RENO,
Nev., Nov. 1, 2023 /CNW/ - i-80 GOLD
CORP. (TSX: IAU) (NYSE: IAUX) ("i-80", or the
"Company") reports its operating and financial results for
the three and nine months ended September
30, 2023. i-80's Consolidated Interim Financial Statements
("financial statements"), as well as i-80's Management's Discussion
and Analysis of Operations and Financial Condition ("MD&A") for
the three and nine months ended September
30, 2023, are available on the Company's website at
www.i80gold.com, on SEDAR at www.sedarplus.ca, and on EDGAR at
www.sec.gov.
Unless otherwise stated, all amounts referred to herein are in
U.S. dollars.
Highlights
Third Quarter
- Gold sales of 4,585 ounces at a realized gold price of
$1,8951.
- 16,059 tons of oxidized mineralized material sold for proceeds
of $4.5 million.
- Commenced shipping of refractory stockpiles to a third party
for processing.
- September 30 cash balance of
$38 million and $44 million in restricted cash.
- Continued expansion of gold and polymetallic mineralization at
Ruby Hill.
- Continued underground core drilling delineation of the CSD Gap
and Helen zones at McCoy-Cove (16,789 feet).
- Continued drilling infill holes at South Pacific Zone at
Granite Creek (16,144 feet).
- Completed the initial underground exploration drift at
McCoy-Cove.
- Completed 3,329 feet of horizontal advance at Granite
Creek.
- Completed an equity private placement for gross proceeds of
$27.7 million.
- Completed additional financing by extending the Gold Prepay
agreement with Orion for gross proceeds of $20 million.
Year to Date
- Gold sales of 11,262 ounces at a realized gold price of
$1,9241.
- Completed 2,644 feet of exploration ramp development at
McCoy-Cove.
- Completed 5,481 feet of horizontal development at Granite
Creek.
- 39,732 wet tons of mineralized
material hauled from Granite Creek to third parties for processing
under ore processing and toll milling agreements.
- A total of 162,033 feet (core and RC) drilled by the end of the
third quarter with multiple positive results to expand
mineralization further at Ruby Hill, Granite Creek, McCoy-Cove and
the FAD project.
"In the third quarter the Company continued to see impressive
drill results from Ruby Hill and McCoy-Cove. In addition, the
Company saw an increase in revenue gold ounces sold and tons of
mineralized material sold under the Ore Purchase and Sale
Agreement. This increase coupled with the completion of the Amended
and Restated Gold Prepay Agreement positions the Company to
continue to execute on it's plans", stated Ryan Snow, Chief Financial Officer of i-80. "We
continue to advance exploration and definition drilling at Granite
Creek, McCoy-Cove and Ruby Hill and permitting activities at our
projects allowing the Company to advance our projects towards the
ultimate goal of building a mid-tier Nevada focused producer."
|
Three months
ended
September 30,
|
Nine months
ended
September 30,
|
(in thousands of
U.S. dollars, unless otherwise noted)
|
2023
|
2022
|
2023
|
2022
|
|
|
|
|
|
Revenue
|
13,215
|
16,065
|
29,073
|
25,311
|
Cost of
sales(1)
|
(12,244)
|
(9,834)
|
(30,975)
|
(15,331)
|
Depletion, depreciation
and amortization(1)
|
(1,444)
|
(2,126)
|
(5,589)
|
(2,949)
|
Mine operating
income (loss)
|
(473)
|
4,105
|
(7,491)
|
7,031
|
|
|
|
|
|
Expenses
|
|
|
|
|
Exploration,
evaluation, and pre-development
|
10,014
|
10,798
|
30,088
|
32,184
|
General and
administrative
|
4,136
|
4,743
|
13,724
|
12,581
|
Property
maintenance
|
2,763
|
350
|
7,992
|
1,139
|
Share-based
payments
|
244
|
471
|
2,455
|
2,460
|
Operating
loss
|
(17,630)
|
(12,257)
|
(61,750)
|
(41,333)
|
(1) For the three
and nine months ended September 30, 2023, includes an inventory
impairment of nil and $8.5 million, respectively
|
Production and sales totaled 4,585 gold ounces for the quarter
and 11,262 gold ounces year to date (YTD) at a realized gold price
of $1,895 and $1,924 per ounce sold1, respectively.
Additionally, mineralized material sales totaled 16,059 tons for
the quarter and 22,710 tons YTD for proceeds of $4.5 million and $7.3
million, respectively.
Exploration, evaluation, and pre-development costs were
$10.0 million and $30.1 million for the three and nine months ended
September 30, 2023. This expenditure
mainly reflects the exploration and pre-development work at
McCoy-Cove and Ruby Hill.
Lone Tree
Lone Tree is expected to become
the hub of i-80's Nevada
operations and the central processing facility for gold
mineralization from the Granite Creek, McCoy-Cove and Ruby Hill
underground gold deposits. Importantly, Lone Tree is host to infrastructure that,
following successful refurbishment efforts, will position i-80 as
one of only three companies in the United
States capable of processing both oxide and refractory
mineralization.
The Company advanced the autoclave engineering study to a level
three estimate (FS level). Value engineering on all aspects of
projects will commence over the next three months.
Lone Tree produced and sold from
its residual leaching activities 1,775 ounces of gold during the
quarter and 5,138 ounces of gold YTD at a realized gold price of
$1,925 and $1,961 per ounce sold1,
respectively.
Granite Creek
Refractory material has been shipped to the Twin Creeks facility
for processing under the toll milling agreement that is in place
with Nevada Gold Mines LLC ("NGM"). The contractual initial tonnage
of refractory mineralized material has been delivered. Starting in
Q2 2023, the oxide mineralized material from Granite Creek has been
stockpiled and subsequently shipped to a third party as part of the
Ore Sale Agreement. During the quarter the Company sold 16,059 tons
of mineralized material under the Ore Sale Agreement for proceeds
of $4.5 million.
McCoy-Cove
The Cove deposit and the McCoy-Cove Property is expected to be
the core asset in the Company's "hub and spoke" business plan and
likely the highest-grade gold deposit in i-80's portfolio.
Expenditures continued during the quarter on the exploration
ramp and hydrology studies, and engineering of de-watering and
mining options. During the third quarter the remaining 143 feet of
the exploration decline was completed and is being used to drill in
the Helen and Gap zones.
Underground delineation drilling continued during Q3 with 16,789
feet of core drilled yielding extremely positive results including
from the most recent press release:
- iCHU23-10:
- 14.9 g/t Au over 32.7 m,
including 22.8 g/t Au over 14.8
m
- iCHU23-11 :
- 15.7 g/t Au over 22.5 m,
including 21.8 g/t Au over 11.5 m;
and
- 18.9 g/t Au over 29.3 m,
including 27.8 g/t Au over 14.9
m
- iCHU23-12A:
- 27.0 g/t Au & 9.2 g/t Ag over 8.0
m
- iCHU23-14:
- 13.3 g/t Au & 29.2 g/t Ag over 4.0
m
- 10.6 g/t Au & 5.2 g/t Ag over 38.8
m
- 12.8 g/t Au & 7.2 g/t Ag over 2.6
m
- 11.1 g/t Au & 3.4 g/t Ag over 20.6
m
- iCHU23-16:
- 6.9 g/t Au & 3.9 g/t Ag over 8.8
m
- 11.1 g/t Au & 3.4 g/t Ag over 3.3
m
- 12.5 g/t Au & 6.5 g/t Ag over 11.5
m
Ruby Hill
During the third quarter of 2023, drilling at Ruby Hill was
focused on advancing exploration and delineation of multiple CRD
mineralized discoveries. Definition and expansion drilling of
high-grade polymetallic mineralization along the Hilltop fault
structure remains a priority. 7,565 feet of core drilling and 780
feet of RC drilling was completed during the quarter. In addition
to drilling at Hilltop, multiple holes are being drilled for infill
of the Blackjack Zone. Drilling highlights for the quarter
include:
Tyche Discovery
- iRH23-18A: 45.4 g/t Au & 50.2 g/t Ag over 17.5 m including 95.9 g/t Au & 65.6 g/t Ag
over 7.6 m
East Hilltop Skarn
- 12.5 % Zn & 5.7 g/t Ag over 5.0
m (iRH23-16)
- 12.8 % Zn & 4.6 g/t Ag over 10.7
m (iRH23-16A)
- 11.6 % Zn & 5.8 g/t Ag over 6.1
m AND 14.7 % Zn & 3.7 g/t Ag over 4.6 m (iRH23-27)
- 20.8 % Zn & 15.0 g/t Ag over 11.6
m (iRH23-30)
Blackjack
- 10.7 % Zn & 37.0 g/t Ag over 47.9
m (iRH23-41 – skarn)
- 15.6 % Zn, 8.7 % Pb, 420.4 g/t Ag & 0.6 g/t Au over
40.4 m (iRH23-41 - CRD)
Gold Mineralized Zones
- 6.9 g/t Au over 50.7 m including
8.0 g/t Au over 24.9 m (iRH23-40) –
Ruby Deeps
- 9.1 g/t Au over 10.2 m (iRH23-41)
– Lower Jack
Residual leaching activities at Ruby Hill produced and sold
1,910 ounces of gold during the quarter and 4,781 ounces of gold
YTD at a realized gold price of $1,860 and $1,885
per ounce sold1, respectively.
The Company will hold a conference call and webcast on
November 2, 2023, commencing at
10:00 am ET to discuss its third
quarter results and answer questions from participants.
Conference Call
Participant Details
|
Webcast
URL:
|
https://app.webinar.net/lj3rwk6AaKq
https://app.webinar.net/lj3rwk6AaKq
|
Phone Number
Information:
|
North American
Toll-free:
1-888-664-6383
|
|
Local
Toronto:
1-416-764-8650
|
Qualified Persons
Tyler Hill, CPG-12146, Chief
Geologist, and Tim George, PE, Mining Operations Manager, at i-80
have reviewed this press release and are the Qualified Persons for
the information contained herein and are a "Qualified Person"
within the meaning of National Instrument 43-101.
About i-80 Gold Corp.
i-80 Gold Corp. is a Nevada-focused mining company with a goal of
achieving mid-tier gold producer status through the development of
multiple deposits within the Company's advanced-stage property
portfolio with processing at i-80's centralized milling facilities.
i-80 Gold's common shares are listed on the TSX and the NYSE
American under the trading symbol IAU:TSX and IAUX:NYSE. Further
information about i-80 Gold's portfolio of assets and long-term
growth strategy is available at www.i80gold.com or by email at
info@i80gold.com.
Forward-looking information
Certain statements in this release constitute "forward-looking
statements" or "forward-looking information" within the meaning of
applicable securities laws, including but not limited to, actual
production results and costs, results of operation outcomes and
timing of updated technical studies at the Company's mineral
projects, timing to advance mineral projects to production
and advance permitting and feasibility work on its mineral
projects and future production, development and exploration
results. Such statements and information involve known and unknown
risks, uncertainties and other factors that may cause the actual
results, performance or achievements of the company, its projects,
or industry results, to be materially different from any future
results, performance or achievements expressed or implied by such
forward-looking statements or information. Such statements can be
identified by the use of words such as "may", "would", "could",
"will", "intend", "expect", "believe", "plan", "anticipate",
"estimate", "scheduled", "forecast", "predict" and other similar
terminology, or state that certain actions, events or results
"may", "could", "would", "might" or "will" be taken, occur or be
achieved. These statements reflect the Company's current
expectations regarding future events, performance and results and
speak only as of the date of this release.
Forward-looking statements and information involve significant
risks and uncertainties, should not be read as guarantees of future
performance or results and will not necessarily be accurate
indicators of whether or not such results will be achieved. A
number of factors could cause actual results to differ materially
from the results discussed in the forward-looking statements or
information, including, but not limited to: material adverse
changes, unexpected changes in laws, rules or regulations, or their
enforcement by applicable authorities; the failure of parties to
contracts with the company to perform as agreed; social or labor
unrest; changes in commodity prices; and the failure of exploration
programs or studies to deliver anticipated results or results that
would justify and support continued exploration, studies,
development or operations. For a more detailed discussion of such
risks and other factors that could cause actual results to differ
materially from those expressed or implied by such forward-looking
statements, refer to i-80's filings with Canadian securities
regulators, including the most recent Annual Information Form,
available on SEDAR at www.sedar.com.
NON-IFRS FINANCIAL PERFORMANCE MEASURES
The Company has included certain terms or performance measures
commonly used in the mining industry that are not defined under
IFRS in this document. These include: adjusted net earnings and
average realized price per ounce. Non-IFRS financial performance
measures do not have any standardized meaning prescribed under
IFRS, and therefore, they may not be comparable to similar measures
employed by other companies. The data presented is intended to
provide additional information and should not be considered in
isolation or as a substitute for measures prepared in accordance
with IFRS and should be read in conjunction with the Company's
Financial Statements.
Definitions
Adjusted earnings / (loss) and adjusted earnings / (loss) per
share excludes from net earnings / (loss) significant
write-down adjustments and the gain / (loss) from financing
instruments.
Average realized gold price represents the sales price of
gold per ounce before deducting mining royalties, treatment and
refining charges and gains or losses derived from the offtake
agreement with Orion.
Average realized gold price per ounce of gold sold
Average realized gold price per ounce of gold sold is a non-IFRS
measure and does not constitute a measure recognized by IFRS and
does not have a standardized meaning defined by IFRS. It may not be
comparable to information in other gold producers' reports and
filings.
|
|
Three months
ended
September
30,
|
Nine months
ended
September
30,
|
(in thousands of
U.S. dollars, unless otherwise noted)(i)
|
2023
|
2022
|
2023
|
2022
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Nevada
production
|
|
|
|
|
|
Revenue per financial
statements (ii)
|
$
|
8,758
|
16,065
|
21,796
|
25,311
|
Silver revenue from
mining operations
|
$
|
(70)
|
(83)
|
(131)
|
(123)
|
Gold revenue from
mining operations
|
$
|
8,688
|
15,981
|
21,665
|
25,188
|
Ounces of gold
sold
|
ounce
|
4,585
|
9,332
|
11,262
|
14,328
|
Average realized
gold price
|
$/ounce
|
1,895
|
1,712
|
1,924
|
1,758
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Lone
Tree
|
|
|
|
|
|
Revenue per financial
statements
|
$
|
3,417
|
6,189
|
10,092
|
9,647
|
Silver revenue from
mining operations
|
$
|
—
|
(10)
|
(19)
|
(27)
|
Gold revenue from
mining operations
|
$
|
3,417
|
6,179
|
10,073
|
9,620
|
Ounces of gold
sold
|
ounce
|
1,775
|
3,513
|
5,138
|
5,298
|
Average realized
gold price
|
$/ounce
|
1,925
|
1,759
|
1,961
|
1,816
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Ruby
Hill
|
|
|
|
|
|
Revenue per financial
statements
|
$
|
3,623
|
9,876
|
9,125
|
15,664
|
Silver revenue from
mining operations
|
$
|
(70)
|
(74)
|
(112)
|
(96)
|
Gold revenue from
mining operations
|
$
|
3,553
|
9,802
|
9,013
|
15,568
|
Ounces of gold
sold
|
ounce
|
1,910
|
5,819
|
4,781
|
9,030
|
Average realized
gold price
|
$/ounce
|
1,860
|
1,685
|
1,885
|
1,724
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Granite
Creek
|
|
|
|
|
|
Revenue per financial
statements
|
$
|
1,718
|
—
|
2,579
|
—
|
Silver revenue from
mining operations
|
$
|
—
|
—
|
—
|
—
|
Gold revenue from
mining operations
|
$
|
1,718
|
—
|
2,579
|
—
|
Ounces of gold
sold
|
ounce
|
900
|
—
|
1,344
|
—
|
Average realized
gold price
|
$/ounce
|
1,910
|
—
|
1,919
|
—
|
(i) May not add due to
rounding.
|
(ii) Does not include
revenue from mineralized material sales.
|
Adjusted Earnings / (Loss)
Adjusted earnings / (loss) and adjusted earnings / (loss) per
share are non-IFRS measures that the Company considers to better
reflect normalized earnings because it eliminates non-recurring
items. Certain items that become applicable in a period may be
adjusted for, with the Company retroactively presenting comparable
periods with an adjustment for such items and conversely, items no
longer applicable may be removed from the calculation. Neither
adjusted earnings / (loss) nor adjusted earnings / (loss) per share
have any standardized meaning prescribed by IFRS and are therefore
unlikely to be comparable to similar measures presented by other
companies.
The following table shows a reconciliation of adjusted earnings
/ (loss) for the three and nine months ended September 30, 2023 and 2022, to the net earnings
/ (loss) for each period.
|
Three months
ended
September 30,
|
Nine months
ended
September 30,
|
(in thousands of
U.S. dollars, unless otherwise noted)(i)
|
2023
|
2022
|
2023
|
2022
|
|
|
|
|
|
Net income / (loss)
for the period
|
$
(4,199)
|
$
(11,272)
|
$
(33,278)
|
$
(15,260)
|
Adjust
for:
|
|
|
|
|
Gain on
warrants
|
7,357
|
849
|
17,532
|
9,749
|
Gain / (loss) on
convertible loans
|
13,574
|
(1,112)
|
24,037
|
9,101
|
Gain on convertible
debenture
|
—
|
—
|
900
|
—
|
Loss on deferred
consideration
|
(357)
|
(806)
|
(1,135)
|
(2,442)
|
Gain / (loss) on fair
value measurement of gold prepay
|
2,190
|
3,036
|
(63)
|
7,121
|
Gain on fair value
measurement of silver purchase
|
822
|
2,297
|
1,274
|
11,422
|
Loss on Gold Prepay
Agreement modification
|
(1,831)
|
—
|
(1,831)
|
—
|
Inventory net
realizable value adjustment
|
—
|
—
|
(8,531)
|
—
|
Total
adjustments
|
$
21,755
|
$
4,264
|
$
32,183
|
$
34,951
|
Adjusted loss for
the period
|
$
(25,954)
|
$
(15,536)
|
$
(65,461)
|
$
(50,211)
|
Weighted average
shares for the period
|
287,128,970
|
240,368,617
|
266,207,340
|
239,992,077
|
Adjusted loss per
share for the period
|
$
(0.09)
|
$
(0.06)
|
$
(0.25)
|
$
(0.21)
|
(i) May not add due to
rounding.
|
1 Specified
financial measure which is not a standardized measure under IFRS
and may not be comparable to similar specified financial measures
used by other entities. Please see "Non-IFRS Financial Performance
Measures" for the composition of such specified financial
measure, an explanation of how such specified financial measure
provides useful information to a reader and the purposes for which
management of i-80 uses the specified financial measure, and where
required, a reconciliation of the specified financial measure to
the most directly comparable IFRS measure.
|
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SOURCE i-80 Gold Corp