07:36 AM EDT, 04/09/2024 (MT Newswires) -- Endeavour Silver Corp. ( EXK ) on Tuesday reported silver equivalent production of near 2.3 million ounces in the first quarter, down 4% from the year-ago period.

First-quarter consolidated silver production fell 10% year over year to near 1.5 million ounces, driven by 7% lower silver production at the Guanacevi mine and 32% lower silver production at the Bolanitos mine while gold production rose 8% to 10,133 ounces due to 17% higher gold production at Bolanitos mine, offset by 2% lower gold production at Guanacevi mine.

In Q1, 2024, Guanacevi throughput was 12% higher than Q1 2023 and silver grades and gold grades were 21% and 12% lower, respectively, which drove the lower silver and gold output. Guanacevi throughput was slightly above plan due to plant refurbishments and modifications implemented last year, while grades were slightly lower due to typical variations in the resource model. Supplies of local third-party feed continued to supplement mine production, amounting to 11% of quarterly throughput and contributing to the higher grades.

Bolanitos Q1 2024 throughput was 2% lower than Q1 2023 with 31% lower silver grades offset by 14% higher gold grades. Silver production was 32% lower while gold production was 17% higher at the Bolanitos mine.

"Across our portfolio, the operations performed largely in line with our expectations to deliver our annual production guidance of 8.1 million to 8.8 million silver equivalent ounces in 2024," CEO Dan Dickson said. "The infrastructure upgrades in pumping and ventilation have stabilized production at Guanacevi, and the impact from these improvements is being realized by our strong start to the year. Gold and silver prices have strengthened considerably, which will improve future revenues."

Endeavour will report its first-quarter financial results before market open on May 9.