Saucito

Including the Saucito II expansion, Saucito is one of the Group’s most important assets; Saucito contributed 32% to total silver production in 2018 and generated 21.9% of total adjusted revenue.

Ownership: 100% Fresnillo plc
Location: Zacatecas 8km SW of the Fresnillo mine
Commodity: Silver, Gold
Operational since: 2011
Facilities: Underground mine and flotation plant
Workforce: 836 employees, 2,452 contractors
Milling Capacity : 7,800 tpd/2,600,000 tpy
Average ore grade in reserves: 261 g/t Silver, 1.39 g/t Gold
Mine Life: 5.3 years (2017: 5.8)

Quarterly Production

 

2Q19

1Q19

% change

2Q18

Ore processed (t)

662,023

665,650

-0.5

711,463
         

Production

        

Silver (koz)

4,507

4,332

4.0

5,161

Gold (oz)

17,987

18,729

-4.0

22,722

Lead (t)

4,562

5,877

-22.4

5,327

Zinc (t)

5,941

9,110

-34.8

7,549
         

Ore grades

        

Silver (g/t)

242

243

-0.4

260

Gold (g/t)

1.15

1.13

1.8

1.25

Lead %

0.83

1.03

-19.4

0.86

Zinc %

1.33

1.94

-31.4

1.64

Annual Silver Production

AR18 Saucito Mine Production

AR18 Saucito Financial Performance

History

2004

Drilling commenced

2009

Construction commenced

2011

Commercial production 1H11

Production

Silver (koz)

19,781 (FY18) % (6.8) Change

Gold (oz)

86,092 (FY18) % 23.1 Change

Lead (t)

22,662 (FY18) % 27.9 Change

Zinc (t)

29,506 (FY18) % 45.0 Change

Financial Highlights

Adjusted Revenue (US$m, FY18)

492.0 % (2.4) Change

Segment Profit (US$m, FY18)

274.5 % (12.9) Change

Captial Expenditure (US$m, FY18)

148.4 % 11.0 Change

Exploration (US$m, FY18)

36.6 % 40.2 Change

Highlights - 2Q19

  • Quarterly silver production increased 4.0% vs. 1Q19, driven by a higher recovery rate as a result of the optimised granulometry at the milling process.

  • In line with our expectations, quarterly and first half silver production decreased 12.7% and 11.5% vs. 2Q18 and 1H18 respectively due to a lower volume of ore processed and lower ore grade. The lower ore throughput resulted from a decrease in the Jarillas vein width, and downtime in the milling area due to technical issues. The lower ore grade is a result of the gradual depletion of higher ore grade areas.

  • Infill drilling at this mine continues to advance and, similarly to the Fresnillo mine, results are and will continue to be processed within the next months, which will result in increased certainty of the geological model.

  • The silver ore grade for 2019 is now expected to be in the range of 230-240 g/t, while gold ore grade is estimated to remain around the 1.1 g/t mark.

  • Quarterly by-product gold production decreased 4% vs. 1Q19 due to a lower recovery rate. Quarterly and first half by-product gold production decreased 20.8% and 7.3% vs 2Q18 and 1H18 respectively driven by lower grades and lower volume of ore processed.

Summary - 2018

  • FY18 silver grade of 257 g/t

  • Development rates lower year on year

  • 107,111 metres of infill drilling carried out

  • Concluded construction of the Pyrites plant

  • Initiated Jarillas shaft deepening

Performance Targets - 2019

  • Intensify parametric drilling and continue infill drilling programme
  • Targeting development rate increase of 20% by YE, prioritising the deepening of 5 main ramps in the Jarillas Vein
  • Continue deepening of the Jarillas shaft
  • Dilution expected to decrease 5-7% in 2019
  • Expect further improvements in contractor performance