Brigus Gold Provides Operations Update

21.02.2012  |  Business Wire

Brigus Gold ?Corp. ?('Brigus? ?or the 'Company?) (NYSE Amex: BRD; TSX:
BRD) ?reports 2011 ?gold ?production ?statistics, including a review of the
fourth quarter, and an update on the status of current operations.
Management remains focused on increasing ?gold production at its Black
Fox mine ?targeting ?steady state output of 25,000 ounces per
quarter ?by ?year-end.

Operational Improvements:

Improvements continue to be made to mining processes and a number
of ?key ?personnel changes were made at the Black Fox mine ?in December
2011 and January 2012. These changes ?have resulted in measurable
improvements in the mine′s performance.

• 
  A new mine General Manager, ?with over 30 years′
  experience ?mining ?structurally controlled ore bodies, began ?working
  with Brigus in early December. ?He ?is focused on maximizing underground
  production and minimizing dilution.
  
• 
  A new mine ?geology team, including a Chief Geologist, ?has been
  assembled and is making significant progress in ?improving the ?geologic
  model of the underground orebody.
  
• 
  A new highly experienced Chief Engineer ?has been hired and ?will begin
  with the Company in early March, at which time the interim chief
  engineer will focus on the development of the 147 and Contact Zone
  deposits.
  
• 
  Additional skilled miners have been hired to optimize ?mining from the
  underground operations.
  

Underground Mine:

• 
  Grades from the underground mine have materially increased and
  continue to improve since the beginning of 2012. The average grade of
  underground ore mined for the first 45 days of 2012 was ?5.79 ?grams per
  tonne (gpt) compared to 2.99 gpt for the fourth quarter of 2011 and
  has averaged 6.70 gpt during the first 15 days of February 2012.
  
• 
  High-grade tonnes mined from the underground are trending upwards and
  are expected to reach 800 tonnes per day (tpd) in the third quarter.
  The mining team ?plans to open ?30 mining stopes so that there are ?at
  least 10 to 12 ?stopes actively mining ?in ore at ?all times.
  

• 
  A review of the mining equipment and fleet was undertaken. As a
  result, the Company ?sold surplus equipment and purchased appropriately
  sized equipment including several two and three yard scoops.
  

Open Pit:

• 
  High-grade tonnage from the open pit will be maintained at an average
  of 1,000 to 1,200 tpd. ?Once ?high-grade tonnage from ?the ?underground
  has reached daily production rates ?of 800 tpd, limited amounts of
  low-grade open pit ore will be required to feed its 2,000 tpd capacity
  mill. The mill ?continues to ?operate ?well with strong recoveries of 92
  to 95% and ?availability of over 90%.
  

Safety:

• 
  The Black Fox Mine has ?a strong safety record with over a 1,000,000
  man-hours without a lost time injury. This is an important
  milestone ?and the Company is very proud of this achievement.
  

Mine administration:

• 
  Certain administration functions at the mine have been restructured to
  eliminate redundant positions, streamline processes and maximize
  utilization of all resources.
  
• 
  General and Administration expenses at the mine site have been reduced
  through ?workforce reduction, renegotiation of contracts and tighter
  cost control.
  

'Increasing production at Black Fox is our top priority and we are
seeing results,? said Wade Dawe, President and CEO of Brigus. 'A number
of improvements have been made at the underground mine to facilitate
increased production going forward. The open pit is operating as
expected, the mill is performing well and we are ?confident that on-going
drilling will continue to expand the gold resource at the recently
discovered 147 and Contact Zones. ?Ore grades from underground have
significantly improved and high-grade tonnage from the underground is
increasing.?

2011 Operations:

• 
  The ?Black Fox Mine ?produced ?14,457 ?ounces ?at an average grade of 2.66
  gpt ?in the fourth quarter of 2011 ?and ?55,756 ounces ?at an average
  grade of 2.54 gpt ?for the full year. ?Quarterly
  production ?met ?Brigus′ ?revised guidance but was lower ?than
  originally ?anticipated due to ?a ?slower ?ramp up
  of ?underground ?production ?and higher than expected ?dilution ?in the
  underground.
  
• 
  The average grade of ore from the open pit ?was 2.03 gpt for the fourth
  quarter of 2011 and 2.56 gpt for the year. The open pit mine ?is
  performing as expected, delivering grades and tonnage as per the mine
  plan. Grades in the open pit are expected to increase ?later ?in 2012 as
  higher-grade ore is mined deeper in Phase 2 of the pit.
  
• 
  The ?average ?grade ?from the underground mine ?was ?2.99 ?gpt for the
  fourth quarter of 2011 and 3.82 ?gpt for the year.
  
• 
  Cash cost per ounce was $947 for 2011. This is higher than anticipated
  due to lower production for the year. As production increases in 2012,
  cash costs are expected to decrease to approximately $700 by the end
  of the year
  

• 
  Historically, the Black Fox underground mine produced 211,000 ounces
  at an average grade of approximately 6.0 gpt over a four-year period
  from 1997 to 2001. ?Brigus′ geological modeling underground confirms
  the quality and grade of the ore body ?that has a reserve grade of 5.9
  gpt as per the NI 43-101 report released January 2011
  

Looking Ahead:

Brigus is forecasting gold production of 77,000 to 85,000 ounces for
2012 as follows:

Exploration:

• 
  Brigus continues to report excellent exploration ?results at the Black
  Fox Complex. The Company released its initial NI ?43-101 on the Contact
  and 147 Zone deposits on December 15, 2011 increasing the gold
  resource ?on the property by more than 50%. ?Brigus has an $8.0 million
  surface exploration budget for 2012. Ongoing exploration is focused on
  expanding the 147 and Contact Zones as well as converting the inferred
  resource to the indicated resource category. An updated mineral
  resource estimate will be released later in 2012.
  
• 
  Underground exploration at the Black Fox mine is expected to begin in
  the second half of 2012. The program is intended to expand the gold
  deposit along strike and down-dip. The program is designed to offset
  drill results from the 2004 underground fan drilling program from the
  last southeast drill station located at the end of the 235 m level
  exploration drift. ?This drilling returned significant true width gold
  results including 31.16 g/t over 6.25m (hole 235-296) and 7.48 g/t
  over 3.49 m (hole 235-295).
  
• 
  The independent ?43-101 report on the Company′s ?Goldfields development
  project, ?located in northern Saskatchewan ?was updated in the fourth
  quarter of 2011. In October Brigus released a pre-feasibility study
  for ?Goldfields ?that indicated a net present value of approximately
  $144 million at a 5% discount rate with an internal rate of return of
  19.6%. This assumes a gold price of $1,250 per ounce.
  
• 
  Brigus ?remains ?focused on development activities at the ?Black Fox Mine
  and will make a production decision on Goldfields ?when ?Black Fox gold
  production rates are in excess of 25,000 ounces a quarter.
  
• 
  Management is pleased with the Company′s progress to improve all
  facets of operations and is optimistic about 2012 performance.
  

About ?Brigus Gold

Brigus is a growing gold producer committed to maximizing shareholder
value through a strategy of efficient production, targeted exploration
and select acquisitions. The ?Company operates the wholly owned Black Fox
Mine and Mill in the Timmins Gold District of Ontario, Canada. The Black
Fox Complex encompasses the Black Fox Mine and adjoining properties in
the Township of Black River-Matheson, Ontario, Canada. Brigus is also
advancing the Goldfields Project located near Uranium City,
Saskatchewan, Canada, which hosts the Box and Athona gold deposits. In
Mexico, Brigus Gold has completed ?a ?transaction to sell a 75% interest
in the Ixhuatan Project located in the state of Chiapas to Cangold. In
the Dominican Republic, Brigus has signed an agreement to sell its
remaining interests in three mineral exploration projects.

Cautionary and Forward-Looking Statements

Statements contained in this news release that ?are not historical facts
are forward-looking statements that involve risk, uncertainties and
other factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from
those expressed or implied by such forward-looking statements. All
statements regarding the ability of the Company to achieve targeted gold
production at its Black Fox Mine, including underground production, and
cash costs, are forward-looking statements and estimates that involve
various risks and uncertainties. This forward-looking information
includes, or may be based upon, estimates, forecasts, and statements as
to management's expectations with respect to, among other things, the
issue of permits, the size and quality of the ?Company's mineral
resources, progress in development of mineral properties, future
production and sales volumes, capital and mine production costs, demand
and market outlook for metals, future metal prices and treatment and
refining charges, and the financial results of the Company.

Important factors that could cause actual results to differ materially
from these forward-looking statements include environmental risks and
other factors disclosed under the heading 'Risk Factors? in Brigus
Gold′s most recent annual report on Form ?40-K ?filed with the United
States Securities and Exchange Commission and elsewhere in Brigus Gold′s
documents filed from time to time with the Toronto Stock Exchange, the
NYSE Amex Equities, the United States Securities and Exchange Commission
and other regulatory authorities. All forward-looking statements
included in this news release are based on information available to the
Company on the date hereof. The Company assumes no obligation to update
any forward-looking statements, except as required by applicable
securities laws.