Thor Explorations Announces Second Quarter 2022 Financial and Operating Results, for the
Thor Explorations Announces Second Quarter
2022 Financial and Operating Results, for the
Three and Six Months Ending June 30, 2022
This Announcement contains inside information as defined in
Article 7 of the Market Abuse Regulation No. 596/2014
("MAR"). Upon the publication of this Announcement, this
inside information is now considered to be in the public
domain.
Vancouver, British Columbia--(Newsfile Corp. - August 29, 2022) - Thor Explorations Ltd. (TSXV: THX)
(AIM: THX) ("Thor Explorations" or the "Company") is pleased to provide an operational and financial
review for its mineral properties located in Nigeria, Senegal and Burkina Faso for the three ("Q2 2022"
or the "Period") and six months to June 30, 2022 ("H1 2022").
The Company's Condensed Consolidated Interim Financial Statements together with the notes related
thereto, as well as the Management's Discussion and Analysis for the three and six months ended June
30, 2022, are available on Thor Explorations' website
https://thorexpl.com/investors/financials/
.
Operational Highlights of the Period and H1 2022
Achievement of commercial production with 23,785 oz of gold produced at Segilola in the Period
(H1 2022: 45,128 oz)
Average mill feed grade during the Period was 3.66 grammes per tonne ("g/t") gold and
recovery was 95.5%
The Company exported the gold regularly throughout the Period selling 22,172 oz (H1 2022:
38,830 oz) of gold and 1,351 oz (H1 2022: 2,273 oz) of silver in the Period
Gold dore inventory of 2,065 ounces on hand, with 6,069 ounces in transit as at the end of Q2
2022
Zero Lost Time Incidents during Q2 2022
The Company has funded a range of livelihood restoration programmes to aid the local community
members who lost assets (crops and trees) and land within the mine's footprint
Community development included support for women's programmes, school scholarships for
children from vulnerable families, road upgrades and construction of local market facilities
Financial Highlights of the Period and H1 2022
Net profit for the period US$6.163m
Gold sales in the Q2 2022 generating revenues of US$41,354,747 (H1 2022: US$66,220,229)
As at June 30, 2022, the Company had cash of US$5,055,930
Sales of 22,172 oz (H1 2022: 38,830 oz) at a cash operating cost of US$922 per oz (H1 2022:
US$788 per oz)
sold and an all-in sustaining cost ("AISC") of US$956 per oz sold (H1 2022:
US$852 per oz)
As at June 30, 2022, the Company had Net debt of US$37,306,971 (Q1 2022: US$50,463,920)
In the Period, the Company repaid US$14,461,938 million, principal and interest, of its Senior
Secured Debt Facility with Africa Finance Corporation ("AFC")
Instalment payments on the AFC Senior Secured Debt Facility of US$9,740,959 are due by
December 31, 2022. These will be paid from cashflows during the year
The payment of the final EPC invoices has been extended by the EPC Contractor following the
delay in commercial production experienced in Q4 2021 and will be paid from cash flows during
H2 2022
In Q1 2022, the Company changed its presentation currency to the United States dollar ("$"). This
being the functional currency for the Company, and the currency of the primary economic
environment in which the Company operates.
Post Period Highlights
Senior Management Appointments
The Company has confirmed the permanent appointment of Chris Omo-Osagie, as Chief Financial
Officer effective immediately following his position over the last three months as Acting Chief Financial
Officer. Chris will report directly to the CEO and is not joining the Company's board.
Chris (47 years old) has served in various senior executive roles across North America, Europe, the
Caribbean and Africa with PricewaterhouseCoopers, Deloitte, Centrica, Molson Coors and more
recently as Deputy Regional Chief Finance Officer for Dangote Cement Plc in Nigeria. Chris has led and
sponsored numerous business transformational projects and has extensive experience in financial
reporting, finance operations, mergers and acquisitions, controls and assurance, and treasury
management and also financial advisory and corporate finance services to organizations, with
transaction values from US$30 million to US$45 billion, including supporting new listings on the TSX.V
(Toronto Stock Exchange) and the Irish Stock Exchange. Chris was a director of Autonomy Business
Solutions Limited within the five years prior to his appointment. He is a Chartered Accountant and Fellow
of the Institute of Chartered Accountants in England and Wales, and member of the Institute of Chartered
Accountants of Ontario, Canada.
There is no further information required to be disclosed under Rule 17 or paragraph (g) of Schedule 2 of
the AIM Rules for Companies.
Outlook
Further revision of 2022 production guidance to 90,000 to 100,000 oz of gold (previously 85,000 to
100,000 oz of gold) at an AISC of US$850-950 per oz
Continue to advance the Douta project to preliminary feasibility study ("PFS")
Advance exploration programmes across the portfolio, focusing on near mine and underground
exploration at Segilola, extension drilling at Douta as well as accessing regional targets in Nigeria
Segun Lawson, President & CEO, stated
:
"This has been a milestone quarter for the Company, generating a net profit of over US$6m for the
period. We are pleased to have completed another strong quarter at the upper end of our guidance,
improving on our performance in the first quarter of the year. Significantly, the Company repaid its largest
scheduled debt repayment in the period reducing its facility by 29% in the first six months of commercial
production.
"We have also continued to prioritise our Environmental, Social and Governance efforts in and around
the local communities and have funded a range of projects as agreed in our Community Development
Agreements.
"This has been a very encouraging first six months of the year and, as such, we are pleased to narrow
our full year production guidance for the second time to 90,000 to 100,000 ounces within a cost
guidance of US$850 - US$950 per ounce."
Further details can be found on the Company's website:
www.thorexpl.com
About Thor Explorations
Thor Explorations Ltd. is a mineral exploration company engaged in the acquisition, exploration,
development and production of mineral properties located in Nigeria, Senegal and Burkina Faso. Thor
Explorations holds a 100% interest in the Segilola Gold Project located in Osun State, Nigeria and has a
70% economic interest in the Douta Gold Project located in south-eastern Senegal. Thor Explorations
trades on AIM and the TSX Venture Exchange under the symbol "THX".
THOR EXPLORATIONS LTD.
Segun Lawson
President & CEO
For further information please contact:
Thor Explorations Ltd
Email:
Canaccord Genuity (Nominated Adviser & Broker)
Henry Fitzgerald-O'Connor / James Asensio / Thomas Diehl
Tel: +44 (0) 20 7523 8000
Hannam & Partners (Broker)
Andrew Chubb / Matt Hasson / Nilesh Patel / Franck Nganou
Tel: +44 (0) 20 7907 8500
Fig House Communications (Investor Relations)
Tel: +1 416 822 6483
Email:
BlytheRay (Financial PR)
Tim Blythe / Megan Ray / Rachael Brooks
Tel: +44 207 138 3203
Q2 2022 Operational Review
Segilola Project, Nigeria
During the Period, there continued to be global supply chain issues resulting in shortages and increased
prices for a number of essential consumables and supplies such as ammonium nitrate, diesel and spare
parts. The Company has mitigated these risks through the bulk purchase of most supply chain items and
anticipates that its production guidance and costs for the year remain in line.
Gold Production
During the three months ended June 30, 2022 the Segilola Mine produced 23,785 ounces of gold (Q1:
21,343 ounces).
The Company exported the gold regularly throughout the period selling 22,172 ounces of gold and 1,351
ounces of silver in the period and had a further gold dore inventory of 2,065 ounces on hand, with 6,069
ounces in transit. These ounces have all been sold in the third quarter of 2022.
Mining
During the three months ended June 30, 2022, 4,031,584 tonnes of material was mined, equivalent to
mining rates of 44,795 tonnes of material per day. In this period, 284,079 tonnes of ore were mined,
equivalent to mining rates of 3,122 tonnes of ore per day, at an average grade of 3.63g/t.
The stockpile balance at the end of the period was 249,281 tonnes of ore at an average of 1.46g/t.
Processing
During the three months ended June 30, 2022, a total of 211,582 tonnes of ore, equivalent to a
throughput rate of 2,351 tonnes per day, was processed.
The mill feed grade was 3.66g/t gold and recovery was 95.5% for a total of 23,785 ounces of gold
produced. We continue to review the process plant to optimize throughput and recoveries.
For the month of June, the Segilola process plant continued to operate at a steady state, above design
mill throughput, with 87,021 tonnes of ore processed at an average head grade of 3.88g/t and an overall
gold recovery of 95.5% for a total of 10,363 ounces of gold produced.
All of the main operating units are performing as expected, and the plant is consistently operating above
nameplate capacity. Optimization of the gold recovery process is ongoing, and the start-up issues
encountered have been addressed.
Production Metrics
Units
Q2 2022
Q1 2022
Mining
Total Ore Mined
Tonnes
284,079
226,314
Ore Processed
Tonnes
211,582
221,900
Low Grade Ore Stockpiled
Tonnes
249,281
179,758
Waste Mined
Tonnes
3,747,504
3,533,610
Total Mined
Tonnes
4,031,584
3,759,524
Total Ore Mined Gold Grade
g/t Au
3.63
2.68
Ore Processed
g/t Au
3.66
3.18
Low Grade Ore Stockpiled
g/t Au
1.46
1.23
Processing
Ore Milled
tonnes
211,582
221,920
Daily Throughput Rate (average)
tpd
2,784
2,760
Daily Throughput / Nameplate Capacity
%
141%
128%
Ore Processed Gold Grade
g/t Au
Recovery
%
95.5
94.1
Gold Recovered
oz
23,785
21,343
Environment and Social Summary Q2 2022
The main achievements with respect to the Company's environment and social activities for Q2 2022
were focused on Thor Explorations' corporate governance aspects in finalising Thor policies (12 new
and/or updated policies) and establishing an independent and free whistle blower hotline.
Thor's 2021
Sustainability Report was progressed and metrics devised for measuring implementation of key
sustainability parameters across the material topics of Corporate Governance, People, Health and
Safety, Social and Community Development, Cultural Governance and Environment. The report will be
completed in early Q3 2022.
During Q2 2022, significant progress has been made on the Segilola Gold Mine Project's Greenhouse
Gas ("GHG") Procedure and Tool. The Procedure sets out how carbon equivalent (CO
2
e) calculations
will be undertaken for the project and how they will be reported. This has involved back casting and
forecasting for the Life of Mine ("LOM") within the GHG Tool (spreadsheet) which is updated monthly.
The GHG Procedure and Tool is now signed off and was operational in Q2 2022. Monthly figures are
being reported in SROL's monthly reports. A key milestone was also achieved in May 2022 when
Segilola Mine Projects' power supply was switched over to compressed natural gas ("CNG"). The 6 MW
CNG generators reduce GHG by 53% over that generated by diesel generators. This is a key step in
SROL's reduction of its carbon footprint.
HSE statistics to end Q2 2022
Safety topic for the week: CLOSE CALLS
30-Jun
M-T-D
Y-T-D
P-T-D
HSE Statistics - Reactive (Lagging) Indicators
Number of Man Shifts Worked (Total)
826
22567
139,390
427,660
Man Hours
7450
216,054
1,258,103
3927506
Lost Time Injury (LTI) recorded
0
0
1
1
Fatality (FAT) recorded
0
0
0
1
Medical Treatment Case(MTC) reported
0
0
4
15
Near Miss (NM) reported
0
4
15
34
First Aid Case (FAC) reported
0
1
5
40
Property Damage (PD) reported
0
5
17
19
HSE Statistics - Proactive (Leading) Indicators
Number of Safety Inductions conducted
2
45
274
659
Toolbox Meeting conducted
10
274
1417
2,783
HSE Meetings conducted
0
7
38
84
HSE Inspections conducted
0
4
97
211
HSE Trainings conducted
1
10
35
344
Number of Unsafe Conditions reported
4
39
151
3,680
Number of Unsafe acts reported
5
65
299
3,288
LTI Free Days
1
30
114
Celebrations were held at site in Q2 2022 to commemorate World Safety at Work Day. It was an
occasion that celebrated SROL Safe Heroes and Departmental HSE Champions.
The ISO 45001 Health and Safety Certification process is ongoing with gap analysis and audit
undertaken. The SROL Safety Committee across all Departments was inaugurated chaired by the
Security Manager.
Additional water quality testing commenced south of the mining footprint to provide information on
environmental issues triggered by illegal mining in a local community. SROL is part of the task force to
address illegal mining issues in the locality.
An EIA for a helipad within the existing Segilola mine site is progressing and will be submitted to the
Federal Ministry of Environment in Q3 2022.
Social and community development parameters for the Segilola Project were also progressed in Q2
2022. Of significance was detailed costings for seed funded livelihood restoration programmes to aid
those local community members who lost assets (crops and trees) and land within the mine's footprint.
Fish farms and
vegetable plots have been designed to be constructed on land surrounding the water
storage dam and bill of quantities prepared. Land clearing has occurred and construction is slated to
commence in Q3 through to Q4 2022. Commitments to livelihood programmes were outlined in SROL's
Livelihood Restoration Plan. The programmes are expected to be self-sustaining within a two year
period and operate beyond the lifetime of the mine. An agricultural expert has been seconded into the
SROL team to assist in the development of the agricultural programmes. Through funding agreed via
Community Development Agreements ("CDA") signed with the three communities surrounding the
Segilola Mine, community programmes were progressed in Q2 2022. These included road upgrades
(grading of local roads and reconstruction of one main road) and construction of local market facilities.
Local employment targets were also set within with the CDAs and local employment makes up ~20% of
Segilola's site employment component, exceeding the CDA target.
CSR programmes were also
progressed in 2022 including the maiden edition of the Segilola football tournament held in May at
Iperindo and Odo-Ijesha football fields.
The popular sporting event is aimed at promoting youth
development and fostering unity amongst Host Communities and SROL.
Compensation for the Segilola project footprint continued in Q2 2022.
The compensation budget for the
Project sits at $3.8 million in line with the overall compensation budget for the Project. This provides
compensation for 277 landowners and 1113 asset owners (June 2022). Additionally, compensation for
temporary loss of assets and lands impacted by exploration activities (at 10 explorations sites across 3
states in Nigeria) stands at $297,000 for 445 asset and 7 landowners (as of June 2022).
Social listening continues (monitoring SROL and Thor mentions in Nigerian media) across electronic,
TV and printed media and findings are shared with key departments in SROL. Most media coverage
has been positive.
Exploration Activity Summary Q2 2022
Nigeria
Introduction
The high grade Segilola gold deposit is located on the major regional shear zone that extends for
several hundred kilometres through the gold-bearing Ilesha schist belt (structural corridor) of Nigeria.
Thor's exploration tenure now comprises nine explorations licences and five joint venture partnership
exploration licences.
Together with the mining lease over the Segilola Gold Deposit, Thor's total
exploration tenure amounts to over 1,268 km
2
.
Exploration Activity
Exploration during the quarter comprised on-going regional stream sediment sampling, surface soil
sampling, auger soil sampling, trench sampling and termite mound sampling in the exploration lease
located both north and south of the Segilola Gold Deposit and reverse circulation drilling on two high
priority targets within a 15 kilometre radius of the Segilola Mine.
Figure 1: Segilola Tenement Map showing Geochemical Sample Locations
To view an enhanced version of Figure 1, please visit:
https://images.newsfilecorp.com/files/7003/135295_1445cb4db4c75be6_002full.jpg
Reverse circulation ("RC") and Diamond drilling commenced during the quarter. The main objectives of
this programme are:
1
.
To test the geochemical and structural targets generated by auger soil sampling and trenching in
EL 20776 and EL23573.
The drilling was also targeting the occurrence of gold mined in shallow
pits mined by artisanal miners.
2
.
To test the gold-in soil anomalies generated by auger soil and trench sampling at Odo within
EL19066, 3km north of Segilola deposit.
Assay results are pending for the majority of the drilled holes with no significant results received on
assays received to date.
Post Period, the Exploration Lab arrived on site. The Lab is expected to be fully operational from
September 1, 2022 and will allow the Company to fully implement its exploration drilling program and
critically, will significantly reduce assay turnaround times.
Senegal
Introduction
The Douta Gold Project is a gold exploration permit, E02038, which covers an area of 58km
2
and is
located within the Kéniéba inlier, eastern Senegal. The northeast-trending licence (Figure 2) has an area
of 58 km
2
. Thor, through its wholly-owned subsidiary African Star Resources Incorporated ("African
Star"), has a 70% economic interest in partnership with the permit holder International Mining Company
SARL ("IMC"). IMC has a 30% free carried interest in its development until the announcement by Thor of
a Probable Reserve.
The Douta licence is strategically positioned 4km east of the Massawa North and Massawa Central
deposits, which form part of the world-class Sabadola-Massawa Project owned by Endeavour Mining
(Figure 2). The Makabingui deposit, belonging to Bassari Resources Ltd, is immediately located east of
the northern portion of E02038.
The Douta Gold Project has an initial inferred resource estimate of 15 million tonnes ("Mt") grading
1.53g/t gold for 730,000 ounces gold. The resource encompasses the Makosa, Makosa North and
Makosa Tail zones, which are collectively named the Makosa Resource.
Exploration Activity
Following a first phase ("Phase 1") of drilling to test the northern extension of the Makosa Resource, the
focus of the quarter has been a 12,000 metre RC drilling programme.
The main objectives of this programme are :
-
to test infill, lateral and down-dip extension of gold mineralisation of the new Sambara target;
-
infill and upgrade the categorization of the Makosa and Makosa Tail discoveries; and
-
further test additional targets generated through the auger drilling programme.
Phase 1 RC drilling programme started on 7 March and finished on 15 April. A total of 122 holes were
drilled for 8,083m comprising:
Sambara: 46 holes were drilled for 3,036m.
Makosa North 76 holes drilled for 5,047m.
Prospect
Number of Holes
Total Metres
Number of Samples
Makosa North
76
5,047
545
Sambara
46
3,036
5,935
Total
122
8,083
9,509
Table 2.4: Douta RC Drilling Statistics