Dundee Precious Metals Q1 2026 Earnings Call Transcript

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Provided by Quartr
May 6, 2026

Key Takeaways

  • Positive Sentiment: Record Q1 results — produced ~84,000 gold‑equivalent ounces and generated a record $203 million of free cash flow, finishing the quarter with $575 million in cash and ~ $1 billion of total liquidity.
  • Positive Sentiment: Vareš ramp-up is progressing well — ~29,000 GEO produced in Q1 at an AISC of $892/GEO, on track to reach an 850,000 ton/year run rate by year‑end with paste‑plant work and surface drilling planned.
  • Negative Sentiment: Cost and margin pressures — Q1 all‑in sustaining cost was $1,686/GEO (partly from mark‑to‑market share‑based comp), with FX, higher royalties and labour adding cost, and each $10/barrel rise in oil could increase sustaining costs by ~ $11/GEO.
  • Positive Sentiment: Growth and exploration pipeline — advancing Čoka Rakita toward a construction decision (20,000 m drilling underway, special planning process expected H2 2026) and large programs at Brevene and Chelopech (including Wedge Zone Deep) that could meaningfully extend life and scale production.
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Earnings Conference Call
Dundee Precious Metals Q1 2026
00:00 / 00:00

There are 8 speakers on the call.

Speaker 7

Hello, and welcome to the DPM Metals 1st quarter 2026 earnings results conference call. At this time, all participants are in listen only mode. After the speaker's presentation, there will be a question and answer session. To ask a question during the session, you'll need to press star 11 on your telephone. You'll then hear an automated message advising that your hand is raised. To withdraw your question, please press star 11 again. Please be advised that this conference is being recorded. I would now like to hand the call over to Jennifer Cameron. Please go ahead.

Speaker 4

Thank you. Good morning. I'm Jennifer Cameron, Director of Investor Relations, and I'd like to welcome you to the DPM Metals first quarter conference call. Joining us today are members of our senior management team, including David Rae, President and CEO, and Navin Dyal, Chief Financial Officer. Before we begin, I'd like to remind you that all forward-looking information provided during this call is subject to the forward-looking qualification, which is detailed in our news release and incorporated in full for the purposes of today's call. Certain financial measures referred to during the call are not measures recognized under IFRS and are referred to as non-GAAP measures or ratios. These measures have no standardized meaning under IFRS and may not be comparable to similar measures presented by other companies. Definitions established and calculations performed by DPM are based on management's reasonable judgment and are consistently applied.

Speaker 4

These measures are intended to provide additional information and should not be considered in isolation or as a substitute for measures prepared in accordance with IFRS. Please refer to the non-GAAP financial measures section of our most recent MD&A for reconciliations of these non-GAAP measures. Please note that unless otherwise stated, operational and financial information communicated during this call are related to continuing operations and have generally been rounded. References to 2025 pertain to the comparable period in 2025, and references to averages are based on midpoints of our outlook or guidance. I'll now turn the call over to David Rae.

Speaker 1

Good morning, and thank you all for joining us. I want to start by recognizing the dedication of our teams across all operations, whose commitment to safety, operational excellence, and responsible mining continues to drive our success. We started 2026 from a position of strength, delivering record quarterly results and continuing to progress our growth strategy. Our recent acquisition of the Vareš mine and continued advancement of our growth pipeline have further demonstrated DPM's position as a growing European-focused precious metals producer. Let me start with the highlights of the first quarter. We produced approximately 84,000 gold equivalent ounces and remain firmly on track to achieve our 2026 production guidance.

Speaker 1

We continue to deliver strong margins with an all-in sustaining cost of $1,686 per gold equivalent ounce sold, compared to an average realized gold price at $4,955 per ounce. We generated a record $203 million of free cash flow as the ramp-up of Vareš drives production growth. We continue to return capital to shareholders, returning $34 million or 17% of free cash flow to our share buybacks and dividend payments. We ended the quarter with $575 million in cash and close to $1 billion of total liquidity. Let me now turn to our operations and growth projects in more detail, starting with Vareš. Integration and ramp-up activities at Vareš are continuing to advance very well.

Speaker 1

Mine production restarted in January as planned, producing approximately 29,000 Gold Equivalent Ounces during the 1st quarter, with an all-in sustaining cost of $892 per Gold Equivalent Ounce sold. We are on track to achieve the ramp-up to the 850,000 ton per year run rate by year-end, and development rates have increased over the course of the quarter and have met our Q1 goals. Construction of the paste plant is progressing well, during Q2, we're planning a 20-day shutdown in the processing plant for the installation of tie-ins for the 2nd tailings filter. This will allow installation of that filter with minimal impact to the higher production rates that we're anticipating in the 2nd half of the year.

Speaker 1

We do expect to begin the surface drilling program during the second quarter, drilling at priority targets at Rupice-Oroviće targets, in addition to advancing 3-D models, then conducting geophysical surveys and mapping to support target generation. In short, Vareš is off to a strong start, and we are excited about its contribution to our growth in the years ahead. Turning now to Chelopech. This delivered a solid production of approximately 43,000 gold equivalent ounces in the first quarter, with an all-in sustaining cost of $1,497 per gold equivalent ounce sold. Production is expected to increase in the second quarter, and Chelopech is on track to achieve its guidance for the year. During the first quarter, we completed the 10,000-meter drilling program at the Wedge Zone Deep target as planned.

Speaker 1

With results from drilling to date demonstrating grades higher than reserve grade, the Wedge target represents an opportunity to enhance mill feed grades and gold production potentially from 2029. Interpretation, modeling, geotechnical and metallurgical test work are being advanced to support an initial mineral resource evaluation for the Wedge Zone Deep target. We look forward to providing an update on those results and significant drilling intercepts within the second quarter. We expect the Čelopech North concession to be granted this year, concurrently, the Brevene exploration license is completing its 50,000-meter drilling program and is progressing through a well-defined permitting regime. On April 16th, we celebrated the final production blast at Ada Tepe.

Speaker 1

As the first new mine in the Balkans in over 40 years, Ada Tepe has been a testament to DPM Metals' ability to permit, build, and operate a world-class asset. We have the opportunity to establish a new track record as we prepare for Ada Tepe's next chapter of responsible mine closure. We have been working towards the development and support of small and medium enterprises to develop viable businesses independent of the mining industry, and our goal is to ensure that the community will continue to thrive and grow long after our operations have ended. Our closure plan includes rehabilitating and returning 95% of the mine area back to the Natura 2000 protected area.

Speaker 1

We recently launched a microsite to highlight the story of Ada Tepe, the benefits of DPM stewardship of the asset, how that's generated value for the local community, and outlines the plans for its future as a fully rehabilitated site. Our growth priority in 2026 is advancing Čoka Rakita permitting to support a construction decision. We continue to advance permitting in line with the well-defined Serbian process to support the startup of construction in early 2027. The special purpose planning process, which was initiated in November 2025 and is a key permitting milestone, continues to progress well and is expected to be approved and adopted in the second half of 2026. We're maintaining a close and proactive engagement with the relative authorities to support this permitting process, and we remain confident in the overall progress at Čoka Rakita.

Speaker 1

In mid-March 2026, we were pleased to receive the normal course extension of the exploration permit for the Čoka Rakita license as anticipated, reflecting that well-defined permitting process in Serbia. We initiated a 20,000 meter drilling program, and we have 9 drill rigs currently active with more to come. A significant component of the drilling program will be allocated to infilling and extending mineralization at Dumitru Potok and increasing the drilling density prior to initiating an economic study. An additional 20,000 meters of drilling and 6-8 drill rigs will be dedicated to the Potaj Čuka license to the north of Čoka Rakita, targeting the same northwest geological trend of Čoka Rakita and Dumitru Potok projects.

Speaker 1

With a significant gold, copper, and third mineral resource already defined at Dumitru Potok and the prospect open in several directions, we look forward to advancing the drilling program and continuing to define the potential of this organic growth prospect. Before handing the call over to Navin, I'll summarize our 2026 priorities. First, we aim to deliver on our ramp-up commitments at Vareš. Second, we're going to advance Čoka Rakita to a construction decision and following up on the significant exploration potential within our existing portfolio, each with the potential to drive meaningful value for our shareholders. We will continue to execute on these priorities with the same commitments to responsible, efficient mining, financial discipline, and value creation. I'll now turn the call over to Navin for a review of our financial results.

Speaker 6

Thanks, Dave. I will be touching briefly on the financial highlights for the quarter and conclude with some commentary on our balance sheet and return of capital program. Overall, DPM delivered record quarterly free cash flow and earnings, with our financial results benefiting from the addition of Vareš to our portfolio and higher metal prices. Looking at our earnings and cash flow, revenue of $310 million for the quarter was 115% higher than the prior year, due primarily to higher realized metal prices and the inclusion of pre-commercial production revenue from Vareš. Adjusted net earnings in the quarter of $168 million or $0.76 per share, more than double compared to the prior year, due primarily to higher realized metal prices and the inclusion of Vareš, partially offset by higher income taxes and cost of sales.

Speaker 6

Cash flow provided from operating activities of $155 million reflects an increase of $100 million compared to the prior year, due primarily to higher adjusted net earnings, partially offset by changes in working capital related to timing of payments of 2 suppliers and cash redemption of certain deferred share units. Free cash flow of $203 million reflects an increase of $124 million compared to the prior year, due primarily to higher adjusted net earnings. Taking a look at our cost metrics, all-in sustaining costs of $1,686 per gold equivalent ounce sold, referred to herein as GIO, compared to an average realized gold price of $4,955 per ounce, reflecting the high margin, low cost nature of our operation.

Speaker 6

All-in sustaining cost per GEO sold was 12% higher than the prior year, due primarily to a stronger euro relative to the US dollar and higher royalties reflecting higher metal prices at Chelopech and Ada Tepe, as well as higher royalty rates at Ada Tepe. Mark-to-market adjustments to share-based compensation expenses increased our all-in sustaining cost by $186 per GEO sold, compared to an increase of $188 per GEO sold in the prior year. We are on track to meet our own sustaining cost guidance for the year, we are closely monitoring the market dynamics outside of our control, which impact costs such as metal prices, foreign exchange rates, and oil prices, and their movements compared to our guidance assumptions.

Speaker 6

During the first quarter, the increase in crude oil prices, which started to see at the beginning of March, has had a minimal impact on our all-in sustaining cost. Given the potential impact of sustained higher oil prices on diesel and freight costs, which account for approximately 3% and 12% respectively, or an aggregate approximately 15% of our total all-in sustaining cost, we've provided an oil price sensitivity for the balance of 2026. Each $10 per barrel change in the oil price is expected to impact the company's dollar-sustaining costs by approximately $11 per GEO sold, comprising an estimated $3 per GEO sold impact from direct diesel costs and $8 per GEO sold impact from freight costs included in selling costs.

Speaker 6

We're continuing to monitor these market dynamics and have a comprehensive supply chain strategy to adapt to these global market challenges and identify and mitigate emerging risks. Looking at the aspects of our costs that are more within our control, on a cash cost per ton basis, performance at Chelopech and Ada Tepe were in line with our expectations for the quarter. At Vareš, DPM continues to evaluate opportunities to optimize the cost structure during this transitional year. In terms of our capital spending, sustaining capital expenditures of $3 million were lower than the prior year, due primarily to no capitalized stripping costs at Ada Tepe as a result of its upcoming mine closure, partially offset by the timing of expenditures at Chelopech.

Speaker 6

Gross capital expenditures of $34 million were higher than the prior year, due primarily to the capital expenditures at Vareš, including the capitalization of certain pre-commercial production operating costs, partially offset by lower costs related to the Čoka Rakita project, due primarily to timing of expenditures. We continue to maintain a strong balance sheet and cash position with a consolidated cash balance of $575 million, no debt, and a $400 million undrawn revolving credit facility. With our significant financial strength and robust free cash flow, we are well-positioned to fund our growth opportunities and exploration prospects while continuing to deliver peer-leading returns to shareholders through our enhanced share buyback program.

Speaker 6

Towards the end of March, we renewed our normal course issuer bid, enabling us to repurchase up to 11 million common shares, approximately 5% of our public float, supporting our plan to return up to $200 million to shareholders in 2026. We repurchased approximately 700,000 shares at a total cost of $25 million. Combined with our $0.04 per share quarterly dividend, we returned 17% of our free cash flow to shareholders in the first quarter. Year to date, up to the end of April 2026, we had repurchased in aggregate approximately 1.1 million shares for a total cost of $40 million. We continue to deploy our capital in a disciplined manner that balances our desire to reinvest in growing and optimizing our business with our commitment to returning capital to our shareholders.

Speaker 6

In closing, we continue to deliver strong performance from our mining operations and strive to maintain our track record of generating significant free cash flow. I'll turn the call back to David Rae for his concluding remarks.

Speaker 1

Thanks, Navin. This is an exciting time for DPM. Our future is a growing precious metals producer offering a peer-leading development pipeline, a proven approach to capital allocation underpinned by an exceptional operating track record for continued share price appreciation. We remain focused on executing our strategy to deliver above-average returns for our shareholders as a mid-tier precious metals company with a clear path forward to drive value. With that, I'd like to open the call for any questions.

Speaker 7

Thank you. At this time, we will conduct a question and answer session. As a reminder, to ask a question, you will need to press star 11 on your telephone and wait for your name to be announced. To withdraw your question, please press star 11 again. Please stand by while we compile the Q&A roster. Our first question comes from line of Fahad Tariq from Jefferies. Your line is now open.

Speaker 3

Hi. Thanks for taking my questions. You mentioned in the press release higher labor costs. Can you just maybe talk about the dynamics there and what you're seeing?

Speaker 6

Hi, Fahad, it's Navin. Yeah. Primarily in, there's two components to this. One is, when we first took over Vareš, we had realized that, you know, the cost structure for Vareš included a heavy expat component to that. As we look to the balance of this year, we're going to be looking at that structure and looking to localize our workforce there, thereby reducing what we're seeing as a starting out higher labor cost at Vareš. At Chelopech, as you know, we have a two-year collective agreement in Bulgaria. We're in the middle of that agreement, every year, we actually go back and we reflect on and look at labor increases every year.

Speaker 6

What you're seeing there in terms of 2026 or 2025 are two things. One is the bearish impact of this higher labor cost, and the second thing is really just the natural, update or, labor increases that we would see year-over-year.

Speaker 3

Okay. Just on the balance sheet, given the growing cash balance and how quickly it's grown, can you just remind us what is the minimum cash balance you'd like to keep, and what is the strategy there? Is it to build up the cash to self-fund Čoka Rakita, or is it just, you know, we should expect that to be distributed in capital returns through the rest of this year? Thanks.

Speaker 6

Great. You know, we have a great track record of being prudent capital allocators. I mean, our approach does definitely focus on, you know, ensuring that we have a really strong balance sheet, but also recognizing that we need to reinvest in the business. Čoka Rakita is going to, as you will see, you know, as you saw in our guidance that we put out for this year, you know, as we advance Čoka Rakita through this year, we expect to see capital, both pre-commitment and possibly even committed capital as part of the construction costs later this year. Given that Vareš is in a transitional year, we are seeing higher capital this year until we can reach commercial production by the end of the year.

Speaker 6

We are reinvesting in the business, and on top of that, I would also add that exploration this year happens to be probably the best, the most, the year that we spent perhaps the most or committed the most in terms of our exploration program. For all those reasons, I think the way we're thinking about cash is ensuring that we have enough cash to advance and grow our business, but also ensuring that we return healthy amounts to shareholders in the form of our sustainable dividend, as well as continuing our share buyback program, which we're targeting up to $200 million this year.

Speaker 3

Okay, great. Thank you.

Speaker 1

Sure. Of course, we do look for opportunistic M&A, although with our organic growth portfolio, that's not something that we have to do anything on towards. There's no stretch. We, you know, we would be looking for something that has particular synergies for our organization, such as we found with the Adriatic transaction, which has brought in Vareš. That completes the picture of our capital allocation opportunities.

Speaker 7

Thank you. Our next question comes from Cosmos Chiu from CIBC. Your line is now open.

Operator

Thanks, David Rae, Navin Dyal, and team. Maybe my first question is on Vareš. As you mentioned, the processing plant will be shut down sometime in Q2 for 20 days. Has it happened? If it hasn't happened, hasn't started yet, when could it start? At the same time, when, you know, the processing plant is undergoing a shutdown, will you continue to mine underground, you know, adding to potential stockpiles? Do you have any stockpiles in place? If not, are you gonna use that equipment to continue underground development instead? Could you maybe touch on some of those items?

Speaker 1

Very good question. That shutdown will happen in the second quarter. It's anticipated that it's gonna happen in May. Of course, we continue to refine that, so it may well be that those 20 days get reduced. Effectively what we're saying is better to do that now at the production rate in Q2 than do that in Q3 and Q4, when there's gonna be significantly more opportunity for us to demonstrate the potential of Vareš. In terms of what we do during that time, we've got a little bit of a different dynamic perhaps than elsewhere. This material on surface will oxidize faster than it does at Chelopech. There's a little bit of discipline in terms of what we do to make sure we don't compromise recoveries.

Speaker 1

We're very confident of our ability to get the recovery we need and everything working as we require to get the material mined into surface and across to the process plant. Given that confidence, we actually have the ability to swing the activities. As you say, we continue with development and decline development as our priority. Ventilation development is another thing that will help feed into readiness for the growth in later quarters. At this point, if you keep in mind the sort of the idea that we're able to do more on mining than we've demonstrated on the process plant at this point, therefore, not really a concern in terms of what we do during this time in terms of being able to keep up with the process plant capacity.

Operator

Great. David, as you mentioned, you know, during your prepared remarks and in the MD&A last night as well, you are hitting targeted development rates underground. What might that be? Is that something that you can share with us? Then, to get to the 850 tons per day by year-end, we've talked about, you know, the advancement rates, we've talked about the ventilation. How about the paste backfill plant? As you mentioned, that's gonna be, you know, completed sometime in Q3. Is that also sort of on a critical path as well?

Speaker 1

Paste plant first. The paste plant is as much as anything else, a cost control measure. We can actually run at full production without the paste plant, but we'll use more cement with for, you know, consolidative aggregate. Really what happens when we bring that in, we've got the ability to optimize that plant to run well, and the driver will be, you know, actually getting that facility working effectively and everybody trained and understanding what you need to do relative to controlling cement costs. That's from the paste plant point of view. If you look at the development rates, we're north of 400 meters per month at the moment, and that's the combination of well, well above that. That's a combination of decline development, it's a combination of ventilation and also lateral development.

Speaker 1

The last point is what's sort of dictating our tonnage. One of the things that I think we've mentioned is that at the moment, we're sort of on a 2, heading for 3 sort of stope production. The more you increase that, the more flexibility you've got, the more capability you have in order to manage your production and your mix of materials and grades to the mill. The plan is that we'll basically move from that 2 towards 4 by the end of this quarter, and we'll do 5 or 6 as we actually get into the last quarter of the year. Does that help, Cosmos?

Operator

Yep. Yep. That's, that's perfect, Dave. Then maybe one last question. You know, as you mentioned, our sustaining cost was $1,686 an ounce in Q1, which included $186 from share-based comp. You also mentioned that, you know, you are maintaining your $1,300-$1,450 an ounce for the full year. When I Maybe I'm just being too cute here, but when I try to compare these numbers, you know, Navin or Dave, are you saying that even including the $1,686, you will hit the $1,300-$1,450 for the full year, or should I back out the $186 an ounce?

Speaker 6

Cosmos. I think you probably back it out. I mean, the one thing with the share-based compensation or mark-to-market adjustments on that is that we definitely don't budget for it during the year because it's entirely dependent on the movement of our share price. You know, as you would've seen in the first quarter, share prices for all mining companies kind of moved up. It's kind of pulled back with the onset of war. You know, equally so, you could see, you know, a pullback or a negative kind of adjustment there kind of going forward, depending on where, you know, share prices move.

Speaker 6

All of us would love to see our share prices kind of move up in one direction, but we typically try to think about it without those mark-to-market adjustments as we kind of, you know, issue our guidance because we don't budget for it at the beginning of the year.

Operator

Yeah. Perfect. It's kinda like taxes. You know, it's not good, but at the same time, it means that you're making more profit. Here, it means that your share price is going up, so it's kinda good. Cool. Thanks, David Rae, Navin Dyal, and Jennifer Cameron for answering all my questions. Thank you.

Speaker 1

Okay.

Speaker 7

Thank you. As a reminder, to ask a question, please press star one one on your telephone and wait for your name to be announced. Our next question comes from the line of Don DeMarco from National Bank. Please go ahead.

Speaker 2

Thanks, Jennifer. Good morning, David and team. Yeah, so maybe just adding to some of Cosmos questions. I see it's encouraging to see that the Vareš ramp up is so far so good. You know, you talked about the advancing the decline lateral development. I might have missed it, but can you comment on the quarter-by-quarter variability in grade and throughput over the balance of the year as you work toward that 850 K ton per year target?

Speaker 1

Off the top of my head, I can't recall the average for the year, but Q1, I think we set was, particularly if you look at silver grade, was higher than we'd originally anticipated. Now, having said that, keep in mind that the course of progress of Vareš has us doing a number of different things, which build on our understanding. We've done additional grade control. If you remember, we talked about that in Q1, that we would do additional work. By the end of Q1, we were up to the first half. By the end of Q2, we'll have completed all grade control for the rest of the year. What I can't tell you yet is how that reconciliation is influencing the grade that we're getting. At the moment, it's certainly not negative.

Speaker 1

It's quite possible that what's going to happen is that we'll see higher grades coming through, particularly in silver and gold. We saw that in Q1. Very nice problem to have with just under a million ounces of silver produced. The information that we have in the guidance, we don't typically go more than that, but just as a sort of rule of thumb, you're going to see a lot of increase in confidence in the information that's coming as we complete grade control, and we're doing additional work, and it's all part of decline development and working off the decline and sort of getting ahead of where we're producing. Just a last comment, 90% of our production this year is from block one, and that sort of does simplify things in terms of the projection going forward.

Speaker 1

As we know more, we will reflect that in our guidance, but I think that's as much as I can do right now, Don.

Speaker 2

Okay. Thank you for that. Just shifting over to in Bulgaria, there was some elections last month. I'd just be interested to hear your thoughts on if there's any read-through to the Chelopech operations in general, maybe permitting. There was a Bulgarian royalty. Some of that's been in flux recently. Maybe you could talk about the implications of the new government on the fiscal regime surrounding mining.

Speaker 1

Sure. I mean, let's start off with the royalties. Yes, there was a change which took effect from the start of the year. Really only affects at Ada Tepe on the basis that as part of that contract, different from what we have for Chelopech, that had a clause whereby if the royalties were to increase, they would be brought through. We were on a sliding scale of 1.5% to 4.5%, clearly we're running at the 4.5%. What's happened now is that's moved to 6%. That's why you're seeing an increase in royalty at Ada Tepe. We're not subject to that at Chelopech until we come to the renewal of the concession, which at this point is 2025, but of course, we progressed that earlier.

Speaker 1

The other question that people typically ask, and I'll come back to your other one at the moment about, you know, timelines of permitting and things like that, is, you know, what's the sentiment of the change in government? I think there were some concerns about exactly whether the continuing alignment with the EU would be something we would see. I think the president and the new prime minister has been at pains to point out that he's very much EU-aligned and NATO-aligned. From that point of view, no concerns.

Speaker 1

Sort of last but not least, there's been a particular agenda of the new government, and part of that includes moving on those things, which are important for foreign direct investment, as well as working on how he sort of roots out the things that are slowing down these processes and preventing attraction for groups coming into the country. We think what that will mean is it will mean greater transparency and actually a faster movement on the permitting process. We always talk about it being well-defined, but we also say it's been slow historically in Bulgaria relative to, say, other countries in the region. We're actually encouraged to see some signs, and the president has been stating this, that we can anticipate reductions in those processes and simplifications in those processes.

Speaker 1

I think the next thing to watch for then is what happens to Čoka Rakita North.

Speaker 4

Chelopech.

Speaker 4

That's right. Čoka Rakita North. Chelopech North. We've also got a Čoka Rakita North, but I was talking about Chelopech policies for that.

Speaker 1

We're, you know, there's gonna be a government that's got much more capability to make things happen than there has been historically, and I think all of these things are actually a positive for Bulgaria.

Speaker 2

Okay. Okay, that's very helpful. That's all for me. Good luck with the rest of the quarter. Thank you.

Speaker 1

Thanks, Don.

Speaker 7

Thank you. Our next question comes from the line of Jeremy Hoy from Canaccord Genuity. Your line is now open.

Speaker 5

Hi. Thanks for taking my questions. Most have been answered already. Maybe give you guys an opportunity to plug some of the exploration potential. The Rakita prospects, you know, it's clear those are building scale. There's a lot of focus there. You know, looks like there's potentially a standalone operation on that property. Between Vareš, Chelopech, and the other regional prospects at Rakita and the nearby properties, is there anything you'd like to highlight as an opportunity which, you know, you see providing significant uplift to Nav at some point in the future?

Speaker 1

Well, I think first our exploration team has been doing an absolutely outstanding job of delivering value. I believe the latest on our numbers are $15 an ounce for the discovery costs, including Čoka Rakita to this point. That's been quite extraordinary. You know, we're obviously very excited about what's happening at Čoka Rakita. To the north, there are other similar sort of pencil porphyries to what was the trigger for Dumitru Potok. There's definitely more potential. In that sort of 5-6 kilometers north, south, 2-3 kilometers east, west, that's really what we refer to principally as Potaj Čuka. We're busy doing sort of surface work and some drilling on that at the moment and have anticipation of doing more in the balance of the year.

Speaker 1

You'll hear more about that going forward, and there is some commentary about that in the MD&A. Let's talk about Chelopech a little bit. You know, Chelopech, as long as I've been with the company, has been an 8-year mine life. Last year we turned that around to 10 years. If you look at it, some part of that was actually with a reduction in grade. Now what we're seeing with things like Wedge Zone Deep are pretty exciting. We've done our 10,000 meters of work. We're actually evaluating that, and it's our intent within the second quarter to actually come out and talk a little bit more about that. We've talked about that potentially impacting our production activities from 2029. We think that's very realistic. The grades here are roughly 3 times the reserve grade for Chelopech. That's really exciting.

Speaker 1

There is no drilling down there to speak of. This was something that was historically of the view that there weren't these sort of parameters for the formation of a high sulfidation epithermal below the sea level. It's not behind sea level, sea level. Below 750 meters at Chelopech. This has been discovered as we get into that sort of 900 and 1,000-meter range. We're interested to figure out whether this is a dislocation, it's something that's moved from a higher level or different location, or whether it's a secondary pulse. That could make a significant difference to our future.

Speaker 1

We're getting pretty excited about Chelopech, and our team's been very active with 20,000 meters of drilling in different places and 50,000 meters just in Brevene as we advance that from a geological discovery to a commercial discovery. While the excitement in the last couple of years has principally been around Serbia, you know, we think Chelopech is gonna be a significant part of things going forward as well. At Vareš, as we've mentioned in the script, we're actually already drilling in the Vareš areas, and we're anticipating doing a lot more between now and the end of the year.

Speaker 1

We've brought in some new contractors and working with that, those two different contracting teams on the basis of what we've learned from Serbia and actually controlled by our leadership from Serbia and from Bulgaria. We're anticipating very interesting things there between now and the end of the year. I think we're gonna have a bit of a riches to talk about is my hope in terms of what we see at the moment. It's not just gonna be a complete Serbian story with Chelopech underlining all of that. We're gonna have three assets sort of demonstrating the potential to increase life and maybe even impact on medium-term production.

Speaker 5

Great. Well, we'll look forward to results from all of those fronts then. Thanks, David, Navin, Jennifer. Have a great day.

Speaker 7

Thank you. This concludes the question and answer session. I would now like to turn it back over to Jennifer for closing remarks.

Speaker 4

Thanks. Thank you everyone for joining us today. We look forward to continuing the conversation and sharing further updates. In the meantime, if you have any additional questions, please feel free to reach out. We'll see you next quarter. Thanks a lot.

Speaker 7

Thank you for your participation in today's conference. This does conclude the program. You may now disconnect.

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