2018 Gold Production and 2019 Outlook

published: 18 January 2019

Centerra Gold Inc. (Centerra) and Kumtor Gold Company (KGC) report that they had another solid year delivering more than 534,000 ounces of gold production.

 2018 Gold production at the Kumtor mine was:

– 534,000 ounces¹, or 16,609.27 kg of gold for the full year 2018;

– 228,096 ounces, or approximately 7,098.58 kg, of gold was produced in the fourth quarter of 2018.

Scott Perry, President and Chief Executive Officer of Centerra stated, “Kumtor had a strong fourth quarter and another solid year in 2018 delivering more than 534,000 ounces of gold production, which exceeded the upper end (510,000 ounces) of its gold production guidance. Gold production at Kumtor is expected to be evenly weighted for the first three quarters of 2019 with the fourth quarter of 2019 representing approximately 28% of the full year’s production forecast.

2019 Outlook
Kumtor’s gold production forecast is expected to be in the range of 535,000 ounces to 565,000 ounces with approximately 28% of the production expected to be in the fourth quarter of 2019.

2019 Exploration Expenditures
Planned exploration expenditures for 2019 are expected to be $11 million².

2019 Capital Expenditures
Total capital expenditures, excluding capitalized stripping, are forecast to be $59 million. Spending on sustaining capital³ of $45 million relates primarily to major overhauls and replacements of the heavy-duty mine equipment ($39 million).
Growth capital³ investment at Kumtor for 2019 is forecast at $14 million which includes capital expenditures for tailings dam construction ($6 million), pit dewatering projects ($2 million) and other projects ($6 million).
The cash component of capitalized stripping costs related to the development of the open pit is expected to be $88 million of the $108 million total capitalized stripping estimated in 2019.

 Kumtor Strategic Agreement
Centerra expects the Strategic Agreement with the Kyrgyz Government to close in the first quarter of 2019 at which time the remaining payments associated with agreement are expected to be made.

2019 Taxes
Pursuant to the Restated Investment Agreement, Kumtor’s operations are not subject to corporate income taxes. Instead, the Restated Investment Agreement imposes a tax of 13% on gross revenue (plus 1% for the Issyk-Kul Oblast Development Fund).

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1 – One Troy ounce equals to 31.103 48 grammes.
2 – Unless specified otherwise, all dollar figures in this news release are in US dollars.
3–  Non-GAAP measures and are discussed under “Non-GAAP Measures” in Centerra’s MD&A and news release dated January 15, 2019.

 The Kumtor open pit mine, located in the Kyrgyz Republic, is one of the largest gold mines in Central Asia operated by a Western-based gold producer. It has been operating since May 1997 and has produced over 12 million ounces or 374.31 tonnes of gold to December 31, 2018.

Kumtor Gold Company is the operator of the Kumtor Project responsible for the entire production cycle.

 Centerra Gold Inc. is a Canadian-based gold mining company focused on operating, developing, exploring and acquiring gold properties in North America, Asia and other markets worldwide, and is the largest Western-based gold producer in Central Asia. Centerra operates two flagship assets, the Kumtor Mine in the Kyrgyz Republic and the Mount Milligan Mine in British Columbia, Canada and is building its third gold mining operation, its 100%-owned Öksüt Gold Mine in Turkey.  Centerra’s shares trade on the Toronto Stock Exchange (TSX) under the symbol CG. The Company is headquartered in Toronto, Ontario, Canada.

The Kyrgyz Republic, via Kyrgyzaltyn JSC, is Centerra’s largest shareholder owning 77,401,766 common shares. As of January 18, 2019, Kyrgyzstan’s interests were estimated at $ 361 million.

Additional information on Centerra and the full text of the news release on the 2018 Gold Production and 2018 Outlook are available on SEDAR at www.sedar.com and the corporate websites at www.centerragold.com and www.kumtor.kg.

For further information, please contact Media Relations, KGC.mediа@centerragold.com     

Tel: (312) 90-07-07; 90-08-08; fax: (312) 90-07-28

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