Maya Reaches Commercial Production at Zgounder Silver Mine

Maya Gold & Silver (TSX:MYA) has achieved commercial production at its Zgounder silver mine, the company announced on Wednesday (January 9).

The miner reported that the commissioning and testing phase of its 500-tonne-per-day flotation mill has been completed, and that commercial production was established with the installation of a three-fold effect milling capacity and output.

“Achieving commercial production at Zgounder, Maya’s flagship project[,] marks another major milestone as we continue to deliver growth and value for shareholders,” said Founder, President and CEO Nourreddine Mokaddem in a release.

According to the miner, during a 28-day period a total of 4,622 tonnes of low-grade ore with an average silver grade of 157 grams per tonne were processed.

The overall silver recovery with flotation followed by cyanidation of the flotation concentrate reached 80.3 percent, which Maya recognizes is better than expected for the testing phase.

Overall, the flotation mill produced 321 tonnes of concentrate at a grade of 1,861 grams per tonne gold for a 7-percent weight recovery.

“Our team’s execution capabilities delivered the mine on schedule and in line with our expectations. As demonstrated by its very low cash cost of below US$6.37 per ounce, the Zgounder silver mine is expected to immediately start contributing to Maya’s free cash flow,” noted Mokaddem.

Before the end of January this year, the mill will start processing higher-grade ore in order to optimize and maximize commercial production.

In Maya’s last quarterly update, the company said it had produced 277,277 ounces of silver, with revenue from silver up to the end of September totaling US$4,975,201.

Mokaddem commented on Maya’s third quarter, stating at the time, “[w]e find ourselves in a strong cash position as we move into the next phase of ramping up production to 500 tonnes per day.”

As of 2:46 p.m. EST on Wednesday, Maya was up 1.67 percent, trading at C$1.83.

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Securities Disclosure: I, Nicole Rashotte, hold no direct investment interest in any company mentioned in this article.