New Gold(NGD) - 2025 Q3 - Earnings Call Transcript

Financial Data and Key Metrics Changes - The company reported third quarter revenue of $463 million, an increase from the prior year due to higher gold and copper prices and sales volumes [13] - Cash generated from operations before working capital adjustments was $296 million, or $0.37 per share, higher than the prior year period [13] - The company achieved record quarterly free cash flow of $205 million, driven by higher revenue [13] - Net earnings for the quarter were approximately $142 million, or $0.18 per share, primarily due to increased revenues [13][14] - All-in sustaining costs reduced from the second quarter by $425 to $966 per ounce, with an average realized gold price of $3,458 per ounce [5][14] Business Line Data and Key Metrics Changes - New Afton produced approximately 115,200 ounces of gold and 12 million lbs of copper in the quarter, with B3 cave overperforming [5][7] - Rainy River achieved record quarterly production of over 100,000 ounces of gold, a 63% increase over the second quarter, with all-in sustaining costs of $1,043 per ounce [4][10] - New Afton achieved an all-in sustaining cost of negative $595 per ounce after considering copper credits [7] Market Data and Key Metrics Changes - The average realized gold price was $3,458 per ounce, contributing to the increase in revenue [5][13] - The company expects all-in sustaining costs to reduce further through the fourth quarter [5] Company Strategy and Development Direction - The company is focused on increasing production and reducing costs, with a target of ramping up C-Zone to full processing capacity of approximately 16,000 tons per day by early 2026 [6][10] - Exploration initiatives are being advanced, with a significant increase in the exploration budget to $22 million for approximately 63,000 meters of drilling [15][18] - The company aims to generate approximately $1.8 billion of free cash flow over the next three years, with expectations of being at the high end of this projection for 2025 [19][20] Management's Comments on Operating Environment and Future Outlook - Management expressed confidence in continued significant growth in gold and copper production over the next two years, with expectations of decreasing unit costs per ounce of gold [19][20] - The company is committed to maintaining a strong balance sheet while investing in exploration and organic opportunities [29] - Management highlighted the importance of safety, with a low total recordable injury frequency rate of 0.61, down from 0.82 in the previous quarter [4][20] Other Important Information - The company repaid a total of $260 million in debt during the quarter, including the full repayment of a $150 million credit facility drawn earlier [6][14] - Significant safety milestones were achieved, with New Afton surpassing 1 million hours and Rainy River surpassing 1.5 million hours worked without a lost time injury [4] Q&A Session Summary Question: Can you provide a breakout of tonnage from the C-Zone and B-Zone? - The B-Zone contributed 4,300 tons per day, while the C-Zone contributed the remainder [24] Question: What are your plans for capital allocation with the free cash flow? - The company takes a disciplined approach to capital allocation, focusing on maintaining a strong balance sheet, investing in exploration, and evaluating capital returns to shareholders [29] Question: What is the expected grade for K-Zone? - The company is still in the drilling phase and will need to update models to determine the total size and grade of K-Zone [33] Question: Can you provide an update on tailings management at Rainy River? - The company is assessing the full potential of K-Zone and is not currently seeing a need for significant investment in the tailings management area [39] Question: What should we expect for Rainy River's performance in Q4? - The company expects continued positive performance in Rainy River, with no significant changes in trajectory [45] Question: How will the drilling results impact the resource update for K-Zone? - The company plans to include all drilling results in the resource update scheduled for January [49]