LONDON - Ecora Resources PLC (LSE:ECOR)(TSX:ECOR) issues the following trading update for the period 1 July to 30 September 2023.

Highlights: Portfolio contribution of $5.8 million (Q2 2023: $14.7 million) as Kestrel operations were mainly outside the Group's private royalty area and there was maintenance at Voisey's Bay.

Commodity prices underpinning Ecora's royalty portfolio were broadly flat throughout the period with copper averaging $3.80/lb and alloy grade cobalt averaging $17.84/lb.

The majority of Q3 saleable production at Kestrel was, as expected, outside the Group's royalty land with c. 60,000 tonnes from within the Group's royalty area. Production is expected to move back inside the Group's royalty area towards the end of Q4 driving a material increase in volume in H1 2024.

A maintenance period at the Long Harbour refinery restricted deliveries under the Voisey's Bay cobalt stream to 14 tonnes during the period (one 20 tonne delivery of which 70% is attributable to the Group), realising an average sales price of approximately $15/lb. Three deliveries are scheduled for Q4 which would result in 10-11 deliveries for FY 2023, in line with guidance, before an anticipated ramp up in 2024.

Capstone Copper announced on 2 August that it expects Mantos Blancos to deliver higher throughput rates in the second half of 2023 and to be fully ramped up to capacity of 20,000 tonnes per day at year end.

Ecora and Orovalle reached an agreement relating to the royalty over the EVBC mine whereby Orovalle has agreed to pay the outstanding royalty amounts for Q3 2022 and Q4 2022 totalling $1.5m in full, before applying a new ratchet structure linked to the gold price from 1 January 2023, that will see the applicable royalty increase from a minimum 0.5% where the gold price is

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