COLORADO SPRINGS, CO--(Marketwired - Feb 21, 2017) - Gold Resource Corporation (
Proven and probable reserves at the Oaxaca Mining Unit totaled 1,891,500 tonnes grading 2.75 grams per tonne (g/t) gold and 165 g/t silver, equating to 167,300 gold ounces and 10,009,300 silver ounces. Proven and probable reserve tonnes included in the December 31, 2016 reserve report increased year-over-year by 15%, gold ounces increased by 31% and silver ounces increased by 17%. The reserve report also includes significant base metals from the Arista mine consisting of 5,543 tonnes (12.2 million pounds) of copper grading 0.3%, 24,020 tonnes (53.0 million pounds) of lead grading 1.3% and 66,517 tonnes (146.6 million pounds) of zinc grading 3.6%.
The Company maintained 1.64 million proven and probable tonnes at the Arista Mine's Arista vein system, and added 203,500 tonnes at the Arista Mine's Switchback vein system. Arista Mine proven and probable reserves now total 1.85 million tonnes, a nearly 13% increase over the prior year reserve report. The Company also reported for the first time proven and probable reserves from the Alta Gracia Project's recently commissioned Mirador Mine totaling 43,800 tonnes grading 1.06 g/t gold and 342 g/t silver, equating to 1,500 gold ounces and 481,400 silver ounces.
In addition to, and separate from the Oaxaca Mining Unit's proven and probable reserves, 2,087,700 tonnes of measured and indicated mineralized material was reported from four separate mineralized zones. The Arista vein system reported mineralized material of 773,900 tonnes grading 1.45 g/t gold, 153 g/t silver, 0.2% copper, 1.4% lead and 3.6% zinc. Reported Switchback vein system mineralized material increased significantly from the prior year and now stands at 959,000 tonnes grading 1.61 g/t gold, 97 g/t silver, 0.4% copper, 1.8% lead and 5.7% zinc. Reported mineralized material at the Alta Gracia Project nearly doubled from the prior year with 296,900 tonnes grading 0.36 g/t gold and 232 g/t silver. The Margaritas property reported initial mineralized material of 57,900 tonnes grading 0.72 g/t gold and 276 g/t silver.
"We are very pleased to release the 2016 Proven and Probable Reserve report, showing significant increases to reserve tonnes, gold ounces and silver ounces, along with substantial increases to our mineralized material at our Oaxaca Mining unit," stated Mr. Barry Devlin, Vice President of Exploration for Gold Resource Corporation. "Working from a modest exploration budget, our team did an excellent job targeting mineralized extensions at our Arista and Mirador mines, and successfully converted previous mineralized material into proven and probable reserves during the 2016 exploration year. Goals for the 2017 exploration year again include replacing tonnes mined at our Arista Mine's Arista and Switchback vein systems, as well as expanding the mineralization at the Mirador mine."
"This is the strongest reserve report our Company has recorded to date, significantly increasing the value of our Oaxaca Mining Unit," stated Mr. Jason Reid, President and CEO of Gold Resource Corporation. "Not only did we replace all the tonnes we mined during 2016, Proven and Probable Reserves increased on all fronts including a 14% increase to the gold grade, a 31% increase to our gold ounces and a 17% increase to our silver ounces. We are also encouraged by the large increase in mineralized material and look forward to categorizing a significant portion of this material into Proven and Probable reserves. Furthermore, with the recent dramatic high-grade step-out drill results from the Switchback vein system, we are optimistic Switchback will become as large as, or larger than, the Arista vein system providing further longevity of operations."
| OAXACA MINING UNIT PROVEN AND PROBABLE RESERVES COMPARISON | ||||
| December 31, 2016 vs December 31, 2015 | ||||
| Tonnes | Au | Ag | Au | Ag |
| g/t | g/t | oz | oz | |
| December 31, 2016 Reserve | ||||
| 1,891,500 | 2.75 | 165 | 167,300 | 10,009,300 |
| December 31, 2015 Reserve | ||||
| 1,644,500 | 2.41 | 162 | 127,700 | 8,569,700 |
| 2016 Reserve Increase | ||||
| +15% | +14% | +2% | +31% | +17% |
| OAXACA MINING UNIT PROVEN AND PROBABLE RESERVES | |||||||||||
| As of December 31, 2016 | |||||||||||
| Description | Tonnes | Au | Ag | AuEq* | Au | Ag | AuEq* | Cu | Pb | Zn | |
| g/t | g/t | g/t | oz | oz | oz | % | % | % | |||
| ARISTA MINE | |||||||||||
| Arista Veins | |||||||||||
| Proven | 1,333,800 | 2.79 | 172 | 5.22 | 119,700 | 7,365,900 | 223,700 | 0.3 | 1.3 | 3.6 | |
| Probable | 310,400 | 3.23 | 156 | 5.43 | 32,300 | 1,554,500 | 54,200 | 0.3 | 1.1 | 3.0 | |
| Total | 1,644,200 | 2.88 | 169 | 5.26 | 152,000 | 8,920,400 | 277,900 | 0.3 | 1.3 | 3.5 | |
| Switchback Veins | |||||||||||
| Proven | 161,500 | 2.16 | 95 | 3.51 | 11,300 | 494,600 | 18,200 | 0.5 | 1.8 | 4.1 | |
| Probable | 42,000 | 1.87 | 84 | 3.06 | 2,500 | 112,900 | 4,100 | 0.4 | 1.7 | 5.5 | |
| Total | 203,500 | 2.10 | 93 | 3.42 | 13,800 | 607,500 | 22,300 | 0.5 | 1.7 | 4.4 | |
| ARISTA MINE TOTAL | 1,847,700 | 2.79 | 160 | 5.05 | 165,800 | 9,527,900 | 300,200 | 0.3 | 1.3 | 3.6 | |
| MIRADOR MINE | |||||||||||
| Proven | 32,600 | 1.12 | 358 | 6.18 | 1,200 | 374,800 | 6,500 | ||||
| Probable | 11,200 | 0.86 | 295 | 5.03 | 300 | 106,600 | 1,800 | ||||
| MIRADOR MINE TOTAL | 43,800 | 1.06 | 342 | 5.88 | 1,500 | 481,400 | 8,300 | ||||
| OAXACA MINING UNIT | |||||||||||
| TOTAL | 1,891,500 | 2.75 | 165 | 5.07 | 167,300 | 10,009,300 | 308,500 | ||||
| Notes to the above Proven and Probable ("P & P") reserves: 1. Metal prices used for P & P reserves were $1,225 per ounce of gold, $17.29 per ounce of silver, $2.60 per pound of copper, $0.87 per pound of lead and $0.94 per pound of zinc. These prices reflect the three-year trailing average prices for gold, silver, copper, lead and zinc. 2. Precious metal gold equivalent is 70.85:1 using gold and silver only to calculate gold equivalencies. 3. A breakeven Net Smelter Return (NSR) cutoff grade of $80 per tonne was used for estimations of P & P reserves. The term "cutoff grade" means the lowest NSR value considered economic to process. 4. Mining, processing, energy, administrative and smelting/refining costs were based on 2016 actual costs for the Oaxaca Mining Unit. 5. Metallurgical recovery assumptions used were 89% for gold, 92% for silver, 78% for copper, 74% for lead and 84% for zinc. These recoveries reflect 2016 actual average recoveries for the Oaxaca Mining Unit. 6. P & P reserves are diluted and factored for expected mining recovery. 7. Minimum mining width for P & P reserves is 1.5 meters. 8. Figures in tables are rounded to reflect estimate precision and small differences generated by rounding are not material to estimates. *AuEq = Precious Metal Gold Equivalent, only gold and silver used in calculation (no base metals). | |||||||||||
| OAXACA MINING UNIT MEASURED AND INDICATED MINERALIZED MATERIAL | |||||||
| As of December 31, 2016 | |||||||
| Description | Tonnes | Au | Ag | Cu | Pb | Zn | |
| g/t | g/t | % | % | % | |||
| ARISTA MINE | |||||||
| Arista Veins | |||||||
| Measured | 285,700 | 2.11 | 173 | 0.2 | 1.4 | 3.9 | |
| Indicated | 488,200 | 1.06 | 141 | 0.2 | 1.4 | 3.4 | |
| Arista Veins Total | 773,900 | 1.45 | 153 | 0.2 | 1.4 | 3.6 | |
| Switchback Veins | |||||||
| Measured | 492,100 | 1.85 | 100 | 0.5 | 1.8 | 5.7 | |
| Indicated | 466,900 | 1.36 | 93 | 0.4 | 1.9 | 5.8 | |
| Switchback Veins Total | 959,000 | 1.61 | 97 | 0.4 | 1.8 | 5.7 | |
| ARISTA MINE TOTAL | 1,732,900 | 1.54 | 122 | 0.3 | 1.7 | 4.8 | |
| ALTA GRACIA PROJECT | |||||||
| Measured | 145,000 | 0.36 | 242 | ||||
| Indicated | 151,900 | 0.36 | 222 | ||||
| ALTA GRACIA TOTAL | 296,900 | 0.36 | 232 | ||||
| MARGARITAS PROJECT | |||||||
| Measured | 19,800 | 0.70 | 280 | ||||
| Indicated | 38,100 | 0.73 | 274 | ||||
| MARGARITAS TOTAL | 57,900 | 0.72 | 276 | ||||
| OAXACA MINING UNIT M&I | |||||||
| TOTAL | 2,087,700 | ||||||
| Notes to the above Measured and Indicated ("M & I") mineralized material: 1. Metal prices used for M & I mineralized material were $1,225 per ounce of gold, $17.29 per ounce of silver, $2.60 per pound of copper, $0.87 per pound of lead and $0.94 per pound of zinc. These prices reflect the three-year trailing average prices for gold, silver, copper, lead and zinc. 2. A breakeven Net Smelter Return (NSR) cutoff grade of $80 per tonne was used for estimations of M & I mineralized material. The term "cutoff grade" means the lowest NSR value considered economic to process. 3. Metallurgical recovery assumptions used were 89% for gold, 92% for silver, 78% for copper, 74% for lead and 84% for zinc. These recoveries reflect 2016 actual average recoveries for the Oaxaca Mining Unit. 4. M & I mineralized material is diluted and factored for expected mining recovery. 5. Minimum mining width for M & I mineralized material is 1.5 meters. 6. Figures in tables are rounded to reflect estimate precision and small differences generated by rounding are not material to estimates. | |||||||
The full reserve report will be available in the near future from the Company's website using the following link: http://goldresourcecorp.com/reserve-reports.php
About GRC:
Gold Resource Corporation is a mining company focused on production and pursuing development of gold and silver projects that feature low operating costs and produce high returns on capital. Gold Resource Corporation is a gold and silver producer, developer and explorer with operations in Oaxaca, Mexico and Nevada, USA. The Company has 56,839,823 shares outstanding, zero warrants, zero debt and has returned over $109 million back to shareholders since commercial production commenced July 1, 2010. Gold Resource Corporation offers shareholders the option to convert their cash dividends into physical gold and silver and take delivery. For more information, please visit GRC's website, located at www.Goldresourcecorp.com and read the Company's 10-K for an understanding of the risk factors involved.
Cautionary Statements:
This press release contains forward-looking statements that involve risks and uncertainties. The statements contained in this press release that are not purely historical are forward-looking statements within the meaning of Section 27A of the Securities Act and Section 21E of the Exchange Act. When used in this press release, the words "plan", "target", "anticipate," "believe," "estimate," "intend" and "expect" and similar expressions are intended to identify such forward-looking statements. Such forward-looking statements include, without limitation, the statements regarding Gold Resource Corporation's strategy, future plans for production, future expenses and costs, future liquidity and capital resources, and estimates of mineralized material. All forward-looking statements in this press release are based upon information available to Gold Resource Corporation on the date of this press release, and the company assumes no obligation to update any such forward-looking statements. Forward looking statements involve a number of risks and uncertainties, and there can be no assurance that such statements will prove to be accurate. The Company's actual results could differ materially from those discussed in this press release. In particular, there can be no assurance that production will continue at any specific rate. Factors that could cause or contribute to such differences include, but are not limited to, those discussed in the Company's 10-K filed with the SEC.
