, Rambler Metals and Mining said recently that 3,769 tons of marketable copper were produced in the year to December 31, 2020, down from 5299 tons last year. In response to the collapse in copper prices in March last year, Rambler scaled back its operations and cut production to 50 per cent of capacity, keeping only the promise of its forward sales agreement.
Throughout the year, the Nugget Pond copper and gold mill in Newfoundland produced 263230 tons of ore with a feed grade of 1.55%. The recovery of copper concentrate this year is 95.6%. The Rambler recommends that since the second quarter of 2020, the determination of gold grade and subsequent gold and silver recoveries, as well as sealable gold and silver content, has been postponed. However, the company expects the results to begin at the end of March this year.
According to the settlement invoice for the three shipments completed in 2020, the Rambler Strait shipped 2949 ounces of gold and 17373 ounces of silver. Toby Bradbury, president and CEO of the company, said 2020 was a challenging year for the company, exacerbated by the impact of the global Covid-19 pandemic and its subsequent impact on commodity prices.
The copper market is strong, which the company says will support its operating margin. Since the third quarter, improved market conditions have enabled Rambler to complete its financing on December 8, which strengthens its balance sheet and provides a platform to realize the full potential of Ming mines. As of December 31, the company's cash settlement position was $6.2 million.
"our focus now is on rebuilding the sustainable production of high-grade ores to make full use of the capacity of existing plants, while embarking on further exploration and project evaluation of expansion opportunities," Toby Bradbury said. This year, Rambler will increase the speed of high-grade production to meet the plant's 1350 tons per day capacity and process about 115000 tons of mine ore at 2 per cent grade by the end of the year; this was achieved in the third quarter of 2019.
The company has set its 2021 production guidelines at 6600 to 7400 tons of saleable copper and 1700 ounces to 2200 ounces of gold. Before Rambler can increase production, it needs to do some dehydration, catch-up maintenance and remedial work on its 100%-owned Ming mine on the Baie Verte peninsula.
