SSR Mining (SSRM) Q3 2024 Earnings Name Transcript

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At this time’s dialogue will embody forward-looking statements, so please learn the disclosures within the related paperwork. Moreover, we’ll discuss with non-GAAP monetary measures throughout our dialogue and within the accompanying slides. Please see our press launch for details about the comparable GAAP measures. Rod Antal, government chairman, will probably be joined by Michael Sparks, chief monetary officer; and Invoice MacNevin, EVP, operations and sustainability, on right now’s name.

I’ll now flip the road over to Rod.

Rod Antal — Govt Chairman

Nice. Thanks, Alex, and thanks for everybody for becoming a member of us right now. I’ll begin right now’s name with an replace on Copler, summarizing the work accomplished to this point in the important thing areas of focus going ahead. We are going to then present an replace on the third-quarter monetary outcomes and operational highlights for Marigold, Seabee, and Puna.

At Copler, we have made good progress on the 4 key priorities because the incident. These have been: first, the restoration of our lacking colleagues; two, the containment and remediation of the positioning; third, the investigation into the basis explanation for the heap leach failure; and fourth, making ready for the restart of the Copler mine. With respect to our lacking colleagues, all 9 people have been recovered and returned to their households. We’re persevering with to help the households and the group members impacted by the Copler incident.

Second, the entire deliberate containment infrastructure has been efficiently put in and are proving to be efficient. Public statements from the Turkish authorities officers proceed to reiterate that there was no recordable contamination to native soil, water, or air within the sampling places. In partnership with the Turkish authorities, we have now continued to progress the remediation at website. Good progress has been made to this point with over 16 million tonnes of the displaced heap leach materials moved into momentary storage places, together with considerably all of the displaced materials from the Sabirli Valley.

As a part of the remediation work and as beforehand disclosed, the heap leach pad will probably be completely closed and no future heap leach processing will happen at Copler. We’re persevering with discussions with the Turkish authorities officers across the closing remediation plan, together with the approval and building of the East storage facility, which is able to completely shut — which is able to completely retailer all of this displaced materials. The Copler remediation and containment work is estimated to value between $250 million to $300 million and take a complete of 24 to 36 months to finish. Within the third quarter of 2024, $48 million was spent on remediation actions at Copler, bringing whole remediation spend since April 1 to $103 million.

Third, on the incident investigation. The preliminary design of the heap leach facility ready previous to commencing manufacturing in 2010 and every subsequent enlargement thereafter was engineered, reviewed, and permitted by impartial third-party engineering corporations. All through the assorted levels of building throughout the lifetime of the heap leach facility, third-party evaluations had been additionally performed to make sure conformance with underlying engineering design parameters. The investigations into the reason for the Copler incident started shortly after the occasion.

We commissioned impartial specialists to evaluation the design, building, and operations of the heap leach facility. To this point, this evaluation has not recognized any materials nonconformance with the development or operation of the heap leach facility relative to the third-party engineered design parameters. The final level with respect to a possible restart. We proceed to work carefully with the related authorities to advance the required permits for the restart of the Copler mine.

As soon as all regulatory approvals, together with the working permits, are reinstated, it’s anticipated that the preliminary operations at Copler might restart inside 20 days from that time. So, now, let’s transfer on to Slide 4, the place Michael will talk about the third-quarter outcomes.

Michael Sparks — Chief Monetary Officer

Thanks, Rod, and good afternoon, everybody. Third quarter 2024 manufacturing was 97,000 gold equal ounces at all-in sustaining prices of $2,065 per ounce, which incorporates money care and upkeep prices incurred at each Copler and Seabee, representing roughly $252 an oz. Seabee was positioned into momentary care and upkeep because of forest fires on August 21 and operations had been subsequently restarted on October 11. Yr to this point, Marigold, Seabee, and Puna have mixed to supply 249,000 gold equal ounces.

Through the quarter, we proceed to advance brownfield exploration packages at Marigold, Seabee, and Puna, which Invoice will talk about later. Moreover, website institution and engineering actions at Hod Maden proceed to progress. On to Slide 5 for a short take a look at the monetary outcomes. We recorded attributable web revenue of $0.05 per share within the third quarter, whereas adjusted web revenue per share was $0.03, largely reflecting the exclusion of minor tax and international change good points recorded within the quarter.

As a reminder, we don’t modify for care and upkeep prices, and the complete influence of those bills at each Copler and Seabee are included in our adjusted web revenue. Together with the remediation spend at Copler, third quarter money generated by working actions was unfavorable $1 million, whereas free money movement was unfavorable $34 million. We completed the quarter with $334 million in whole money and a web money place of $104 million and whole liquidity of $834 million. With our present liquidity and an outlook for improved manufacturing and free money movement technology within the fourth quarter, we stay in a powerful place financially and are well-positioned to handle the remediation prices at Copler in addition to proceed our reinvestment wants throughout the enterprise.

On to Slide 7 to debate the operations, the place Invoice will begin with Marigold.

Invoice MacNevin — Govt Vice President Operations and Sustainability

Thanks, Michael. Marigold’s third-quarter manufacturing of 48,000 ounces was consistent with expectations. Because the 2024 mine plan requires, the fourth quarter has the bottom manufacturing and highest value of the 12 months. Marigold stays on monitor to satisfy its full-year manufacturing steerage of 155,000 to 175,000 ounces.

Nonetheless, we now count on elevated full-year prices due predominantly to elevated royalty prices and higher-than-expected upkeep part prices. Of the rise to Marigold’s AISC steerage, roughly 60% is related to larger royalty prices ensuing from the sturdy gold value in 2024. We count on each of those value pressures to persist into 2025. Brownfield exploration and desktop research at Buffalo Valley superior in the course of the quarter as we glance to proceed to exchange mine depletion and probably additional broaden Marigold’s working life.

Now, on to Seabee. At Seabee, third quarter manufacturing of 10,000 ounces mirrored the momentary suspension of operations on August 21 because of forest fires within the neighborhood of the mine. Fortunately, none of our workers had been injured by these fires and the method plant in Santoy mine weren’t materially impacted. Whereas some distant gear, together with energy poles, piping, and exploration gear was broken, operations had been absolutely restarted on October 11.

Because of the suspension, Seabee’s full-year 2024 steerage is now 65,000 to 70,000 ounces at AISC of $1,725 to $1,755 per ounce. Seabee continues to deal with evaluating and drilling near-mine extensions to present underground mineralization in addition to the continued development of the Porky and Porky West targets. The Porky targets signify a possible mine life extension alternative, and the Seabee crew is aggressively advancing technical research to raised delineate the chance. Whereas the floor drilling program was impacted by forest fires within the third quarter, the vegetation cowl cleared by the fires have supplied our exploration crew with new alternatives to judge floor targets within the coming area seasons.

Now, on to Puna. Puna produced 2.9 million ounces of silver within the third quarter, reflecting a second consecutive quarter of report throughputs for the Pirquitas processing facility. Owing to sturdy working outcomes during the last two quarters, Puna is now anticipated to supply 10 million to 10.5 million ounces of silver in 2024, a rise of greater than 1 million ounces of silver on a midpoint foundation. Whereas Puna’s full-year value expectations are unchanged, the AISC of $1,537 per ounce within the third quarter demonstrated Puna’s important free money movement margins within the present silver value surroundings.

As well as, exploration and technical work continues to judge alternatives to increase operations at Puna by means of potential extensions at Chinchillas and continued development of the Cortaderas goal by means of near-mine drilling. Now, I am going to flip again to Rod for closing remarks.

Rod Antal — Govt Chairman

Nice. Thanks, Michael, and thanks, Invoice. As I discussed, we set out 4 commitments following the Copler incident. These commitments are vital milestones within the path towards a possible restart of the operation.

And I discussed we proceed to make good progress on all of the fronts. We’re trying ahead to a powerful near the 12 months at every of Marigold, Seabee, and Puna, and we’ll proceed to advance alternatives to enhance our enterprise by means of operational excellence, initiatives, and brownfields progress initiatives as we transfer into 2025. As Michael talked about, we have now continued to advance Hod Maden, and we count on to offer an replace on our anticipated 2025 capital spend on the mission with our regular steerage replace early subsequent 12 months. To this point, our work continues to show an exceptionally high-quality asset that will probably be a key contributor to our portfolio going ahead.

So, with that, I’ll flip over the decision to the operator for any questions you’ll have. Thanks.

Questions & Solutions:

Operator

Women and gents, at the moment, we’ll start the question-and-answer session. [Operator instructions] Our first query right now comes from Ovais Habib from Scotiabank. Please go forward together with your query.

Ovais Habib — Analyst

Hello, Rod and SSR crew. Simply a few questions from me. Beginning off simply on the Copler remediation. You have talked about, clearly, this momentary storage facility proper now.

After which clearly, you are going to go to a extra everlasting storage facility at one level. What sort of — I imply, when it comes to — you are ready for, I suppose, approvals, what sort of approvals do you want? Are there permits required? Anything that you just want type of to go ahead with that? Any kind of coloration on that may be appreciated.

Rod Antal — Govt Chairman

Yeah. Thanks, Ovais. Look, I feel the pleasing standing of the place we’re proper now from a remediation perspective is the important thing level is considerably all of the supplies out of the Sabirli Valley. So, that is actually the excellent news.

And naturally, when the incident occurred, we did not have a closing kind of design for what the last word storage facility can be, and nor did we count on that we might need to recreate one. So, since that date, we have been in session with the federal government going by means of the assorted choices that we needed to not solely find the everlasting storage facility but additionally outline it from an engineering perspective in addition to assembly the commitments from the Turkish rules of what the necessities are for a foreclosures. So, all of that work has been ongoing, Ovais. And the placement was chosen, which is sweet, which is we have termed the storage facility.

The engineering has progressed. The discussions are happening with the regulators to make sure that we have now met the entire necessities as effectively. And keep in mind, this would be the first closure of this kind within the nation. So, we’re ensuring that we’re taking all the suitable steps.

And as soon as that is all carried out, the approvals will probably be forthcoming. So, we do count on that early subsequent 12 months. After which from that time, we’ll begin the efforts across the building after which transferring the supplies within the momentary places to the everlasting one.

Ovais Habib — Analyst

And simply — thanks for that. And simply when it comes to the EIA, when it comes to — now you are type of reverting again, I consider, to the 2012 EIA. And it is type of speaking about 6,000 tonnes per day versus the 9,000 tonnes per day that was within the 2021 EIA. Assuming you get all the mandatory approvals to restart, would you be taking a look at a restart at that 6,000 tonnes per day then versus the 9,000? Just a few readability there.

Rod Antal — Govt Chairman

Yeah, that is right, Ovais. I feel, look, the cancellation, as we have disclosed, was an administrative enchantment within the court docket. There may be efforts happening within the nation to enchantment these case at the side of the suitable authorities departments. So, that’s persevering with within the background.

However the default place is again to the 2014 EIA, which limits the throughput charges to six,000 tonnes per day. So, that would be the assuming all issues being equal, as we all know it right now, that may be the fallback place, and we’ll plan on these accordingly. After which sooner or later, we might — we have now to anyway do an EIA refresh sooner or later, and that can simply speed up these efforts transferring into subsequent 12 months.

Ovais Habib — Analyst

Thanks for that, Rod. And simply final query for me. By way of any kind of restart over right here, together with your discussions that you just’re having with the regulators, does the restart have to attend till all remediation is full? Or are you able to restart whereas the remediation is going down?

Rod Antal — Govt Chairman

It is not depending on the entire remediation or different efforts round it. The discussions that we have had and as I kind of talked about, I feel the entire efforts that we have had underway and are presently underway, and a few are accomplished, some are nonetheless ongoing at Copler are actually a precursor to these conversations. And as you’ll be able to think about, actively and regularly, there’s many ranges of presidency that these conversations are persevering with to evolve. So, it is not essentially all on the situation that we end all this work, but it surely helps whereas we’re having these conversations as a result of we’re performing out our commitments to make good put up the Copler incident, and we’ll proceed to have the dialogue with the assorted authorities departments to finally obtain a restart at Copler.

Ovais Habib — Analyst

Excellent. Thanks for that, Rod. That is all my questions. Respect it.

Thanks, guys.

Operator

[Operator instructions] And women and gents, I am displaying no further questions at the moment. We’ll shut right now’s question-and-answer session, in addition to right now’s convention name. [Operator signoff]

Period: 0 minutes

Name contributors:

Alex Hunchak — Investor Relations

Rod Antal — Govt Chairman

Michael Sparks — Chief Monetary Officer

Invoice MacNevin — Govt Vice President Operations and Sustainability

Ovais Habib — Analyst

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