Endeavour production of gold increases by 90%
Endeavour reports that its FY-2021 production of gold from continuing operations amounted to a record 1,524koz, an increase of 721koz, or 90% over FY-2020 due to the addition of Sabodala-Massawa and Wahgnion in the first quarter of the year, full year production from Boungou and Mana (which were acquired in 2020), and stronger performances at Houndé and Ity. Over the same period, AISC from continuing operations amounted to $883/oz, an increase of $30/oz or 4% over FY-2020 due to increases at the Group’s legacy assets, which were partially offset by the addition of the low cost Sabodala-Massawa mine.
Q4-2021 production from continuing operations amounted to 398koz, an increase of 16koz or 4% over Q3-2021, as a result of stronger performance across Houndé, Mana and Wahgnion. AISC from continuing operations increased by $11/oz or 1% to $915/oz in Q4-2021 due to higher costs at Boungou, Mana and Karma which were partially offset by lower costs at the flagship assets Houndé, Ity and Sabodala-Massawa as well as Wahgnion.
2021 FULL YEAR PERFORMANCE AND 2022 GUIDANCE
FY-2021 production from all operations amounted to 1,536koz, beating the top end of the guided 1,365-1,495koz range, due to out-performance at the Houndé, Ity, Sabodala-Massawa and Mana mines. FY-2021 all-in sustaining costs (“AISC”) amounted to $885/oz, achieving the guided $850-900/oz range in spite of inflationary pressures.
Following the divestment of the non-core Karma mine that was announced on 11 March 2022, Endeavour has updated its production and AISC guidance for its continuing operations to account for the removal of Karma’s guided production, with guidance for the other operations remaining unchanged. As a result, the Group’s updated 2022 guidance for continuing operations amounts to 1,315-1,400koz at an AISC of $880-930/oz.
FY-2022 OUTLOOK
Following the divestment of the non-core Karma mine that was announced on 11 March 2022, the Group’s production and cost guidance for continuing operations in 2022 is expected to amount to 1,315-1,400koz at an AISC of $880-930/oz. Production and AISC guidance is unchanged for all continuing operations, as published on 24 January 2022. More details on individual mine guidance have been provided in the below sections.
Sebastien de Montessus, President and CEO, commented: “2021 was a very successful year for Endeavour during which we delivered against all our objectives. Our focus was on executing our capital allocation priorities to fully deliver our shareholder returns programme, while supporting our operations, continuing to strengthen our balance sheet and investing in exploration.
Operationally, after the rapid and successful integration of the Teranga and SEMAFO assets, we were able to achieve a record year with production in excess of 1.5Moz, ensuring we have now met or exceeded guidance for the ninth consecutive year.
Our strong operating performance generated $1.2 billion in operating cash flow which has allowed us to deliver robust shareholder returns while improving our net cash position. Since commencing our shareholder returns programme, marked by the first dividend payment in early 2021, we have already returned $338 million by way of dividends and buybacks. On the balance sheet front, we have re-established a strong net cash position after absorbing circa $330 million of net debt following the Teranga acquisition.
We are also pleased to have recently completed the sale of our non-core Karma mine which will allow us to focus management efforts on our high margin, long-life and low cost core assets.
We have entered 2022 with considerable momentum and we expect to deliver another strong year for the Group. We will remain focussed on prudent balance sheet management, cash flow generation and shareholder returns while we continue to drive long-term value for shareholders through our key growth projects and our focus on exploration.”
