TORONTO, April 15, 2021 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Wesdome Gold Mines Ltd. (TSX:WDO) (“Wesdome” or the “Company”) today announces its gold production results for the first quarter of 2021 (“Q1”).

Mr. Duncan Middlemiss, President and CEO commented, “First quarter production of 22,564 ounces was within our expectations. Eagle River grades were slightly below the low end of our guidance, however increased through the quarter, reaching 15.3 g/t in the month of March and we expect to be within guidance for the year. Underground operations showed steady improvement in efficiencies throughout the quarter and this trend is expected to continue. Mill throughput increased by 6% over Q1 2020 due to higher mill availability. Quarterly gold production is expected to increase for the remainder of the year. We remain on track to achieve our guidance of 92,000 – 105,000 ounces at the Eagle River Mine this year.

“At Kiena we completed the reconciliation of the Kiena Deep A Zone bulk sample, resulting in a positive reconciliation of 6% more gold compared to that of the mineral resource block model and subsequently sold 1,793 ounces in Q1 2021 (3,293 ounces to date). We are in the final stages of completing the pre-feasibility study and intend to publish the results this quarter.”

Amounts are denominated in Canadian dollars First Quarter
2021 2020 Variance % +/(-)

Ore milled (tonnes)
Eagle River 53,540 55,874 -2,334 (4%)
Mishi 17,219 11,047 6,172 56%
70,759 66,922 3,837 6%

Head grade (grams per tonne, “g/t”)
Eagle River 12.8 14.0 (1.2) (9%)
Mishi 2.5 2.5 0.0 0%

Gold production (ounces)
Eagle River 21,396 24,457 -3,061 (13%)
Mishi 1,169 665 504 76%
Total Gold Production 22,564 25,122 -2,558 (10%)

Production sold (ounces) 2 22,457 26,500 -4,043 (15%)

Average realized price per ounce 3 $2,219 $2,162 57 3%

Revenue from gold sales ($ millions) 4 $49.8 $57.3 ($7.5) (13%)


Notes:

Operating numbers may not add due to rounding.
Includes 1,793 ounces from the Kiena Bulk Sample
Average realized price per ounce is a nonIFRS performance measure and is calculated by dividing the revenue from gold sales by the number of ounces sold for a given period
Includes $3.9 million from sales of Kiena Bulk Sample
Technical Disclosure

The technical content of this release has been compiled, reviewed and approved by Marc-Andre Pelletier, P. Eng, Chief Operating Officer, a "Qualified Person" as defined in National Instrument 43-101 -Standards of Disclosure for Mineral Projects.

COVID-19

The health and safety of our employees, contractors, vendors, and consultants is the Company’s top priority. In response to the COVID-19 outbreak, Wesdome has adopted all public health guidelines regarding safety measures and protocols at all of its mine operations and corporate offices. In addition, our internal COVID-19 Taskforce continues to monitor developments and implement policies and programs intended to protect those who are engaged in business with the Company.

Through care and planning, to date the Company has successfully maintained operations, however there can be no assurance that this will continue despite our best efforts. Future conditions may warrant reduced or suspended production activities which could negatively impact our ability to maintain projected timelines and objectives. Consequently, the Company’s actual future production and production guidance is subject to higher levels of risk than usual. We are continuing to closely monitor the situation and will provide updates as they become available.

ABOUT WESDOME
Wesdome Gold Mines is a 100% Canadian focused Company that has had over 30 years of continuous gold mining operations in Canada. The Company’s strategy is to build an intermediate gold producer, producing 200,000+ ounces from two mines in Ontario and Quebec. The Eagle River Complex in Wawa, Ontario is currently increasing gold production from the high grade Eagle River Underground Mine. Wesdome is actively exploring its brownfields asset, the Kiena Complex in Val d’Or, Quebec. The Kiena Complex is a fully permitted former mine with a 930-metre shaft and 2,000 tonne-per-day mill. The Company is currently completing a PFS in support of a production restart decision. The Company is in the process of divesting of its Moss Lake gold deposit, located 100 kilometres (“kms”) west of Thunder Bay, Ontario. The Company has approximately 139.4 million shares issued and outstanding and trades on the Toronto Stock Exchange under the symbol “WDO.”

For further information, please contact:

Duncan Middlemiss or Lindsay Carpenter Dunlop
President and CEO