Aurelia Metals Limited

I would now like to hand the conference over to Mr. Brian Quinn, Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer. Please go ahead.

Thanks Darcy and good morning and thanks for joining the Aurelia Metals Quarter 2 update for FY25. I'm joined today on the call with Martin Cummings, the Chief Financial Officer, Andrew Graham, our Chief Technical and Business Development Officer and Angus Wiley, our Kovar Regional General Manager. Today I'll run through the slides. I'll call out the slides as we're going through them as per what's provided in the pack. Firstly, I'd like to call out that we continue to report results of strong underlying performance across the business this quarter through all of our metrics. Our cash position is looking good and delivering what we have committed to the market in terms of our various milestones. I'll just talk to slide three. Some of the key highlights that we've taken through today that I really want to call out will include that PEAK has continued to perform strongly to deliver cash, and we'll discuss some of these metrics in later slides. Two is we've delivered and processed a batch of Federation ore through the PEAK processing facility and have been very happy with the results, as has been reported before. Three, we've maintained a strong and healthy balance sheet while building our Federation project. With the cash from Peak funding this growth and other activities, it really shows we're managing the balance sheet very tightly and diligently. And four, with the benefit of the production lift at Peak over the last six consecutive quarters producing cash, Federation delivering stopes and production in line with the plan and managing growth capital within our budget, and with the resulting strong balance sheet, we've really been able to continue to pursue our growth projects and exploration options that will fill our mills with quality high-margin ore into the future. Moving on to slide four, we continue to be on track with our performance against guidance for the key metrics. A couple of call-outs I want to make is really during the first two quarters, we've been producing at peak. DAGs obviously shut down in quarter one. Federation Ore has been processed in quarter two at around 16,000, just over 16,000 batch And in the next two quarters, our production is set up to continue momentum and be stronger, as will our federation ramping up with zinc, lead, gold and copper, and Peak Mine will be running at full capacity also. Number two, sustaining capital is slightly higher due to the purchase of two new trucks of Peak, but definitely still within guidance on a four-year basis from our perspective. Our exploration capital is slightly behind, but will pick up in H2. A fair amount of detailed planning around NIMIGI and Federation were undertaken at the start of this year to get the program launched, and we've also done new competitive contracts for both the underground and surface drilling also. On the fourth point I'd like to raise really is the group operating costs is obviously looking good in terms of the full year. This does not include the Federation operating costs. And lastly, the Federation growth project capital is definitely on track to be within budget and for FY25 within guidance. So overall, when I look at the guidance metrics we have and we set out at the start of the year, we're looking very healthy and in the right direction for the full year. On sustainability, slide five, as I continue to reiterate every quarter, safety is our most important value, that we ensure our people work safely and return home with a sense of purpose and also return home safely. Currently the trends are in the right direction. but still there's a lot of work required to really get these levels to be operating in a sustainable way. Key issues currently underway in the first couple of quarters that we're continuing to work through is revising our failure risk control protocols, which is important to have the involvement of the workforce and management to really define what can fatally injure our people and what are the controls to prevent this so that we can systemise those and make sure that we prevent those going forward. This work is ongoing through FY25 and into FY26. We're also progressing our deep dives on risk management for high risks in our business to ensure that the right controls are in place, the right control owners understand their accountabilities and we're managing the risk to our business that allow us to keep looking around the corner to stop those sort of unknowns popping up on the business. And thirdly, and most importantly, making sure our leaders are spending time in the field with our people to ensure our people have the right tools, using the right processes and practices to do their work, and using things like Take Fives and JHAs to really ensure they're playing their work well and executing their work well. Getting initiatives for the quarter for environment community have really included the exciting new opening of our Cobar Community Hub for Aurelia. This is a new shop front of the centre of Kovar where our teams can sit with community members and discuss our business, talk about employment, learn about our growth projects and just to hear in general any of the concerns the community may have that we can address. We've also continued to work pretty intensively on our energy efficiency and water reduction projects from an environmental point of view to really look at how we can close some of the gaps on reducing energy and reducing water consumption in our businesses. which will have ongoing effects and benefits to our business, both in costs and in being more sustainable for the future. So in summary, from a sustainability point of view, definitely trends are in the right direction, but lots of work still to do to make sure we can sustain that direction and be the business where people can go home safely every day. In terms of slide six for peak production, there's been good performance uplift, but we're obviously wanting to to take us further and set up the business to make some step changes. Definitely all metrics are heading in the right direction as you can see from the graphs and we have a clear focus on driving productivity agenda harder the next six months to improve our unit costs and meet its advance above the current improvements. We continue to roll out our mine operating system, our MOS, and continue to focus on the north and south mine as two separate production areas with all the equipment and people and resources needed to make sure we can run those businesses properly on both sides of the north and south side of the peak. Our key focus is really on jumbo utilisation and advance rates, maintenance costs and delivering quality oil in line with the plan for mill for processing. On the processing side, the focus remains on squeezing more from the recoveries. So far, year to date, there's been some really good improvements, as you can see from the graphs on the slide. There's still a way to go to get the recoveries where we'd like to achieve this consistently. and importantly release some information on the Federation processing in this quarterly release. Very happy with the recoveries of these ores that are provided and also very happy with how the materials have flowed through the plant. Definitely this has exceeded our expectations and we'll continue to focus on these recoveries and throughput rates coming from Federation as we continue to ramp up the operation. Again, all these metrics are trending in the right direction and the team's focus is to make sure we continue in that direction. I'll just turn to slide seven. Slide seven is for Federation. It's another highlight for this quarter. Obviously, development has been performing very well. It's exceeded targets. Our stoke drilling has been on plan. Maintenance ventilation fans have been installed without significant delays. Our power systems have been installed for this current phase we're working through, and we're ramping up production to the capacity we've planned. It's very rewarding also to see some revenue in quarter two from Federation as a start of offsetting some of the capital costs we're outlaying in terms of building the mine. The project continues to remain in the side budget as was approved, which is something I don't hear from many other mining projects, and that's something we're going to continue to make sure we keep on track to the very end. Federation now continue to focus on development in the decline to set up platforms for our infill drills to help design our future stoves and understand the ore deposits better as we progress. As noted in our release, our scoping orientation has changed, and so have some of our development sequences, based on the detailed geological knowledge we've gained underground to date. And we'll continue to modify our plans with the new infield drilling information and mapping information that we have available as we progress. But for now, we're on track to ramp up the business for the next couple of years with the information we have from the infield drilling. So once again, Federation definitely on track to deliver what we said we're going to deliver. and with obviously more work to be done as we progress the mine. I'll hand over to Andrew to provide some updates on the works in quarter two for exploration, which is key for our options for our growth beyond what we have in our plans now. Over to you Andrew.

Thanks Brian. As it has been for the entire business, it's certainly been a busy quarter in exploration. You may recall that we retended surface drilling in Q1. That's led to a slightly slower start up to the year, but that was planned. But certainly through Q2, all of the surface rigs were very active. We released a roundup of exploration results from peak on the 22nd of January. I'd encourage people who haven't looked at that to go on there and have a bit of a look. It provides more detail than is included in this quarterly report. Just to touch on some of that, various feedback that some people expect that every time we drill an exploration hole that we're going to get a spectacular discovery hole. The drilling that we released on 22nd of January at peak is pleading, but for a slightly different reason. So firstly, for New Cobar and Kairos, the drilling showed substantial depth extension of those two key copper mining areas. And when I talk depth extension, I'm talking 300 metre plus extension from current workings. Now you might recall that Cobar style ore bodies tend to be strike limited but depth extensive. So it's really great that these deep holes have shown that those ore bodies continue to depth. Secondly, in Jubilee North, you'll recall that we came out in July with extension to the north of Jubilee. Really good that that follow-up drilling has shown that that extends both up and down dip, and certainly not closed off. So, plenty more potential there around Jubilee. As I mentioned, look, all of that drilling was close to existing workings, so it can make its way into the mine plan very easily once we prove it up. Also, just to touch on Jubilee North and Eucoba, That's where we intend to access great cobalt, so the decline will extend from there. So anything we get in that region is certainly complementary to what we extract out of great cobalt. Turning then further south to the Nimigi district, we did the first stage of surface drilling at Nimigi, and that allowed us to then do downhole electromagnetics in December. which will help us target our subsequent drilling. Those results are still pending. Once we get those, we'll use those to help design further programs at Nimity. Late in the quarter, so in December, we relocated one of the surface rigs to Federation North Offset. You may recall an exciting announcement we actually put out in June, which showed the discovery of that offset to the west. It's a northern offset of Federation, and we're back in there drilling again currently. So we've got a busy schedule coming up in exploration for the back half. Nimeji will obviously continue that Federation north offset drilling, and then we'll intend to go back to Nimeji once we get those results of the downhole EM, which will help guide that sort of ongoing drill program there at Nimeji. In the Cobar district, From surface, we'll complete drilling at Young Australian, and then it's back to Queen Bee, which you recall we were at last year, and then on to Tharsis. Tharsis is interesting. It's an exciting maiden drill program for the company, a fresh target, so we'll see how that goes later this year. Underground, we'll be back in South Mine drilling at Kairos, and then also Perseverance S400 in Zone A. So plenty going in the exploration team. Turning then to the growth slide, Brian's obviously touched on federation. I won't go into any more detail, but he may want to add to that. But just to reiterate what Brian mentioned in relation to recoveries, albeit it's a small sample that we put through the peak plant, but recovery is higher than those assumed in the feasibility study across the board, which is definitely a great outcome in this stage of its development. Great, Tova. The study's progressing well. The team's focus has been on a lot on ancillary items, actually, so things like power and pumps and water and the like. So often overlooked in studies, the team has been considering owner-operator versus contract development of the mine, as well as pricing up some of the capital items for the project. All going well, definitely on track to bring this to a final investment decision during the half. Similarly, work on the peak plant optimisation has been progressing well. Two elements to that you recall, one on water management, and we've been pricing key items, the thickener, the flock mixing system, pumps, and pleasingly they've all come in line with the previous study work on that project. And the second part of that peak optimisation, the throughput expansion, the significant engineering ongoing focused on the installation of Darg's ball mill at peak and also the switch room from Darg's peak as well. And probably worth noting, we're also actively engaged with our permitting authority to the Kovachai Council on that change. So we're considering how we bring it forward on that planned expansion. It's likely, as I mentioned, I think earlier, that we'll bring that in two parts, particularly given there's a... There's a justification for the water management improvements irrespective of an expansion, and then we'll look to bring the expansion items as well. We're certainly on track for this half. Passing over to you, I think, Martin.