Fortuna Silver posts record Q3 production, shares up
Fortuna Silver Mines Inc. [FVI-TSX, Lima; FSM-NYSE; F4S-FSE] said it achieved record gold production in the third quarter of 2023 from its five operating mines in West Africa and Latin America.
Fortuna shares advanced on the news rising 3.8% or 14 cents to $3.77 on volume of 140,600. The shares are currently trading in a 52-week range of $5.61 and $3.51.
Gold and silver production for the quarter was 94,821 ounces and 1.7 million ounces respectively, or 128,671 gold equivalent ounces (GEO), which was a 38% increase compared to the second quarter of 2023.
The increase in gold production was driven by a first full quarter of production at the Seguela mine in Ivory Coast, which contributed 31,498 ounces during the quarter, after reporting its first gold pour in May, 2023.
“Seguela will be a cornerstone asset in Fortuna’s portfolio for years to come, and we look forward to unlocking the value it brings to all our stakeholders,’’ Fortuna CEO Jorge Ganoza said recently.
Meanwhile, the company is positioned to achieve its annual production guidance range of between 282,000 to 320,000 ounces of gold, and between 6.3 to 6.9 million ounces of silver, or between 412,000 and 463,000 gold equivalent ounces, including lead and zinc by-products.
It is poised to achieve those targets after increasing its annual production guidance at Yaramoko (Burkina Faso) to 110,000-120,000 ounces from an earlier target of between 92,000 and 102,000 ounces, an increase of approximately 14%.
In the third quarter of 2023, Yaramoko produced 34,036 ounces of gold at an average head grade of 7.72 g/t gold, marking a 25% increase from the same period in 2022.
Fortuna’s total gold and silver production for the first nine months of 2023 totalled 219,260 ounces and 4.5 million ounces respectively or 316,235 GEOs, including lead and zinc by-products.
Fortuna recently completed the acquisition of Chesser Resources Ltd. in a move that strengthens its 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 held 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. [ABX-TSX, GOLD-NASDAQ] and B2Gold Corp. [BTO-TSX, BTG-NYSE], located in Mali.
The transaction will be implemented by way of a scheme of arrangement and is valued at A$0.1421 for each Chesser share or $80.6 million.
Diamba Sud consists of four open pitable high-grade gold deposits, along with numerous targets yet to be tested.
Diamba Sud is estimated to host an indicated mineral resource of 10 million tonnes o of average grade 1.9 g/t gold containing 625,000 ounces. On top of that is an inferred resource of 4.7 million tonnes of average grade 1.5 g/t gold, containing 235,000 ounces.