Amerigo Provides Q3-2023 Production Update

Additional historic rains in central Chile have negatively impacted MVC operations

Q3-2023 production is currently expected to be 2.7 M lbs lower than the revised plan

Amerigo’s Capital Return Strategy remains in place

VANCOUVER, British Columbia, Sept. 11, 2023 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Amerigo Resources Ltd. (TSX: ARG; OTCQX: ARREF) (“Amerigo” or the “Company”) announced today that production for the quarter ending September 30, 2023 (“Q3-2023”) from Minera Valle Central (“MVC”), the Company’s 100% owned operation located near Rancagua, Chile, is currently expected to be approximately 2.7 million pounds (“M lbs”) lower than the estimate set out in the Company’s revised plan because of ongoing historic levels of rainfall in Chile.

MVC’s expected production in Q3-2023 was already lower than usual due to MVC losing its connection to the central power grid from June 23 to July 21, 2023, following severe flooding from heavy rains in Central Chile. While the extensive repairs required to reconnect to the power grid were underway, MVC successfully produced 90,000 lbs of copper per day from July 6 to July 21, mitigating the negative production impact from the flooding.

On July 22, 2023, MVC resumed normal operations processing fresh and historic Cauquenes tailings. As a result of this flooding event, MVC reduced its annual copper production guidance by 3% to 60.5 million pounds (“M lbs”), of which 13.8 M lbs were expected to be produced in Q3-2023 and 16.6 M lbs in Q4-2023. Recently, heavy and sustained rainfall has precluded MVC’s ability to process historical tailings from Cauquenes and necessitated all pumping equipment be utilized to remove water from Cauquenes rather than provide historic tailings to the concentrator. Concurrently, MVC has continued to process fresh tailings from El Teniente.

As a result of these massive rains, Q3-2023 copper production is now expected to be approximately 2.7 M lbs lower than the estimate set out in the Company’s revised plan following the successful grid reconnection at MVC on July 22. Because the rainy season at MVC typically ends in mid-September, the Company is currently maintaining its revised target of 16.5 M lbs for Q4-2023.  

“Ironically, after ten years of drought conditions during which we successfully adjusted operations to use less water, the adage of when it rains, it pours has proven true for Amerigo in 2023,” said Aurora Davidson, Amerigo’s President and CEO. She added, “The persistency and strength of these historic rains have forced us to stay out of Cauquenes to ensure workers’ safety. It has also been necessary for us to pump more than 1.5 million cubic meters of water from the deposit as soon as practically and safely possible”.