IMPACT Silver Announces Second Quarter 2017 Financial and Production Results
IMPACT Silver Announces Second Quarter 2017 Financial and Production Results
Trading Symbol: "IPT: TSX.V"
VANCOUVER
,
Aug. 22, 2017
/CNW/ - IMPACT Silver Corp. ("IMPACT" or the "Company") announces its financial and production results for the second quarter of
2017.
Fred Davidson
, President and CEO, stated, "We started 2017 with a clean balance sheet and no debt along with news that IMPACT was named to the 2017 TSX
Venture 50. During the first half of the year, IMPACT invested heavily in upgrading and repairing its capital equipment while also trying to improve its throughput to
partially compensate for weaker silver prices. IMPACT is also actively expanding its in-mine exploration and development to provide additional tonnage throughput
at the mill. We hope that these efforts will translate into better financial and operating performance in the latter half of the year. We look forward to our ongoing
exploration plans at high potential targets and continue to evaluate strategic transactions to continue growing value for our shareholders."
Financial Overview
Revenues remained the same at
$8.2 million
for the six months ended
June 30, 2017
compared to last year mainly due to higher tonnage throughput offset
by a drop-in silver prices throughout the year.
Mine operating loss for the six months ended
June 30, 2017
was
$0.3 million
compared to operating earnings of
$1.0 million
in the comparable period of
2016. Mine operating earnings before amortization and depletion
1
was
$0.8 million
for the six months ended
June 30, 2017
compared to
$2.1 million
in the
same period of last year.
Net loss for the six months ended
June 30, 2017
was
$1.4 million
which included
$1.9 million
of foreign exchange loss and non-cash items of amortization,
depletion and share based compensation. This compared to a
$0.5 million
net loss for the first six months of 2016, which included
$1.7 million
of foreign
exchange loss and non-cash items in amortization and depletion. Excluding foreign exchange and non-cash items, adjusted net earnings for the six months
ended
June 30, 2017
were
$0.5 million
compared to
$1.2 million
in the same period of 2016.
Earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization
2
(EBITDA) decreased to a loss of
$0.4 million
for the first half of 2017 compared to earnings of
$0.9 million
in the same period of 2016.
The Company's cash position at
June 30, 2017
remains strong at
$6.8 million
, with net working capital of
$8.6 million
(2016 -
$11.5 million
).
During the quarter, the Company completed the sale of its non-active
Zacatecas
assets (200 tpd mill, 14 hectares surface rights and 10 mineral
concessions) to Endeavour Silver Corp. (TSX:EDR, NYSE:EXK) for 154,321 common shares valued at
CDN$0.6 million
. The Company recorded a gain of
$0.3 million
on the transaction.
___________________________
1
Mine operating earnings before amortization and depletion is a non-IFRS measure which the Company believes provides additional information regarding how the Company's operations are
performing.
2
Earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization (EBITDA) is a non-IFRS measure which the Company believes provides meaningful information about the Company's financial
performance.
See "NON-IFRS MEASURES".
Production Overview
Production at the Guadalupe mill during the second quarter of 2017 came primarily from the San Ramon Deeps Mine (41% of total mill feed), the Cuchara
Mine (36% of mill feed), the Mirasol Mine (10% of mill feed), and the
San Patricio
(Chivo) Mine (13% of mill feed). The grade at
San Ramon
is highly variable
and the production at Mirasol ended during the quarter as it reached the end of its mine life and had declining grades. The mining at the
San Patricio
(Chivo)
Mine had lower grades as some of the material was development muck. These factors contributed to a lower grade mill feed in the second quarter of 2017
compared to 2016.
Average mill feed grade for silver was 173 grams per tonne (g/t) in the second quarter of 2017, down from 180 g/t in the same period of 2016.
Silver production decreased to 227,503 ounces in the second quarter of 2017 from 235,990 ounces in comparable period of 2016 due to lower grade feed and
temporarily lower silver recovery during the quarter.
Health and Safety Awards
IMPACT's mining team recently received recognition The Award for Excellence in health and safety standards by the Secretary of Labour and Social Welfare in
Mexico. This recognition acknowledges the Company's effective working environment, strong relationships with its employees, and reduced workplace accidents,
illnesses and absenteeism.
This award and others like it are testaments to IMPACT's dedication to an industry leading standard in health and safety of our staff and contractors.
Exploration
The Company is continuing exploration with the goal of putting some of the 4,500+ compiled old mine workings in the
Zacualpan
and Capire districts on a faster
track to potential production and build mineral inventories for mining. The Company has initiated surface and underground drilling programs to expand resources.
Currently, exploration work is focused on larger and higher-grade targets at
Alacran
and Alacran North. Surface drilling is currently in progress at the
San Felipe
prospect located near the Guadalupe plant access road.
IMPACT has control of the majority of two entire mineral districts in central Mexico: the Royal Mines of Zacualpan Silver District and the Capire-Mamatla Mineral
District adjacent to and southwest of Zacualpan.
IMPACT has a track record of successful exploration and rapid mine development. The Company's long-term vision sees potential for establishing mills throughout
the two districts, each fed by multiple mines producing silver-lead-zinc as well as gold and copper.
The Company continues to look for expansion either through ongoing exploration programs and/or strategic acquisitions and transactions.
A recorded conference call reviewing the financial and production results of the second quarter of 2017 will be available on the Company website on
August 23,
2017
, at
www.impactsilver.com/s/ConferenceCalls.asp
.
The information in this news release should be read in conjunction with the Company's unaudited condensed consolidated interim financial statements and
Management's Discussion and Analysis, available on the Company website at
www.impactsilver.com
and on SEDAR at
www.sedar.com
. All amounts are stated
in Canadian dollars unless otherwise specified.
Additional information about the Company and its operations can be found on the website,
www.impactsilver.com
.
On behalf of the Directors of IMPACT Silver Corp.,
"Frederick W. Davidson"
President & CEO
Neither TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in the policies of the TSX Venture Exchange) accepts responsibility for
the adequacy or accuracy of this release.
Forward-Looking and Cautionary Statements
This IMPACT News Release contains certain "forward-looking" statements and information relating to IMPACT that are based on the beliefs of, and assumptions
made by, IMPACT management, following consideration of the information currently available to IMPACT management. Such statements include statements
regarding the discovery and commercialization of commercial quantities of minerals, improvements in profitability, increases to processing capacity, expansion of
resource quality and quantity, exploration goals, future results, the operational goals and outcomes in the
Zacualpan
and Capire districts and generally, and future
production as a result, expected 2017 drilling and testing operations, IMPACT's exploration program for 2017, the completion and effectiveness of the mining
database project and other statements that are not historical facts. Readers are cautioned not to place undue reliance on forward-looking statements, as there
can be no assurance that the plans, intentions or expectations upon which they are based will occur. By their nature, forward-looking statements involve
numerous assumptions, known and unknown risks and uncertainties, both general and specific, that contribute to the possibility that the predictions, forecasts,
projections and other forward-looking statements will not occur, which may cause actual performance and results in future periods to differ materially from any
estimates or projections of future performance or results expressed or implied by such forward-looking statements. These assumptions, risks and uncertainties
include, without limitation, exploration and development risks, expenditure and financing requirements, title matters, operating hazards, metal prices, political and
economic factors, competitive factors, general economic conditions, relationships with vendors and strategic partners, governmental regulation and supervision,
seasonality, technological change, industry practices, and one-time events. Should any one or more risks or uncertainties materialize or change, or should any
underlying assumptions prove incorrect, actual results and forward-looking statements may vary materially from those described herein. IMPACT does not
assume any obligation to update any forward-looking statement contained herein other than in accordance with applicable law.
The Company's decision to place a mine into production, expand a mine, make other production related decisions or otherwise carry out mining and processing
operations, is largely based on internal non-public Company data and reports based on exploration, development and mining work by the Company's geologists
and engineers. The results of this work are evident in the discovery and building of multiple mines for the Company and in the track record of mineral production
and financial returns of the Company since 2006. Under National Instrument 43-101, the Company is required to disclose that it has not based its production
decisions on NI 43-101 compliant mineral resource or reserve estimates, preliminary economic assessments or feasibility studies, and historically such projects
have increased uncertainty and risk.
SOURCE
IMPACT Silver
View original content: http://www.newswire.ca/en/releases/archive/August2017/22/c7828.html
%SEDAR: 00001640E
For further information:
Frederick Davidson - President & Chief Executive Officer, (604) 681-0172 or [email protected]; Or Jerry Huang, Investor
Relations Manager, (604) 681-0172 or [email protected]
CO: IMPACT Silver
CNW 17:42e 22-AUG-17