SEMAFO Commissions Second Phase of Plant Expansion at Mana
MONTREAL, QUEBEC -- (Marketwire) -- 07/28/10 -- SEMAFO (TSX: SMF) today announced the commissioning of the semi-autogenous grinding ('SAG') mill at its Mana Mine in Burkina Faso and the completion of phase two of the plant expansion.
Since the SAG mill start-up, throughput capacity reached up to 6,870 tonnes per day. Once fully commissioned, the SAG mill and new crusher will increase hard rock processing capacity from the current 4,000 tpd to 6,000 tonnes per day.
Commenting on the milestone, Benoit Desormeaux, Executive Vice-President and Chief Operating Officer said, 'Once again our team met expectation, completing the second phase of plant expansion on time. Work remains ongoing, with our teams now focusing on phase three of the plant expansion, which is well underway and scheduled for completion by year-end.'
Phase two was adopted in consideration of current reserves, 72% of which are in hard rock. This second phase of the plant expansion can increase annual production by up to 40,000 ounces when compared to Mana's previous plant capacity in hard rock.
As at April 30, 2010 Mana's mineral reserves by sector were as follows:
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Sectors at Mana Tons Ore g/t Au Oz Au
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Filon 67 52,000 2.9 4,800
Nyafe Total 972,000 5.2 161,300
Wona Total O/P 7,889,000 2.5 632,900
Wona U/G 9,243,000 2.9 849,900
ROM Pad 282,000 1.8 16,100
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TOTAL 18,437,000 2.8 1,665,000
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The main enhancements to the plant in phase two are the addition of a 26' x 10' SAG mill and the addition of a 36' x 48' single jaw crusher with a 400 tonne-per-hour capacity.
Phase three consists mainly of the addition of two CIL tanks which will extend the leach time in order to accommodate increased throughput and optimize gold recovery. Commissioning of the third phase is scheduled for the end of 2010.
About SEMAFO
SEMAFO is a Canadian-based mining company with gold production and exploration activities in West Africa. The Company currently operates three gold mines: the Mana Mine in Burkina Faso, the Samira Hill Mine in Niger and the Kiniero Mine in Guinea. SEMAFO is committed to evolve in a conscientious manner to become a major player in its geographical area of interest. SEMAFO's strategic focus is to maximize shareholder value by effectively managing its existing assets as well as pursuing organic and strategic growth opportunities in West Africa.
Caution Concerning Forward-looking Statements
This press release contains forward-looking statements. Forward-looking statements involve known and unknown risks, uncertainties and assumptions and accordingly, actual results and future events could differ materially from those expressed or implied in such statements. You are hence cautioned not to place undue reliance on forward-looking statements. Forward-looking statements include words or expressions such as 'will', 'increase', 'ongoing', 'scheduled', 'optimize', 'growth', 'evolve', 'become', 'pursuing' and other similar words or expressions. Factors that could cause future results or events to differ materially from current expectations expressed or implied by the forward-looking statements include the ability of the new SAG mill to increase capacity to 6,000 tonnes per day, the ability of the second phase of the plant explanation to increase annual production by up to 40,000 ounces when compared to Mana's previous plant capacity in hard rock, the ability of phase three to optimize gold recovery, the ability to execute on our strategic focus, fluctuation in the price of currencies, gold or operating costs, mining industry risks, uncertainty as to calculation of mineral reserves and resources, delays, political and social stability in Africa (including our ability to maintain or renew licenses and permits) and other risks described in SEMAFO's documents filed with Canadian securities regulatory authorities. You can find further information with respect to these and other risks in SEMAFO's 2009 Annual MD&A, as updated by our 2010 First Quarter MD&A, and other filings made with Canadian securities regulatory authorities and available at www.sedar.com. These documents are also available on our website at www.semafo.com. SEMAFO disclaims any obligation to update or revise these forward-looking statements, except as required by applicable law.
Contacts:
SEMAFO
Benoit La Salle
President & CEO
514-744-4408
Toll-Free: 1-888-744-4408
blasalle@semafo.com
SEMAFO
Sofia St Laurent
Communications
514-744-4408
Toll-Free: 1-888-744-4408
sstlaurent@semafo.com