Mako Mining Provides Q3 2022 Production Results
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595 Burrard Street, Suite 2833
Vancouver, BC V7X 1K8
Tel: (604) 646-1580
www.makominingcorp.com
TSX-V: MKO | OTCQX: MAKOF
Suite 700 - 838 West Hastings St.
Vancouver, BC - V6C 0A6
IR: (647) 203-8793
www.makominingcorp.com
TSX-V: MKO | OTCQX: MAKOF
October 21st, 2022
TSX-V: MKO; OTCQX: MAKOF
Mako Mining Provides Q3 2022 Production Results
Mako Mining Corp. (TSX-V: MKO; OTCQX: MAKOF) (“Mako” or the “ Company”) is pleased to provide
third quarter 2022 (“Q3 2022”) production results from its San Albino gold mine (“San Albino”) in northern
Nicaragua, which is the fifth full quarter of production results since declaring commercial production on
July 1, 2021. Financial results for Q3 2022, including detailed reporting of our operating costs, are expected
to be released in November.
Q3 2022 Production Highlights
• 52,084 tonnes mined containing 10,531 ounces of gold (“oz Au”) at a blended grade of 6.28
grams per tonne gold (“g/t Au”)
o 21,655 tonnes mined containing 7,962 oz Au from diluted vein material at 11.44 g/t Au
o 30,429 tonnes mined contain ing 2,569 oz Au from historical dump and other mineralized
material above cutoff grade (“historical dump + other”) at 2.63 g/t Au
o 7.0:1 strip ratio for Phase 1
o 22.9:1 strip ratio overall which includes accelerated waste development of the West and the
Central Pit (“Arras Zone”)
• 44,452 tonnes milled containing 11,172 oz Au at a blended grade of 7.82 g/t Au
o 56% and 44% from diluted vein and historical dump and other, respectively
o 512 tonnes per day (“tpd”) milled at 94% availability
o 77.0% gold recoveries for all of Q3 2022 and 86.4% gold recoveries after improvements
made since August 10, 2022
• 144,624 tonnes in stockpile containing 12,293 oz Au at a blended grade of 2.64 g/t Au
• 8,598 oz Au recovered and 8,328 oz Au sold at an average realized price of US$ 1,724 per
ounce (final Au shipment for Q3 2022 was sold on the first business day of Q4 2022)
Akiba Leisman, Chief Executive Officer of Mako states that, “Q3 2022 was a tale of two halves. Beginning
in March 2022, the Company experienced metallurgical challenges with th e transition from oxide to fresh
material causing a diminution of recoveries in Q2(74.5%) and the first six weeks of Q3. Optimization of the
plant along with new highly detailed grade and lithological controls in our mining procedures led us to
correct the se issues midway through the quarter, such that recoveries are now at or above the 86%
recoveries announced in connection with our metallurgical testing from 2019 (see press release dated
December 13, 2019). The mine is performing well, where the diluted vein material continues to positively
reconcile to the resource model, and mill throughput was running just under nameplate capacity of 500
tonnes per day, including all availability factors . The mill averaged 512 tonnes per day for the quarter at
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94% availability, 4% below nameplate capacity, as the Company observed that increases in tank residence
time had a beneficial effect on recoveries . Post quarter end, with further optimizations, the plant is now
running above nameplate capacity, including all availability factors. With all of these changes, the Company
expects that the plant will recover substantially more gold in Q4 than the 8,598 ounces recovered in Q3.
Operating cash flow from the mine remains robust, with exploration expenditures increasing to US$1.3
million per month , an aggregate of US$13.2 million of principal being repaid under the Company’s loan
facilities with Wexford and Sailfish Royalty Corp. since the beginning of Q3 2021 , and over 2 million
common shares repurchased through our normal course issuer bid.”
Table 1 – Production Results
* Includes historical dump, hanging wall, footwall, historical muck and all other non-vein mineralized material above cutoff grade.
**For the purpose of calculating revenue, payments to Sailfish are deducted from the Average Realized Price.
Units Q4 2021 Q1 2022 Q2 2022 Q3 2022
Mined
Diluted Vein
Tonnes t 17,500 17,400 22,560 21,655
Gold Grade g/t 16.94 15.59 12.85 11.44
Contained Gold oz 9,530 8,723 9,324 7,962
Historical Dump + Other*
Tonnes t 26,660 32,380 24,660 30,429
Gold Grade g/t 3.17 2.74 2.65 2.63
Contained Gold oz 2,720 2,854 2,097 2,569
Waste
Tonnes t 776,539 1,516,510 1,249,926 1,190,243
Strip Ratio Phase 1 17.6 17.9 7.1 7.0
Strip Ratio Total N.A 30.5 26.5 22.9
Milled
Diluted Vein % 51% 48% 47% 56%
Historical Dump + Other* % 49% 52% 53% 44%
Tonnes t 38,313 46,869 49,332 44,452
Gold Grade g/t 9.01 7.20 7.30 7.82
Contained Gold oz 11,102 10,843 11,576 11,172
Mill Availability % 82% 87% 92% 94%
Average Tonnes per Day t/day 507 596 589 512
Recovered
Recoveries 3Q 2022 % 92.7% 85.6% 74.5% 77.0%
Recoveries (Aug 10th-Sep 30th) % - - - 86.4%
Gold Recovered oz 10,291 9,280 8,630 8,598
Gold Sold oz 9,588 9,580 9,027 8,328
Average Realized Price** US$/oz 1,797 1,870 1,866 1,724
w:o
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Table 2 – Quarter End Stockpile Statistics
* Includes stockpiles of mineralized material at the crusher.
** Includes historical dump, hanging wall, footwall, historical muck and all other non-vein mineralized material above cutoff grade.
Mining
The mine averaged 5 72 tpd of diluted vein material and historical dump + other in Q 3 2022 with a strip
ratio of 2 2.9 in total from the West and Central Pits . The current stockpile is 1 44,624 tonnes with 224
tonnes of higher-grade diluted vein material with a grade of 8.01 g/t Au and 144,401 tonnes of historical
dump + other material at 2.64 g/t Au for total contained gold of 12,293 oz at 2.64 g/t Au.
The highest grade ore for the quarter was fresh material mostly from the West Pit with an average grade
of 11.44 g/t Au. The detailed grade control procedures minimize the amount of hanging wall and foot wall
material being mined with the diluted vein material. Testing has shown the hanging wall and foot wall
material to have significantly higher preg-robbing potential than the diluted vein material. A combination of
geological mapping, additional lab testing, and new procedures implemented by our site geologist during
mining have all contributed to the improved selecti vity. The vein material, along with a minimal amount of
hanging wall and footwall material, are being mined separately from the balance of the hanging wall and
foot wall material resulting in significantly improved control of the preg-robbing potential of the mill feed.
Milling
All components of the 500 tpd gravity and carbon -in-leach processing plant have been fully operational
since the beginning of May 2021. During Q3, 2022, the plant has been averaging 512 tpd at 94% availability
(see Table 1). In Q3 2022 the plant processed 56% diluted vein material and 44% historical dump + other
material to achieve an average blended grade of 7.82 g/t Au and recovering an average of 77.0% (see
Table 1).
Beginning August 10, 2022, several mill improvements were implemented to improve metal recovery. The
overall recovery for the third quarter improved to 77.0% compared to 74.5% in the second quarter;
however, the recovery was 86.4% after the improvements were implemented.
Units Q4 2021 Q1 2022 Q2 2022 Q3 2022
Diluted Vein*
Tonnes t 6,510 2,959 4,061 224
Gold Grade g/t 13.62 7.95 11.81 8.01
Contained Gold oz 2,850 756 1,543 58
Historical Dump + Other**
Tonnes t 132,092 145,091 135,340 144,401
Gold Grade g/t 2.35 2.25 2.72 2.64
Contained Gold oz 9,982 10,513 11,842 12,236
Total
Tonnes t 138,602 148,050 139,401 144,624
Gold Grade g/t 2.88 2.37 2.99 2.64
Contained Gold oz 12,832 11,269 13,385 12,293
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The improvements are listed below:
✓ Through selective mining procedures and blending protocols, the amount of preg-robbing material
going through the mill was significantly reduced. The hanging wall and foot wall appears to have a
much higher preg -robbing potential than the vein and weat hered lithologies and our selective
mining procedures were able to separate this material effectively.
✓ The mill throughput was temporarily reduced from 544 tpd in July to 470 tpd in September in order
to increase the leach retention time. In October throughput is back to name plate capacity.
✓ The lower mill throughput also resulted in a grind size improvement from 77.2% passing 75 microns
to 79.1% passing 75 microns.
✓ The measured free cyanide in the grinding circuit fell from 14.1 ppm to 2.1 ppm through impr oved
operational procedures. The lower cyanide levels in the grinding circuit contributed to reduced
losses through preg-robbing.
✓ The inventory of carbon in the CIL circuit was increased from 25 to 34 tonnes.
In addition, a second carbon stripping vessel is currently operating in the processing plant, which is
expected to further debottleneck the carbon stripping circuit. The worn-out carbon retention screens are
expected to be replaced over the course of the next two weeks. The pre-leach thickener is scheduled to
return to service during the fourth quarter which will increase the leach retention time due to the higher
leach percentage solids produced by the thickener. These additional optimizations may improve recoveries
further.
Qualified Person
John Rust, a metallurgical engineer and qualified person (as defined under NI 43 -101) has read and
approved the technical information contained in this press release. Mr. Rust is a senior metallurgist and a
consultant to the Company.
On behalf of the Board,
Akiba Leisman
Chief Executive Officer
About Mako
Mako Mining Corp. is a publicly listed gold mining, development and exploration company. The Company
operates the high -grade San Albino gold mine in Nueva Segovia, Nicaragua, which ranks as one of the
highest-grade open pit gold mines globally. Mako’s primary objective is to operate San Albino pro fitably
and fund exploration of prospective targets on its district-scale land package.
For further information: Mako Mining Corp., Akiba Leisman, Chief Executive Officer, Telephone: 203-862-
7059, E -mail: [email protected] or visit our website at www.makominingcorp.com and
SEDAR www.sedar.com.
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Forward-Looking Information: Statements contained herein, other than historical fact, may be considered “forward-
looking information” within the meaning of applicable securities laws. The forward -looking information contained
herein is based on the Company’s plans and certain expectations and assumptions, including that Q3, 2022 detailed
operating costs and financial results will be available in November 2022;; the Company expects that the plant will
recover substantially more gold in Q4 than in Q3; the additional optimizations noted may improve recoveries further
;and that the Company can operate San Albino profitably in order to fund exploration of prospective targets on its
district-scale land package. Such forward-looking information is subject to a variety of risks and uncertainties which
could cause actual eve nts or results to differ materially from those reflected in the forward -looking information,
including, without limitation, the risk that the plant will not recover substantially more gold in Q4; that the expected
improvements noted will not lead to the improvements expected; that the Company is not successful in operating
San Albino profitably and/or funding its exploration of prospectus targets on its district -scale land package; political
risks and uncertainties involving the Company’s exploration properties; the inherent uncertainty of cost estimates and
the potential for unexpected costs and expense; commodity price fluctuations and other risks and uncertainties as
disclosed in the Company’s public disclosure filings on SEDAR at www.sedar.com. Such information contained herein
represents management’s best judgment as of the date hereof, based on information currently available and is
included for the purposes of providing investors with the Company’s expectations regarding the Company’s Q3 2022
production results at San Albino gold project, and may not be appropriate for other purposes. Mako does not
undertake to update any forward-looking information, except in accordance with applicable securities laws.
Neither the 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.