VANCOUVER, British Columbia, July 08, 2022 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Endeavour Silver Corp. (“Endeavour” or the “Company”) (NYSE: EXK; TSX: EDR) is pleased to report second quarter 2022 production of 1,359,207 silver ounces (oz) and 9,289 gold oz, for silver equivalent 1 (“AgEq”) production of 2.1 million oz. Production continues to outpace the 2022 production guidance of 6.7-7.6 million silver equivalent ounces, totaling 4.1 million AgEq oz for the six months ended June 30, 2022.

“Amid ongoing turmoil in the markets due to supply constraints, continued inflation concerns, and uncertainty from the raising of interest rates from historical lows, we had another solid quarter of production” stated Dan Dickson, Chief Executive Officer. “Despite the current macro trends, the Company and precious metals outlook remains optimistic. Given our positive view for short-term precious metal prices, we are comfortable holding back bullion inventory over the quarter for future sale.”

“First half production results exceeded plan, so we are well positioned to exceed our guidance for the year. The exceptional ore grades at Guanacevi have put us in this position. While it’s has been gratifying to see grades reach new highs, we expect grades to align with or be slightly above plan for the second half of the year.”

Q2 2022 Highlights

Guanacevi Continued to Outperform: Silver and gold production exceeded plan driven by higher grades offset by lower tonnes milled.
Safety Milestone Attained at Guanacevi: Employees and business partners surpassed 2 million hours worked lost-time injury free. The ICARE values program, together with the “Te Cuido” safety philosophy, keeps focus on our proactive safety orientated culture. Visit our Blog to learn more.
Bolañitos’ Performance Remained Steady: Strong silver production, higher silver grades and increased throughput were offset by the impact of lower than expected gold production and gold grades.
Metal Sales and Inventories : Sold 602,894 oz silver and 9,792 oz gold during the quarter. Held 1,399,355 oz silver and 2,580 oz gold of bullion inventory and 12,408 oz silver and 588 oz gold in concentrate inventory at quarter end.
Guanacevi Delivers Exceptional Drill Results: Drilling intersected record high-grade silver-gold mineralization on the El Curso property including 5.83 gpt Au and 1,278 gpt Ag for 2,534 gpt AgEq over a 7.5 m estimated true width in hole UCM-93 (see EDR news release dated April 13, 2022 ).
Positive Exploration Results at Parral: Drilling continued to intersect high-grade silver mineralization along the Veta Colorada structure.
Advancing the Terronera Project : The early works program initiated last year continued, including detail engineering, critical contracts and the procurement of long lead items. Extensive due diligence work continued for project financing. The Company intends to make a formal construction decision subject to completion of a financing package and receipt of additional amended permits in the coming months.
Published 2021 Sustainability Report Entitled “Bridge to the Future”: The report outlines Endeavour’s approach to sustainability in the areas of its People, the Planet and the Business.
Subsequent to the Quarter End

Closed the Acquisition of the Pitarrilla Project on July 6, 2022: The addition of the Pitarrilla project enhances the company’s growth profile while maintaining a silver focus.
Q2 2022 Mine Operations

Consolidated silver production increased 27% to 1,359,207 ounces in Q2 2022 compared to Q2 2021, primarily driven by increased silver production at the Guanacevi mine. The El Curso orebody has led to significantly higher grades than planned, allowing for production targets to be met during a period of decreased plant throughput. Local third-party ores continued to supplement mine production, amounting to 17% of quarterly throughput and contributing to the higher ore grades. Guanacevi throughput was 16% lower than prior quarter and lower than plan due to installation of a new cone crusher, which will allow throughput to rise for the second half of the year. Management is reviewing alternatives to further increase throughput above the current 1,200 tpd capacity with changes in areas including grinding and leach.

Gold production decreased by 17% to 9,289 ounces primarily due lower gold grades mined at the Bolañitos mine. The increased gold production from Guanacevi offset the gold produced from the El Compas mine, which suspended operations in Q3, 2021.

Bolañitos Q2 2022 throughput was consistent with Q2 2021 with silver grades 38% higher and gold grades 17% lower. Silver production increased by 37% while gold production decreased by 17% at the Bolañitos mine. The change in grades were due to typical variations in the ore body.

Production Highlights for the Three and Six Months Ended June 30, 2022

Three Months Ended June 30, Six Months Ended June 30,
2022 2021 % Change 2022 2021 % Change
201,361 242,018 (17%) Throughput (tonnes) 407,508 451,471 (10%)
1,359,207 1,073,724 27% Silver ounces produced 2,674,162 2,121,824 26%
9,289 11,166 (17%) Gold ounces produced 17,984 22,275 (19%)
1,346,276 1,062,267 27% Payable silver ounces produced 2,649,816 2,098,977 26%
9,117 10,955 (17%) Payable gold ounces produced 17,666 21,849 (19%)
2,102,327 1,967,004 7% Silver equivalent ounces produced 4,112,882 3,903,824 5%
602,894 1,120,266 (46%) Silver ounces sold 2,320,662 1,743,645 33%
9,792 9,810 (0%) Gold ounces sold 18,173 20,473 (11%)
Production Tables for Q2 2022 by Mine

Mine-by-mine production in the second quarter and first half of 2022 was:

Production Tonnes Tonnes Grade Grade Recovery Recovery Silver Gold
by mine Processed per day Ag gpt* Au gpt* Ag % Au % Oz Oz
Guanaceví 94,017 1,045 465 1.37 85.0% 88.9% 1,194,150 3,680
Bolañitos 107,344 1,193 54 1.77 88.6% 91.8% 165,057 5,609
Consolidated 201,361 2,237 246 1.58 85.4% 90.6% 1,359,207 9,289
*gpt = grams per tonne

Production Tables for the Six Months Ended June 30, 2022 by Mine

Production Tonnes Tonnes Grade Grade Recovery Recovery Silver Gold
by mine Processed per day Ag gpt* Au gpt* Ag % Au % Oz Oz
Guanaceví 195,270 2,170 435 1.28 85.2% 89.1% 2,328,000 7,157
Bolañitos 212,238 2,358 57 1.75 89.0% 90.7% 346,162 10,827
Consolidated 407,508 4,528 238 1.52 85.7% 90.0% 2,674,162 17,984
*gpt = grams per tonne

Q2 2022 Financial Results and Conference Call

The Company’s Q2 2022 financial results will be released before markets open on Tuesday, August 9, 2022 and a telephone conference call will be held the same day at 10:00 a.m. PT / 1:00 p.m. ET. To participate in the conference call, please dial the numbers below.

Date & Time: Tuesday, August 9, 2022 at 10:00 a.m. PT / 1:00 p.m. ET

Telephone: Toll-free in Canada and the US +1-800-319-4610
Local or International +1-604-638-5340
Please allow up to 10 minutes to be connected to the conference call.

Replay: A replay of the conference call will be available by dialing (toll-free)
+1-800-319-6413in Canada and the US (toll-free) or+1-604-638-9010outside of Canada and the US. The replay passcode is 9151#. The replay will also be available on the Company’s website at www.edrsilver.com