Cerrado Gold shares set to resume trading on TSXV
Cerrado Gold Inc. [CERT-TSXV, CRDOF-OTCQX] said it has been advised by the TSX Venture Exchange that trading in the company’s common shares will resume at the opening on August 8, 2024.
The announcement comes just one day after Cerrado announced the results of a preliminary economic assessment (PEA) and updated mineral resource estimate for its Minera Don Nicolas mine in Santa Cruz Province, Argentina.
A cease trading order was imposed, May 7, 2024 by the Ontario Securities Commission due to the company’s failure to file audited financial statements for the year ended December 31, 2023.
Cerrado is a Toronto-based company with a focus on gold projects in the Americas. It is the 100% owner of the producing Minera Don Nicolas mine in Santa Cruz, province, Argentina and the Monte do Carmo development project, which is located in Tocatins State, Brazil.
Cerrado’s other key asset is a 100% stake in the Mon Sorcier iron and vanadium project in Chibougamau, Que.
The PEA fr Minera Don Nicolas (MDN) envisages average annual production of 56,000 gold equivalent ounces (GEOs) over a mine life of five years, from April 24, based on existing resources. Average all-in-sustaining costs are pegged at US$1,444 per ounce.
As high-grade material from the company’s Calandrias Norte pit is exhausted, the heap leach at Calandrias Sur and a second potential heap leach at Martinetas will generate strong cash flows, allowing the company to support continued deleveraging while refocusing efforts on exploration to add additional high-grade ounces to the mine plan, support underground development and expand the mine life.
The PEA is based on an updated mineral resource estimate of 490,000 ounces (measured and indicated) and 121,150 ounces of inferred resources with potential upside from continued drilling and resource expansion. No material upfront capital expenditures are required, according to the August 6, 2024 press release.
“The results of the PEA support the near-term operational performance we are targeting for Minera Don Nicolas,’’ said Cerrado CEO Mark Brennan. “These results support our view that MDN is set to enter a period of stable operations, generating robust cash flows enabling reduction of debt and enhancing the overall strength of Cerrado,’’ he said.
In March, Cerrado said it had signed an option deal with Amarillo Mineracao do Brasil Ltda, a unit of Hochschild Mining Plc, giving Amarillo the right to purchase up to a 100% interest in the Monte Do Carmo project for a total of US$60 million.
Meanwhile, Brennan said MDN continued to perform well during a typically challenging winter period. As previously announced, production for the second quarter was 16,255 GEOs as production from the heap leach continues to perform well. Production of 27,459 GEOs in the first half of 2024 has been achieved. The company is guiding for 2024 total production of between 50,000 and 60,000 GEOs at an all-in-sustaining cost of between US$1,200 and US$1,400 an ounce.