Centerra Gold (TSX:CG) reported first-quarter financial results on Thursday. The transcript from the company’s first-quarter earnings call has been provided below.
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The full earnings call is available at https://event.choruscall.com/mediaframe/webcast.html?webcastid=NnpeYvWb
Summary
Centerra Gold reported a strong start to 2026 with consolidated production of 68,000 ounces of gold and 14.2 million pounds of copper, in line with full-year guidance.
The company strengthened its financial position with a cash balance increase to $543 million, while returning $33 million to shareholders through buybacks and dividends.
Strategic initiatives include ongoing developments at Mount Milligan, Thompson Creek, and the Chemex project, with significant progress on life-of-mine optimization studies and sustainability efforts.
Management highlighted the successful temporary resumption of operations at Langloth and the positive impact of higher byproduct credits on costs, despite recent diesel price increases.
Guidance for 2026 remains on track, with expectations for higher production in upcoming quarters and continued commitment to capital returns via share buybacks and dividends.
Full Transcript
Lisa Wilkinson (Vice President, Investor Relations and Corporate Communications)
Thank you Operator and good morning everyone. Welcome to Centerra Gold’s first quarter 2026 results conference call. Joining me on the call today are Paul Tomory, President and Chief Executive Officer Brian Snyder, Chief Financial Officer and Mike Silvest, our Interim Chief Operating Officer. Other members of the executive team are available for the Q and A session. Our news, published last night outlines our first quarter 2026 results and is complemented by our MD&A and financial statements which are available on Sedar, Edgar and our website. All figures are in US Dollars unless otherwise noted. Presentation slides accompanying this webcast are available on Sentara’s website. Following the prepared remarks, we will open the call for questions. Before we begin, we would like to remind everyone that today’s discussion may include forward looking statements which are subject to risks that could cause our actual results to differ from from those expressed or implied. For more information, please refer to the cautionary statements in our presentation and the risk factors outlined in our annual information form. We will also be referring to certain non GAAP measures during today’s discussion. For a detailed description of these measures, please see our news release and MD&A issued yesterday. I will now turn the call over to Paul Temori.
Paul Tomory
Thank you Lisa and good morning everyone. We achieved a very strong start to the year with production performing in line with our plan across operations. Consolidated first quarter production of 68,000 ounces of gold and 14.2 million pounds of copper of copper. Mount Milligan delivered results consistent with our recently published pre-feasibility study (PFS) and full year guidance, while the site delivered a strong quarter driven by higher grades supporting robust free cash flow generation across both sites. Our financial position strengthened this quarter with our cash balance increasing to $543 million. This was achieved while we continue to invest in our internal growth pipeline, built working capital at Langelot and returned $33 million to shareholders through share buybacks and dividends in the quarter. We remain focused on leveraging the strength of our balance sheet and our cash flow generation to advance our disciplined self funded growth strategy. In January we announced the results of a PEA for Chemistry highlighting the long term potential of the project which remains a cornerstone of our future growth pipeline. We also continue to progress key initiatives across our portfolio including delivering on the Mount Milligan PFS and ongoing development work at Thompson Creek which is expected to achieve first production in mid-2027. Work on the Life of Mine Optimization study at UXIT continues to progress. We are evaluating the incremental production potential of residual leaching of the heap and the inclusion of low grade oxide mineralization outside of the current reserve pit into the mine plan. This study remains on track for completion by the end of 2026. Gold field development activities are advancing well with field campaigns and support of engineering now complete. Detailed engineering, procurement of long lead time items and mobilization activities for 2026. Early works are progressing as planned. First production at Gold Field remains on track for late 2028. Together these growth projects position Sentara to deliver sustainable value for shareholders over the long term. In January we released an updated mineral resource and preliminary economic assessment for Kemess. The study outlined a De-risk Restart Plan which leverages substantial existing infrastructure and focuses on an integrated open pit and underground mining operation. The PEA highlights an initial 15 year mine life with meaningful gold and copper production of 171,000 ounces and 61 million pounds respectively at an all in sustaining cost on a byproduct basis of $971 per ounce. Chemist is supported by robust economics with an after tax NPV of $2.8 billion and a 29% IRR at prices of 4,500 per ounce of gold and $6 per pound of copper. The capital profile takes a phased approach with approximately 770 million in initial non sustained capital support open pit development followed by 277 million in expansionary non sustaining capital over the two years following open pit startup to support the commencement of underground operations. Most importantly, the pea only evaluates 47% of the overall resource tons, highlighting the potential for additional resources to be incorporated into future technical studies and the project’s overall scale and long term production profile. Overall, CHEMEX represents a high quality, compelling and large scale growth opportunity for Sentara. We’ve advanced technical work on a pre feasibility study which is expected in 2027. Now I’d like to provide an update on our sustainability initiatives. We continue to make progress on our environmental and permitting activities across the portfolio. During the first quarter Goldfield reached an important milestone with the receipt of its water rights transfers, supporting the advancement of the project towards operations. We remain focused on advancing the remaining permits at Goldfield and we continue to engage constructively with regulators and with the community. We remain confident in the overall permitting process for the project. Our commitment to strong social performance also remains a key focus at Goldfield. Our team hosted two Joshua Tree donation events during the quarter, engaging local communities and supporting the responsible relocation of 340trees, including 260 for personal use and 80 replanted around the perimeter of our property. At UXEUT, our social programs continue to support education, youth development and broader community initiatives, including a sport and academic program launched this quarter that is expected to reach approximately 14,000 local students over the year. We continue to advance our commitment to responsible mining practices and transparent reporting. Our team is actively working on the 2025 Sustainability Report which will highlight our progress across key environmental, social and governance initiatives. We look forward to publishing the report in May and sharing the steps we are taking to create long term value for our stakeholders before we move into our operating highlights, I would like to welcome Mike Silvest as our new Interim Chief Operating Officer who joined us at the end of March. We’ve initiated a search for a permanent CEO and in the interim Mike brings a wealth of operational experience and technical expertise to the role. His leadership will be instrumental in supporting our operations and advancing our key priorities as we remain focused on safe and reliable performance across the business. I look forward to working closely with Mike and benefiting from his expertise and his leadership and with that I’ll pass the call over to Ryan to walk through our operating and financial highlights.
Ryan Snyder
Thanks Paul. Starting with the operations, Slide 7 shows the operating highlights at Mount Milligan for the first quarter. Mount Milligan produced over 29,500 ounces of gold in the quarter, representing approximately 20% of full year guidance in line with the production profile we previously outlined, copper production was 14.2 million pounds. Gold and copper sales exceeded production, reflecting the impact of weather related logistics disruptions at the end of December that deferred some sales into 2026. We continue to expect gold production and sales to be higher in the second and third quarters reflecting planned line sequencing, all in sustaining costs on a byproduct basis for $1,060 per ounce in the first quarter, benefiting from higher byproduct credits driven by elevated copper and silver prices. Recent increases in diesel prices did not have a material impact on Mount Milligan’s cost structure in the first quarter. Moving on to Oxu, first quarter production was over 38,400 ounces of gold higher than planned due to higher grades. Full year 2026 production at Oxu remains in the range of 110,000 to 125,000 ounces, with production the remaining quarters of 2026 expected to be more evenly weighted and lower than the first quarter. Production ASIC on a byproduct basis was $1,653 per ounce in the first quarter, lower compared to last quarter, driven by higher gold ounces produced and sold and lower …
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