Oct 9 2015
Anthem United Inc. ("Anthem" or the "Company") is pleased to announce first production of gold and silver doré from its gold milling operation in Peru (the "Koricancha Mill") as well as provide an update of commissioning activities at the Koricancha Mill.
First Gold and Silver Production
In connection with initial commissioning, harvest of loaded carbon from the Koricancha Mill during August and September has produced approximately 2,665 ounces of gold and 2,556 ounces of silver in doré. Further, the Koricancha Mill has now also completed first exportation and sale of refined gold and silver.
Greg Smith, President and CEO, commented: "First production of gold and silver is always a significant event in the commissioning of a new plant and I would like to take this opportunity to commend and thank the Koricancha, EMC Green Group, and Anthem teams for their efforts in realizing this accomplishment. I'd further like to thank our local stakeholders and shareholders for their significant support to date."
Gold and silver production and sales are expected to increase as deliveries and stockpiles of mineralized mill feed continue to escalate and additional available processing capacity is brought on-line.
Koricancha Mill Commissioning
Construction of the Koricancha Mill is substantially complete with all critical infrastructure and equipment in place with the exception of the onsite chemical lab. Construction of the chemical lab is currently in progress and is expected to be completed during the fourth quarter. To date, the Koricancha Mill has been using local third-party laboratories for chemical analysis.
Commissioning activities at the Koricancha Mill commenced in late June and continued through September. The crushing circuit, the milling circuit, the recovery circuit, the tailings facility and support infrastructure are now fully commissioned.
Deliveries of mineralized mill feed have been accelerating with approximately 6,700 tonnes received during commissioning to September 30. As deliveries and stockpiles of mineralized feed continue to increase over the next several months, available capacity will be brought on line as needed up to the 350 tonne per day total plant capacity.
As the Company has now demonstrated the operating capability of the plant after several months of commissioning, it will commence accounting for operations at the Koricancha Mill on a commercial production basis as of October 1.
Responsible Jewellery Council
As a company committed to responsible production of precious metals, Anthem is pleased to announce that it has been accepted as a member of the Responsible Jewellery Council ("RJC"). RJC is a not-for-profit, standard setting and certification organisation with over 600 member companies spanning the jewellery supply chain from mine to retail.
RJC members commit to and are independently audited against the RJC Code of Practices, an international standard on responsible business practices for diamonds, gold and platinum group metals. The Code of Practices addresses human rights, labour rights, environmental impact, mining practices, product disclosure and many more important topics in the jewellery supply chain. In joining the RJC, the Company has committed to achieving full certification pursuant to the RJC Code of Practices, as applicable to its business, within the next two years.