pb) ratio for Annual 2023: and 83.49:1 (Ag/Au), 0.0008:1 (Au/Zn), 0.002:1 (Au/Cu) and 0.0005:1 (Au/Pb) ratio for Annual 2022. |
2. | Cash cost per silver equivalent ounce include mining, processing, and direct overhead. |
3. | AlSC per oz include mining, processing, direct overhead, corporate general and administration expenses, on-site exploration, reclamation and sustaining capital. |
4. | Production costs include mining, milling, and direct overhead at the operation sites. |
5. | 1.3579 and 1.3020 average FX rate for Q4 and YTD 2024, respectively, used to translate CAD$ to USD$ |
View original content to download multimedia:https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/luca-reports-strong-q4-2023-and-annual-financial-results-302131213.html
SOURCE Luca Mining Corp.
FAQ
What were Luca Mining Corp.'s total production results for Q4 2023?
Which mines contributed significantly to Luca Mining Corp.'s production in Q4 2023?
What were the Cash Cost and All In Sustaining Cost for Luca Mining Corp. in Q4 2023?