New Gold’s Rainy River mine reached its 2022 gold production target after a challenging year for the northwestern Ontario open-pit operation.
In a news release, the mid-tier Toronto gold miner said production for the year measured up to 229,822 ounces, well within the range of the revised production range – known in industry vernacular as guidance – of between 225,000 and 245,000 ounces.
Fourth quarter production reached 69,753 ounces, “the strongest quarter” for 2022 as production from the new underground phase of the mine came through the processing mill. The company said it will release its 2022 financial results and the outlook for 2023 during Feb. 16 conference call.
The mine experienced a drastic fall in production during May and June after a combination of snow melt and heavy rainfall hindered the ability to extract ore from the pit bottom. It forced the company to lower its projected guidance for the year.
"New Gold was faced with several challenges in 2022,” said CEO Patrick Godin in a news release, “but our teams remained resilient executing on our plans, and as a result, our operations met all updated production guidance targets.”
2022 was truly a pivotal year in the life of the mine, located 65 kilometres northwest of Fort Frances near the village of Emo, as New Gold makes the transition from open pit to underground mine. The first production stope for the Intrepid Zone was blasted last September and ore is already being mined.
The developing of Intrepid will extend the mine life to 2031. Activity in the pit will last until 2025.
Besides running the Rainy River mine, New Gold operates the New Afton copper-gold mine in British Columbia.
