Capstone Copper Corp.

ladies and gentlemen and welcome to the capstone copper q2 2023 results conference call at this time all lines are in a listen-only mode following the presentation we will conduct a question and answer session if at any time during this call you require immediate assistance please press star 0 for the operator this call is being recorded on wednesday august 2nd 2023 i would now like to turn the conference over to gerald annette Please go ahead.

Good morning. I'd like to welcome everyone to Capstone Copper's Q2 2023 conference call. Please note that the news release and regulatory filings announcing Capstone Copper's 2023 second quarter financial and operational results are available on our website and on CDAR. If you are logged into the webcast, we will advance the slides of today's presentation, which is also available in the investor section of our website. I'm joined today by our CEO, John McKenzie, our President and COO, Cashel Marr, our Chief Financial Officer, Raman Randhawa, and our Senior Vice President, Risk, ESG, and General Counsel, Wendy Kink. Following our brief remarks, there will be an opportunity for questions. Please note that the comments made on the call today will contain forward-looking information within the meaning of applicable securities laws. This information by its nature is subject to risks and uncertainties, and actual results may differ materially from the views expressed today. For further information on the risks and uncertainties pertaining to our business, please see Capstone's most recent filings, which are available on our website and on CDAR. And finally, I'll just note that all amounts we will discuss today are in U.S. dollars, unless otherwise specified. Now I'll turn the call over to John McKenzie.

Thanks, Gerald, and good morning, everyone. We're pleased to present our second quarter 2023 results and achievements. Turning to slide five, we're pleased to report that construction at our transformational Monteverde Development Project, or MVDP, remains on time and on budget. We have over 4 million tons of sulfide ore stockpiled to date at an average copper grade of 0.63%, ready for our ramp-up that will commence by the end of this year. Both on the slide provides an overall view of the new sulfide concentrator, showing the primary crutcher in the back left, the covered core source stockpile dome in the middle, and the grinding flotation and filtration in the center. This year is pivotal for Capstone, as we expect to complete the MVDP construction by year end, setting the stage for a doubling of consolidated cash flow and positioning us well for our organic growth pipeline. Turning to slide six, From an operational standpoint, we experienced a challenging quarter in Q2 marked by unplanned downtime at our Pinto Valley mine in Arizona and continued debottle making at Montes Blancos in Chile. As a result, we produced a total of 39.3 thousand tons of copper at consolidated C1 cash costs of $3.01 per payable pound of copper produced. In addition to these challenges at Pinto Valley and Montes Blancos, Production at Monteverde was impacted by a planned plant shutdown for an electrical tie-in of the MVDP. On a positive note, Cozumel had an excellent quarter as the mine has now ramped up to full production levels with the new cut and fill mining method. Although our costs were elevated in Q2, a large portion of this is a reflection of our weaker production levels rather than underlying cost pressures. We're encouraged by some of our input costs that are trending lower. which we'll discuss in more detail in a few slides. Turning to slide seven, we provided H2 2023 guidance to provide more clarity on our operations following the slow start to the year. At Pinto Valley, we expect higher grades and no scheduled major maintenance in H2 to drive stronger production levels and lower costs. At Cozumel, we anticipate a continued strong performance in the back half of the year. At Montes Blancos, we've moderated our expectations, but we expect reduced downtime to lead to more consistently higher throughputs in H2. And lastly, at Monteverde, we anticipate higher oxide production in H2 as a result of higher irrigation rates with the expanded desalination plant for the MVDP. We have reiterated our previous 2023 capital guidance. Now I'll pass over to Raman for our financial results.