First Majestic (TSX: FR) this morning reported that it managed to produce 7.6 million ounces of silver equivalent in the first quarter of 2021. The figure comes in flat relative to the firms fourth quarter performance.
The company managed to produce a total of 2.5 million ounces of silver and 60,594 ounces of gold during the three month period. Silver production improved 6% on a quarter over quarter basis, from 2.4 million ounces in Q4, while gold production declined 4% from 63,039 ounces.
San Dimas remained the firms top producer during the quarter, churning out 3.3 million silver equivalent ounces during the quarter, an improvement over the 3.1 million silver equivalent ounces in the fourth quarter. Santa Elena meanwhile saw production decline from 2.3 million ounces of silver equivalent to 2.1 million ounces. La Encantada meanwhile saw production remain steady at 800k ounces of silver equivalent.
“During the quarter, our Mexican operations saw strong production as a result of higher silver grades and overall plant performance. At our San Dimas and La Encantada mines, each operation experienced double-digit increases in silver grades as well as higher plant throughputs. At Santa Elena, significantly higher production levels at the Ermitaño mine were achieved following the Company’s decision to transition away from the Main Vein and only process Ermitaño ores in 2023,” commented CEO Keith Neumeyer.
Meanwhile at Jerritt Canyon, where the company suspended operations late into the quarter, production managed to remain flat at 1.4 million ounces of silver equivalent. This was however a function of the fluctuation in the pricing of gold, with 16,341 ounces of gold produced in the quarter, versus 16,845 ounces in the fourth quarter.
READ: First Majestic Suspends Mining At Jerritt Canyon Gold Mine
“Due to ongoing challenges at Jerritt Canyon we decided to take a step back to complete a full reset of the operation. We are not walking away from Nevada – but repositioning the project to be successful for when we decide to restart operations. The first quarter of 2023 will be an inflection point towards improving the cash flows and overall financial position of the Company going forward,” continued Neumeyer.
The company also added that it has combined the firms Exploration and Technical Services Groups into a single entity in an effort to support “ongoing changes.” This follows the departures of Ramon Mendoza, as well as Persio Rosario.
WATCH: 2023 Silver Deficit Will Move Prices — With Keith Neumeyer
Full financial results for the quarter are slated to be released on May 4.
First Majestic last traded at $9.53 on the TSX.
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