Yamana Gold Receives Permit at Jacobina, Initiating Ramp Up of Phase 2 Expansion, Expects Fourth Quarter Company Wide Production to Exceed 270,000 GEO With Costs Tracking to Be the Lowest of the Year

TORONTO, Dec. 06, 2021 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- YAMANA GOLD INC. (TSX:YRI; NYSE:AUY; LSE:AUY) (“Yamana” or “the Company”) is pleased to announce it has received the permit at its Jacobina mine to increase throughput to 10,000 tonnes per day (“tpd”). Throughput is expected to reach 8,500 tpd by the second quarter of 2022. At this processing rate production at Jacobina will increase through the second half of 2022 with a full year at a production level of 230,000 ounces per year beginning in 2023.

The Company is also reporting particularly strong operating performance from El Peñón and Cerro Moro, both of which were planned to have higher production in the last several months of the year as they sequenced into higher grade zones, all of which supports the Company’s previous guidance that fourth quarter production will exceed 270,000 gold equivalent ounces (“GEO”)⁽¹⁾ and annual production will exceed overall 2021 guidance of 1,000,000 GEO⁽¹⁾. Fourth quarter all-in sustaining costs (“AISC”)⁽²⁾ are also expected to be the lowest of the year and are estimated to be approximately $980 per GEO⁽¹⁾ or lower, which is 7% below AISC⁽²⁾ reported for the prior three quarters.

Jacobina: Permit Received, Phase 2 Ramp up Commencing

Jacobina received the permit on December 2, 2021, allowing for throughput to increase to 10,000 tpd. The successful result is the culmination of a two year process in which the Company has worked closely with government agencies to ensure that Jacobina continues to operate in a responsible, sustainable way to the benefit of all stakeholders. The Company has strategically elected to operate in the Americas in rules based jurisdictions with a mining pedigree providing certainty for conducting its operations which has been exemplified with the Brazilian permitting process for Jacobina. Receipt of the permit not only marks a significant milestone in the Phase 2 ramp up to 230,000 ounces of gold per year, but also facilitates the future Phase 3 expansion to bring production up to 270,000 ounces per year.

With the accelerated permitting and 2021 outperformance, the mine is now expected to achieve the Phase 2 throughput objective of 8,500 tpd by the second quarter of 2022, approximately one year earlier than planned. Since May 2021, throughput has been stable at the previously permitted rate of 7,500 tpd and is well positioned to immediately start ramping up to 8,500 tpd. For the past six months, Jacobina has continued with incremental improvements to increase mining and processing capacity in anticipation of receiving the expansion permit. As such, the Company intends to progressively increase throughput over the next six to seven months.