Thompson Creek Announces Commercial Production at the New Endako Mill and Reaffirms 2012 Production and Cash Cost Guidance for the Endako Mine
Posted on February 7, 2012 3:08 pm
DENVER, CO, Feb. 7, 2012 /PRNewswire via COMTEX/ -- NYSE: TC TSX: TCM TSX-V:TRX.WT
Thompson Creek Metals Company Inc. ("Company" or "Thompson Creek"), a growing, diversified, North American mining company, today announced that the commissioning of the Company's new Endako mill is complete and that commercial production was achieved on February 1, 2012. For the first five days of February, the new mill was running at or above its design capacity of 55,000 tons per day, a 77% increase over the old mill's capacity of 31,000 tons per day. The construction of the regrind circuit for the new mill is still in process and is expected to be completed by the end of the first quarter of 2012. In the interim, the Company is utilizing the cleaner and regrind circuit in the old mill. The Company also reaffirmed 2012 production guidance for its 75% share of the Endako mine of approximately 10 - 11 million pounds of molybdenum and cash cost guidance of approximately $8.25 - $9.25 per pound.
"We are extremely pleased to have achieved the full design tonnage for the new mill just 20 days into the commissioning and start-up process," said Kevin Loughrey, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Thompson Creek. "Our employees, contractors, and suppliers have performed an outstanding job meeting the many challenges necessary to reach operational and commercial production so quickly. We continue to make significant progress and ramp up production, and we anticipate full production will be achieved in the second quarter of 2012. Once at full production, the Endako mine is expected to increase molybdenum production from approximately 10 million pounds per year to approximately 16 million pounds per year (100% basis)," added Mr. Loughrey.