Pan American Silver announces 2021 guidance and preliminary 2020 production results
- FY 2020 consolidated silver production was 17.3 million ounces compared with the guidance range(1) of 18.0 million to 19.0 million ounces.
- FY 2020 consolidated gold production was 522.4 thousand ounces compared with the guidance range(1) of 525.0 thousand to 575.0 thousand ounces.
- FY 2020 consolidated zinc, lead and copper production was 40.2, 15.7 and 5.2 thousand tonnes, respectively, compared with guidance(1) of 40.0 - 43.0, 17.0 - 18.0 and 4.3 - 4.9 thousand tonnes, respectively.
- Due to government measures in response to the COVID-19 pandemic, all of Pan American's Latin American operations were placed in care and maintenance for an average duration of approximately two months during the first half of 2020. The Huaron and Morococha operations were suspended for another approximately three months through the third quarter of 2020. Our Timmins operation in Canada continued to operate throughout 2020 at reduced rates to accommodate COVID-19 related protocols.
- Production at La Colorada was impacted by an inability to access high-grade ore due to the COVID-19 related delay in completing an underground ventilation raise and the loss of a ventilation raise from surface in late Q4 2020.
- In Q4 2020, the Mining Secretary in the Province of Santa Cruz, Argentina, imposed a suspension of mining operations during the holiday period to help curb the spread of COVID-19, which caused production at Manantial Espejo to be suspended between December 21, 2020 and January 7, 2021.
- Production and costs in 2020 were further impacted by operations running below normal capacity levels to accommodate comprehensive protocols to protect health and safety during the COVID-19 pandemic.
- Dolores will be reported as a Gold Segment operation in 2021 given the higher gold and lower silver grades in the expected mine sequencing.
- We assume operations will continue to be impacted by comprehensive COVID-19 protocols, which increase costs and restrict throughput levels, especially at our underground mines. The impact of COVID-19 on operations is expected to diminish over the course of 2021, as vaccinations are deployed throughout our operating jurisdictions later in the year. For the first quarter of 2021, we assume operations will experience the full effect of COVID-19 restrictions, similar to Q4 2020. We assume the impact of restrictions declines to 75% in the second quarter, 50% in the third quarter and 25% in the fourth quarter of 2021. The first quarter of 2022 is assumed to be the first period that will be free of COVID-19 restrictions, allowing operations to run at full capacity. The impact regarding the restrictions could improve or worsen relative to our assumptions, depending on how each jurisdiction manages potential outbreaks of COVID-19, the development and supply of vaccines, and the roll-out of vaccination programs in each jurisdiction.
- The silver production guidance for 2021 reflects: the decline in silver grades and increase in gold grades at Dolores from mine sequencing; restricted mining rates at La Colorada during the first half of the year due to the replacement of ventilation infrastructure; and a continued scarcity of qualified underground mining personnel in southern Argentina due to inter-provincial travel restrictions, which results in reduced production rates at Manantial Espejo, COSE and Joaquin while extending the mine lives by approximately one year.
- At La Colorada, Pan American plans to advance three ventilation raises to support current production, mine expansions and development of the La Colorada skarn. These raises are in addition to the underground ventilation raise completed in the third quarter of 2020 and the ventilation raise from surface to the 345 level, which was completed in early January 2021, and is now being prepared for commissioning.
- The cash costs and AISC forecasts assume average metal prices of $23.50/oz for silver, $1,825/oz for gold, $2,700/tonne ($1.22/lb) for zinc, $1,900/tonne ($0.86/lb) for lead, and $7,400/tonne ($3.36/lb) for copper; and average annual exchange rates relative to 1 USD of 20.00 for the Mexican peso ("MXN"), 3.50 for the Peruvian sol ("PEN"), 96.67 for the Argentine peso ("ARS"), 7.00 for the Bolivian boliviano ("BOB"), and $1.30 for the Canadian dollar ("CAD").
- The Escobal mine is assumed to remain in care and maintenance during 2021, as Guatemala's Ministry of Energy and Mines conducts the court-mandated ILO 169 consultation.
Source: https://www.panamericansilver.com/news/news-releases/detail/153/2021-01-19-pan-american-silver-announces-2021-guidance-and-preliminary-2020-production-results
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