ECU Agreement
posted on
Jul 14, 2010 09:51AM
Golden Minerals is a junior silver producer with a strong growth profile, listed on both the NYSE Amex and TSX.
TORONTO, ONTARIO--(Marketwire - July 13, 2010) - ECU Silver Mining Inc. (TSX:ECU) is pleased to announce that it has entered into an agreement with one of the world's largest independent commodities trading companies to sell ECU's pyrite/gold concentrates. The gold/pyrite concentrate will be shipped and processed at a metallurgical plant in United States, owned by an internationally recognized mining company.
The terms of the agreement are for ECU to deliver an initial 10,000 tonnes from its gold/pyrite concentrate, currently stockpiled near its Velardena Property in Durango, Mexico at a rate of 1,500 to 2,000 tonnes per month, equivalent to approximately 965 to 1,285 ounces of gold per month. ECU plans to immediately commence delivery of its gold/pyrite concentrate.
Michel Roy, Chairman and CEO of ECU said, "This is a very important step for the Company as our mineral resource has a very substantial gold content. The metallurgical viability of our gold/pyrite concentrate has been further demonstrated through our agreement with a well established commodity trading company with formidable insights and knowledge of the mining sector."
ECU currently has a stockpile of gold/pyrite concentrates of approximately 12,900 tonnes containing approximately 8,500 ounces of gold. In addition, at full capacity, the Company's 320 tonne per day ("tpd") sulphide plant is capable of generating gold/pyrite concentrates at an annual rate of approximately 23,000 tonnes, equivalent to approximately 14,800 ounces of gold per year. The Company is completing an economic study which contemplates increasing sulphide milling capacity by almost five times by way of the construction of a new 1,500 tpd plant.
Stephen Altmann, President added, "The terms of this agreement are significantly better than several past offers that we have received for our gold concentrate. The sale of the gold concentrates will immediately add to ECU's cash position, since ECU will be selling its stockpile of gold/pyrite concentrate where the costs to mine these concentrates were incurred in previous years."