PRESSRELEASE
ASANKOGOLDPRODUCES57,178ozINQ42016Q42016Highlights:
• Goldproductionof57,178ouncesandgoldsalesof58,483ouncesagainstproductionguidanceof52,000–57,000oz
• US$70.1mingoldrevenueatanaveragerealizedpriceofUS$1,199perounce
• 901,000tonnesprocessedduringthequarterwithafeedgradeof2.15g/t
• Industry-leadingsafetyrecordmaintainedwithnoLTIsreportedduringthequarterandarolling12monthLTIFRof0.20.
• StrongbalancesheetwithunauditedcashandimmediatelyconvertibleworkingcapitalbalancesofapproximatelyUS$66million(December31,2016)
Vancouver,BritishColumbia,January11,2017–AsankoGoldInc.(“Asanko”orthe“Company”)(TSX,NYSEMKT:AKG)ispleasedtoannounceproductionresultsforthefourthquarterof2016(“Q4”)fromPhase1oftheAsankoGoldMine,locatedinGhana,WestAfrica.
Commenting on the quarter’s performance, Peter Breese, President andCEO, said “The operations onceagainhadanimpressivequarterwithrecordproductionofover57,000ounces.Withtheminenowdeliveringagainstexpectationsandtheprocessplantrunningsteadilyat300,000tonnespermonth,orabout20%abovedesign,weenter2017withahighperformanceoperatingassetthatwillpositionuswelltofinanceourPhase2Aexpansionprojectwithcashflowfromtheoperations.SuchastrongoperatingperformancewouldnotbeasmeaningfulwithouttherequisitesafetyperformanceandI’magaindelightedtoreportthatnoLostTimeInjurieswererecordedduringthequarter.Itunderscoresthe tremendous efforts of the on-site teamwho I commend for their dedication andhardwork during atransformationalyear.”MiningOreminingratesinthequarteraveraged433,353tonnespermonth(“tpm”)atanaveragemininggradeof2.0g/t.Oreminingtookplacefromthecentralportionofthepitaswellasthenewlyopenedup“easternflank”.ThedualrampsystemwasfullycommissionedenablingaccessfromboththeeasternandwesternsidesoftheNkranpit.Focusonwasteminingshiftedtothenorthandwesternsidesinpreparationforthenextsequenceoforemininginthecentreandeastofthepit.
KeyMiningStatistics Units Q32016 Q42016TotalTonnesMined 000t 7,332 7,231WasteTonnesMined 000t 6,003 5,931
OreTonnesMined 000t 1,326 1,300
StripRatio W:O 4.5:1 4.6:1AverageGoldGradeMined g/t 1.9 2.0
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Thestockpilemovementsduringthequarterareshownbelow.
ROMStockpileSeptember30,2016 December31,2016
Tonnes Gold(g/t) Gold(oz) Tonnes Gold(g/t) Gold(oz)Highgrade 8,482 3.20 872 44,366 3.16 4,507Mediumgrade 138,824 1.77 7,920 222,273 1.96 13,981Lowgrade 975,687 1.09 34,051 1,255,632 1.19 48,181TotalROM 1,122,993 1.19 42,843 1,522,271 1.36 66,669
Inadditiontothesestockpiles,thereisamarginalorestockpileforprocessingattheendoftheminelifethatconsistsof465,343tonnesat0.79g/t(11,819ouncesofgold).ProcessingTheprocessingplantoperated at annualized rateof 3.6million tonnesper annum (“Mtpa”) (20%abovedesign)duringthequarterfollowingthecrushingcircuitupgradesinlateQ32016.Inaddition,metallurgicalrecoveriescontinuetoexceedexpectationsat94%.Withthebenefitofsixmonthsofsteady-stateoperationsdata, the Company expects these recoveries to continue into the foreseeable future. As a result, goldproductionforthequarteraveraged19,000ouncespermonth,whichiswellabovetheoriginalfeasibilityparameters.
KeyProductionStatistics Units Q32016 Q42016OreTreated 000t 852 901GoldFeedGrade g/t 2.1 2.1GoldRecovery % 94 94GoldProduced oz 53,986 57,178
SalesandLiquidity
Goldproductionforthequarterwas57,178ounceswithgoldsalesof58,483ouncesatanaveragerealizedpriceofUS$1,199perounce,generatinggoldsalesrevenueofUS$70.1million.At quarter-end the Company’s balance sheet had approximately US$66 million in unaudited cash andimmediatelyconvertibleworkingcapitalbalances.Inaddition,theCompanyhasnosignificantcurrentlongtermdebtobligationswithitsfirstprincipalrepaymentonitsUS$150milliondebtfacilitynotdueuntilJuly1,2018.HealthandSafetyTherewerenolosttimeinjuries(“LTI”)duringthequarter,withonlyoneLTIoccurringinthelast12monthsonMarch8,2016.Sincethen,therehavebeen3,732,222LTIfreeman-hoursworked.The12-monthrollinglosttimeinjuryfrequencyrate(“LTIFR”)permillionmanhoursworkedis0.20.
Enquiries:Forfurtherinformation,pleasevisit:www.asanko.com,email:[email protected]:
AlexBuck-Manager,InvestorandMediaRelationsToll-Free(N.America):1-855-246-7341Telephone:+44-7932-740-452Email:[email protected]
WayneDrier-Executive,CorporateDevelopmentTelephone:+1-778-729-0614Email:[email protected]
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AboutAsankoGoldInc.Asanko’svisionistobecomeamid-tiergoldminingcompanythatmaximizesvalueforallitsstakeholders.TheCompany’sflagshipprojectisthemulti-millionounceAsankoGoldMinelocatedinGhana,WestAfrica.Asanko ismanagedbyhighlyskilledandsuccessful technical,operationalandfinancialprofessionals.TheCompany is strongly committed to the highest standards for environmental management, socialresponsibility,andhealthandsafetyforitsemployeesandneighbouringcommunities.Forward-LookingandotherCautionaryInformationThis release includes certain statements thatmay be deemed "forward-looking statements". All statements in thisrelease,other thanstatementsofhistorical facts, thataddressestimated resourcequantities,gradesandcontainedmetals,possiblefuturemining,explorationanddevelopmentactivities,areforward-lookingstatements.AlthoughtheCompanybelievestheforward-lookingstatementsarebasedonreasonableassumptions,suchstatementsshouldnotbeinanywayconstruedasguaranteesoffutureperformanceandactualresultsordevelopmentsmaydiffermateriallyfromthoseintheforward-lookingstatements.Factorsthatcouldcauseactualresultstodiffermateriallyfromthoseinforward-lookingstatementsincludemarketpricesformetals,theconclusionsofdetailedfeasibilityandtechnicalanalyses,thetimelyrenewalofkeypermits,lowerthanexpectedgradesandquantitiesofresources,miningratesandrecoveryratesandthelackofavailabilityofnecessarycapital,whichmaynotbeavailabletotheCompanyontermsacceptabletoitoratall.TheCompanyissubjecttothespecificrisksinherentintheminingbusinessaswellasgeneraleconomicandbusinessconditions.FormoreinformationontheCompany,InvestorsshouldreviewtheCompany'sannualForm20-F filingwith theUnited States Securities Commission and its home jurisdiction filings that are available atwww.sedar.com.NeitherTorontoStockExchangenortheInvestmentIndustryRegulatoryOrganizationofCanadaacceptsresponsibilityfortheadequacyoraccuracyofthisrelease.CautionaryNotetoUSInvestorsRegardingMineralReportingStandards:Asankohasprepareditsdisclosure inaccordancewiththerequirementsofsecurities lawsineffect inCanada,whichdifferfromtherequirementsofUSsecuritieslaws.TermsrelatingtomineralresourcesinthispressreleasearedefinedinaccordancewithNationalInstrument43-101-StandardsofDisclosureforMineralProjectsundertheguidelinessetout in the Canadian Institute of Mining, Metallurgy, and Petroleum Standards on Mineral Resources and MineralReserves.TheSecuritiesandExchangeCommission(the“SEC”)permitsminingcompanies,intheirfilingswiththeSEC,todiscloseonlythosemineraldepositsthatacompanycaneconomicallyandlegallyextractorproduce.Asankousescertainterms,suchas,“measuredmineralresources”,“indicatedmineralresources”,“inferredmineralresources”and“probablemineralreserves”,thattheSECdoesnotrecognize(thesetermsmaybeusedinthispressreleaseandareincluded in the public filings of Asanko which have been filed with securities commissions or similar authorities inCanada).
