18 July 2024
Anglo Asian Mining
plc
Q2 & H1 2024 Production
and Operations Review
Anglo Asian Mining plc ("Anglo
Asian" or the "Company"), the AIM listed gold, copper and silver
producer focused in Azerbaijan, provides the following production,
sales and operational review for the three months to 30 June 2024
("Q2 2024"or the "Quarter") and six months to 30 June 2024 ("H1
2024" or the "Half Year").
The Company expects the
administrative formalities relating to the tailings dam wall raise
to be completed imminently, while production during the Half Year
continued to be significantly reduced due to operations remaining
partially shut down. Gold production from heap leaching and copper
production from SART continued throughout the Half Year.
Operational highlights
·
All technical and environmental approvals now
received for the raise of the tailings dam wall
·
AzerGold CJSC has now become the party to the
Group's production sharing agreement ("PSA")
·
$5 million prepayment advance for concentrate
sales agreed with Trafigura with $3 million received in
June
Q2
and H1 2024 Production update
·
Total Q2 2024 production of 2,707 gold equivalent
ounces ("GEOs") (Q2 2023: 12,422 GEOs)
o Copper
production of 46 tonnes (Q2 2023: 1,014 tonnes)
o Gold
production of 2,438 ounces (Q2 2023: 7,870 ounces)
o Silver
production of 6,341 ounces (Q2 2023: 22,010 ounces)
·
Total H1 2024 production of 5,270 GEOs (H1 2023:
23,391 GEOs)
o Copper
production of 100 tonnes (H1 2023: 1,870 tonnes)
o Gold
production of 4,704 ounces (H1 2023: 14,623 ounces)
o Silver
production of 12,740 ounces (H1 2023: 44,696 ounces)
H1
2024 Sales and cash update
·
Total gold bullion sales of 6,000 ounces at an
average of $2,174 per ounce (H1 2023: 10,506 ounces at an average
of $1,939 per ounce)
·
The Group has maintained a strong focus on cash
and strict cost control, with a net debt position of $12.1 million
at 30 June 2024 (31 December 2023: $10.2 million)
·
Net cash outflow (before receipt of advance from
Trafigura) in the Half Year of only $4.9 million due to sale of
opening inventory along with strong cost control. Net cash outflow
including offset of the advance from Trafigura of $3.0 million of
$1.9 million
·
Inventory valued at $3.6 million at 30 June 2024
(31 March 2024: 1,550 ounces of gold valued at $3.5 million and
copper concentrate valued at $0.7 million)
The Company expects to issue annual
production guidance for 2024 in due course, following the
resumption of full production.
Anglo Asian CEO Reza Vaziri commented:
"Despite the ongoing challenges faced by the Company, I am
pleased with the substantial progress we have made, including
amendments to our PSA and delivering all necessary technical and
environmental approvals for the tailings dam wall raise, a critical
step towards resuming full production of our
operations.
"We expect to conclude all formalities imminently, enabling us
to fully capitalise on the current robust metal prices to the
benefit of our shareholders. We look forward to returning to normal
operations and production shortly, and providing production
guidance for the year."
Note that all references to "$" are to United
States dollars.
Market Abuse Regulation (MAR) Disclosure
Certain information contained in this announcement would have
been deemed inside information for the purposes of Article 7 of
Regulation (EU) No 596/2014, which was incorporated
into UK law by the European Union (Withdrawal)
Act 2018, until the release of this announcement.
For further information please
contact:
Anglo Asian Mining plc
|
|
Reza Vaziri, Chief Executive
Officer
|
Tel: +994 12 596 3350
|
Bill Morgan, Chief Financial
Officer
|
Tel: +994 502 910 400
|
Stephen Westhead, Vice
President
|
Tel: +994 502 916 894
|
|
|
SP
Angel Corporate Finance LLP (Nominated Adviser and Broker)
Ewan Leggat
Adam Cowl
|
Tel: +44 (0) 20 3470 0470
|
|
|
Hudson Sandler (Financial
PR)
Charlie Jack
Harry Griffiths
|
Tel: +44
0) 20 7796 4133
|
Notes to editors
Anglo Asian Mining
plc (AIM:AAZ) is a gold, copper and silver producer with a
high-quality portfolio of production and exploration assets
in Azerbaijan. The Company produced 31,821 gold equivalent
ounces ("GEOs") for the year ended 31 December
2023.
On 30 March 2023, the Company
published its strategic plan for growth which shows a clearly
defined path for the Company to transition to a multi-asset,
mid-tier, copper and gold producer by 2028, by which time copper
will be the principal product of the Company, with forecast
production of around 36,000 copper equivalent tonnes. It plans to
achieve this growth by bringing into production four new mines
during the period 2024 to 2028 at Zafar, Gilar, Xarxar and
Garadag.
https://www.angloasianmining.com/
Q2
2024 Production overview
·
Gold production of 2,438 ounces (Q2 2023: 7,870
ounces):
o 2,433
ounces contained within gold doré
o 5 ounces
from sulphidisation, acidification, recycling and thickening
("SART") processing
·
Copper production of 46 tonnes (Q2 2023: 1,014
tonnes) from SART processing
·
Silver production totalled 6,341 ounces (Q2 2023:
22,010 ounces):
o 1,532
ounces contained within gold doré
o 4,809
ounces from SART processing
Q2
2024 Sales overview
·
Total gold bullion sales of 2,075 ounces at an
average of $2,350 per ounce (Q2 2023: 4,787 ounces at an average of
$1,992 per ounce)
·
Total concentrate sales of 260 dry metric tonnes
("dmt") with a value of $1.0 million (Q2 2023: 5,501 dmt with a
value of $7.7 million)
Q2
2024 Financials overview
·
Cash of $7.8 million
($9.8 million at 31
March 2024) including restricted cash
·
Debt of $19.9 million ($20.7 million at 31 March
2024)
·
Net debt of $12.1 million ($10.9 million at 31
March 2024)
·
$3 million advance payment received from Trafigura
in June 2024
·
Unsold gold doré
and copper concentrate inventory of $3.6 million
at 30 June 2024
The Company mined the following ore
during FY 2023 and the six months to 30 June 2024:
|
12 months
to
31 December
2023
|
3 months to
31 March
2024
|
3 months to
30 June
2024
|
Mine
|
Ore mined
|
Average
gold grade
|
Ore mined
|
Average
gold grade
|
Ore mined
|
Average
gold grade
|
|
(tonnes)
|
(g/t)
|
(tonnes)
|
(g/t)
|
(tonnes)
|
(g/t)
|
Open pit
|
1,180,695
|
0.38
|
186,122
|
0.81
|
101,199
|
0.74
|
Gadir - u/g
|
109,320
|
1.64
|
50,964
|
2.18
|
43,326
|
1.33
|
Gedabek - u/g
|
-
|
-
|
-
|
-
|
-
|
-
|
Total
|
1,290,015
|
0.49
|
237,086
|
1.10
|
144,525
|
0.92
|
The Company processed the following
amounts and grades of ore by leaching for FY 2023 and the six months to 30 June 2024:
Quarter ended
|
Ore
processed
|
Gold grade of ore
processed
|
|
Heap leach pad crushed
ore
(tonnes)
|
Heap leach pad
ROM
ore
(tonnes)
|
Agitation
leaching
plant*
(tonnes)
|
Heap leach pad crushed
ore
(g/t)
|
Heap leach pad
ROM
ore
(g/t)
|
Agitation
leaching
plant*
(g/t)
|
31 March 2023
|
94,518
|
196,595
|
62,006
|
0.74
|
0.49
|
1.30
|
30 June 2023
|
56,522
|
202,788
|
105,213
|
0.75
|
0.46
|
1.40
|
30 September 2023
|
25,690
|
34,621
|
-
|
0.83
|
0.45
|
-
|
31 December 2023
|
-
|
-
|
-
|
-
|
-
|
-
|
FY
2023
|
176,730
|
434,004
|
167,219
|
0.76
|
0.48
|
1.40
|
31 March 2024
|
120,528
|
-
|
-
|
0.68
|
-
|
-
|
30 June 2024
|
32,441
|
-
|
-
|
0.59
|
-
|
-
|
H1
2024
|
152,969
|
-
|
-
|
0.66
|
-
|
-
|
* includes previously heap
leached ore.
The Company processed the following
amounts of ore and contained metal by flotation for
FY 2023 and the six months ended 30 June
2024:
Quarter ended
|
Ore
processed
|
Gold
content
|
Silver
content
|
Copper
content
|
|
(tonnes)
|
(ounces)
|
(ounces)
|
(tonnes)
|
31 March 2023
|
192,516
|
1,487
|
19,787
|
1,133
|
30 June 2023
|
190,593
|
1,033
|
10,380
|
1,191
|
30 September 2023
|
62,369
|
478
|
4,358
|
363
|
31 December 2023
|
-
|
-
|
-
|
-
|
FY
2023
|
445,478
|
2,998
|
34,525
|
2,687
|
31 March 2024
|
-
|
-
|
-
|
-
|
30 June 2024
|
-
|
-
|
-
|
-
|
H1
2024
|
-
|
-
|
-
|
-
|
The following table summarises gold
doré production and sales at Gedabek for FY 2023 and the six months
30 June 2024:
Quarter
ended
|
Gold
produced*
(ounces)
|
Silver
produced*
(ounces)
|
Gold
sales**
(ounces)
|
Gold Sales
price
($/ounce)
|
31 March 2023
|
5,965
|
2,841
|
5,719
|
1,895
|
30 June 2023
|
7,375
|
3,593
|
4,787
|
1,992
|
30 September 2023
|
4,001
|
1,488
|
2,900
|
1,949
|
31 December 2023
|
2,975
|
1,610
|
2,416
|
2,004
|
FY
2023
|
20,316
|
9,532
|
15,822
|
1,951
|
31 March 2024
|
2,259
|
1,512
|
3,925
|
2,080
|
30 June 2024
|
2,433
|
1,532
|
2,075
|
2,350
|
H1
2024
|
4,692
|
3,044
|
6,000
|
2,174
|
Note
* including Government of
Azerbaijan's share
** excluding Government of
Azerbaijan's share
The gold and silver
production from agitation and heap leaching
for FY 2023 and the six months 30 June 2024 is as
follows:
Quarter
ended
|
Gold
|
Silver
|
Agitation
leaching
(ounces)
|
Heap
leaching
(ounces)
|
Total
(ounces)
|
Agitation
leaching
(ounces)
|
Heap
leaching
(ounces)
|
Total
(ounces)
|
31 March 2023
|
2,105
|
3,860
|
5,965
|
1,077
|
1,764
|
2,841
|
30 June 2023
|
3,463
|
3,912
|
7,375
|
1,735
|
1,858
|
3,593
|
30 Sept 2023
|
-
|
4,001
|
4,001
|
-
|
1,488
|
1,488
|
31 Dec 2023
|
-
|
2,975
|
2,975
|
-
|
1,610
|
1,610
|
FY
2023
|
5,568
|
14,748
|
20,316
|
2,812
|
6,720
|
9,532
|
31 March 2024
|
-
|
2,259
|
2,259
|
-
|
1,512
|
1,512
|
30 June 2024
|
-
|
2,433
|
2,433
|
-
|
1,532
|
1,532
|
H1
2024
|
-
|
4,692
|
4,692
|
-
|
3,044
|
3,044
|
The following table summarises
copper concentrate production from both the Company's SART and
flotation plants at Gedabek for FY 2023 and the six months ended 30
June 2024:
|
Concentrate
|
Copper
|
Gold
|
Silver
|
|
production*
|
content*
|
content*
|
content*
|
|
(dmt)
|
(tonnes)
|
(ounces)
|
(ounces)
|
2023
|
|
|
|
|
Quarter ended 31 March
|
|
|
|
|
SART processing
|
364
|
191
|
26
|
8,750
|
Flotation
|
4,544
|
665
|
762
|
11,095
|
Total
|
4,908
|
856
|
788
|
19,845
|
Quarter ended 30 June
|
|
|
|
|
SART processing
|
272
|
145
|
16
|
10,316
|
Flotation
|
5,613
|
869
|
479
|
8,101
|
Total
|
5,885
|
1,014
|
495
|
18,417
|
Quarter ended 30 September
|
|
|
|
|
SART processing
|
85
|
43
|
4
|
2,194
|
Flotation
|
1,316
|
207
|
151
|
1,974
|
Total
|
1,401
|
250
|
155
|
4,168
|
Quarter ended 31 December
|
|
|
|
|
SART processing
|
29
|
18
|
4
|
1,264
|
Flotation
|
-
|
-
|
-
|
-
|
Total
|
29
|
18
|
4
|
1,264
|
2024
|
|
|
|
|
Quarter ended 31 March
|
|
|
|
|
SART processing
|
89
|
54
|
7
|
4,893
|
Flotation
|
-
|
-
|
-
|
-
|
Total
|
89
|
54
|
7
|
4,893
|
Quarter ended 30 June
|
|
|
|
|
SART processing
|
77
|
46
|
5
|
4,809
|
Flotation
|
-
|
-
|
-
|
-
|
Total
|
77
|
46
|
5
|
4,809
|
Note
* including Government of
Azerbaijan's share.
Certain amounts for SART and
flotation production may differ to those previously disclosed due
to final reconciliation of production.
The following table summarises total
copper concentrate production and sales for FY 2023 and six months
to 30 June 2024. Note that sales of
concentrates are initially recorded at provisional amounts until
agreement of final assay:
|
Concentrate
|
Copper
|
Gold
|
Silver
|
Concentrate
|
Concentrate
|
|
production*
|
content*
|
content*
|
content*
|
sales**
|
sales**
|
|
(dmt)
|
(tonnes)
|
(ounces)
|
(ounces)
|
(dmt)
|
($000)
|
Quarter ended
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
31 March 2023
|
4,908
|
856
|
788
|
19,845
|
1,147
|
2,743
|
30 June 2023
|
5,885
|
1,014
|
495
|
18,417
|
5,501
|
7,678
|
30 September 2023
|
1,401
|
250
|
155
|
4,168
|
2,358
|
3,066
|
31 December 2023
|
29
|
18
|
4
|
1,264
|
2,186
|
2,306
|
FY
2023
|
12,223
|
2,138
|
1,442
|
43,694
|
11,192
|
15,793
|
31 March 2024
|
89
|
54
|
7
|
4,893
|
71
|
295
|
30 June 2024
|
77
|
46
|
5
|
4,809
|
260
|
1,002
|
H1
2024
|
166
|
100
|
12
|
9,702
|
331
|
1,297
|
* including Government of
Azerbaijan's share
** excludes Government of
Azerbaijan's share
H1
2024 Financial review
The Company's net debt increased
from $10.2 million at 1 January 2024 to $12.1 million at 30 June
2024 as follows:
|
Q1 2024
|
Q2 2024
|
|
$m
|
$m
|
$m
|
$m
|
1
Jan / 31 March 2024
|
|
(10.2)
|
|
(10.9)
|
Revenue
|
8.6
|
|
6.0
|
|
VAT refund
|
1.3
|
|
0.6
|
|
Interest income
|
0.2
|
|
|
|
Operating costs
|
(9.6)
|
|
(9.7)
|
|
Capital expenditure
|
(0.7)
|
|
(0.8)
|
|
Debt servicing
|
(0.5)
|
|
(0.3)
|
|
Trafigura advance
|
-
|
|
3.0
|
|
Outflow in the
quarter
|
|
(0.7)
|
|
(1.2)
|
31
March / 30 June 2024
|
|
(10.9)
|
|
(12.1)
|
Note the $3 million advance from
Trafigura has been treated as a prepayment and not included in net
debt.