Silver production hits 7.9 million oz during first half of 2023; a 2.5M oz boost expected from Keno Hill to close out the year.

Hecla Mining Company July 13 announced that the startup of its Keno Hill mine in the Yukon and a more than 20-year production record at Lucky Friday in Idaho has helped to offset some of the lower second quarter silver production at the Greens Creek mine in Southeast Alaska.

With the ramp-up to full production getting underway, Hecla's newly acquired Keno Hill mine produced 184,264 ounces of silver during the second quarter.

The throughput at the mill averaged 330 tons per day during June, and the company is continuing the work toward a 440-ton-per-day average by the end of the year.

Hecla fed lower-grade ore, averaging a mere 17 ounces per ton, through the Keno Hill mill during the second quarter. This is compared to the 29-ounce-per-ton-ore mined and stockpiled during the same period.

"Keno Hill, while still testing the mill, operated in its first month at 75% of the targeted 440 tpd throughput using 'low-grade' ore to generate almost 200,000 ounces of silver," said Hecla Mining President and CEO Phillips Baker, Jr.

With higher-grade ore stockpiled and increased throughput expected, Hecla anticipates that silver production at Keno Hill will top 2 million oz during the second half of the year.

"Our silver operations remain on track to produce about 17 million ounces this year, with Keno Hill expected to produce more than 2.5 million ounces," Baker added.

20-year Lucky Friday record

Nearly 5 million oz of Hecla's 2023 silver production is expected to come from Lucky Friday. The iconic Idaho mine produced 1.29 million oz of silver during the second quarter, a 2% increase over the previous three-month period and the highest quarterly output since 2000.

"Lucky Friday's silver production was the highest since I started at Hecla more than 20 years ago," Baker said.

The increase in silver production was primarily attributable to 3% higher grades, partially offset by lower mill throughput.

At 1,033 tons per day, the Lucky Friday mill throughput during the second quarter was 2% lower than in the previous period. Hecla said the slight drop was primarily due to the local utility's unplanned replacement of the main electrical transformer, which disrupted production.

So far this year, Lucky Friday has produced 2.5 million oz of silver, a 21% increase over the first half of 2022.

With mill throughput expected to increase to 1,160 tpd (425,000 tons annually) in the fourth quarter, Hecla anticipates its iconic Idaho mine will produce 4.5 million and 5 million oz of silver this year.

Greens Creek ahead of pace

Even with the great news coming out of Keno Hill and Lucky Friday, the Greens Creek mine in Alaska continues to be Hecla's workhorse when it comes to silver production.

The Greens Creek Mine produced 2.4 million oz of silver during the second quarter, a 15% drop from the 2.8 million oz produced during the previous quarter. This drop is primarily attributed to expected lower silver grades compared to the first three months of the year.

Gold grades, however, increased. As a result, the Southeast Alaska mine produced 16,351 oz of gold during the second quarter, a 10% increase over the prior period.

Mill throughput at Greens Creek averaged 2,555 tpd during the second quarter, down slightly from the 2,591-ton-per-day average during the first three months of 2023. Hecla expects Greens Creek mill throughput to climb to 2,500 tons per day by the end of the year.

During the first half of 2023, Greens Creek produced 5.1 million oz of silver and 31,235 oz of gold.

This puts the mine on pace to achieve its production guidance of 9 million to 9.5 million oz of silver this year, which will account for more than half of Hecla's expected 17 million oz of silver production for 2023, an impressive total that is expected to climb with a full year of production at Keno Hill in 2024.

"With expected silver production of about 20 million ounces in 2025, Hecla is the world's fastest-growing established silver producer and the dominant producer of silver in the U.S. and soon Canada," said Baker.

Wildfires slow Casa Berardi

Greens Creek also accounted for roughly 42% of Hecla's second-quarter gold production due to a wildfire-related shutdown of the company's Casa Berardi mine in Quebec.

Casa Berardi produced 18,901 oz of gold in the second quarter, a decline of 23% compared to the first quarter's production of 24,686 oz.

While wildfires did not directly threaten Hecla's only primary gold-producing operation, a closure of the access road to Casa Berardi did prompt the company to suspend operation in early June.

Hecla planned to restart operation in mid-June, but this was delayed due to a second closure of the road.

Up until the June closure, the mill at Casa Berardi operated at an average rate of 4,500 tons per day.

Owing to the wildfire-related shutdown, Hecla has suspended Casa Berardi's 2023 gold production and cost guidance. The company expects to update this guidance with its second-quarter financial results in August.

Hecla Mining Company

With the 5.1 million oz produced during the first half of the year, the Greens Creek mine in Alaska is ahead of schedule when it comes to achieving the 9 million to 9.5 million oz 2023 guidance for the Southeast Alaska operation.

Casa Berardi produced 63,546 oz of gold during the first half of 2023.

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