ASANKO GOLD ANNOUNCES Q2 2017 PRODUCTION RESULTS Q2 2017 Highlights: Quarterly g old production of 46,017 ounces and gold sales of 48,461 ounces, 2017 production guidance of 230,000 – 240,000 ounces maintained US$60 million in gold revenue at an average realized price of US$1,238 per ounce
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PRESS RELEASE
ASANKO GOLD ANNOUNCES Q2 2017 PRODUCTION RESULTS
Q2 2017 Highlights:
Quarterly g old production of 46,017 ounces and gold sales of 48,461 ounces, 2017 production
guidance of 230,000 – 240,000 ounces maintained
US$60 million in gold revenue at an average realized price of US$1,238 per ounce
Grade control drilling confirm s accuracy of updated Nkran MRE to within 2% during the last three
months
P5M volumetric upgrades to increase plant throughput to 5Mtpa completed ahead of schedule and
within budget
Industry-leading safety record maintained with a rolling 12 month LTIFR of 0.20
Strong balance sheet with unaudited cash and immediately convertible working capital balances of
approximately US$59.2 million (June 30, 2017)
Vancouver, British Columbia, July 19, 2017 – Asanko Gold Inc. (“Asanko” or the “Company”) (TSX, NYSE
MKT: AKG) announces production results for the second quarter of 2017 (“Q2”) from the Asanko Gold
Mine (“AGM”), located in Ghana, West Africa. Q2 operating and financial results will be published on
August 3, 2017, conference call and webcast details below.
Commenting on the quarter’s performance, Peter Brees e, President and CEO, said “As previously guided,
we anticipated gold production this quarter would be lower for three reasons: we mined a low grade zone in
the Nkran pit, we ramped up mining activities at the newly established Akwasiso pit and we had temporary
shutdowns in the processing plant to accommodate the installation of the volumetric upgrades from
3.6Mtpa to 5Mtpa, which have now been completed ahead of schedule.
Looking ahead, we expect the second half of the year to be stronger as we see the benefits of the plant
operating at the annualized rate of 5 Mtpa, the grade at Nkran improving , as we mine through the low
grade zone, and the Akwasiso pit delivering planned grades and tonnages. We therefore maintain our 2017
production guidance.”
Mining
As anticipated, mining operations continued to work through a low grade section of the orebody in the
centre of the Nkran pit with grades averaging 1.5 g/t. In addition , pre-stripping and mining operations
commenced at Akwasiso. Ore mining rates for the AGM during the quarter averaged 350,000 tonnes per
month (“tpm”) at an average mining grade of 1.5 g/t and a slight increase in the strip ratio to 6.2:1, as a
result of the waste mining in the western wall push back and the development of the Akwasiso pit.
The western wall pushback sequence of cut 2 commenced during Q2 and incorporated the geotechnical
design changes implemented as part of the recommendations by SRK which included an additional 1.1
million tonnes of waste material in the slump area on the western wall. The focus for the quarter was to
progress down to the west wall design elevation, which was in mostly oxide and transition waste material .
Once the design el evation was reached, the cut back mining operation s were relocated to commence on
the south east sequence of cut 2, which will continue in this area throughout the remainder of 2017.
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Mining operations commenced at Akwasiso, our largest satellite deposit, during Q2 with site establishment
and waste removal to facilitate ore mining. Early ore mining focused on previously disturbed surface
material from historic artisanal workings which resulted in low grades reporting to the mill. This is expected
to improve once the main Akwasiso deposit is exposed and mining operations ramp up to approximately
70,000tpm of ore in Q3 2017.
AGM Key Mining Statistics Units Q1 2017 Q2 2017
Total Tonnes Mined 000 t 6,637 7,506
Waste Tonnes Mined 000 t 5,620 6,458
Ore Tonnes Mined 000 t 1,017 1,048
Strip Ratio W:O 5.5:1 6.2:1
Average Gold Grade Mined g/t 1.8 1.5
Resource Reconciliation
Mining operations adopted the new CSA Global Mineral R esource Estimate (“MRE”) and grade control
estimation process during Q1 2017, which were fully implemented by the end of April 2017 . The new MRE
and associated grade control processes have been operational since May 2017. A reconciliation process has
commenced to measure the entire value chain from gold in the ground through to mill feed and eventual
gold production against the MRE.
The initial reconciliation between the resource model and the grade control model for the months of May,
June and July has confirmed a close correlation of 2% between the two models, confirming the AGM global
MRE. Work is now underway on the rest of the reconciliation process to validate the design of mining
polygons and mining dilution management through to gold production. These results will be published in
the coming quarters once sufficient operational data has been collected.
Processing
During Q2, t he processing pl ant’s throughput performance was marginally less than the previous quarter
and just under the annualized rate of 3 .6Mtpa. As previously announced , the lower throughput w as the
result of planned downtimes in the process facility to enable the P5M upgrade tie-ins. Metallurgical
recoveries continued to exceed design levels at 94%.
AGM Key Production
Statistics
Units Q1 2017 Q2 2017
Ore Treated 000 t 908 887
Gold Feed Grade g/t 2.0 1.7
Gold Recovery % 95 94
Gold Produced oz 58,187 46,017
Project 5 Million (“P5M”)
During Q2, t he P5M volum etric upgrades were completed a month ahead of schedule and within budget.
Work included the upgrade of the tailings dam line and pumping systems . While plant commissioning will
continue throughout Q3 2017, some significant early results have been achieved, with t he upgraded plant
running on a campaign basis at 625 tonnes per hour (equivalent to 5 Mtpa) for significant periods of time .
As the mining operation s at Akwasiso ramp up during Q3 2017 and the P5M tie-ins are bedded down , the
plant is expected to run at 5Mtpa on a consistent basis.
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The recovery upgrades are due to be completed and commissioned before the end of Q4 2017 and include
an extra Knelson gravity gold concentrator, a second Intensive Leach Reactor, an increase in the oxygen
plant’s capacity to 15 tonnes per day and an additional electrowinning cell in the gold room.
Health and Safety
There were no lost time injuries (“LTI”) reported d uring the quarter and the 12 -month rolling lost time
injury frequency rate (“LTIFR”) per million man hours worked is 0.20.
Sales and Liquidity
Gold production for the quarter was 46,017 ounces with gold sales of 48,461 ounces at an average realized
price of US$1,238 per ounce, generating gold sales revenue of US$60 million.
At June 30 , 2017 the Company’s balance sheet had approximately US$55.0 million in unaudited cash,
US$0.4 million in gold receivables and US$3.8 million in dore (with a market value of US$4.6 million). The
Company has no significant current long term debt obligations , with its first principal repayment on its
US$150 million debt facility not due until July 1, 2018.
Q2 2017 Operating and Financial Results Conference Call & Webcast Details:
Management will host a conference call and webcast at 9am EST on Thursday, August 3, 2017 to discuss
the Q2 2017 operating and financial results, which will be published on the same day.
Details below.
US/Canada Toll Free: 800 905 9496
UK Toll Free: 0800 496 1454
International: + 1 212 271 4615
Webcast:
Please click on the link: https://cc.callinfo.com/r/17b600pojy7rl&eom
Replay
A recorded playback will be available approximately two hours after the call until September 3, 2017:
US/Canada Toll Free: 800 558 5253
International: +1 416 626 4100
Passcode: 21855191
Enquiries:
For further information, please visit: www.asanko.com, email: [email protected] or contact:
Alex Buck - Manager, Investor and Media Relations
Toll-Free (N. America): 1 855 246 7341
Telephone: +44 7932 740 452
Email: [email protected]
Ryan Walchuck, VP Corporate Development and Investor Relations
Telephone: +1 778 986 2000
Email: [email protected]
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About Asanko Gold Inc.
Asanko’s vision is to become a mid -tier gold mining company that maximizes value for all its stakeholders.
The Company’s flagship project is the multi-million ounce Asanko Gold Mine located in Ghana, West Africa.
Asanko is managed by highly skilled and successful technical, operational and financial professionals. The
Company is strongly committed to the highest standards for environmental management, social
responsibility, and health and safety for its employees and neighbouring communities.
Forward-Looking and other Cautionary Information
This release includes certain statements that may be deemed "forward -looking statements". All statements in this
release, other than statements of historical facts, that address estimated resource quantities, grades and contained
metals, possible future mining, exploration and development activities, are forward-looking statements.
Although the Company believes the forward -looking statements are based on reasonable assumptions, such
statements should not be in any way construed as guarantees of future per formance and actual results or
developments may differ materially from those in the forward -looking statements. Factors that could cause actual
results to differ materially from those in forward -looking statements include market prices for metals, the conc lusions
of detailed feasibility and technical analyses, the timely renewal of key permits, lower than expected grades and
quantities of resources, mining rates and recovery rates and the lack of availability of necessary capital, which may not
be available to the Company on terms acceptable to it or at all. The Company is subject to the specific risks inherent in
the mining business as well as general economic and business conditions. For more information on the Company,
investors should review the Company' s Annual Form 4 0-F filing with the United States Securities Commission and its
home jurisdiction filings that are available at www.sedar.com.
Neither Toronto Stock Exchange nor the Investment Industry Regulatory Organi zation of Canada accepts responsibility
for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.
Cautionary Note to US Investors Regarding Mineral Reporting Standards:
Asanko has prepared its disclosure in accordance with the requirements of securities laws in effec t in Canada, which
differ from the requirements of US securities laws. Terms relating to mineral resources in this press release are defined
in accordance with National Instrument 43 -101 - Standards of Disclosure for Mineral Projects under the guidelines s et
out in the Canadian Institute of Mining, Metallurgy, and Petroleum Standards on Mineral Resources and Mineral
Reserves. The Securities and Exchange Commission (the “ SEC”) permits mining companies, in their filings with the SEC,
to disclose only those mineral deposits that a company can economically and legally extract or produce. Asanko uses
certain terms, such as, “measured mineral resources”, “indicated mineral resour ces”, “inferred mineral resources” and
“probable mineral reserves”, that the SEC does not recognize (these terms may be used in this press release and are
included in the public filings of Asanko which have been filed with securities commissions or similar authorities in
Canada).