COLUMBUS, MT, Oct. 14, 2009 (Marketwire) --
COLUMBUS, MT -- (Marketwire) -- 10/14/09 -- STILLWATER MINING COMPANY (NYSE: SWC) released today preliminary third quarter and year-to-date production results, total cash costs per ounce and realized metal prices for its two operating mines and volumes processed in its platinum-group metal (PGM) recycling activities.
While the Company believes that the statistics presented below are accurate, the quarterly review by the Company's independent auditor is not yet complete. Consequently, the information shown may be subject to revision in the Company's forthcoming Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q for the third quarter 2009.
Mine Production
Mined Ounces
(Thousands)
Quarter Ended Nine Months Ended
September 30 September 30
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2009 2008 Change 2009 2008 Change
------ ------ ------ ------ ------ ------
Stillwater Mine
Platinum 22.1 19.4 2.7 68.0 59.8 8.2
Palladium 73.0 64.4 8.6 223.0 197.4 25.6
------ ------ ------ ------ ------ ------
Total 95.1 83.8 11.3 291.0 257.2 33.8
East Boulder Mine
Platinum 7.8 8.1 (0.3) 22.7 26.3 (3.6)
Palladium 26.2 28.1 (1.9) 77.9 91.7 (13.8)
------ ------ ------ ------ ------ ------
Total 34.0 36.2 (2.2) 100.6 118.0 (17.4)
Total Mining
Platinum 29.9 27.5 2.4 90.7 86.1 4.6
Palladium 99.2 92.5 6.7 300.9 289.1 11.8
------ ------ ------ ------ ------ ------
Total 129.1 120.0 9.1 391.6 375.2 16.4
Mine production for the third quarter and first nine months of 2009 overall was stronger than in the corresponding periods of 2008, particularly at the Stillwater Mine. Stillwater Mine production in the third quarter of 2009 was up 13.5% over the year-earlier quarter. The Company's restructuring efforts late in 2008 resulted in additional miners being assigned to Stillwater Mine, accompanied by a significant reduction in the number of employees at the East Boulder Mine. The mining effort at East Boulder was reorganized around several distinct mining areas, with employee teams assigned responsibility for operations in each area. While this approach, with the lower staffing, has resulted in somewhat lower mining output at East Boulder, mining productivities there have continued to strengthen during 2009. Third quarter PGM ounce production at East Boulder was off only about 6% from the same period in 2008, despite a nearly 50% reduction in the mine workforce between the periods.
The Company has previously given production guidance of 496,000 palladium and platinum ounces combined output from the two mines for the full year 2009. Through nine months, the Company is at 79% of that objective, suggesting that full year results should exceed the earlier guidance.
Total Cash Costs per Mined Ounce
The Company regularly reports Total Cash Costs per Mined Ounce as a non-GAAP measure of extraction efficiency for its mining operations. A complete description of this measure and discussion of how it is determined, along with certain caveats as to its appropriate application, are included in each of the Company's quarterly filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission.
In calculating total cash costs per mined ounce, historically the Company has offset a portion these costs with the proceeds from sales of mine by-products and with income from recycling activities. The table below strips out the effect of these credits, and so isolates the substantial improvement in the cash cost per ounce of mining and processing activities between 2009 and 2008.
Total Cash Costs per Mined Ounce Produced - before Recycling and By-product
Credits
($/returnable oz. of Pt/Pd)
Quarter Ended Nine Months Ended
September 30 September 30
---------------------- ----------------------
2009 2008 Change 2009 2008 Change
------ ------ ------ ------ ------ ------
Stillwater Mine 407 532 (125) 404 529 (125)
East Boulder Mine 467 618 (151) 469 614 (145)
Consolidated Mining 424 558 (134) 421 556 (135)
When the effect of the recycling and by-product credits is excluded, Stillwater Mine's total cash costs per ounce for the third quarter of 2009 improved by 23.5% relative to the same quarter of 2008.
