(All dollar amounts are in Canadian dollars
unless otherwise indicated)
TSXV: MTA
OTCQB: MTAFF
VANCOUVER, Oct. 24, 2019 /CNW/ - Metalla Royalty
& Streaming Ltd. ("Metalla" or the
"Company") (TSXV: MTA) (OTCQB: MTAFF) announces its
operating and financial results for the first quarter ended
August 31, 2019. For complete details
of the consolidated financial statements and accompanying
management's discussion and analysis for the quarter ended
August 31, 2019, please see the
Company's filings on SEDAR (www.sedar.com) or on EDGAR
(www.sec.gov). Shareholders are encouraged to visit the Company's
website at http://www.metallaroyalty.com/.
"In fiscal Q1, we added a key royalty on Fifteen Mile Stream
("FMS") that expands our coverage over the entire project with
additional ground along strike to the southwest of the resource
base," commented Brett Heath,
President and Chief Executive Officer of Metalla. "Additionally, we
already see very positive drill results with the discovery at
Seloam Brook, which is on the newly acquired royalty claims.
Further, confirmatory drill results at the 149 zone and between
Hudson and Egerton continues to
show the potential of significant resource growth at FMS over the
next year."
"Production at Endeavor was in line with the revised schedule
from CBH Resources for the quarter, but concentrate shipments were
pushed into Q2 due to a planned bulk shipment in October which
resulted in Q1 revenue from the mine to be realized in Q2.
Exploration success at Agnico Eagle's Santa Gertrudis and El
Realito deposits continue to expand the resource base with further
drilling and expected updated resource estimate in February 2020."
FINANCIAL HIGHLIGHTS
During the three months ended August 31,
2019, the Company:
- consolidated its ownership on St. Barbara Ltd.'s ("St.
Barbara") FMS deposit through the acquisition of a 3.0% net
smelter royalty on the Plenty deposit and Seloam Brook prospect for
$2,000,000, of which $500,000 was paid upfront;
- drew down the initial advance of $7,000,000 on its convertible loan facility with
Beedie Capital ("Beedie");
- repaid loans payable with an aggregate principal balance of
US$2,000,000;
- had 116,359 (May 31, 2019 -
59,515) attributable silver oz. remaining at end of Q1-2020, an
increase of 56,844 oz. over the quarter (due to a planned bulk
shipment of concentrate scheduled for October 2019 from the Endeavor mine, which
resulted in no shipments during Q1-2020);
- shipped an estimated 5,366 tonnes of concentrate at 621 g/t of
silver (approximately 107,221 attributable silver oz.) from the
Endeavor mine subsequently;
- revenue at Endeavor for Q1 will be recognized in Q2 due to a
planned bulk shipment of concentrate (see above) which resulted in
recognized revenue from stream interest in Q1 of $160,298 (2018 - $3,900,301), loss from operations of $1,199,419 (2018 - income of $1,121,445), net loss of $1,215,163 (2018 - $312,031), and adjusted EBITDA of negative
$590,666 (2018 - positive
$1,731,581) (see non-IFRS Financial
Measures); and
- recorded cash flow from operating activities, before net change
in non-cash working capital items, of $113,079 (2018 - $1,322,771), offset by $542,698 spent on acquisitions of net smelter
royalty interests, resulting in positive working capital of
$7,082,614 (May 31, 2019 - $862,799).
UPDATES ON ROYALTIES AND STREAMS
Fifteen Mile Stream 1.0% and
3.0% NSRs
St. Barbara disclosed by news release on October 21, 2019 that it continued drilling at
FMS, which was focused on expanding the resource base to the east
and west. Mineralization was extended west of the resource base
within the Seloam Brook prospect. Significant intercepts from five
holes included 6 m at 2.22 g/t gold
and 4m at 9.73 g/t gold, assays are
pending for the remaining eight holes.
Drilling at the 149 deposit to the east of the resource base is
ongoing, with a plan of twelve diamond drill holes focused on
resource expansion. To date, assays are pending for drill holes on
the 149 deposit, but core logging has visually indicated that the
target zones have been intercepted. At the main resource base,
eight exploration holes focused on the resource expansion between
the planned Hudson and Egerton-Maclean open pits. Assays are
pending however; initial visual inspection and core logging
supports the potential extension of gold mineralization
approximately 100m northwest of the
Egerton-Maclean pit and 200m east of
the Hudson pit.
For more information please see St Barbara Limited press release
dated October 21, 2019 and Q1
Report.
El Realito 2.0% NSR
On October 23, 2019, Agnico Eagle
Mines Limited ("Agnico Eagle") reported by news release they
continued to have exploration success at El Realito which is part
of operating La India mine. Drilling within the main corridor
confirmed that the mineralized structures are steeply dipping to
the northwest, suggesting the possibility of a lower strip ratio
with increased resources within the current pit design. Drilling
within the main corridor indicated the possibility of increasing
mineral reserves below the current pit plan with intercepts of 1.3
g/t gold and 4 g/t silver over 17.7 m
and 3.1 g/t gold and 20 g/t silver over 9.2
m.
To the southeast at the El Realito east corridor, the structural
continuity of the mineralization has been extended with significant
intercepts of 2.1 g/t gold and 17 g/t silver over 22.7 m and 2.8 g/t gold and 16 g/t silver over
8 m.
Agnico Eagle is currently undergoing an exploration program to
further test the extension of the mineralized system in order to
expand the mineral resources, which they expect will increase in
the annual updated resource estimate scheduled for February 2020. Located 1.5km east of the
operating North and La India zones, El Realito continues to have
the potential to extend the current mine life at La India.
For more information please see Agnico Eagle press release date
October 23, 2019.
Santa Gertrudis 2.0% NSR
On October 23, 2019, Agnico Eagle
reported by news release continued exploration success at its Santa
Gertrudis project, particularly at Amelia where over 15,000m have been drilled at the end of the third
quarter. Drilling at the Amelia discovery continued to extend the
deposit to the east. Significant intercepts to the north of Amelia
include 3.9 g/t gold over 3.5 m and
5.9 g/t gold over 8.5 m, 70 metres to
the northeast. The deepest hole to date at Santa Gertrudis,
intercepted 2.1g/t gold over 4 m at
439 m depth and 150 m to the northeast a hole intersected 6.4 g/t
gold over 7 m. In the eastern
extension of the Amelia deposit, drilling continued to expand the
resource envelope with intercepts such as 9.6 g/t gold over
6 m, 5.8 g/t gold over 3.8 m and 2.6 g/t gold over 8 m.
Further south of the Trinidad
zone, the Toro zone was extended to the northwest with holes
intersecting 2.1 g/t gold over 6.5 m
and 1.1 g/t gold over 9 m. Agnico
Eagle disclosed by news release that it believes that Santa
Gertrudis has the potential to eventually be a similar size
operation to La India.
For more information please see Agnico Eagle press release date
October 23, 2019.
Endeavor 100% Silver Stream
Production at Endeavor for the quarter of 56,844 oz Ag was in
line with the revised schedule from CBH Resources ("CBH"),
but concentrate shipments were pushed into Q2 due to a planned bulk
shipment in October of an estimated 107,221 oz Ag which resulted in
Q1 revenue from the mine to be realized in Q2. CBH announced on
July 17, 2019 that it will scale back
production from 25,000 to 17,000 tonnes per month and staff for the
remainder of calendar year 2019 while focusing on infill drilling
of the new Deep Zinc Lode Resource to better appraise its future
viability. A production decision on the Deep Zinc Lode is expected
by the end of calendar year 2019 with the potential to add 3 to 5
years of production. Metalla will continue to monitor production at
the Endeavor mine.
Metalla has the right to buy 100% of the silver production up to
20.0 million ounces (7.2 million ounces have been delivered to
date) from the Endeavor Mine for an operating cost contribution of
US$1.00 per ounce of payable silver,
indexed annually for inflation, and a further increment of 50% of
the amount by which silver price exceeds US$7.00 per ounce.
Joaquin 2% and COSE 1.5% NSRs
Pan American Silver Corp. has disclosed they will report its
third quarter results on November 6,
2019. Metalla expects a production update on both of its
COSE and Joaquin royalties at that time.
QUALIFIED PERSON
The technical information contained in this news release has
been reviewed and approved by Charles
Beaudry, geologist M.Sc., member of the Association of
Professional Geoscientists of Ontario and the Ordre des Géologues du Québec
and a consultant to Metalla. Mr. Beaudry is a Qualified Person
as defined in "National Instrument 43-101 Standards of
disclosure for mineral projects".
ABOUT METALLA
Metalla is a precious metals royalty and streaming company.
Metalla provides shareholders with leveraged precious metal
exposure through a diversified and growing portfolio of royalties
and streams. Our strong foundation of current and future
cash-generating asset base, combined with an experienced team gives
Metalla a path to become one of the leading gold and silver
companies for the next commodities cycle.
For further information, please visit our website at
www.metallaroyalty.com.
Neither the TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Services
Provider (as that term is defined in the policies of the TSXV)
accept responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this
release.
Non-IFRS Financial Measures
Certain marked information are alternative performance
measures and readers should refer to non-international financial
reporting standards ("IFRS") financial measures in the Company's
Management's Discussion and Analysis for the three months ended
August 31, 2019 as filed on SEDAR and
on EDGAR and as available on the Company's website for further
details. Metalla has included certain performance measures in this
press release that do not have any standardized meaning prescribed
by IFRS including average cash cost per ounce of attributable
silver, average realized price per ounce of attributable silver,
and cash margin. Average cost per ounce of attributable silver is
calculated by dividing the cash cost of sales, plus applicable
selling charges, by the attributable ounces sold. In the precious
metals mining industry, this is a common performance measure but
does not have any standardized meaning. The Company believes that,
in addition to conventional measures prepared in accordance with
IFRS, certain investors use this information to evaluate the
Company's performance and ability to generate cash flow. Cash
margin is calculated by subtracting the average cash cost per ounce
of attributable silver from the average realized price per ounce of
attributable silver. The Company presents cash margin as it
believes that certain investors use this information to evaluate
the Company's performance in comparison to other companies in the
precious metals mining industry who present results on a similar
basis. The presentation of these non-IFRS measures is intended to
provide additional information and should not be considered in
isolation or as a substitute for measures of performance prepared
in accordance with IFRS. Other companies may calculate these
non-IFRS measures differently.
Technical and Third Party Information
Metalla has limited, if any, access to the properties on
which Metalla holds a royalty, stream or other interest. Metalla is
dependent on, (i) the operators of the mines or properties and
their qualified persons to provide technical or other information
to Metalla, or (ii) on publicly available information to prepare
disclosure pertaining to properties and operations on the mines or
properties on which Metalla holds a royalty, stream or other
interest, and generally has limited or no ability to independently
verify such information. Although Metalla does not have any
knowledge that such information may not be accurate, there can be
no assurance that such third-party information is complete or
accurate. Some information publicly reported by operators may
relate to a larger property than the area covered by Metalla's
royalty, stream or other interest. Metalla's royalty, stream or
other interests often cover less than 100% and sometimes only a
portion of the publicly reported mineral reserves, resources and
production of a property.
The disclosure was prepared in accordance with Canadian
National Instrument 43-101 ("NI 43-101"), which differs
significantly from the current requirements of the U.S. Securities
and Exchange Commission (the "SEC") set out in Industry Guide 7.
Accordingly, such disclosure may not be comparable to similar
information made public by companies that report in accordance with
Industry Guide 7. In particular, this news release may refer to
"mineral resources", "measured mineral resources", "indicated
mineral resources" or "inferred mineral resources". While these
categories of mineralization are recognized and required by
Canadian securities laws, they are not recognized by Industry Guide
7 and are not normally permitted to be disclosed in SEC filings by
U.S. companies that are subject to Industry Guide 7. U.S. investors
are cautioned not to assume that any part of a "mineral resource",
"measured mineral resource", "indicated mineral resource", or
"inferred mineral resource" will ever be converted into a
"reserve." In addition, "reserves" reported by the Company under
Canadian standards may not qualify as reserves under Industry Guide
7. Under Industry Guide 7, mineralization may not be classified as
a "reserve" unless the mineralization can be economically and
legally extracted or produced at the time the "reserve"
determination is made. Accordingly, information contained or
referenced in this news release containing descriptions of mineral
deposits may not be comparable to similar information made public
by U.S. companies subject to the reporting and disclosure
requirements of Industry Guide 7.
"Inferred mineral resources" have a great amount of
uncertainty as to their existence and great uncertainty as to their
economic and legal feasibility. It cannot be assumed that all or
any part of an inferred mineral resource will ever be upgraded to a
higher category. Further, while NI 43-101 permits companies to
disclose economic projections contained in preliminary economic
assessments and pre-feasibility studies, which are not based on
"reserves", U.S. companies have not generally been permitted under
Industry Guide 7 to disclose economic projections for a mineral
property in their SEC filings prior to the establishment of
"reserves". Disclosure of "contained ounces" in a resource is
permitted disclosure under Canadian reporting standards; however,
Industry Guide 7 normally only permits issuers to report
mineralization that does not constitute "reserves" by Industry
Guide 7 standards as in-place tonnage and grade without reference
to unit measures. Historical results or feasibility models
presented herein are not guarantees or expectations of future
performance.
Cautionary Note Regarding Forward-Looking
Statements
This press release contains "forward-looking information" and
"forward-looking statements" within the meaning of applicable
Canadian and U.S. securities legislation. The forward-looking
statements herein are made as of the date of this press release
only, and the Company does not assume any obligation to update or
revise them to reflect new information, estimates or opinions,
future events or results or otherwise, except as required by
applicable law. Often, but not always, forward-looking statements
can be identified by the use of words such as "plans", "expects",
"is expected", "budgets", "scheduled", "estimates", "forecasts",
"predicts", "projects", "intends", "targets", "aims", "anticipates"
or "believes" or variations (including negative variations) of such
words and phrases or may be identified by statements to the effect
that certain actions "may", "could", "should", "would", "might" or
"will" be taken, occur or be achieved. Forward-looking information
in this press release includes, but is not limited to, statements
with respect to future events or future performance of Metalla,
disclosure regarding the precious metal purchase agreements and
royalty payments to be paid to Metalla by property owners or
operators of mining projects pursuant to net smelter returns and
other royalty agreements of Metalla, continued ramp-up at the
Endeavor Mine, management's expectations regarding Metalla's
growth, results of operations, estimated future revenues, potential
expansion of reserves and mineralization carrying value of assets,
future dividends, and requirements for additional capital,
production estimates, production costs and revenue, future demand
for and prices of commodities, expected mining sequences, business
prospects, and opportunities. Such forward-looking statements
reflect management's current beliefs and are based on information
currently available to management.
Forward-looking statements involve known and unknown risks,
uncertainties and other factors, which may cause the actual
results, performance or achievements of the Company to be
materially different from any future results, performance, or
achievements expressed or implied by the forward-looking
statements. The forward-looking statements contained in this press
release are based on reasonable assumptions that have been made by
management as at the date of such information and is subject to
unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors that may cause the
actual actions, events or results to be materially different from
those expressed or implied by such forward-looking information,
including, without limitation: the impact of general business and
economic conditions; the ongoing operation of the properties in
which the Company holds a royalty, stream, or other
production-based interest by the owners or operators of such
properties in a manner consistent with past practice; absence of
control over mining operations; the accuracy of public statements
and disclosures made by the owners or operators of such underlying
properties; no material adverse change in the market price of the
commodities that underlie the asset portfolio; and other risks and
uncertainties disclosed under the heading "Risk Factors" in the
Management's Discussion and Analysis and the Annual Information
Form of the Company both dated September 26,
2019 and filed with the Canadian securities regulatory
authorities on the SEDAR website at www.sedar.com and with the SEC
on the EDGAR website at https://www.sec.gov/.
Although Metalla has attempted to identify important factors
that could cause actual actions, events or results to differ
materially from those contained in forward-looking information,
there may be other factors that cause actions, events or results
not to be as anticipated, estimated or intended. There can be no
assurance that such information will prove to be accurate, as
actual results and future events could differ materially from those
anticipated in such information. Investors are cautioned that
forward-looking statements are not guarantees of future
performance. The Company cannot assure investors that actual
results will be consistent with these forward-looking statements.
Accordingly, investors should not place undue reliance on
forward-looking statements or information.
Readers are cautioned that forward-looking statements are not
guarantees of future performance. All of the forward-looking
statements made in this press release are qualified by these
cautionary statements.
SOURCE Metalla Royalty and Streaming Ltd.
