Mercator Minerals Reports Progress at the Mineral Park Mine; Announces Production Results for the First Quarter Ended March 31, 2013; Provides Production Guidance for the Second Quarter of 2013
During the first quarter of 2013, recoveries for copper and molybdenum were 82.5% and 82.3%, respectively, compared to 72.6% and 70.9% in the first quarter of 2012, and design parameters of 80% and 75% for copper and molybdenum, respectively. Production for the three month period ended March 31, 2013, totalled 20.4 million pounds of copper equivalent, comprised of 8.3 million pounds of copper in concentrates, 0.8 million pounds of cathode copper, 2.4 million pounds of molybdenum and 152,100 ounces of silver.
The company expects second quarter 2013 production to improve over the first quarter. Mineral Park is on track to produce between 93.0 million to 102.0 million pounds of copper equivalent production in 2013, which includes 41.5 million to 46.5 million pounds of copper (38.5 million to 42.5 million pounds copper in concentrates and 3.0 to 4.0 million pounds of copper cathode copper), 11.0 to 12.0 million pounds of molybdenum and 0.6 million ounces of silver.