Toronto, Ontario - Kinross Gold Corporation (TSX-K;
NYSE-KGC) ("Kinross") announces the immediate suspension of
operations for its Lupin mine in Nunavut Territory, Canada due to
the poor economic performance of the operation over a protracted
period of time. Kinross took control of the Lupin operation on
February 1, 2003, as a result of the merger with Echo Bay Mines
Ltd. The total number of employees ultimately affected by this
decision is 235 plus an additional 70 contract employees. Forty of
these employees are residents of the Northwest Territories and
Nunavut Territory with the balance of the employees residing
elsewhere in Canada.
On May 12, 2003, Kinross had announced a restructuring plan for
the Lupin mine and although, through the diligent efforts of
employees, planned cost improvements had been achieved, the
strengthening Canadian dollar negated those cost efficiencies when
expressed in US dollars, the currency that the gold output is sold
in. Although the suspension of operations is being implemented
immediately, a small group of personnel will continue reviewing
future alternatives for the property including the development of a
mine plan to extract the shaft and crown pillars at Lupin. These
pillars and other remnant mining are expected to contain almost
110,000 ounces of gold (approximately 400,000 tonnes at an average
grade of about 8.5 grams of gold per tonne). Recovery of these
pillars through 2004 has the potential for the operation to produce
a comparable amount of gold to that originally planned for 2004,
but at a higher grade and, consequently, at lower total cash costs
per ounce. Notwithstanding the potential for the future extraction
of the pillars, effective immediately mining will be suspended,
followed within days by the suspension of milling operations. The
plant and equipment will be placed on care and maintenance pending
the results of the review of future alternatives for the property.
A small core of personnel will continue with the environmental
management programs to ensure compliance with all regulatory
requirements.
The Lupin deposit, located on the west shore of Contwoyto Lake
80 kilometres south of the Arctic Circle, is a banded iron
formation that was discovered in 1960. The mine began commercial
production in 1982 and pioneered the use of supporting a mining
operation by aircraft for the rotation of employees, transporting
perishables and shipping of dore to market and the transport of
consumables for the operation over a winter road. This development
scenario that was refined at Lupin has become the model for the
development of the new diamond mines in the Northwest Territories
and Kinross' Kubaka mine in the Russian Far East. With the
exception of a period of suspension from 1998 to 2000, due to low
gold prices, the Lupin mine has operated from 1982 and produced
approximately three million ounces of gold and has been a
significant contributor to the economy of northern Canada.
Cautionary Statement on Forward-Looking Information
This press release includes certain “Forward-Looking Statements” within the meaning of section 21E of the United States
Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended. All statements, other than statements of historical fact, included herein, including
without limitation, statements regarding potential mineralization and reserves, exploration results and future plans and objectives
of Kinross, are forward-looking statements that involve various risks and uncertainties. There can be no assurance that such
statements will prove to be accurate and actual results and future events could differ materially from those anticipated in such
statements. Important factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from Kinross’ expectations are disclosed under
the heading “Risk Factors” and elsewhere in Kinross’ documents filed from time to time with the Toronto Stock Exchange, the
United States Securities and Exchange Commission and other regulatory authorities.