Eldorado Gold (NYSE:EGO) delivered another positive news. Back in late January, the company announced its decision not to build the new mill at its Turkish Kisladag mine but to resume the heap-leach mining. This news was positive, as it should save around $500 million to build the mill and realize the needed pre-stripping. The company also announced that according to the updated mine plan, the heap-leach operation should be able to produce 460,000-520,000 toz gold between 2019 and 2021. The news was welcomed by a strong upward movement in Eldorado's share price.
The rapid change in the Kisladag development plan was the main catalyst that pushed Eldorado's share price higher. Shares of the company are 60% up year to date. The recent news gives a reason to believe that the growth should continue.
On March 31, Eldorado Gold announced commercial production at its Lamaque mine. This news is important, as Lamaque should produce 100,000-110,000 toz gold this year and 125,000-135,000 toz gold in 2020 and 2021. According to the 2018 technical report, the AISC should be only around $717/toz gold. The initial mine life is estimated at 7 years; however, there are sizeable resources that haven't been included in the mine plan yet, and the deposit is still open. The reserves include 953,000 toz gold, but measured, indicated and inferred resources include 3.184 million toz gold. It means that the probability of a significant expansion of the mine life is very high. There is also the option to increase the throughput rate. The Sigma Mill is able to process 2,200 tpd right now, however, the mine is permitted only for 1,800 tpd. The corporate presentation also indicates that by adding an SAG mill, the capacity could increase to 5,000 tpd. Moreover, Lamaque is located in a safe and mining-friendly jurisdiction of
