| Wed 20 Oct 2010, 7:30 | | FUM - First Uranium Corporation - Q2 2011 Production results for the three |
|
FUM
FIU
FUM - First Uranium Corporation - Q2 2011 Production results for the three
months ended September 30, 2010 and an update on improvements at the Ezulwini
Mine
First Uranium Corporation
(Continued under the laws of British Columbia, Canada)
(Registration number C0777384)
(South African registration number 2007/009016/10)
Share code: FUM ISIN: CA33744R1029
NEWS RELEASE - October 19, 2010
Q2 2011 PRODUCTION RESULTS FOR THE THREE MONTHS ENDED SEPTEMBER 30, 2010 and
AN UPDATE ON IMPROVEMENTS AT THE EZULWINI MINE
All amounts are in US dollars unless otherwise noted.
Toronto and Johannesburg - First Uranium Corporation (TSX:FIU, JSE:FUM)
(ISIN:CA33744R1029) ("First Uranium" or "the Company") today announced that
during the three months ended September 30, 2010 ("Q2 2011"), 14,820 ounces of
gold were produced from the Ezulwini Mine and 18,598 ounces of gold from the
Mine Waste Solutions tailings recovery project ("MWS") in South Africa.
The Ezulwini Mine also produced 12,753 pounds of uranium in the form of
yellowcake ("ammonium diuranate") and 31,408 pounds in the form of uranium.
Gold production at the Ezulwini Mine was slightly higher than last quarter and
the upgraded backfill plant has been commissioned, which will enhance future
production output. The MWS production build-up remains on-track and all projects
are on schedule. MWS has delivered its third successive quarter of achieving,
or improving on, its market guidance.
Q2 2011 PRODUCTION HIGHLIGHTS
- The second phase of the backfill plant upgrade at the Ezulwini Mine has
been commissioned and significant increases in production levels are
becoming evident;
- MWS continues to deliver with plant and tailings expansion projects
remaining on-track;
- All capital commitments re-prioritized to ensure efficient use of available
cash;
- Expected gold output for fiscal year 2011 remains at an annualized 80,000
ounces for the Ezulwini Mine and 72,000 ounces for MWS; and
- Continuing cost control at both operations and the corporate office.
The following table summarizes the production from each operation during Q2
2011. Production from the previous four quarters has been included for
comparison purposes.
Quarterly Production Results
Q2 2011 Q1 2011 Q4 2010 Q3 2010 Q2 2010
MWS
Tonnes of ore 3,170 3,105 3,232 3,528 2,476
reclaimed (000s)
Average gold head 0.35 0.36 0.34 0.34 0.36
grade (g/t)
Gold plant 52% 56% 56% 58% 47%
recovery (%)
Gold produced (oz) 18,598 20,215 19,693 21,891 13,422
Ezulwini Mine
Tonnes of ore 145,642 135,009 130,822 117,164 98,831
hoisted
Tonnes of ore 146,854 132,963 129,532 108,503 94,599
milled
Average gold 3.1 3.3 2.4 2.8 2.5
recovery grade
(g/t)
Gold produced (oz) 14,820 14,120 7,526 10,685 7,952
Yellowcake 12,753 19,764 22,488 15,351 13,098
produced (lbs)
Uranium produced 31,408 - 20,638 23,761 -
(lbs)
OPERATIONS OVERVIEW
Mine Waste Solutions
During Q2 2011, MWS continued to deliver into its plan. This represents the
third successive quarter that MWS has either achieved or exceeded target. MWS
remains on-track to increase its throughput from 1,200,000 tpm to 1,800,000 tpm
by September 2011.
It is anticipated that the remaining capital program comprising the third gold
plant module and the new Tailings Storage Facility, including adjoining
infrastructure, will be completed on schedule by May 2011, which should allow
for the re-structured Gold Wheaton completion test to be satisfied prior to
September 1, 2011.
Ezulwini Mine
During Q2 2011, the mine`s production build-up was negatively impacted by a
seismic event that occurred on August 20, 2010. As a result, blasting activities
in the Upper Elsburg were limited to allow for opening-up and support work in
areas damaged by the seismic event. The reduced blasting activities, which
impacted extraction rates in the high-grade Elsburg Reefs for a period of
approximately five weeks, resulted in the overall gold production increase being
constrained at 14,820 ounces, which is a 5% increase quarter on quarter. Post
the event, management resolved that the potential for seismic risks in the
future could be significantly reduced by the introduction of backfill in all
conventional panels in the shaft pillar. As a result, the modular backfill plant
has been upgraded, expanded and was successfully re-commissioned on September
23, 2010.
The upgrade of the backfill plant has increased capacity by 500% from 50m3/shift
to 250m3/shift. The resulting increased backfill capacity will allow the
backfilling of mined-out drifts (voids), which will in turn, allow the safe
extraction of pillars adjacent to these mined-out voids. This opportunity
underpins management`s confidence to achieve the 80,000 ounces annualised gold
production plan for FY 2011. The increased backfill capacity will result in an
overall reduction in the cost of production and a safer work environment due to
a reduction in the risk of negative effects of future seismic activity.
OUTLOOK
Mine Waste Solutions: Remains on-track to achieve planned production metrics in
Q3 FY11.
Ezulwini Mine: Incremental capacity improvements in the backfill plant will
continue to underpin the mine`s ramp up plan.
ends
About First Uranium Corporation
First Uranium Corporation (TSX:FIU, JSE:FUM) is focused on its goal of becoming
a significant low-cost producer of uranium and gold through the expansion of the
underground development to feed the new uranium and gold plants at the Ezulwini
Mine and through the expansion of the plant capacity of the Mine Waste Solutions
tailings recovery facility, both located in South Africa.
For further information, please contact:
Julian Gwillim, julian@aprio.co.za
Cautionary Language Regarding Forward-Looking Information
This news release contains and refers to forward-looking information based on
current expectations. All other statements other than statements of historical
fact included in this release including, without limitation, statements
regarding the timing and amount of estimated future production, processing and
development plans and future plans and objectives of First Uranium are forward-
looking statements (or forward-looking information) that involve various
estimates, assumptions, risks and uncertainties. For more details on these
estimates, assumptions, risks and uncertainties, see the Company`s most recent
Annual Information Form on file with the Canadian provincial securities
regulatory authorities on SEDAR at www.sedar.com. These forward-looking
statements are made as of the date hereof and there can be no assurance that
such statements will prove to be accurate, such statements are subject to
significant risks and uncertainties, and actual results and future events could
differ materially from those anticipated in such statements. Accordingly,
readers should not place undue reliance on forward-looking statements that are
included herein, except in accordance with applicable securities laws.
Date: 20/10/2010 07:30:01 Produced by the JSE SENS Department.
The SENS service is an information dissemination service administered by the
JSE Limited (`JSE`). The JSE does not, whether expressly, tacitly or
implicitly, represent, warrant or in any way guarantee the truth, accuracy or
completeness of the information published on SENS. The JSE, their officers,
employees and agents accept no liability for (or in respect of) any direct,
indirect, incidental or consequential loss or damage of any kind or nature,
howsoever arising, from the use of SENS or the use of, or reliance on,
information disseminated through SENS.
