Fortuna Silver posts record Q3 production, shares up
Fortuna Silver Mines Inc. [TSX-FVI, Lima; NYSE-FSM; F4S-FSE] has reported record production and financial results for the third quarter of 2023, driven by the first full quarter contribution from the company’s Seguela mine in Cote d’Ivoire.
Fortuna shares advanced on the news, rising 5.0% or 20 cents to $4.16 on volume of 680,330. The shares trade in a 52-week range of $5.61 and $3.56.
From Seguela’s first gold pour on May 24, 2023, to the successful completion of the processing plant performance test in August, the operation is now exceeding nameplate capacity, the company said. Seguela is well positioned to achieve the mid-point of its gold production guidance of 60-70,000 ounces for the second half of 2023.
In the third quarter of 2023, mine production totaled 502,326 tonnes of ore, averaging 3.48 g/t gold, and containing an estimated 56,136 ounces of gold from the Antenna Pit.
The all-in-sustaining cash cost per ounce of gold sold was US$788 for the third quarter of 2023, which was below plan, primarily due to lower cash cost, lower capital expenditures, and higher sale volume.
Fortuna Silver Mines is a Canadian company with five operating mines in Argentina, Burkina Faso, Mexico and Peru, and Cote d’Ivoire.
The company recently completed the acquisition of Chesser Resources Ltd. in a move that strengthens Fortuna’s presence in West Africa.
The acquisition of Chesser expands Fortuna’s asset base to include the preliminary economic assessment-stage Diamba Sud gold project in Senegal, one of the new and emerging gold discoveries in the region.
Chesser holds tenements covering approximately 872-square kilometres of prospective ground located in close proximity to and sharing similar geological features with tier one gold mines owned by Barrick Gold Corp. [TSX-ABX, NYSE-GOLD] and B2Gold Corp. [TSX-BTO, NYSE-BTG], located in Mali.
Fortuna produced 94,821 ounces of gold and 1.68 million ounces of silver in the third quarter. That amounted to AuEq production of 128,671 ounces, up from 93,454 ounces in the second quarter of 2023.
The consolidated all-in-sustaining costs (AISC) per ounce of AuEq sold was US$1,312, compared to US$1,799 in the second quarter of 2023.
Fortuna also reported third quarter net income of $27.5 million or $0.09 per share, compared to $3.1 million or $0.01 in the second quarter of 2023.
“In a short time, Chesser has done a great job advancing Diamba Sud from early-stage exploration to a PEA-stage project with multiple targets yet to be tested,’’ Fortuna President and CEO Jorge Ganoza has said.
Diamba Sud consists of four open pitable high-grade gold deposits, along with numerous targets yet to be tested. Fortuna said it will prioritize exploration to expand the mineral resource before advancing Diamba Sud to development stage.