TriMetals Mining Inc. (TSX: TMI, OTCQX:
TMIAF), (the “Company”), reports the release of its
condensed interim consolidated financial statements for the three
and six months ended June 30, 2018 and the related management’s
discussion and analysis of financial position and results of
operations (“MD&A”). In this press release, all amounts are
expressed in U.S. dollars, unless otherwise indicated.
As at June 30, 2018, the Company had cash of
$0.32 million. During the six months ended June 30, 2018, the
Company reported net earnings of $2.32 million ($0.01 per share)
compared with net earnings of $0.40 million ($0.00 per share) for
the six months ended June 30, 2017. During the three months
ended June 30, 2018, the Company reported net earnings of $1.30
million ($0.01 per share) compared with net loss of $1.51 million
($0.01 per share) for the three months ended June 30, 2017.
During the six months ended June 30, 2018, the
TSX closing price of the Class B shares (a liability in the
financial statements) decreased by Cdn. $0.025 (2017 – decreased by
Cdn. $0.025) per Class B share, combined with a favourable movement
in the USD:CAD exchange rate for the same period ended June 30,
2018, resulted in a non-cash gain of $3.17 million (2017 –$1.52
million), which was the primary factor impacting net earnings.
The Company continued to reduce its level of
operations from previous years and manage its costs structure which
resulted in general and administrative expenses, excluding non-cash
share-based payments, marginally decreasing from $0.77 million to
$0.72 million during the six months ended June 30, 2018.
Exploration spending during the six months ended
June 30, 2108 decreased to $0.87 million from $1.26 million
incurred in the first six months in 2017. The 2018 costs included
$0.61 million incurred at Gold Springs and $0.26 million incurred
at the Escalones property in Chile.
The Company continues to seek a partner to help
advance Escalones towards development.
Subsequent to June 30, 2018 the Company gave
notice to the convertible note holders, with a balance of $1.73
million, exercising the right to extend the maturity date from Jul
23, 2018 to July 23, 2020
Arbitration against the Government of
BoliviaOn July 12, 2018, the Arbitral Tribunal informed
the Parties that it had completed the award, that it had been
transmitted to the Permanent Court of Arbitration (“PCA”), that the
award was being translated and that it expected to issue the award
by no later than August 2018.
On August 2, 2018, one of the arbitrators
advised that he had seriously fallen ill and was unable to continue
with the arbitration. On August 7, 2018, TMI’s wholly owned
subsidiary South American Silver Limited (SASL) wrote to the PCA
and to the Arbitral Tribunal seeking confirmation that this illness
would not affect the expected timing for the issuance of the
award. On August 12, 2018, Bolivia wrote to the PCA
requesting that a replacement arbitrator to be appointed and that
the reconstituted Tribunal consider the possible repetition of the
hearing and subsequent stages of the arbitration. In
response, on August 14, 2018, SASL wrote to the PCA and to the
Arbitral Tribunal objecting to Bolivia’s requests and noting that,
if necessary, Articles 14(2) and 34(4) of the 2010 UNCITRAL Rules
expressly permit the two other arbitrators to sign and issue the
award.
The President of the Tribunal responded to both
Bolivia and SASL on August 14 requesting that the Parties refrain
from presenting further submissions on this matter without prior
instructions from the Tribunal and indicating that the Arbitral
Tribunal will revert to the Parties shortly.
TMI will provide additional information as it
becomes available.
OutlookThe priorities of the
Company for 2018 continue to be:
- Focus the Company’s efforts toward the historic Gold Springs
project in southern Utah and Nevada, and advance the
exploration and geologic understanding of the project to expand the
gold resource and mitigate technical risk;
- Seek an appropriate strategic partner with specific skills and
experience in South America and in copper exploration to increase
resources and move forward toward development of the Escalones
copper‑gold porphyry-skarn project in Chile;
- Participate with the Company’s legal team to pursue and
finalize the international arbitration against Bolivia and recover
full compensation based on the fair market value for the Malku
Khota project; and
- Actively manage the business of the Company to preserve cash,
efficiently and effectively invest in meaningful activities, and
pursue accretive and strategic capital raising opportunities.
Change in Chief Financial Officer and
Corporate SecretaryThe Company is pleased to announce the
appointment of Mr. Killian Ruby as Chief Financial Officer and
Corporate Secretary of the Company, effective August 15, 2018. Mr.
Ruby is the President & CEO at Malaspina Consultants Inc. in
Vancouver and focuses on clients in the resource and junior public
sector. Mr. Ruby advises clients on matters related to financial
management and public company reporting and is particularly adept
at handling complex issues and multiple stakeholders with a
collaborative, team-based approach.
Prior to joining Malaspina, Mr. Ruby was an
Assurance Partner at Wolrige Mahon LLP working predominantly with
resource and other junior public companies, and formerly was a
Senior Manager with KPMG LLP working on a range of public companies
and reporting issuers. He holds a BSc. (Accounting) from University
College Cork, Ireland, a Post-Graduate Diploma in Corporate
Treasury from Dublin City University, Ireland, and received his
Chartered Accountant designations from Canada and Ireland in 2010
and 2002, respectively. Mr. Ruby’s appointment comes with the
resignation of Ms. Rebecca Moriarty.
About TriMetals Mining
Inc.TriMetals Mining Inc. is a growth focused mineral
exploration company creating value through the exploration and
development of the near-surface, oxide, heap-leachable Gold Springs
gold project in mining friendly Utah and Nevada USA, and the
Escalones copper-gold skarn/porphyry deposit in Chile. The
Company combines a track record of discovery and advancement of
large projects, mining and exploration supportive jurisdictions,
low political risk areas, key operational and process expertise,
and a focus on community relations and sustainable development.
Management has extensive experience in the global exploration and
mining industry.
The Company’s common shares and Class B shares
are listed on the Toronto Stock Exchange under the symbols “TMI”
and “TMI.B” and the common shares and Class B(1) shares also trade
on the OTCQX market under the symbol “TMIAF” and “TMIBF”.
Additional information related to TriMetals Mining Inc. is
available at www.TriMetalsmining.com and on SEDAR at
www.sedar.com.
Forward-looking
StatementsForward-looking statements look into the future
and provide an opinion as to the effect of certain events and
trends on the business. Forward-looking statements may include
words such as “expect”, “plan”, “seek”, “continue”, “typical”,
“will”, “intention”, “creating”, “and similar expressions. These
forward- looking statements are based on current expectations and
entail various risks and uncertainties. Actual results may
materially differ from expectations, if known and unknown risks or
uncertainties affect our business, or if our estimates or
assumptions prove inaccurate. Factors that could cause results or
events to differ materially from current expectations expressed or
implied by the forward-looking statements, include, but are not
limited to, risks of the mineral exploration industry which may
affect the advancement of the Gold Springs project, including
possible variations in mineral resources or grade, recovery rates,
metal prices, availability of sufficient financing to fund further
required work in a timely manner and on acceptable terms,
availability of equipment and qualified personnel, failure of
equipment or processes to operate as anticipated, changes in
project parameters as plans continue to be refined; and other risks
more fully described in the Company's Annual Information Form filed
and publicly available on SEDAR at www.sedar.com. The assumptions
made in developing the forward-looking statements include: the
accuracy of current resource estimates and the interpretation of
drill, metallurgical testing and other exploration results; the
continuing support for mining by local governments in Nevada, Utah
and Chile, the availability of equipment and qualified personnel to
advance the Gold Springs project; and the execution of the
Company's existing plans and further exploration and development
programs for the Gold Springs Project, which may change due to
changes in the views of the Company or if new information arises
which makes it prudent to change such plans or programs.
Readers are cautioned not to place undue
reliance on the forward-looking statements contained in this news
release. Except as required by law, the Company assumes no
obligation to update or revise any forward-looking statement,
whether as a result of new information, future events or any other
reason.
(1) the Class B shares have no interest in the
properties or assets of the Company. The Class B shares are only
entitled collectively to 85% of the net cash, if any, (after
deducting all costs, taxes and expenses and the third-party
funder's portion thereof) received by TMI from award or settlement
in relation to the Company’s subsidiary South American Silver
Limited’s arbitration proceeding against Bolivia for the
expropriation of the Malku Khota project in 2012.
TriMetals Mining Inc. Contact:
Eric Edwards
President & CEO
eedwards@trimetalsmining.com