TMAC Reports Improved Second Quarter 2018 Results and Demonstrates 2,000 Tonnes Per Day Capacity

13 August 2018

Press Release, 08/13/2018
TORONTO--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- TMAC Resources Inc. (TSX: TMR) (“TMAC” or the “Company”) today announced a net loss of $10.3 million ($0.11 per share), a profit from mining operations of $1.0 million and cash flows from operating activities of $14.6 million for the three months ended June 30, 2018.
Jason Neal, President and Chief Executive Officer of TMAC, stated, “The Company achieved significant milestones toward our targeted operating performance in the second quarter, including improved Plant recoveries of 76% in April, 83% in May and 85% in June, compared with 71% in the first quarter. Improvements in recovery contributed to record gold poured of 25,970 ounces, up 38% from the first quarter. Additionally, in mid-June we began putting material tonnage through the second concentrator line to ramp up to 2,000 tonnes per day Plant capacity, and by the end of July the Plant ran for several consecutive days at or above 2,000 tonnes per day of throughput. Our successes have not come without significant challenges, most notably, after quarter-end, we experienced significant disruption in the concentrate treatment plant contributing to ten days of downtime in the month of July alone, and frequent stops and restarts within operating days, resulting in reduced throughput and recoveries for July. Recent unreconciled daily results from the re-stabilized Plant indicate that we are trending back to recoveries consistent with May and June. However, by far the most significant step forward will be the installation of six gravity concentrators and other improvements in August, September and October that are designed to drive recoveries to 90% in the fourth quarter, and ramping up Plant capacity in advance of this retrofit is extremely important. Finally, the Nunavut Impact Review Board recommended to Crown-Indigenous Relations and Northern Affairs Canada that TMAC’s proposed Madrid-Boston Project be permitted to proceed, which is key to medium-term value generation at TMAC that comes with development of the second, third and fourth mines at Hope Bay.”
Maarten Theunissen, TMAC’s Chief Financial Officer commented, “We have been very focused throughout the year in improving the efficiency of our balance sheet, especially leading into our third quarter trough cash balance during the annual sealift. In the second quarter, we successfully completed the diesel consignment transaction and, subsequent to quarter-end, finalized the demand bond structure. The issuance of demand bonds has released thus far approximately $15 million from restricted cash rather than the $25 million we had expected, and this shortfall is material to our short-term cash management efforts.”