Business
Hecla Mining Achieves 2021 Production Guidance; Produces 12.9 Million Ounces of Silver and 201,326 Ounces of Gold
COEUR D'ALENE, Idaho / Jan 13, 2022 / Business Wire / Hecla Mining Company (NYSE:HL) today announced its preliminary silver and gold production for the fourth q
About this update from Hecla Mining Company
[{"type":"text","content":"COEUR D'ALENE, Idaho / Jan 13, 2022 / Business Wire / Hecla Mining Company (NYSE:HL) today announced its preliminary silver and gold production for the fourth quarter and full year 2021 and year-end cash position.1 HIGHLIGHTS Annual Silver and gold production of 12.9 million ounces and 201,326 ounces, respectively. Zinc and lead production increased 1% and 26%, respectively. Silver equivalent production of 37.6 million ounces and gold equivalent production of 525,531 ounces.2 Lucky Friday silver production increased 75%. Casa Berardi increased gold production 11%. Year-end cash position of approximately $210 million with the credit facility undrawn. Quarterly (compared to 3rd Quarter 2021) 21% and 14% increase in silver and gold production, respectively. Greens Creek increased silver production 23%. Lucky Friday silver production increased 15%. Casa Berardi increased gold production 25%. “All three mines reported strong production with significant production growth at Lucky Friday and Casa Berardi,” said Hecla’s President and CEO Phillips S. Baker, Jr. “Lucky Friday increased production by 75% over the prior year primarily because in 2021 the mine was in full production for the entire year. In the fourth quarter, the expected higher silver grades and benefits of the new mining method delivered a 15% increase over the third quarter. The 2020 and 2021 investments helped Casa Berardi produce 11% more gold ounces than in 2020 and 25% more than in the third quarter. At Greens Creek, silver grades improved after resolving the third quarter mine sequencing issues, as a result fourth quarter production was 2.3 million ounces of silver and over 9 million ounces for the year.” Baker continued, “Even with doubling our exploration expenditures from 2020 and further enhancing our silver-linked dividend, our strong operational performance in 2021 delivered an increase of $80 million to our cash balance. With a strong operational and financial year behind us, we expect to continue to build on these achievements in 2022.” Greens Creek At the Greens Creek Mine in 2021, 9.2 million ounces of silver and 46,089 ounces of gold were produced. For the fourth quarter, 2.3 million ounces of silver and 10,229 ounces of gold were produced. Silver and gold production were lower for the year by 12% and 5%, respectively, primarily due to lower grades and min...