Mining News
Polymetal says its gold equivalent reserves declined in 2022 due to challenging exploration season
(Kitco News) - Russian mining group Polymetal International, a senior global silver and gold producer, today announced its ore reserves and mineral resources as at 1 January 2023, in accordance with the JORC Code (2012).
The company said that in 2022, Group ore reserves decreased by 9% year-on-year (y-o-y) to 27.3 Moz of gold equivalent (GE), mostly due to mining depletion.
This was partially offset by the successful exploration results at Omolon hub (Burgali and Nevenrekan), Pesherny (Voro hub), as well as initial reserve estimates at Galka and Tamunier (Voro hub).
The company noted that the average grade in ore reserves increased by 5% y-o-y and stood at 3.6 g/t of GE, adding that average mine-life stands at 13 years.
Mineral resources (additional to ore reserves) grew by 5% y-o-y to 25.8 Moz of GE due to positive revaluation at Kyzyl, Omolon, and Nezhda, as well as initial resource estimates at Kegali and Tumanin (Omolon hub). The average GE grade in mineral resources was up by 10% y-o-y to 4.5 g/t.
“Polymetal did not replace its ore depletion and recorded declining ore reserves in 2022. The exploration season was severely affected by the indirect impact of sanctions placed on, amongst other things, imports of diamond drilling spares and materials into Russia. We remain confident in the Group’s ability to grow our high-quality reserve base and expect the resumption of the upward trend in 2023,” stated Vitaly Nesis, Group CEO of Polymetal.
Polymetal said that in 2023, it will continue to invest in both near-mine and greenfield exploration projects, with the key objectives of re-evaluating ore reserves at Kyzyl, preparing an initial ore reserve estimate at Talgiy (Albazino), and preparng an initial ore reserve estimate at Pavlov (Voro hub).
Polymetal International plc is a senior global gold and silver producer with assets in Russia and Kazakhstan. The company has a portfolio of ten producing gold and silver mines and a pipeline of future growth projects.
