Benzinga | Jul 13, 2021 05:13PM EDT

Silvercorp Metals Reports Q1 2021 Production Of ~1.5M Ounces Of Silver, 1,000 Ounces Of Gold, 15.9M Pounds Of Lead And 7.2M Pounds Of Zinc

In Q1 Fiscal 2022, the Company produced approximately 1.5 million ounces of silver, 1,000 ounces of gold, 15.9 million pounds of lead, and 7.2 million pounds of zinc, and sold approximately 1.6 million ounces of silver, 1,000 ounces of gold, 16.8 million pounds of lead, and 7.3 million pounds of zinc, representing decreases of 12%, 9%, and 20%, respectively, in silver, gold and lead sold, and an increase of 4% in zinc sold over the first quarter of fiscal 2021 ("Q1 Fiscal 2021").

The production decline in the current quarter resulted mainly from the Company's mining contracts renewal negotiations at the Ying Mining District. As reported in the Company's news release dated April 28, 2021, the Company's two-year mining contracts with the eight mining contractors at the Ying Mining District expired on March 31, 2021 and the parties reached a temporary two-month extension. During negotiations, some contract workers took breaks or left due to the uncertainty which caused some disruption to mining activities. When the contracts were renewed for an additional two year term in mid May 2021, it took some time for the contractors to bring back all their workers and ramp the operations back up to full capacity. Notwithstanding the production decline in Q1 Fiscal 2022, the Company expects to increase production in the remaining three quarters and meet its annual guidance to produce between 6.3 - 6.6 million ounces of silver, 65.7 -- 68.9 million pounds of lead, and 26.9 -- 28.5 million pounds of zinc in Fiscal 2022.