VANCOUVER, British Columbia, Oct. 29, 2020 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Eldorado Gold Corporation (“Eldorado” or “the Company”) today reports the Company’s financial and operational results for the third quarter of 2020.
? Steady quarterly production and 2020 annual guidance maintained: Gold production totalled 136,922 ounces in Q3 2020, an increase of 35% from production of 101,596 ounces in Q3 2019. The Company is maintaining its 2020 annual guidance of 520,000-550,000 ounces of gold at an all-in sustaining cost of $850-950 per ounce sold.

? Increased cash from operations and free cash flow: Net cash generated from operating activities of $165.4 million in Q3 2020 increased significantly from $51.2 million in Q3 2019 primarily as a result of higher sales volumes, a higher average realized gold price, and the timing of certain payments. Free cash flow of $117.2 million in Q3 2020 increased significantly from $16.7 million in Q3 2019 as a result of increased cash from operations, and was partly offset by higher capital expenditure, which is expected to continue into Q4 2020. Free cash flow year-to-date totalled $187.7 million.

? All-in sustaining costs remain steady: Q3 2020 all-in sustaining costs of $918 per ounce of gold sold were lower than in Q3 2019 ($1,031 per ounce sold) and were negatively impacted by an incremental 25% increase to 2020 gold royalty rates in Turkey, announced in September and retroactive to January 1, 2020.

? Continued strong financial liquidity: The Company currently has $504 million of cash, cash equivalents and term deposits and approximately $32 million available under its revolving credit facility. Additionally, we completed a redemption of $58.6 million of principal of our senior secured notes during the quarter and have issued a debt redemption notice to repay an additional $7.5 million of principal in December 2020 under the equity clawback provision of our senior secured notes.

? Net earnings and adjusted net earnings attributable to shareholders: The Company reported net earnings attributable to shareholders of the Company in Q3 2020 of $41.0 million or $0.24 per share (Q3 2019: $4.2 million, or $0.03 per share). Adjusted net earnings attributable to shareholders of the Company in Q3 2020 were $56.7 million, or $0.33 per share (Q3 2019: $7.6 million, or $0.05 per share).

? Increased EBITDA: The Company reported Q3 2020 EBITDA of $162.5 million ($73.2 million in Q3 2019) and Q3 2020 adjusted EBITDA of $163.9 million ($75.9 million in Q3 2019).

? Progress in Greece: ? Drilling permits received at Stratoni: The Greek Ministry of Environment granted the Company permits to conduct surface exploration drilling in the Stratoni area.
? Olympias permitted production limit increase: The Company renewed its operating permit for Olympias and, per the terms of the permit, allows for an annual production limit of 470,000 tonnes per year. The Company will continue to evaluate a possible further expansion at Olympias that would require a modification to the Olympias EIA.
? Archaeological relocation work underway: Relocation of an ancient mining furnace from the Skouries open pit area commenced in Q3 2020.

? Sale of non-core assets: The Company completed the sale of the Vila Nova mine in Brazil for total consideration of $10.0 million. The Company is evaluating strategic options for other non-core assets, including its Tocantinzinho Project in Brazil and Certej Project in Romania.

? Measures remain in place to manage the impact of the novel coronavirus ("COVID-19") pandemic: The Company's mines remain operational and isolated cases of COVID-19 have been successfully managed. Preventing the spread of COVID-19, ensuring safe working environments across Eldorado's global sites, and preparedness should an outbreak occur, remain priorities.

“This quarter continues the positive results we have delivered over the last 18 months,” said George Burns, President and CEO. “We are driving significant value from our operations demonstrated by steady production and lower costs that are flowing through to our bottom line. This is the second consecutive quarter we have delivered across all key metrics, again generating significant free cash flow and adjusted net earnings. We remain committed to reducing our debt and decreased our senior secured notes by nearly $60 million in the quarter. I'm pleased to report that our balance sheet is in the strongest position it has been in several quarters and this positions us well as we look to develop the growth opportunities in our portfolio."

Consolidated Financial and Operational Highlights
3 months ended September 30,
9 months ended September 30,

2020 2019 2020 2019
Revenue (1) $ 287.6 $ 172.3 $ 748.2 $ 426.0
Gold revenue (1) $ 264.3 $ 150.2 $ 684.7 $ 355.6
Gold produced (oz) (2) 136,922 101,596 390,654 276,376
Gold sold (oz) (1) 137,704 99,241 388,883 256,000
Average realized gold price ($/oz sold) (6) $ 1,919 $ 1,513 $ 1,761 $ 1,389
Cash operating costs ($/oz sold) (3,6) 537 560 568 602
Total cash costs ($/oz sold) (3,6) 664 603 651 641
All-in sustaining costs ($/oz sold) (3,6) 918 1,031 908 998
Net earnings (loss) for the period (4) 41.0 4.2 81.7 (10.6 )
Net earnings (loss) per share – basic ($/share) (4) 0.24 0.03 0.48 (0.07 )
Adjusted net earnings (loss) (4,5,6,7) 56.7 7.6 113.0 (16.9 )
Adjusted net earnings (loss) per share ($/share) (4,5,6,7) 0.33 0.05 0.67 (0.11 )
Cash flow from operating activities before changes in working capital (6,7) 125.1 63.0 293.6 109.6
Free cash flow (6) 117.2 16.7 187.7 (42.5 )
Cash, cash equivalents and term deposits $ 504.4 $ 134.9 $ 504.4 $ 134.9

(1) Excludes sales of inventory mined at Lamaque during the pre-commercial production period (Q1 2019).
(2) Includes pre-commercial production at Lamaque (Q1 2019).
(3) By-product revenues are off-set against cash operating costs.
(4) Attributable to shareholders of the Company.
(5) See reconciliation of net earnings (loss) to adjusted net earnings (loss) in the section 'Non-IFRS Measures' in the September 30, 2020 MD&A.
(6) These measures are non-IFRS measures. See the September 30, 2020 MD&A for explanations and discussion of these non-IFRS measures.
(7) 2019 amounts have been adjusted to conform with 2020 presentation. See the section 'Non-IFRS Measures' in the September 30, 2020 MD&A for detail.



Gold production of 136,922 ounces increased 35% from last year’s third quarter production of 101,596 ounces. Gold sales totalled 137,704 ounces in Q3 2020, an increase of 39% from 99,241 ounces sold in Q3 2019. The higher sales volume compared with the prior year reflected an increase of 23,690 ounces sold at Kisladag due to increased tonnes of stacked ore, an increase of 7,465 ounces sold at Lamaque due to increased tonnes processed and an increase of 8,420 ounces sold at Olympias as a result of increased production. Gold sales at Efemcukuru in Q3 2020 decreased slightly by 1,112 ounces from the prior year due to a decrease in grade, combined with lower tonnes processed in the quarter.

Total revenue was $287.60 million in Q3 2020, an increase of 67% from $172.3 million in Q3 2019. The increase was due to increased sales volume combined with a higher average realized gold price.

Cash operating costs per ounce sold in Q3 2020 averaged $537, a decrease from $560 in Q3 2019. The improvement was primarily due to higher production at Kisladag with an increase in stacked ore on the heap leach pad, higher production and grade at Olympias and increased mining rates at Lamaque following the receipt of authorization in March 2020 to increase mine production. Cash operating costs per ounce sold also benefited from a weakening of the Turkish Lira throughout 2020.

Total cash costs per ounce sold were negatively impacted throughout 2020 by higher gold royalty rates in both Greece and Turkey which increased in line with higher gold prices. Total cash costs were negatively impacted in Q3 2020 by an incremental 25% increase to 2020 gold royalty rates in Turkey, announced in September and retroactive to January 1, 2020. $4.1 million of additional royalty expense was recorded in Q3 2020 to reflect the additional royalty cost associated with gold sales during the first six months of 2020.

We reported net earnings attributable to shareholders of $41.0 million ($0.24 per share) in Q3 2020, compared to net earnings of $4.2 million ($0.03 per share) in Q3 2019. The improvement reflects higher production and sales volumes, combined with a higher average realized gold price.

Adjusted net earnings were $56.7 million ($0.33 per share) in Q3 2020 compared to adjusted net earnings of $7.6 million ($0.05 per share) in Q3 2019. Adjusted net earnings in Q3 2020 removes, among other things, a $8.3 million loss on foreign exchange due to translation of deferred tax balances, $7.9 million of finance costs related to the $58.6 million redemption of the senior secured notes in Q3 2020 and a $2.5 million gain on disposal of the Vila Nova mine in Q3 2020.

Gold Operations
3 months ended September 30, 9 months ended September 30,

2020 2019 2020 2019
Total
Ounces produced (1) 136,922 101,596 390,654 276,376
Ounces sold (2) 137,704 99,241 388,883 256,000
Cash operating costs ($/oz sold) (4) $ 537 $ 560 $ 568 $ 602
All-in sustaining costs ($/oz sold) (4) $ 918 $ 1,031 $ 908 $ 998
Sustaining capex (4) $ 22.1 $ 30.0 $ 63.4 $ 56.3
Kisladag
Ounces produced (3) 59,593 35,885 169,659 89,204
Ounces sold 59,571 35,881 171,088 89,208
Cash operating costs ($/oz sold) (4) $ 440 $ 399 $ 452 $ 442
All-in sustaining costs ($/oz sold) (4) $ 708 $ 566 $ 641 $ 580
Sustaining capex (4) $ 5.3 $ 3.9 $ 13.7 $ 8.0
Lamaque
Ounces produced (1) 39,525 32,037 99,973 84,855
Ounces sold (2) 38,587 31,122 97,279 55,452
Cash operating costs ($/oz sold) (4) $ 494 $ 480 $ 530 $ 496
All-in sustaining costs ($/oz sold) (4) $ 747 $ 1,089 $ 844 $ 968
Sustaining capex (4) $ 6.8 $ 15.9 $ 23.1 $ 21.2
Efemcukuru
Ounces produced 23,892 25,733 74,007 77,524
Ounces sold 24,471 25,583 73,384 80,222
Cash operating costs ($/oz sold) (4) $ 561 $ 591 $ 577 $ 596
All-in sustaining costs ($/oz sold) (4) $ 1,012 $ 900 $ 894 $ 859
Sustaining capex (4) $ 5.1 $ 5.2 $ 11.8 $ 14.2
Olympias
Ounces produced 13,912 7,941 47,015 24,793
Ounces sold 15,075 6,655 47,132 31,118
Cash operating costs ($/oz sold) (4) $ 992 $ 1,678 $ 1,056 $ 1,268
All-in sustaining costs ($/oz sold) (4) $ 1,450 $ 2,598 $ 1,484 $ 1,776
Sustaining capex (4) $ 4.9 $ 4.9 $ 14.8 $ 12.9


(1) Includes pre-commercial production at Lamaque (Q1 2019).
(2) Excludes sales of inventory produced at Lamaque during the pre-commercial production period (Q1 2019).
(3) Kisladag resumed mining, crushing and placing ore on the heap leach pad on April 1, 2019. This activity had been suspended since April 2018.
(4) These measures are non-IFRS measures. See the September 30, 2020 MD&A for explanations and discussion of these non-IFRS measures.

Corporate

On October 29, 2020, the Company issued a redemption notice for the senior secured notes and intends to redeem $7.5 million of the principal amount of the senior secured notes in December 2020. The redemption amount is based on flow-through shares issued in the quarter and the redemption price is 109.5% of the aggregate principal amount repaid, plus accrued and unpaid interest.

We are pleased to announce that Lisa Ower has been promoted to Executive Vice President, People and External Affairs. Lisa has been with the Company for two years and has been integral in strengthening our corporate culture and people practices. We are also pleased to announce that Brian Berney has been appointed to the role of Executive General Manager, Greece and will oversee operations at our Greek mines, and that Justin Kapla has been appointed as General Manager, Kisladag. Both Brian and Justin bring significant experience in mine operations and will support our focus on operational performance.

Conference Call

A conference call to discuss the details of the Company’s Q3 2020 results will be held by senior management on Friday, October 30, 2020 at 8:30 AM PT (11:30 AM ET). The call will be webcast and can be accessed at Eldorado Gold’s website: www.eldoradogold.com and via this link: http://services.choruscall.ca/links/eldoradogold20201030.html


Conference Call Details Replay (available until Dec. 4, 2020)
Date: October 30, 2020 Vancouver: +1 604 638 9010
Time: 11:30 am ET (8:30 am PT) Toll Free: 1 800 319 6413
Dial in: +1 604 638 5340 Pass code: 5357
Toll free: 1 800 319 4610

About Eldorado Gold