U.S. Antimony Corp. (USAC) has commenced construction and installation of equipment at Madero, Mexico, for the recovery of gold and silver from the Los Juarez deposit. The company is adding two circuits that will enable them to produce gold and silver. Approval of the first change at Madero has been received earlier than anticipated. The necessary equipment is being built and installed, and testing could begin before the end of 2015 on Los Juarez concentrates that are in inventory. It is expected to optimize the recovery of gold and silver from the flotation concentrates.
The second addition involves a cyanide leach circuit at the flotation mill at Puerto Blanco, Guanajuato. The circuit is designed to recover additional gold and silver from the floatation tailings. The cyanide permit is underway with approval anticipated by the end of Q1 2016 or early Q2 2016.
Sales from USAC’s Bear River Zeolite subsidiary were up more than 1,200 tons, an increase of 54.6%, during Q3 2015 compared to the same period in 2014. The company has expanded its customer base with 15 new large customers and they recently received orders for 746 metric tons (mt) from a new customer for the remediation of water from a gold mine in Canada. A total of 260 mt have already been shipped.
Despite a decrease in antimony prices ($3.83/lb vs. 4.72/lb), USAC’s revenues increased by nearly $228,000 during Q3 2015 compared to the same period in Q3 20214. Costs have decreased due to greater production, the decrease in fuel prices, raw material purchases are indexed to sale price, and smoother production practices. At the Madero smelter in Coahuila, Mexico, the large furnace refractory has been cured and the startup of production is under way. Finished metal will be sold directly from Mexico to further reduce costs during Q4 2015.
“With no long-term debt and consistent revenues from operations, the company is on track to fund the Los Juarez expansion,” said John Lawrence, CEO, USAC. This, combined with a large inventory of Mexican furnace feed and the increasing sale of zeolite, places the company in an excellent financial position to fund our activities.”
