New Gold Inc. has achieved commercial production, approximately two weeks ahead of schedule.
"Achieving commercial production is a major milestone for New Gold and the Rainy River team," stated Hannes Portmann, President and Chief Executive Officer. "With the hard work, dedication and commitment of our workforce, and the strong support of our local communities and Indigenous partners, we are now focused on continuing to successfully ramp up the operation through the balance of the year."
As previously announced, the Rainy River Mine began processing ore as scheduled on 14 September, 2017, and announced its first gold pour on 6 October, 2017. In the first 30 days of operation, Rainy River has successfully processed approximately 457 000 t of ore. Inclusive of four days of intentional downtime as part of the commissioning plan, the processing rate averaged 15 200 tpd, or 72% of the 21 000 tpd nameplate capacity. New Gold defines commercial production as exceeding 60% of nameplate capacity over a 30-day period. Importantly, for the period 1 - 18 October, 2017, the processing rate averaged 19 000 tpd, or 90% of nameplate capacity. To date, both grade and recoveries have also been consistent with New Gold's commissioning plan.