Mr. Michael Hoffman reports
CROCODILE GOLD ANNOUNCES 4TH QUARTER PRODUCTION OF 22,300 OUNCES DESPITE ONE OF THE WETTEST QUARTERS ON RECORD-2010 PRODUCTION OF 81,800 OUNCES
Crocodile Gold Corp. had fourth-quarter production of 22,351 ounces and 2010 annual production of 81,793 ounces.
Highlights include:
- Crocodile milled 518,475 tonnes at a grade of 1.49 grams per tonne gold in the
fourth quarter of 2010, to produce 22,351 ounces at a recovery of 91.4 per cent.
Of note, ore milled in October was 196,000 tonnes, before the wet season
began to impact mill throughput.
- Gold poured during the fourth quarter of 2010 was 23,300 ounces, despite
the Northern Territory of Australia experiencing one of its wettest
quarters on record.
- During 2010, a total of 1,856,180 tonnes at a grade of 1.55 grams per tonne
gold were milled to produce 81,793 ounces, for an overall recovery of
88.4 per cent. Higher-than-normal monsoonal rains in December negatively
affected both mine production and mill throughput. There were eight days of
lost production in December at Howley as higher-grade ore at the bottom
of the pit was inaccessible, reducing production by approximately 2,000
ounces in the last half of December. In addition, 40,000 fewer tonnes
were milled in December due to rainfall-related production issues.
- The company focused on selectively mining higher-grade areas to offset
production difficulties caused by abnormally high rainfall. The current
long-term weather outlook for the monsoonal season, which typically ends
in March, indicates that there will be further above-average rainfall in
the first quarter of 2011.
- Production during the fourth quarter of 2010 came from the Brocks Creek
underground mine, and the Howley, North Point and Princess Louise open
pits.
- Crocodile Gold continued to work with the various government agencies to
finalize permits for mining the International open pit in the Pine Creek
North area.
- Crocodile Gold is ready to begin dewatering the Cosmo open pit upon
approval of final discharge permits expected shortly.
- During the fourth quarter of 2010, total underground development at
Cosmo was 140 metres. The focus was on developing and installing the
required underground infrastructure, including electrical and water
reticulation. Total underground development in 2010 was 562 metres.
- The Cosmo mine development and production contract was put out to tender
and the company received a number of very competitive bids, including a
significant cost savings for the next two years. Awarding of this tender
is anticipated to occur early in the first quarter of 2011.
-
Crocodile Gold expects to provide production guidance for 2011 shortly.
- Crocodile Gold expects to provide an update on the reserves and
resources in mid-February.
In releasing this information, Mike Hoffman, president and chief executive officer of Crocodile Gold, commented: "Our fourth-quarter results continue to reflect the steady progress we are making at our operation since we began commercial production on June 1, 2010. Our priority remains bringing the Cosmo underground mine to production in mid-2011 and to develop new sources of production in the Union Reefs/Pine Creek area."
Qualified person,
David Keough, MAusIMM, of Crocodile Gold, Australia operations, is a qualified person as such term is defined in National Instrument 43-101, and has reviewed and confirmed the technical information and data included in this news release.
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