Agnico Eagle: 3 mines operating & 3 new gold mines soon.
Gold production to double to 590,000 ounces in 2009, double again to 1.2 million ounces in 2010.
Rapidly Growing International Gold Company.
Exploration Success creating Share holder value.
Agnico-Eagle Mines Limitedis an international growth company focused on gold, with operations in Canada and Finland and advanced-stage projects and opportunities in Canada, Mexico and the USA. Agnico-Eagle's LaRonde Mine in Quebec is Canada's largest gold deposit and is a strong foundation for international expansion.
Global Growth : Three gold mines now operating. Three new gold mines under construction
Strategy
For the past several years, we have pursued a five-pronged growth strategy focussed on finding more gold and developing new mines at the lowest possible cost.
Produce more gold, Our goal is to increase annual gold production to 1.4 million ounces by 2011, by building and exploring our own mines. With the planned start-ups of the Goldex and Kittila mines in 2008, we will be on our way to having six operating gold mines. Over the period from2010 to 2017, we are targeting steady-state gold production averaging 1.3 million ounces.
Grow gold reserves in mining-friendly regions
We aim to grow gold mineral reserves to between 18 and 20 million ounces by year-end 2008 through aggressive exploration on our 100%-owned properties. Agnico-Eagle has active exploration programs in Canada (Ontario,Quebec, the Yukon and Nunavut), the United States (Nevada), Finland and Mexico (Chihuahua). Over the past several years, we have established our ability to find gold and grow reserves faster than most other intermediate gold producers. We see the potential for several five-million ounce gold deposits at our existing properties.
Acquire small, think big
We continuously look to add quality projects and assets to our portfolio. Agnico-Eagle is positioned to act if an opportunity is well-matched to our technical skills and abilities, and can significantly strengthen the business. Our focus is on smaller companies or projects, which can typically be acquired at favourable prices and whose operations can be quickly and easily integrated into our company.
Be a low-cost leader
We consider low-cost production to be an important competitive advantage that helps position the company to deliver value. At LaRonde, strong byproduct revenues, economies of scale afforded by the high-tonnage mine and a highly skilled and motivated workforce enable us to maintain our status as one of the lowest-cost producers in the gold industry. As we build new mines, we have implemented rigorous cost-control measures and monitoring programs to ensure that project budgets remain on track.
Maintain a solid financial position
A conservative and strong balance sheet gives us the financial resources to fund growth projects while maintaining our longstanding policy of never selling away the price upside on our gold reserves. As we open the new gold mines, growing cash flow should allow us to execute on opportunities, and reward our shareholders, while maintaining a solid financial position.
Operating Mines
Agnico-Eagle's flagship LaRonde mine is located in the Abitibi Region of northwestern Quebec, approximately 650 km northwest of Montreal. Since 1988, the mine has produced more than 3 million ounces of gold. With proven and probable gold reserves of 5.0 million ounces; 34.9 million tonnes at 4.4 g/t, LaRonde is the largest gold deposit in Canada. Even after 18 years of production, LaRonde reserves have been maintained or grown year after year.
The Goldex property is located in the Abitibi region of northwestern Quebec, about 60 km east of the LaRonde mine. This underground mine began production in April 2008. Goldex has approximately 23.1 million tonnes of proven and probable reserves grading 2.2 g/t and holding more than 1.6 million ounces of gold.
The Kittila mine is under construction on the Suurikuusikko gold deposit, located approximately 900 km north of Helsinki in the town of Kittila, in Finnish Lapland. Agnico-Eagle is comfortable operating in northern Finland, as the climate, topography, and geology are similar to the Abitibi region of northwestern Quebec where our current operations are. Production is expected to begin in the fourth quarter of 2008. Kittila has probable reserves of 3.0 million ounces; 18.2 million tonnes at 5.1 g/t – open on strike and at depth.
Why Invest in AEM?
For investors looking for quality growth and exposure to gold, this is the prime time to invest in Agico-Eagle. We have structured our company to generate above-average returns to shareholders at every stage of the gold cycle.
- We are poised to increase gold production fivefold by 2010, with five new mines starting up in the next two years.
- By year-end 2008, we expect to reach 18 to 20 million ounces of gold in reserves through exploration on existing properties.
- Our operations are located in mining-friendly regions with low political risk and long-term mining camp potential.
- Agnico-Eagle is one of the lowest-cost producers in the gold industry, allowing the payment of consecutive annual dividends since 1981.
- Our longstanding policy regarding non-hedging ensures that shareholders always participate fully in rising gold prices.
- We maintain a solid financial position, have full funding for our growth and maintain a low number of shares outstanding, putting us in a strong position to continue to build per share value.
- The CEO/COO partnership of Sean Boyd and Ebe Scherkus has been in place for 23 years. These two men were recently honoured by The Northern Miner newspaper as 2007 Mining Men of the Year.
Stock information : Trading symbols: TSX and NYSE: AEM