First Majestic Silver Corp.: First Stage of Expansion at the La Parrilla Processing Plant Completed <FR.TO>
Marketwire
First Majestic Silver Corp.
September 20, 2011 - 02:36:20 PM
First Majestic Silver Corp.: First Stage of Expansion at the La Parrilla
Processing Plant Completed
VANCOUVER, BRITISH COLUMBIA--(Marketwire - Sept. 20, 2011) - FIRST MAJESTIC
SILVER CORP. (TSX:FR)(NYSE:AG)(FRANKFURT:FMV)(WKN: A0LHKJ) (the "Company" or
"First Majestic") is proud to announce the completion of the first stage of
expansion at the La Parrilla Silver Mine's processing plant. The new 1,000 tpd
flotation circuit has been operating since September 1, 2011 at an average
rate of 787 tpd, bringing the total mill throughput to 1,254 tpd.
As previously announced on September 13, 2011 in the La Parrilla NI 43-101
Pre-feasibility Study news release, a decision was made to expand the La
Parrilla operation to 2,000 tpd from the previous throughput of 850 tpd due to
the significant increases in Reserves. This expansion, which commenced in
December 2010, was originally planned to reach 1,600 tpd, however, is now
planned to reach 2,000 tpd by year end. This new flotation circuit is still in
the start-up phase and will be ramped up to the end of October. The flotation
circuit is planned to reach its capacity of 1,000 tpd commencing in November
bring the total throughput up to 1,425 tpd.
Meanwhile, the expansion of the cyanidation circuit is continuing well with
progress now reaching approximately 60% completion. Construction is expected
to be finished in October with start-up commencing in November. Once fully
operational, the current 425 tpd cyanidation circuit is anticipated to reach
1,000 tpd by year end.
This new dual processing plant will have a total capacity of 2,000 tpd (1,000
tpd in flotation & 1,000 tpd in cyanidation) and is anticipated to be running
at capacity by December 31, 2011. Once completed, production is estimated at
over three million ounces of pure silver, 6.0 million pounds of lead and 4.3
million pounds of zinc. The total investment to the end of 2011 is budgeted at
US$40.5 million including mine development.
This major expansion project was planned to allow for no disruption in
production during construction. Both circuits for flotation and cyanidation
continued operating during this entire process and will continue while the new
cyanidation circuit is completed. Commercial production for the flotation
circuit will be declared when operating performance reaches 70% of design
parameters for throughput and recovery. The start-up phase has been
progressing well and management anticipates commercial production for the
flotation circuit to commence on October 1, 2011.
In addition to the construction project underway to expand the plant,
preparation of the La Parrilla mining complex is also underway as defined in
the recently announced pre-feasibility study. The La Parrilla is a complex of
five mines surrounding the mill. A key component for the future of this
operation is the consolidation of all these mines by the construction of a
large shaft and connecting all the mines with an underground rail system. The
construction of the shaft commenced at Rosario which is the closest mine from
the mill and is expected to be finished by the end of 2012. Upon completion,
all underground mining areas will be connected and ore haulage will be via
underground trains. This consolidation of underground operations will
dramatically improve efficiencies and should have a positive impact on costs.
Keith Neumeyer, President & CEO, stated; "We are very pleased with the
completion of this first stage of this new expansion at La Parrilla. Our
Mexican construction team should be recognized for their hard work and
tireless efforts and should be congratulated for the completion of this first
stage that will lead to the La Parrilla operation doubling production to over
three million ounces of silver annually."
First Majestic is a producing silver company focused on silver production in
Mexico and is aggressively pursuing its business plan of becoming a senior
silver producer through the development of its existing mineral property
assets and the pursuit through acquisition of additional mineral assets which
contribute to the Company achieving its aggressive corporate growth
objectives.
FIRST MAJESTIC SILVER CORP.
Keith Neumeyer, President & CEO
