Kemess Q4 shines for Northgate (February 06, 2006)

Vancouver — On the back of buoyant metals prices, Northgate Minerals‘ (NGX-T, NXG-X) Kemess mine has delivered strong gold and record copper production in its final quarter of 2005.

The large north-central British Columbia open-pit operation produced 94,405 oz. gold in the fourth quarter, its second-highest quarterly output recorded, at a record low cash cost of US$59 per oz. Comparatively, production was 94,673 oz. gold at cash costs of US$108 per oz. in the fourth quarter of 2004.

Total Kemess gold production for 2005 came in at 279,962 oz., slightly below the 303,475 oz. realized in 2004. The cash cost for last year’s output was US$205 per oz., up from the previous year’s US$135 per oz.

Copper production from the mine in the fourth quarter of 2005 was a record 24.7 million lbs. (11,200 tonnes), nudging above the 23.9 million lbs. (10,800 tonnes) for the corresponding period in 2004. Full year production in 2005 was 73.7 million lbs. (33,400 tonnes).

Soaring copper prices (averaging US$1.95 over the fourth quarter) and the boost in output of the metal from Kemess contributed significantly to the lean gold cash costs reported. The company locked in a forward sales contract of US$1.98 per lb. for its fourth quarter copper production. Production of copper in 2006 remains unhedged.

The company is forecasting 2006 production of 320,000 oz. gold and 84.7 million lbs. (38,400 tonnes) copper at Kemess.

On the exploration front, Northgate has budgeted an initial US$3.8 million for drilling on its recently acquired Young-Davidson project near Kirkland Lake in northeastern Ontario. A 2004 technical study reviewed measured and indicated open-pit resources of 6.8 million tonnes grading 2.1 grams gold per tonne plus 327,000 tonnes of inferred open-pit resources averaging 1.3 grams gold.

The project hosts an additional underground inferred resource of 7.7 million tonnes grading 4 grams gold. In total, the study reviews a contained metal tally of about 1.5 million oz. gold in the deposit.

At Kemess North, a US$2.5-million exploration effort will focus on its eastern extension where three 2005 drill holes intersected significant gold and copper grades.

Permitting at Kemess North is now in the hands of a joint federal and provincial Environmental Review Panel following completion of the environmental impact assessment for proposed development of the sister deposit. A final decision is anticipated by mid-2006.