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spk01: Good day, and thank you for standing by. Welcome to AYA Gold and Silver's second quarter 2024 results conference call. At this time, all participants are in a listen-only mode. After the CEO's presentation, there will be a question and answer session. To ask a question during the session, you will need to press star 1-1 on your telephone. You will then hear an automated message advising your hand is raised. To withdraw your question, please press star 11 again. Please be advised that today's conference is being recorded. I would now like to turn the call over to Ruth Hanna, Manager, Investor Relations and Communications at AYA. Please go ahead.
spk00: Thank you, operator. Good morning, everyone, and welcome to AYA's second quarter 2024 results conference call. My name is Ruth Hanna, and I'm dialing in with the AYA team from Montreal and Marrakesh this morning. So on the call today, we have Benoit Lassalle, President and CEO, Hugo Landre-Tolzuc, CFO, Raphael Boudoin, Vice President Operations, and David Lalande, VP Exploration. We will finish today's event with a Q&A session with the team. Please contact our IR team directly with any follow-up questions that are not addressed during the call. Before we begin, I'd like to remind listeners that today's event will contain forward-looking statements that involve risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from those in the forward-looking statements. Details of the forward-looking statements are contained in our August 14th news release, as well as on CDOC lists and at www.iasgoldsilver.com. With that, I'd like to turn the conference over to AYA's President and CEO, Bunwale Asal. Benoit, please go ahead.
spk05: Thank you, Ruth. Good morning, everyone. Welcome to the Q2 2024 conference call. I'm pleased to present to you a robust quarter in a milestone year. We continue to advance the secondaire mine as per our plan. We are pleased to say that we are on schedule and budget for commercial production in Q4 2024. An important element which is often missed is that we now have stockpile on the run pad of 309,000 tons of ore at the end of this quarter. Our goal originally, we communicated to you that our aim was at 260,000 tons and we have reached almost 310,000 tons to be ready for the ramp up in Q4. We've delivered more typical results that we see from Zgounder. Our production this quarter was 432,000 ounces due to an increase in fresh ore, mainly some coming from the open pit. We generated revenue of 13.7 million US dollars. As a result of Q1 selling of silver concentrated, we had an inventory and also our production. There was no over of inventory from one quarter to the next as we saw in Q1. Our net income is $6.8 million for the quarter, and our total cash cost is $17.85, and I will comment on that on the next page. We have a very strong balance sheet. We closed the quarter with $103 million in cash and cash equivalent. And importantly, we were able to draw down the last $15 million on our EBRD loan for now a total of $100 million. And why I say it's important, because before we can draw down on the EBRD loan, we have to go through full GED with them, due diligence with them. They come to site. The team goes to site. We go through all their KPIs, all their ESG KPIs, and then they authorize the drawdown. I'm pleased to say that as of today, we have drawn down the full amount, the $100 million U.S. dollars. During the quarter, we still have and we continue to have ongoing positive results from our exploration program. We've confirmed high-grade mineralization again at depth. And an important piece of news this morning, we've doubled the drill program at Gounder Main Zone from the originally planned 15,000 meters up to 30,000 meters as we keep hitting, and we have now consumed all of the budget for this year at mid-year. We've extended the Boumadine main trend. You recall we did the resource calculation on 4.2 kilometer. We're now drilled up to 5 kilometer at the end of the quarter. And during the quarter as well, we've acquired seven new permits which we are now up to 18 new permits since we made the discovery. We've identified multiple potential high conductive anomalies to the west and to the south of the Boomadzin main zone. So it's a robust quarter. Again, the highlights of it, 95% completion of the construction. 432,000 ounces of production. It's a 42% increase from the previous quarter, same period last year. 100 million in the bank, U.S. dollar, and we've increased the Gunder drill program by 100% or we've doubled it. That's taking us to page four of the presentation. And we had that discussion in Q1. where, you know, this is as our plan. I mean, we were mining according to our plan. We were processing according to our plan. So it's a steady state production at Zbunder and where we have a summary of the guidance and a summary of the results in Q2 and in H1. And we are confirming to you the guidance is staying intact and it is as part of our plan. So after two quarters, we are at almost 800,000 ounces of production. And we knew that the big production or the more important production was coming in in H2, Q3, and mainly in Q4 as we're going to be, you know, kicking in with the new plants. The cash cost was higher in Q1. It was $20. We told you it would come down in Q2 at $17. And we're maintaining our guidance for the end of the year because we know that we're heading into, you know, better grade and better recoveries for the end of the year. So the average grade for Q2 was 196. You recall the average grade for Q1 was 173, and we said it at the time that Q1, Q2 would be below the expected grade for the year. We were mining in sequence. We are also mining differently. We have started also to backfill some of the galleries. Hence, we knew that we were heading towards higher grade galleries in Q3 and Q4. Mill recoveries were 81% or 82% in Q1. We're better at 84, 85% in Q2. And we knew that as we were getting into better grade and into the open pit, deeper into the open pit, we would get better recoveries. Ton process is excellent. We are at 80,000. We were at 80,000 as well in Q1. And it's just way above the design capacity of these two plants. So we're doing extremely well. The availability, which doesn't show on the slide, but the availability of the plants in Q2 was around 96%. And you all know that that's extremely good for a plant and mining to be available 96% of the time. Taking us to page five of the presentation, just a couple of bar charts. On the top left side, the silver production, with the two plants running, the historical plants, we should be between $400,000 and $500,000 a month, and that's exactly where we are. We're back up there, which is normal for secondaire. The grade, we expected it to be lower in Q1, Q2. It is. We're expecting it to kick back up in Q3, Q4. It will. So that's what you're seeing on the left-hand side at the bottom. The mill recoveries, again, we've hit up to 87%. We're now at 84.7. We know that with the new plant, we will be above 90%, so that will kick in. I'm not telling you we will be above 90 in Q4, but that will kick in when we're a steady state. And the ton process, while we're there, we are achieving records. We're 20% above design capacity, if not 25% above design capacity. which you're seeing on the right-hand side at the bottom. Page six, you have the cash flow. We had a strong quarter with $5 million of cash flow coming from Zgunder. The gross margin is at 4.9%. The cost of sale is, of course, a function of the production. So the cost of sale is up there. remove this the cost of sale is at 8.8 million and the cash cost as we discussed when we reviewed guidance is 17.85 it's higher than the historical four years but we also knew that the cost was going to be going up this year as we were preparing for the the new capacity moving to page seven The construction. So this is a major milestone. We know that in our industry, that's very difficult to be on time and on budget. We have been putting out videos to show you where we are. Today, we can tell you that we are 95% complete. We're on track to completion and on track with our capital cost estimates. Underground development is on track. We're 96% done on lateral development, 83% on vertical, but we have one vent that is completed, you've seen in some of the videos. We're progressing to plant on electrical work, instrumentation, piping, Merrow Crow, all of that. You saw we've poured already a couple of silver bars. The underground workshop is spectacular. You can see that in the videos. the warehouse, the backfill station is up and running, and the silver room building as well. So we've completed on time and on schedule all the civil work, structural work, equipment, silver room, electrical power line, and the lab. All of that's been completed. We are pleased to say that as of now, we are operating on green energy. The power line was commissioned. It's extremely important because it's green. It's very rare in the world that you operate 100% on green energy. It's a PPA that we have signed with an independent power producer. We're getting it from the grid. We build it on time and on budget. It is a fantastic job, so we are now running on green energy. Going to page 10. uh the drill program so what's you know we've created value historically by drilling uh the original budget for this year was 144 145 sorry thousand meters of drilling uh we have about 15 16 drills starting at all time so the original program has gone there with 15 000 meters and as of now it is completed so we have authorize an additional 15,000 meters. So the program's been expanded to 30,000 meters at Secunder, the main zone. And that's following very, very good results. Boumadine is on track. You know Boumadine has a 120,000 meter program. We are currently at 42,000, but we knew that we knew that H1 would be a bit slower. It was Ramadan as well. So we knew that we would have a smaller production in H1, but looking to catch up in H2. You recall that on the 120,000 meters program, 60,000 meters is on the main zone. On the zone, the 4.2 kilometer, which is now 5, which we want to increase because it's still open north south and a depth. And there's another 60,000 meters that will test new targets, new targets that have been identified. We've shared with you 1 of them to the West. There are more to come. We've completed the mobile empty regional survey, and that is giving us some geophysics targets and we're waiting for additional data. On the Zgounder Regional, it's ongoing. We have a 10,000-meter program that's being worked on. David and the team are looking for similar mineralization. At Zgounder, there's a lot of geological theory and targets that are being tested. We've also completed the geophysics on Tirzit, which is very close by to the mine. So we're expecting a very busy H2 at Zgounder and at Tirzit. And Hamizmiz is a small project that we have in which we have never focused a lot. We may start a small drill campaign there as it has a great goal potential. Taking us to page 11 to talk about Zgounder, It's a big news event. We are doubling up that program from 15,000 to 30,000 meters. I know for us, it's like when you're drilling 120,000 meters at Boumadine, it seems small, but it is important because we're drilling that zone, which is 1.4 kilometer long. has a depth of about 600 meters, and the results keep coming in. We've been giving you results. There are more to come, but, you know, we're often hitting 1,000 grams per ton over, like we have here, 13 meters, 2,000 grams per ton over 8 meters, and it is ongoing. One of the focus is where it touches the granite at the bottom of the structure, and so far we've been pretty good at hitting mineralization. Going to page 12 on Boumadine, Boumadine is a cornerstone asset of AIA. We, you know, through drilling, we've really shown a beautiful, right now, five-kilometer structure. As I indicated, we're going to be drilling 120,000 meters there. But through field work, so we've done the drilling in this quarter. We've done 27,000 meters this quarter. 42 after two quarters so by you know subtraction there's 80 000 meters to come in h2 we've seen results we're going to be seeing more results soon uh it's uh it's it's really it is ongoing i believe we have nine drills there it changes sometimes but up to nine drill at the moment turning and and a lot many results are coming but through the field work we've been mapping and doing the prospection on the 18 new permits because our goal is to control the zone. We want to control the whole district, the Boumediene district. So we're still working on new permits, but we have 18. So we've completed the mapping, the hyperspectral. We're using all of the techniques that we know work. We've completed the mobile MT program, 13,000 lines. that flew over with the helicopter. It's an extremely large and important program. It's a new program in Morocco, and it's giving us extremely, extremely interesting results that I'll show you in a minute. Fieldwork is continuing, our drilling is continuing, and our consolidation is continuing. We've increased our land package by 198 square kilometers, and our goal is to increase that considerably. A couple of results on page 13 on Boumadine. Those are silver equivalent, 1,000 gram per ton of silver equivalent on 13 meters. So we keep hitting. You recall that on page 18, you recall that the resource that was put out in March and the final report was filed 45 days later in Q2 that we were showing 352 million ounces of silver equivalent or 4.1 million ounces in gold equivalent. So that is just the beginning. It's on 4.2 kilometer. We've now extended it to five and we are drilling it to extend that to the north and to the south. 41% of the resource was in-pit, 59% was deemed underground. We're continuing the drilling where, as I indicated, 60,000 meters is going on strike and 60,000 is going on the parallel zone. Why? Well, take a look at page 15. If you take a look at page 15, you see a portion of the geophysics. We did not give it all out. We're keeping a lot of information right now to ourselves. But you see on the right-hand side the purple color, that's the main zone. That's what we've been drilling. And that's up to now five kilometer, but the signature is longer than that. And look to the west or to the left-hand side where you have that same purple color. So it's a very large potential conductive anomaly, which is five kilometers west of Boumadine. Similar orientation, stronger intensity than the Boumadine main zone, main conductor. It's a large system. It has conductors across east-west, similar to what we're seeing at Boumadine. So obviously, this is now a top priority. So we are waiting for the inversion of the data from the geophysics. We will be getting that in August. We will be reviewing this. And as soon as we have the targets, David will be moving some of the drill rigs off the main zone. And as the program will be getting close to be completed, it will start drilling some additional targets to the west. And hopefully towards the end of the year or early next year to the south. So going to page 16 on our social values and on corporate social responsibility, very good quarter, no zero lost time injuries, 3,700 hours of health and safety training. So it's a 30% increase year over year on our training. We have received certification of emergency response team. You are following us on LinkedIn. You see often some videos on the new facilities that we have. It's a very dynamic process. Everybody has bought into the concept of health and safety, and it's coming along quite well. On the Clean Tech Fund, we've met the milestones. We had milestone one, two, and three to meet. We've met the milestone, and in meeting the milestone, Our capital costs on our debt related to the TCFD is now move or CTF tranche is down now to 1% cost of capital. And that was something that came with EBRD was very important. It's a $10 million tranche that went from round number 10% down to 1%. And with the local communities, well, we're extremely involved, as you know, education, we're, you know, helping with school supplies, equipment and all that. Environmental Day, we celebrated that. Woman's Day, we celebrated that with them. And we are, you know, we have a health program where we have, you know, clinics that we have for the villages around. And we have also livelihood projects, which is gardens, vegetable and saffron. because the area is very well known for the saffron culture. So, as a summary of where we are and what we have is the drill program is ongoing at Boumadzine. The increased drill program is ongoing at Sgoundah 40,000 meters. Boumadzine is 120,000 meters. So, as a group, we're going to be at 160,000 meters of drilling. So very, very large program, completely funded. The 2,700 ton per day plant, which is the first, the two plants that we have plus the new plant is on time and on budget. We are in commissioning. And we expect commercial production in Q4 of 2024. And on the ESG front, well, again, as I said, we keep going through these EBRD due diligence where we do extremely well. And we are happy to say that we are fully funded. So as a company, we have 100 million in the bank. The project's built. There's still some payables there. We still have some payables. But if everything goes according to plan and our budgets are built with low $20 silver, our minimum cash balance, we will always be around $40, $50 million. So we are fully funded for now and for the future. The plants are operating, the two plants, extremely well. The third plant we will know in Q4, but it's coming very, very quickly and very well. And the drilling is going extremely well. So that covers my presentation. Operator, I think we are ready for questions.
spk01: Thank you. As a reminder, to ask a question, please press star 11 on your telephone and wait for your name to be announced. To withdraw your question, please press star 1-1 again. Please stand by while we compile the Q&A roster. Our first question comes from the line of Puneet Singh from 8 Capital.
spk03: Hi, Binwan team. I wanted to ask a couple questions on Bhumadeen. First on the geophysics. really positive to see that conductive anomaly to the west. I understand you'll be looking for those massive sulfide bodies and cross-cutting features, but how will you vector in further before drilling? Could you run us through that, expand on some of those tools you were talking about and why they're useful and what exactly they tell you? And if you can also just repeat, I think you mentioned it, but when do you expect to drill that area to the west? Thanks.
spk05: Okay, well, Puneet, we have David on the call. So, David, do you want to comment on the geophysics and on the spectral? And when do you expect to bring the drills over to the West?
spk06: Hi, Puneet. I'll try to answer that question. Yes, the geophysics is very spectacular. I fully agree with you. What we are waiting, when we start getting the final results from the company that did the survey, is all the inversions. So right now we do have the magnetics. We do have the surface response and different layers from the electromagnetic, the magnetotelerics. But what we want to see before doing a drill program is the full inversion to really narrow the potential conductive corridors. So to better allocate the metrage and to have a more accurate drilling plan. We expect to receive those deliverables by the end of August. So then it's a matter of building the drill program and bringing drills rigs there. So most likely end of September, beginning of October, around that time, we should be able to start a drilling campaign there. Other tools that we have and use is the hyperspectrals. So the survey we've completed this year, we already have all the layers So it allows us to really map the alteration created by hydrothermalism and or other features like dikes around the property. So that's a great tool to help us locate targets. And on top of that, we have some detailed mapping on the ground, lots of grabs, lots of geochemistry data. So it's a matter of putting all those data together and come up with the best drill program for Q-tree Q4 this year.
spk03: Okay, sounds good. Sounds like it could be well-timed with the higher production in Q4 first results, so that would be good to see. I had one last question on the main trend at Boumadine, and the survey was showing more anomalies at depth there, but will the bulk of the program be focused on targets closer to surface like it was before, or how are you thinking about that split?
spk06: Well, we have the 60,000 meters that is already planned and well advanced. At the end of the quarter, we were at 42,000 meters, if I recall. Right now, today, we're at 55,000 meters completed. So the main trend will leave the program as it was. So it was mostly to extend the strike length. But we did reserve a few holes to go target at depth also at Boumadin and see the big geophysical anomalies. So as soon as we have the inversion for that too, we will give it a try. So later in Q4. And the rest of the more regional program, if you want, of 60,000, the idea was to go and test different targets. So TZ was one. We have a big program completely at the south on some north-east-west structures. We will just allocate some of those targets, especially the north 70 and north 80. 30 structures will allocate the metrage for the Western geophysical anomaly. It's always a matter of prioritizing the target, and with this geophysical response, we believe that it might be more significant than the small cross-cutting structures. But again, lots of those structures will test this year, and there's a lot more coming for 2025 as well, as there's plenty of geophysical targets and lots of nice things we're seeing on the ground.
spk03: Okay. Thanks, David, and good luck. Sounds like you've got a lot to do, but that's good to stay busy. Thanks.
spk01: Thank you. One moment for our next question. Our next question comes from the line of Justin Chan from SCP Resource Finance.
spk10: Hi, guys. Congratulations on getting Speedrider where it is and another good quarter. A couple of questions just on perhaps the path forward and where you are now. On the vertical development, could you give us a sense of what's left to do? Is it on the vent rate side or material handling? What's left on that and how does that impact your ramp-up rates? Maybe is the first question.
spk09: Sure. Happy to comment on that. This completion rate was on July 30th. So at the end of July. And we were still working on one last ventilation raise for the sub-levels. And that raise is now complete. So you can expect 100% on next quarter on the vertical development. So all vent raise are completed. And we have one ore chute and one waste chute that are also completed. And we are finalizing to install civil work to put them online. But as we speak, all vertical development is now complete.
spk10: Okay, perfect. Thanks. That's a great update. And on the ore mine this quarter, what was the split between open pit and underground? And could you give us the grades between the two if you have that data available?
spk09: We comment on overall grade, overall grade mine. And obviously, as per sequence, sometimes one goes up, the other one goes down, which is not quite relevant on a quarter per quarter. That's why we publish overall grade. We target towards the end of the year to have about 1,000 tons per day from the open pit and for a full ramp up for the open pit at 1,000 tons per day. We're now about 500 tons per day, simply because we don't need more, but we can increase it to 1,000 tons per day when the new plant is up and running.
spk10: Gotcha. And roughly where do you, I mean, I think the guidance implies a fairly big step up in grade in the second half as well as tons. I guess, what are your thoughts on grades you're targeting for Q3 and Q4, if you can give us any granularity there?
spk05: Justin, it's difficult because, as you know, with the deposit, the way it is, it's, you know, when we hit these very high-grade pockets, it goes very, very quickly into the hundreds and hundreds of gram per ton. But we're comfortable when we look at the model that globally we are going to meet our guidance. So if our guidance is around, let's say, we take the bottom part of the guidance at 215, And we're currently now on average at 196 for Q2, 184. That means we will be above the 215 for Q3 and Q4.
spk10: Okay, perfect. Thanks. I appreciate that. And I guess given where your level development is, you've got good flexibility. Well, anyway, I'll free up the line. Thanks very much for taking my questions. Thanks, Justin. Thank you.
spk01: Thank you. As a reminder, to ask a question, please press star 1-1 on your telephone and wait for your name to be announced. To withdraw your question, please press star 1-1 again. Our next question comes from the line of Don DeMarco from National Bank Financial.
spk02: Thank you, Operator, and good morning, Benoit, and Boumediene is on my mind. With the new conductive anomalies, Benoit, shall we assume that you embark on a multi-quarter or even multi-year drill program before you start thinking about a PEA? If those new anomalies prove out, it just seems early to start thinking about what the throughput should be and things like that.
spk05: Totally. You're absolutely right, Don. The drilling to the west could be a game-changer. And we are doing some work right now. We have a project manager that we've hired who is a top of the line metallurgist and mining, you know, and a production man. So we are doing the test. We're doing some metallurgical tests. We're doing all of that. But to finalize the flow sheet, the throughput, the quantity, it's a function of the size of the project. So we are working on that. understanding all of that and getting ready. Now, there are a lot of chapters that you don't need, you know, the size on water management, electricity, tailings, so we started all of that. All these chapters have been started, but the actual PEA based on size is going to be a very dynamic a system because if we find what we believe is there on the west side and on the south we haven't yet have not yet you know put that out but on the south of course it's a different size project so absolutely based on drilling and and based on on results the project will will be dynamic okay and can you comment on the existing infrastructure at blue madden like for example power water and
spk02: Is there driving access between the current and the new conductive anomalies?
spk05: So look, at Boumadzine, we've been together to Zgoundaie. Zgoundaie is 2,000 meters above sea level. It's quite hilly. It's higher. Boumadzine is 1,000 meters. It's got an airport one hour away. You can drive from the airport, which you've got to fly flights from Agadir all the time because it's the entrance to the tourist area when you go on camel rides and on safaris. So it's quite good infrastructure. Power is not far away, so power will come from the grid. It's not at site yet, but it's going to be at site. It's not far away. There are villages around. There are good hotels. And I'll ask Rafael maybe to comment after. So, of course, it's something that's pretty straightforward. The issue is always in Morocco and in North Africa is water. So we have a team on water right now. Is it going to be reservoirs? Is it going to be from some of the villages that are around? So we're working on that. That's always, always, you know, the pacing item. But at this point today, it's all about David and David, you know, putting in the drills and increasing the size of the resource. Raphael, did you want to add something on the infrastructure? No. Yeah, no. So that's what it is, Don.
spk02: Okay. Okay. Well, thanks for that, Collin.
spk05: And we'll organize a visit to Boumadine in the fall. with Alex, and a lot of people want to come and see it. You'll see the infrastructure is actually, I would say, almost simpler than in Zagounder just because of where it is and access to an airport very close by.
spk02: Okay, good to hear. And then one question on Zagounder. When do you expect to reach mining rates at 2,700 tons per day? Is that going to be late this year or later with some reliance on the stockpiles?
spk05: I'll ask Raphael, who's sitting right across me.
spk09: So we take our time. We want to do it right, and we started early to be able to have this flexibility. Right now, we have extra mining capacity, and we're not mining as fast as we could if we wanted because we have over 300,000 tons of ore stockpiled. But to answer your question, it's somewhere in mid-2025. Early 2025, mid-2025, depending on mill throughput, on mill ramp-up. So we have this flexibility right now.
spk02: Okay. Thank you for that. Well, good luck with Q3, and that's all from me.
spk01: Thank you, Don. Thank you. Our next question comes from the line of Mike Kozak from Cantor Fitzgerald.
spk04: Yeah, good morning, Benoit and team. Congrats on the solid quarter. Most of my questions have been asked, but I just had one more. With the Zegunder expansion almost done, how are you as a company thinking about debt reduction next year? Do you have kind of a target debt repayment amount per quarter in mind or something like that? Just any guidance there would be appreciated. Thank you.
spk05: Well, that's a very good question, and I'm going to not turn it over. It depends on David's demand on drilling. Fair enough. For us, drilling is the most important value creation. And so far, with 94,000 meters at Boumadine, we found 352 million ounces of silver equivalent or 4.1 million ounces of gold equivalent. You know what? And David's on the line, and I shouldn't say this, but when David is showing us things, he says, I want to drill this. For us, that's the top priority. EBRD is extremely important. flexible. We have a payback program over four years, starting in 2026, and they're extremely flexible. They come to site. We are their star project in their new mining strategy. If we wanted to pay faster, we could. If we wanted to delay, we could. Not that we would delay, but they are very happy with this project, and seriously, If David keeps coming up with discoveries, both at Zgounder, Zgounder Regional, Boumadine, and Thiersite, the value of the drill, the cost of drilling is, you know, our cost of discovery last year was like 10 cents an ounce of silver. So there's, but yes, if we do have excess cash, it will be to pay down the debt, obviously. But, you know, it's a soft loan with EBRD. It's extremely soft. They're very good and hence, you know, we're comfortable. But yes, with a $35, $40 silver and the production that we're going to get, we'll probably have all the money in the world for David and to be able to pay down the debt.
spk04: All right. Good stuff. That's it for me. I'll revert back. Thank you. Thanks, Mike.
spk01: Thank you. One moment for our next question. Our next question comes from the line of Steven Souk from Stifo.
spk07: Hi, guys. Most of my questions have been answered, too. I just had one on cost structure. Now that you're kind of ramped up or, you know, largely ramped up underground, have a good handle on the open pit mining, you know, how are kind of unit cost tracking versus your expectations and maybe versus the study? I know inflation in Morocco has been...
spk08: very low so i think uh you know it looks like a potential to beat there but just wondering what you're seeing uh seeing day to day and how you're thinking about that going forward thanks yeah so on open pit specifically it's a contract minor that we use uh and so far you know it's been exactly as as expected in both in terms of drilling blast and in terms of college from uh
spk07: uh from the pit to uh down the valley and back up to the other mountain so it's exactly honestly we're quite happy and i think we've mentioned that in the mdna we're very happy with our contract for the performance and the cost there's no surprises uh perfect no that that's uh that's great to hear i know uh the expanded capacity will really have a notable positive impact on on the cost structure and margin overall so looking forward to that that inflection point in the second half of the year that's it for me thanks
spk05: Thank you. Yeah, thank you, Stephen. And as you said, the inflation in Morocco has been contained and the value of the dirham is, you know, devaluated just a little bit, not much. So you see it in our construction costs. When you look at us coming through with 2022 capex numbers that, you know, we are able to build it on time and on budget, it says a lot about the capacity of the construction capacity. in in marapa thank you at this time i would now like to turn the conference back over to benoit lasalle for closing remarks well thank you so much thank you all for attending uh it was a a good quarter uh heading into a very interesting second half of the year with the commissioning ongoing Keep watching our little videos. It will show you what we're doing and how we're doing it and heading into the commercial production in Q4 of 2024. What's also very interesting is the fact that we have 300,000 ton on the rum pad. That's like extremely important for a smooth ramp up and it's all there. So it's been mined. So when we look at the mining rate and the fact that we've been mining a 1,200 ton a day, and including feeding the two plants, we've been able to stockpile 300,000 tons. It just tells you that we do have, as Ralph said, the capacity to grow, and we have also the capacity to slow it down if we have to, which is what we've done. So you have a very well oiled machine, which is giving us 96% availability. And the third plant's coming, you know, live now and will be, you know, in commercial production in Q4. So on the operating side, it's going extremely well. On the exploration side, it's, what can I say, 160,000 meters of drilling in Morocco with a very good team of geos that have made some big discoveries So that will be a very, very good year. On the geopolitical front, Morocco, now that we have all the issues all over the world, Morocco is fantastic. They are now being recognized as one of the top mining jurisdiction, investment jurisdiction in the world. Their EV strategy is working out. They have many companies investing billions of dollars to the north. in the EV strategy, and AIA is the key player with ManageM on the mining front. They are organizing a conference, a Morocco mining conference in December from the 3rd to the 5th in Marrakech. I'm inviting all of you to come and see us at the booth. It will be very interesting. So Morocco is coming through as a very good mining jurisdiction. We are there. We have many things going on for us. And H2 will be very, very interesting. So thank you for being a shareholder. Thank you for being our analysts. and being interested in Morocco, in AIA, and the work that we do. We will talk to you in November at the Q3 call, and that will be from the Minesite as we will be having our board meeting at the Minesite in November of 2024. Thank you, all of you. Have a great summer, and we'll see you in the conferences starting at Beaver Creek.
spk01: This concludes today's conference call. Thank you for participating. You may now disconnect.
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