Gold poured for first time in 30 years at Nevada's Relief Canyon Mine

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LOVELOCK, Nev. — With little fanfare, Americas Gold and Silver Corporation announced late last month it had poured gold for the first time at the Relief Canyon Mine northeast of Lovelock.

The company expects the mine to be in full production by the second quarter of 2020, according to a press release.

The gold pour comes nine months after the start of leach pad and other construction in May 2019, and it marks the first gold production in almost 30 years at the mine.

Active mining started in early December, according to the company. Commercial-level gold production is expected before the end of the second quarter of 2020.

Americas Gold spokesman Jack Perkins said the initial gold pour did not yield a significant amount of the precious metal and was intended primarily as a trial run for the upgraded refinery.

“The recent gold pour was small and really just focused on testing the equipment,” he explained last week. “We are anticipating a substantial gold pour and a ribbon cutting ceremony in late April.”

Otherwise, the mine “ramp up” is proceeding on schedule and within the $30 million budget, with 200,000 tons of ore stacked on the new leach pad. The mine is running 24 hours a day, with the goal of reaching maximum production capacity by stacking 14,500 tons of ore per day.

The company's consolidated gold equivalent production for 2020 is expected to reach 60,000-70,000 ounces, which would amount to an approximately 300 percent increase over 2019. In 2021, the company expects to produce 90,000-110,000 ounces of gold.

The company estimates the “all-in sustaining costs” for gold production will be somewhere between $900 and $1,100 per ounce of gold equivalent in 2020.

“Relief Canyon has successfully poured its first gold and the company is excited to see the asset ramp up to commercial production in the second quarter of this year,” said Americas President and CEO Darren Blasutti. “Our two-year outlook demonstrates that 2020 will be a transformational year for the company with further significant increases in 2021.

"Relief Canyon will provide considerable exposure to gold and increase the Company's forecasted consolidated revenue to approximately 70 percent from precious metals based on current prices.”

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LOVELOCK, Nev. — With little fanfare, Americas Gold and Silver Corporation announced late last month it had poured gold for the first time at the Relief Canyon Mine northeast of Lovelock.

The company expects the mine to be in full production by the second quarter of 2020, according to a press release.

The gold pour comes nine months after the start of leach pad and other construction in May 2019, and it marks the first gold production in almost 30 years at the mine.

Active mining started in early December, according to the company. Commercial-level gold production is expected before the end of the second quarter of 2020.

Americas Gold spokesman Jack Perkins said the initial gold pour did not yield a significant amount of the precious metal and was intended primarily as a trial run for the upgraded refinery.

“The recent gold pour was small and really just focused on testing the equipment,” he explained last week. “We are anticipating a substantial gold pour and a ribbon cutting ceremony in late April.”

Otherwise, the mine “ramp up” is proceeding on schedule and within the $30 million budget, with 200,000 tons of ore stacked on the new leach pad. The mine is running 24 hours a day, with the goal of reaching maximum production capacity by stacking 14,500 tons of ore per day.

The company's consolidated gold equivalent production for 2020 is expected to reach 60,000-70,000 ounces, which would amount to an approximately 300 percent increase over 2019. In 2021, the company expects to produce 90,000-110,000 ounces of gold.

The company estimates the “all-in sustaining costs” for gold production will be somewhere between $900 and $1,100 per ounce of gold equivalent in 2020.

“Relief Canyon has successfully poured its first gold and the company is excited to see the asset ramp up to commercial production in the second quarter of this year,” said Americas President and CEO Darren Blasutti. “Our two-year outlook demonstrates that 2020 will be a transformational year for the company with further significant increases in 2021.

"Relief Canyon will provide considerable exposure to gold and increase the Company's forecasted consolidated revenue to approximately 70 percent from precious metals based on current prices.”

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