Page 26 By Gregory Reynolds Production growth is the main objective as AuRico Gold Inc continues development work at its key asset the Y oungDavid son Gold Mine in Northeaste rn Ontario Y oungDavidson Y D is lo cated near the T own of Ma tachewan approximately 60 km west of Kirkland Lake within the southwestern part of the Abitibi Greenstone Belt The property consists of con tiguous mine ral leases and claims totallin g 1 1000 acre s and is situated on the site of two past producing mines that produced one million ounces in the 1930s1950s AuRico Gold drives to boost production at Y oungDavidson Contd on pg 27 Y oungDavidson is the company s cornerstone asset with a lowcost sol id growth profle a long mine life and signifcant exploration potential yet to be realized Commercial production was declared on Sept 1 2012 and since that tim e the operatio ns have delivered solid results for the year with productio n and cash costs inline with guidance levels for the year In the frst six months of 2013 the company produced 76627 ounces of gold from its two mines with Y D contributing 39987 ounces Cash costs per ounce were 645 W ith another quarter of solid results reported from both operations we con tinue to demonstrate the potential of our high qualit y asset base The mid shaft crushing and hoisting system at Y D is progressing on schedule and remains on tar get to commission dur ing the fall The shaft and hoisting system is the key cata lyst that will drive signifcant improvements in under ground pro ductivities and further cost effcien cies stated Scott Perry president and CEO W ith quality operations a strong cash position and a fullyfunded growth profle the company is well positioned for success even in this challenging market environment AuRico Gold is a leading Cana dian gold producer with mines and projects in North America that have signifcant production growth and exploration potential The company is focused on its core operati ons in cluding the YD mine in northern Ontario and the El Chanate mine in Sonora State Mexico AuRico s project pipeline also in cludes advanced developm ent op portunities in Mexico and Canada AuRico s head offce is located in T oronto For the six months ending June 30 the company reported a loss of 85 million or 34 cents a share Due to the lower metal price environ ment currently being experienced the company s second quarter net earnings were adjusted by 1049 million net of taxes for noncash im pairments and revaluations Of that amount 80 million net of tax is re lated to an impairment char ge associ ated with the El Chanate Mine This impairment char ge was related to a reduction in the estimated short and longterm meta l prices used in lifeof mine plans and was char ged entirely against goodwill The company also determined that an impairment char ge of 165 mil lion net of tax was required for the retained interest royalty in the future lifeofmine free cash fows of the Fosterville and Stawell mines which were disposed of in 2012 The remain ing 84 millio n net of tax is related to net realizable value adjustments for heap leach and longterm lowgrade stockpile inventories In 2013 the company has focused on commissioning the shaft and hoist ing system and the continued devel opment of the under ground mine to position the Y D operation for solid