Petaquilla Minerals Ltd. to Begin Gold Production
Monday November 3, 9:00 am ET
ca.us.biz.yahoo.com
VANCOUVER, BRITISH COLUMBIA--(MARKET WIRE)--Nov 3, 2008 -- Petaquilla Minerals Ltd. (Toronto:PTQ.TO - News)(OTC BB:PTQMF.OB - News)(Frankfurt:P7Z.F - News) today provided details of the progress made at its 100% owned Molejon gold mine in central Panama. The Company is now in the final stages of completing its Molejon gold production facility and has scheduled its first test production for the latter part of December 2008.
Estimates for the first twelve months of production are as follows:
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Quarter Ended
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02/28/2009 05/31/2009 08/31/2009 11/30/2009
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Ounces Produced 8,000 21,000 24,000 26,000
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Expected Cash Costs
per Ounce (USD) $1,320.00 $550.00 $550.00 $550.00
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The Company has estimated that it will produce 100,000 ounces on average per year, although the Company also believes there is potential for increasing this as production processes are perfected and maximized.
In addition, the Company has compiled historical exploration data from the 1990s on its 795 square kilometres of concessions and is strongly encouraged by the numerous gold targets identified. The results of this work are in accord with the Company's exploration model for the Petaquilla Mineral District. As a result, a 26 kilometre zone containing gold targets has been identified and requires follow-up exploration. The Company has commenced an aggressive exploration program over these targets comprising additional geological mapping, soil sampling and a trenching program with the aim of prioritizing the drill targets.
Total cash cost figures for gold production are calculated in accordance with a standard developed by The Gold Institute, formerly a worldwide association of suppliers of gold and gold products including leading North American gold producers. The Gold Institute ceased operations in 2002 but the standard is the accepted standard of reporting cash costs of production in North America. Total cash costs include mine site operating costs such as mining, processing, administration, royalties and production taxes, but are exclusive of amortization, reclamation, capital and exploration costs. Total cash costs are then divided by ounces produced to arrive at the total cash costs of production. The measure, along with production, is considered to be a key indicator of a company's ability to generate operating earnings and cash flow from its mining operations. This data is furnished to provide additional information and is a non-GAAP measure. It should not be considered in isolation as a substitute for measures of performance prepared in accordance with GAAP and is not necessarily indicative of operating costs presented under GAAP.
Forward looking information - Securities regulators encourage companies to disclose forward looking information to help investors understand a company's future prospects. This press release contains forward-looking information. These are "forward-looking" because we have used what we know and expect today to make a statement about the future. Forward-looking statements usually include words such as may, expect, anticipate, and believe or other similar words. We believe the expectations reflected in such forward-looking statements are reasonable. However, actual events and results could be substantially different because of the risks and uncertainties associated with our respective business or events that happen after the date of this press release. You should not place undue reliance on forward-looking statements.
About Petaquilla Minerals Ltd. - Petaquilla Minerals Ltd. is an emerging gold producer scheduled to bring its 100%-owned Molejon Gold Project into production in 2008. Anticipated throughput for the project during the first year of production will be 2200 tonnes of ore per day with an estimated gold production of 100,000 ounces. The plant utilizes three ball mills and a carbon-in-pulp processing facility.
On behalf of the Board of Directors of PETAQUILLA MINERALS LTD.
Richard Fifer, President and Chief Executive Officer
No stock exchange has approved or disapproved the information contained herein.
Contact:
Contacts:
Petaquilla Copper Ltd.
Richard Fifer
President and Chief Executive Officer
(604) 694-0021 or Toll Free: 1-877-694-0021
(604) 694-0063 (FAX)
Website: petaquilla.com
Source: Petaquilla Minerals Ltd. |
