Pasinex Resources Limited (CSE: PSE) (FSE: PNX) (The “Company” or
“Pasinex”) is pleased to provide a company update.
Andrew Gottwald, Chief Financial Officer of
Pasinex, commented, “2021 was a transitional year for Pasinex. We
built on the initial work that began in 2020 by completing the
first phase of the development of the Fourth Adit at the 541-metre
level in the Pinargozu Mine of Horzum AS; by continuing our
exploration success after encountering high-grade zinc sulphide
product material earlier in the adit than expected and discovering
high-grade zinc sphalerite in additional new areas; by fulfilling
our obligations with respect to the tax restructurings entered into
in December 2020; by improving our relationship with our joint
venture partner; and by getting started on planning for an
exploration program in Nevada. We look forward to a rewarding year
in 2022 thanks to our efforts in 2020 and 2021. We thank our
shareholders for standing by the Company through this transitional
period.”
Cautionary
Note
The Company has not completed a current
technical report that includes a mineral resource estimate as
defined by the Mineral Resources and Reserves, Definitions and
Guidelines prepared by the CIM Standing Committee on Reserve
Definitions and adopted by CIM Council, and procedures for
classifying the reported Mineral Resources were undertaken within
the context of the Canadian Securities Administrators National
Instrument 43-101 (NI 43-101). The Company has no intention of
completing a NI 43-101 compliant technical report. The Joint
Venture has not followed accepted quality assurance and quality
control procedures with respect to its current drilling program and
has not used an independent third-party laboratory for its assay
analysis. The Joint Venture uses field handheld X-ray fluorescence
analyzers (“XRF”) for zinc assays and grade control in exploration
and mining. In addition, assays are completed by an independent
third-party laboratory for all of the Joint Venture’s sales.
Horzum AS and Pasinex
Arama
Management
The Company had been unable to have its
representatives travel to Turkey for most of 2021 due to Covid-19
restrictions around the world. Finally, in October of last year we
were able to hold a Horzum AS board of directors meeting in Turkey.
The purpose of the meeting was for the joint venture partners to
agree on the operational and governance practices of Horzum AS.
Amongst the items that were agreed to are, all sales are to be
conducted solely by Horzum AS to third parties with proceeds from
those sales to be deposited directly into the Horzum AS bank
accounts; revision to the authorized signatures on the Horzum AS
bank accounts along with the revision to the cash disbursement
approval process; and the appointment of certain individuals to
management roles in Horzum AS including the appointment of Jonathan
Challis as the Chairman of the Horzum AS Board of Directors. The
items approved at the meeting took effect at the beginning of
January 2022.
Dividends
The Company is pleased to report that Pasinex
Arama received three separate dividend payments in December 2021,
totalling approximately $157,000 using the exchange rates in effect
on the dates received (TRY 1,760,000) and one additional dividend
payment in each of January and February of 2022. The total amount
of these two additional dividend payments was approximately
$153,000 using the exchange rates in effect on the dates received
(TRY 1,675,000).
Tax
instalments
Horzum AS has continued to make its various
ongoing tax payments for its operations and has also paid the tax
instalments that arose as part of the December 2020 tax
restructurings and the taxes and tax penalties that arose in
October 2021. To date, Horzum AS has paid approximately $1.74
million, for the tax restructurings and the October 2021 taxes and
tax penalties, using the exchange rates in effect on the dates of
the payments (TRY 13.55 million). As a result of the above
payments, Horzum AS remains in compliance with its current and
restructured tax programs.
Safety, Health and
Environment
The Company is also pleased to report that
Horzum AS had another zero-fatality year at the Pinargozu Mine.
Horzum AS employs approximately 125 people, including those
employed by the underground drilling contractor. In 2021, there
were 184,224 fatality free hours worked at the Pinargozu Mine.
Horzum AS did report one serious injury and six lost time injuries
during the year. Horzum AS has maintained an exemplary record since
it began to mine at Pinargozu in 2015. All employees have been
vaccinated against Covid-19 by Horzum AS medical staff with
approved vaccines and have been able to continue running two shifts
throughout the year notwithstanding the restrictions and negative
impacts caused by Covid-19.
2021
Highlights
- The Joint Venture has completed
1,933 metres of exploration and development adit development during
2021 including 566 metres of development of the 541-metre level
adit (the “Fourth Adit”);
- a total of 7,557 metres of
underground and surface diamond core drilling has been completed in
102 holes during 2021;
- the Joint Venture mined a total of
approximately 11,000 tonnes of zinc product in 2021, with a split
of approximately 6,500 / 4,500 tonnes of oxide / sulphide zinc
product;
- total sales of zinc sulphide
product in 2021 that were mined at the Fourth Adit, were
approximately 2,700 tonnes of zinc sulphide product. This included
a small portion of zinc sulphide product mined at the 625-metre
level. The average grade of the material sold was approximately
51.5% zinc and the average sales price achieved was approximately
US$1,150 per tonne. The above figures are subject to final sales
adjustments;
- total sales of
zinc sulphide product, to date in 2022, that were mined at the
Fourth Adit, were approximately 2,500 tonnes of zinc sulphide
product. The average grade of the material sold was approximately
52.5% zinc and the average sales price achieved was approximately
US$1,230 per tonne. The above figures are subject to final sales
adjustments.
2022
Forecast
Production at the Pinargozu Mine for 2022 is
forecast to be between 15,000 and 18,000 tonnes of zinc sulphide
product at an average grade in excess of 50% zinc and 1,000 to
4,000 tonnes of zinc oxide product at an average grade of
approximately 30% zinc as direct shipping material. Horzum AS
expects that it will complete in excess of 10,000 metres of
underground and surface diamond core drilling and in excess of
1,200 metres of adit development in 2022. Production and diamond
core drilling will be predominately from and in the Fourth Adit.
New crosscuts from the Fourth Adit into the identified zinc
sulphide product will be developed for both exploration drilling
and production access. Also, Horzum AS will begin to extend the
existing Fourth Adit about 500 metres towards the Akkaya property
with the objective to reach the Akkaya property by the first
quarter of 2023. The Fourth Adit will become the main production
hub for the Pinargozu Mine in 2022 and into the future, with the
existing production team relocating to this level. Later in the
year, work will commence in driving a decline to allow access to
areas below the Fourth Adit where recent drilling has confirmed the
presence of additional zinc sulphide product.
Turkey experienced very high inflation in 2021.
The Turkish government recently announced that the inflation rate
reached 49% in January 2022. As a result, Horzum AS has been and
will continue to experience price pressure on its goods and
services incurred, including wages of its labour force. The price
of zinc has increased steadily over the course of 2021 and into
2022. The average price per pound increased from US$1.23 in January
of 2021 to an average of US$1.64 in January of 2022. These price
increases combined with the increase in the USD exchange rate in
relation to the Turkish Lira will have a positive impact on Horzum
AS’s gross margins in 2022 and should partially or completely
offset the increases in costs.
Gunman
Project
The Company has engaged Ronacher McKenzie
Geoscience Inc. (“RMG”) to provide project support, program
planning and program execution oversight for the Company’s Gunman
Project located in White Pine County, Nevada. RMG has completed an
initial review of the Company’s available exploration data and is
in the process of obtaining quotations for phase two work. Phase
two is to include geophysical surveys and soil sampling. RMG will
then plan and execute a drilling program at Gunman based on the
results from phase two. The Company needs to spend approximately
US$800,000 in 2022 to fulfill its obligations to acquire an initial
51% interest in the Gunman Project.
Qualified
Person
Jonathan Challis, a fellow of the Institute of
Materials, Minerals and Mining and a Chartered Engineer, is the
qualified person (“QP”) as defined by NI 43-101, has inspected the
original paid sales invoices issued by the Joint Venture for the
shipment of zinc sulphide product specified in this news release
and has approved the scientific and technical disclosure herein.
Mr. Challis is a director of the Company and Chair of the Joint
Venture.
About
Pasinex
Pasinex Resources Limited is a Toronto-based
mining company that owns 50% of Horzum Maden Arama ve Isletme
Anonim Sirketi (“Horzum AS” or “Joint Venture”), through its 100%
owned subsidiary Pasinex Arama ve Madencilik Anonim Sirketi
(“Pasinex Arama”). Horzum AS holds 100% of the producing Pinargozu
high-grade zinc mine. Horzum AS sells directly to zinc smelters and
or refiners through commodity brokers from its mine site in Turkey.
The Company also holds an option to acquire 80% of the Gunman
high-grade zinc exploration project in Nevada. Pasinex has a strong
technical management team with many years of mineral exploration
and mining project development experience. The mission of Pasinex
is to build a mid-tier zinc company based on its mining and
exploration projects in Turkey and Nevada.
Visit our website at www.pasinex.com.
On Behalf of the Board of Directors
PASINEX RESOURCES
LIMITED
“Andrew Gottwald”Andrew Gottwald Chief
Financial Officer Phone: +1
416.861.9659 Email: info@pasinex.com |
Evan White Manager of Corporate CommunicationsPhone: +1
416.906.3498 Email: evan.white@pasinex.com |
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The CSE does not accept responsibility for the
adequacy or accuracy of this news release.
This news release includes forward-looking
statements that are subject to risks and uncertainties.
Forward-looking statements involve known and unknown risks,
uncertainties, and other factors that could cause the actual
results of the Company to be materially different from the
historical results or any future results expressed or implied by
such forward-looking statements.
All statements within, other than statements of
historical fact, are to be considered forward-looking. Although
Pasinex believes the expectations expressed in such forward-looking
statements are based on reasonable assumptions, such statements are
not a guarantee of future performance, and actual results or
developments may differ materially from those in forward-looking
statements. Factors that could cause actual results to differ
materially from those in forward-looking statements include market
prices, continued availability of capital and financing,
exploration results, and general economic, market or business
conditions. There can be no assurances that such statements will
prove accurate and, therefore, readers are advised to rely on their
own evaluation of such uncertainties. We do not assume any
obligation to update any forward-looking statements.
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