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The Spokesman-Review Newspaper
Spokane, Washington  Est. May 19, 1883

Hecla reports loss in second quarter

From Staff Reports

Lower prices for gold, silver and lead took a bite out of Hecla Mining Co.’s second-quarter results.

The company reported a net loss of $26.8 million, or 7 cents per share, compared to a net loss of $14.5 million, or 4 cents per share, for the second quarter of 2015. The company had sales of $104 million for the quarter, officials said Thursday.

Silver prices dropped to $16.32 per ounce during the second quarter, a 17 percent drop from the same period in 2014. Gold prices were down 8 percent and lead prices dropped 6 percent.

Hecla operates the Lucky Friday Mine, an underground silver mine in Mullan, Idaho, and has other mining operations in Alaska, Canada and Mexico.

The Lucky Friday’s silver production dropped 25 percent during the second quarter, after a booster fan broke and a high-grade production area was closed until the fan can be replaced, officials said. The company increased the work schedule from six days per week to seven days to increase production, but is mining lower-grade material.

Second-quarter results were also influenced by a $9 million charge for future environmental cleanup work and a $2 million payment related to the purchase of Revett Mining Co., which owns the Rock Creek silver-copper project in Montana.