10:14 AM EST - New Gold Inc : announced a positive Preliminary Economic Assessment ("PEA") for its Blackwater Gold Project in British Columbia. Over the initial 15 years of its mine life, Blackwater is estimated to produce an annual average of 507,000 ounces of gold and 2,039,000 ounces of silver at total cash costs per ounce sold, net of by-product sales, of $536 per ounce. At assumed gold and silver prices of $1,275 and $22.50 per ounce and a 0.94 US$/CDN$ foreign exchange rate, the Project is expected to yield a base case after-tax, 5% net present value ("NPV") of $1.1 billion and an after-tax internal rate of return ("IRR") of 14.0%. At spot commodity prices of $1,775 per ounce gold and $34.50 per ounce silver and a parity exchange rate, the after-tax, 5% NPV and IRR move to $2.8 billion and 25.8%, respectively. New Gold Inc
shares T.NGD are trading down $0.16 at $11.98.
