Highlights | Fourth Quarter | 2023 |
Gold produced (ounces) | 41,982 | 166,730 |
Average gold price realized (per ounce) | ||
Revenue (000s) | ||
Gross Profit (000s) | ||
Income before taxes (000s) | ||
Net Income (000s) | ||
Earnings per share – Basic | ||
EBITDA (000s) | ||
Operating Cash Flow before working capital (000s) | ||
Operating Cash Flow after working capital (000s) | ||
Free Cash Flow before working capital (000s) | ||
Free Cash Flow after working capital (000s) |
“Gold production in 2023 of 166,730 ounces is a record for the
The Company will host a video conference call on
This release should be read in conjunction with the Company’s Financial Statements and Management’s Discussion and Analysis (“MD&A”) for the years ended
Operational highlights – Fourth Quarter and Year Ended 2023
- Mine production was 2.0 million tonnes (“t”) of ore in the quarter. Mine production for the year was 8.5 million t of ore.
- Ore stacked on the heap leach facility (“HLF”) in the quarter was 2.1 million t at an average grade of 0.65 grams per tonne (“g/t”). Ore stacked for the year was 9.0 million t at an average grade of 0.72 g/t.
- Gold production was 41,982 ounces (“oz”) in the quarter. Gold production for the year was 166,730 oz.
Financial highlights – Fourth Quarter and Year Ended 2023
- Gold sold in the quarter was 36,601 oz, at an average realized price1 of
$2,636 (US$1,936 ) per oz. Gold sold for the year was 160,135 oz, at an average realized price1 of$2,603 (US$1,929 ) per oz. - Recognized revenue was
$96.4 million based on sales of 36,601 oz of gold in the quarter. Recognized revenue was$416.9 million based on sales of 160,135 oz of gold for the year. - Operating earnings were
$12.0 million in the quarter. Operating earnings were$70.4 million for the year. - Income before tax was
$4.2 million in the quarter. Income before tax was$43.4 million for the year. - Net income was
$2.6 million , or$0.04 per share on a basic basis and$0.04 per share on a diluted basis for the quarter. Net income was$25.1 million , or$0.38 per share on a basic basis and$0.38 per share on a diluted basis for the year. - Cash costs1 were
$1,738 (US$1,277 ) per oz and all-in sustaining costs (“AISC”)1 were$2,167 (US$1,592 ) per oz of gold sold in the quarter. Cash costs1 were$1,643 (US$1,218 ) per oz and AISC1 of$2,008 (US$1,488 ) per oz of gold sold for the year. - EBITDA1 were
$28.3 million in the quarter. EBITDA1 were$141.7 million for the year. - Free cash flow1 before working capital was
$0.4 million in the quarter. Free cash flow1 before working capital was$31.5 million for the year. - Free cash flow1 after working capital was
$5.8 million in the quarter. Free cash flow1 after working capital was$4.9 million for the year. - Total debt decreased by
$14.6 million in the quarter. Total debt decreased by$10.8 million during the year. - Cash and cash equivalents were
$15.0 million atDecember 31, 2023 .
2023 Actual Results vs. Guidance
The Company has achieved its 2023 Guidance.
2023 | Guidance | Actual |
Gold production (ozs) | 160,000 – 180,000 | 166,730 |
All-in Sustaining Costs (“AISC”) |
2024 Outlook
Note that cost information, including AISC1 and capital, within this press release are generally in Canadian currency. However, in this Outlook section, costs, including AISC1 and capital, are in US currency to allow for ease of comparison with the Company’s peers, who often report in US currency.
2024 | Guidance |
Gold production (ozs) | 165,000 – 185,000 |
All-in Sustaining Costs AISC |
Production at the
Although seasonal production fluctuations were reduced in 2023 due to year-round stacking, some production seasonality is expected to continue. Stacking is generally strongest during Q2 and Q3 due to higher temperatures during the summer months. Gold production is also generally strongest in Q2 and Q3 as certain heap leach field activities such as side slope leaching and usage of surface sprinklers only occur during the warmer months.
AISC1 for 2024 are expected to be between
Sustaining capital, not including waste stripping, is estimated at
Capitalized waste stripping is estimated at
Growth capital related to
________________________
1 Refer to the “Non-IFRS Performance Measures” section.
Operations Discussion
Fourth Quarter and Year Ended
THREE MONTHS ENDED | YEARS ENDED | |||||
2023 | 2022 | 2023 | 2022 | |||
Operating data | ||||||
Ore mined | t | 2,017,990 | 1,552,756 | 8,518,784 | 7,108,091 | |
Waste mined | t | 3,356,729 | 2,916,476 | 11,669,306 | 10,408,166 | |
Total mined | t | 5,374,719 | 4,469,232 | 20,188,090 | 17,516,257 | |
Strip ratio | w:o | 1.66 | 1.88 | 1.37 | 1.46 | |
Mining rate | tpd | 58,421 | 48,579 | 55,310 | 47,990 | |
Ore stacked on pad | t | 2,055,249 | 1,363,841 | 8,984,508 | 6,619,872 | |
Ore stacked grade | g/t Au | 0.65 | 0.90 | 0.72 | 0.85 | |
Throughput (stacked) | tpd | 22,340 | 14,824 | 24,615 | 18,137 | |
Gold ounces produced | oz | 41,982 | 43,741 | 166,730 | 150,182 | |
Gold ounces sold | oz | 36,601 | 40,573 | 160,135 | 139,596 | |
Notes - | Strip ratio: waste to ore (“w:o”) | |||||
Mining rate: tonnes per day (“tpd”) |
Gold production and sales
During the three months ended
During the three months ended
Mining
During the three months ended
Total tonnes mined were 20% higher during the three months ended
During the year ended
Total tonnes mined were 15% higher during the year ended
Processing
During the three months ended
Ore stacked on the HLF increased by 51% for the three months ended
Ore stacked for the quarter had an average grade of 0.65 g/t Au, compared to 0.90 g/t Au in the prior comparable period in 2022. Although grade was expected to be lower due to mine sequencing, the grade was also impacted by the stacking of lower grade bonus ore (material outside of the mine plan above cut off grade) and the processing of lower grade stockpiles.
During the year ended
Ore stacked on the HLF increased by 36% for year ended
Ore stacked for the year ended
As at
Capital
The capital outlined in this section is based on incurred capital and does not include certain working capital adjustments, specifically, changes to accounts payable relating to capital assets. Capital shown within Investing activities on the Consolidated Statements of Cash Flows includes changes in accounts payable relating to capital assets. Note that the Company’s forward Guidance with respect to capital is based on incurred capital.
The Company incurred a total of
- sustaining capital of
$3.8 million , including:- scheduled capital component rebuilds on mobile mining fleet of
$2.3 million , - upgrades and capital component rebuilds of the material handling system of
$0.9 million , and - other ongoing sustaining capital initiatives of
$0.6 million ;
- scheduled capital component rebuilds on mobile mining fleet of
- capitalized stripping activities of
$10.9 million , and; $1.4 million spend on growth capital expenditures including growth exploration.
The Company incurred a total of
- sustaining capital of
$25.5 million , including:- scheduled capital component rebuilds on mobile mining fleet of
$14.3 million , - upgrades and capital component rebuilds of the material handling system of
$6.6 million , - purchases of additional mining fleet equipment of
$2.1 million , - construction of the water treatment facility of
$1.3 million , and - other ongoing sustaining capital initiatives of
$1.2 million ;
- scheduled capital component rebuilds on mobile mining fleet of
- capitalized stripping activities of
$27.6 million , and; $17.1 million spend on growth capital expenditures including growth exploration expenditures.
Fourth Quarter and Full Year 2023 Financial Results
Expressed in 000s, except per share amounts | THREE MONTHS ENDED | YEARS ENDED | |||
2023 | 2022 | 2023 | 2022 | ||
Financial data | |||||
Revenue | $ | 96,424 | 92,310 | 416,902 | 321,843 |
Gross profit | $ | 14,744 | 22,872 | 80,258 | 87,732 |
Net income | $ | 2,567 | 10,464 | 25,139 | 35,040 |
Earnings per share – Basic | $ | 0.04 | 0.16 | 0.38 | 0.55 |
Earnings per share - Diluted | $ | 0.04 | 0.16 | 0.38 | 0.54 |
Expressed in 000s, except per share amounts | As at | As at | |
Financial position | |||
Cash and cash equivalents | $ | 14,971 | 20,572 |
Working capital | $ | 147,029 | 94,687 |
Property, plant and equipment | $ | 675,660 | 670,813 |
Total assets | $ | 1,016,886 | 1,016,806 |
Total debt | $ | 236,175 | 246,989 |
Revenue
For the three months ended
For the year ended
Cost of goods sold
Cost of goods sold was
Cost of goods sold was
Depreciation and depletion
Depreciation and depletion was
Depreciation and depletion was
Assets are depreciated on a straight-line basis over their useful life, or depleted on a units-of-production basis over the reserves to which they relate.
Liquidity and Capital Resources
At
Qualified Person
The technical content of this news release has been reviewed and approved by
Video Conference Call Details
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About the Dublin Gulch Property
Victoria Gold's 100%-owned Dublin Gulch gold property (the “Property”) is situated in central
The Property covers an area of approximately 555 square kilometers, and is the site of the Company's Eagle and Olive Gold Deposits. As at
Non-IFRS Performance Measures
The Company has included certain non-IFRS measures in this new release. Refer to the Company’s MD&A for an explanation, discussion and reconciliation of non-IFRS measures. The Company believes that these measures, in addition to measures prepared in accordance with International Financial Reporting Standards (“IFRS”), provide readers with an improved ability to evaluate the underlying performance of the Company and to compare it to information reported by other companies. The non-IFRS measures are intended to provide additional information and should not be considered in isolation or as a substitute for measures of performance prepared in accordance with IFRS. These measures do not have any standardized meaning prescribed under IFRS, and therefore may not be comparable to similar measures presented by other issuers.
Cautionary Language and Forward-Looking Statements
This press release includes certain statements that may be deemed "forward-looking statements". Except for statements of historical fact relating to Victoria, information contained herein constitutes forward-looking information, including any information related to the intended use of proceeds from the Term Facility and the Revolving Credit Facility, the amended terms and conditions of the Loan Facility, and Victoria's strategy, plans or future financial or operating performance. Forward-looking information is characterized by words such as “plan”, “expect”, “budget”, “target”, “project”, “intend”, “believe”, “anticipate”, “estimate” and other similar words, or statements that certain events or conditions “may”, “will”, “could” or “should” occur, and includes any guidance and forecasts set out herein (including, but not limited to, production and operational guidance of the Corporation). In order to give such forward-looking information, the Corporation has made certain assumptions about its business, operations, the economy and the mineral exploration industry in general, in particular in light of the impact of the novel coronavirus and the COVID-19 disease (“COVID-19”) on each of the foregoing. In this respect, the Corporation has assumed that production levels will remain consistent with management’s expectations, contracted parties provide goods and services on agreed timeframes, equipment works as anticipated, required regulatory approvals are received, no unusual geological or technical problems occur, no material adverse change in the price of gold occurs and no significant events occur outside of the Corporation's normal course of business. Forward-looking information is based on the opinions, assumptions and estimates of management considered reasonable at the date the statements are made, and are inherently subject to a variety of risks and uncertainties and other known and unknown factors that could cause actual events or results to differ materially from those described in, or implied by, the forward-looking information. These factors include the impact of general business and economic conditions, risks related to COVID-19 on the Company, global liquidity and credit availability on the timing of cash flows and the values of assets and liabilities based on projected future conditions, anticipated metal production, fluctuating metal prices, currency exchange rates, estimated ore grades, possible variations in ore grade or recovery rates, changes in accounting policies, changes in Victoria's corporate resources, changes in project parameters as plans continue to be refined, changes in development and production time frames, the possibility of cost overruns or unanticipated costs and expenses, uncertainty of mineral reserve and mineral resource estimates, higher prices for fuel, steel, power, labour and other consumables contributing to higher costs and general risks of the mining industry, failure of plant, equipment or processes to operate as anticipated, final pricing for metal sales, unanticipated results of future studies, seasonality and unanticipated weather changes, costs and timing of the development of new deposits, success of exploration activities, requirements for additional capital, permitting time lines, government regulation of mining operations, environmental risks, unanticipated reclamation expenses, title disputes or claims, limitations on insurance coverage and timing and possible outcomes of pending litigation and labour disputes, risks related to remote operations and the availability of adequate infrastructure, fluctuations in price and availability of energy and other inputs necessary for mining operations. Although Victoria has attempted to identify important factors that could cause actual actions, events or results to differ materially from those described in, or implied by, the forward-looking information, there may be other factors that cause actions, events or results not to be anticipated, estimated or intended. There can be no assurance that forward-looking information will prove to be accurate, as actual results and future events could differ materially from those anticipated in such statements. The reader is cautioned not to place undue reliance on forward-looking information. The forward-looking information contained herein is presented for the purpose of assisting investors in understanding Victoria's expected financial and operational performance and Victoria's plans and objectives and may not be appropriate for other purposes. All forward-looking information contained herein is given as of the date hereof, as the case may be, and is based upon the opinions and estimates of management and information available to management of the Corporation as at the date hereof. The Corporation undertakes no obligation to update or revise the forward-looking information contained herein and the documents incorporated by reference herein, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise, except as required by applicable laws.
For Further Information Contact:
President & CEO
Tel: 604-696-6605
ceo@vgcx.com
Source:
2024 GlobeNewswire, Inc., source