TORONTO (miningweekly.com) – TSX-V- and Aim-listed miner Rambler Metals & Mining reported a record first quarter, having boosted copper output 26% year-on-year to 6 591 t, positioning the company well to achieve its full-year targets.

Rambler GM Robert McGuire said the company saw record tonnage and metal produced, while head grades and recoveries for copper and silver remained above planned targets.

In the three months ended October 31, the copper and gold producer, which operates in Newfoundland and Labrador, Canada, reported that the copper head grade was 3.71%, down from 4.05% in the preceding quarter, but up on the second and third quarters. For silver, the head grade of 9.22 g/t was down when compared with the fourth quarter of 2013, but higher than the third and second quarters.

The gold head grade improved to 1.64 g/t from 1.52 g/t sequentially.

The gold recovery declined 62% from the fourth quarter, down from 65%.

The copper recovery rate rose to 96% in the period, up from 94% in the previous quarter, and silver recoveries improved to 76% from 73%.

Rambler reported that the dry tonnes milled hit a record level of 55 659 t, up 18% year-on-year. The company milled 1 956 t of copper, a 26% year-on-year improvement, 1 655 oz of gold, up 28% year-on-year; and 11 870 oz of silver, which was 20% more when compared with the same period in 2012.

For the first full 12 months of commercial production from the Ming mine, the company milled 193 056 dry metric tonnes and produced 20 393 t of copper concentrate with 5 909 t of copper metal, 4 792 oz of gold and 35 828 oz of silver.

The average feed grade during this period was 3.63% copper, 1.41 g/t gold and 9.03 g/t silver followed by a mill recovery of 93%, 62% and 72% for copper, gold and silver respectively.

"We now believe that the copper circuit is running at optimal performance levels allowing time for further analysis into precious metal recovery,” Maguire said.

Market analysts at SP Angel, in London, said these results were in line with production being supported by mining the high grade 1807 zone, rather than the mine plan set out in the preliminary economic assessment.

"The company continues to drill out this zone to see if reserves can be raised and also looking to increase capacity on crushing and grinding once an engineering report is reviewed," analyst John Meyer wrote in a note to clients.

Meanwhile, Rambler CEO George Ogilvie was on Monday appointed as the CEO for Kirkland Lake Gold with immediate effect.