VANCOUVER, Aug. 28, 2013 /CNW/ - New Gold Inc. ("New Gold") (TSX and
NYSE MKT:NGD) today announces that a minor pit wall movement occurred
at its Cerro San Pedro Mine in Mexico on August 23, 2013. Approximately
800,000 tonnes of material moved on the northeast pit wall.
Importantly, no one was injured, however, as a precautionary measure,
mining in the area below the pit wall movement has been temporarily
suspended. New Gold is working with geotechnical experts to evaluate
the area and assess the impact on the company's near-term mine plan and
production at Cerro San Pedro. The objective is to develop a plan for
the safe resumption of mining in the area below the movement, however,
if it is determined that this area will not be accessible until the
next phase of mining, scheduled to take place in 2014, the company's
preliminary estimate is that approximately 15,000 ounces of gold
production would be carried forward from 2013 into future periods. The
cost to mine and recover these ounces is not expected to increase by a
material amount.
"Our primary focus is on ensuring the safety of our team and, as a
result, we have stopped mining activity below the area of the ground
movement," stated Robert Gallagher, President and Chief Executive
Officer. "We are currently assessing the ground conditions and plan to
adjust our mine plan to maximize our 2013 production, however, any
ounces that cannot be accessed this year as a result of the slide are
expected to be mined in the coming two years."
Separately, in the last month, recoveries from the Cerro San Pedro leach
pad have been below the company's targets. New Gold is evaluating
various alternatives to restore the recovery rates to historical
levels.
New Gold anticipates that Cerro San Pedro's 2013 production will be
below original expectations, however, efforts to mitigate the impact of
the pit wall movement and lower recovery rates are already underway.
New Gold will provide further details on the 2013 outlook for Cerro San
Pedro, including the amount of production that is expected to be
carried forward to future periods, as well as any potential impact on
the consolidated company as part of its third quarter results.
About New Gold Inc.
New Gold is an intermediate gold mining company. The company has a
portfolio of four producing assets and three significant development
projects. The New Afton Mine in Canada, the Cerro San Pedro Mine in
Mexico, the Mesquite Mine in the United States and the Peak Mines in
Australia provide the company with its production base and solid
foundation. In addition, New Gold owns 100% of the Blackwater project
and 97% of the Rainy River project, both in Canada, as well as 30% of
the El Morro project located in Chile. New Gold's objective is to
continue to establish itself as a leading intermediate producer,
focused on the environment, sustainability and generating peer-leading
shareholder returns. For further information on the company, please
visit www.newgold.com.
|
Cautionary Note Regarding Forward-Looking Statements
Certain information contained in this news release, including any
information relating to New Gold's future financial or operating
performance may be deemed "forward looking". All statements in this
news release, other than statements of historical fact, that address
events or developments that New Gold expects to occur, are
"forward-looking statements". Forward-looking statements are statements
that are not historical facts and are generally, but not always,
identified by the use of forward-looking terminology such as "plans",
"expects", "is expected", "budget", "scheduled", "estimates",
"forecasts", "intends", "anticipates", "projects", "potential",
"believes" or variations of such words and phrases or statements that
certain actions, events or results "may", "could", "would", "should",
"might" or "will be taken", "occur" or "be achieved" or the negative
connotation. Forward looking statements in this release include, among
others, statements regarding future production levels at Cerro San
Pedro and future costs. All forward-looking statements are based on the
opinions and estimates of management as of the date such statements are
made and are subject to important risk factors and uncertainties, many
of which are beyond New Gold's ability to control or predict.
Forward-looking statements are necessarily based on estimates and
assumptions that are inherently subject to known and unknown risks,
uncertainties and other factors that may cause actual results, level of
activity, performance or achievements to be materially different from
those expressed or implied by such forward-looking statements. Such
factors include, without limitation: significant capital requirements;
fluctuations in the international currency markets and in the rates of
exchange of the currencies of Canada, the United States and Mexico;
price volatility in the spot and forward markets for commodities;
discrepancies between actual and estimated production, between actual
and estimated reserves and resources and between actual and estimated
metallurgical recoveries; changes in international, national and local
government legislation in Mexico; taxation; controls, regulations and
political or economic developments in the countries in which New Gold
does or may carry on business; the speculative nature of mineral
exploration and development, including the risks of obtaining and
maintaining the validity and enforceability of the necessary licenses
and permits and complying with the permitting requirements of each
jurisdiction that New Gold operates, including, but not limited to, in
Mexico where the Cerro San Pedro mine has a history of ongoing legal
challenges related to our EIS; the lack of certainty with respect to
foreign legal systems, which may not be immune from the influence of
political pressure, corruption or other factors that are inconsistent
with the rule of law; diminishing quantities or grades of reserves;
loss of key employees; additional funding requirements; changes in
project parameters as plans continue to be refined; accidents; labour
disputes; and defective title to mineral claims or property or contests
over claims to mineral properties. In addition, there are risks and
hazards associated with the business of mineral exploration,
development and mining, including environmental hazards, industrial
accidents, unusual or unexpected formations, pressures, cave-ins,
geotechnical failures, flooding and gold bullion losses (and the risk
of inadequate insurance or inability to obtain insurance to cover these
risks) as well as "Risk Factors" included in New Gold's disclosure
documents filed on and available at www.sedar.com.
Forward-looking statements are not guarantees of future performance, and
actual results and future events could materially differ from those
anticipated in such statements. All of the forward-looking statements
contained in this news release are qualified by these cautionary
statements. New Gold expressly disclaims any intention or obligation to
update or revise any forward-looking statements, whether as a result of
new information, events or otherwise, except in accordance with
applicable securities laws.
SOURCE: New Gold Inc.
<p> <br/> New Gold Inc.<br/> Hannes Portmann<br/> Vice President, Corporate Development<br/> Direct: +1 (416) 324-6014<br/> Email: <a href="mailto:info@newgold.com">info@newgold.com</a> </p>