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Planning for Safe and Effective Maintenance Shutdowns 

Planned maintenance shutdowns are an integral aspect of safe, efficient and reliable operations. During these periods of downtime, crews are able to conduct necessary equipment inspections and perform preventative maintenance to avoid breakdowns.

At New Gold, safety is always the top priority during operational shutdowns of any kind, as a large volume of tasks must be completed within a short timeframe. Ensuring that all machinery is safely de-energized before beginning maintenance or any other tasks is crucial, and New Gold utilizes the Lock Out Tag Out (LOTO) procedure.  

As part of mill shutdowns at the Rainy River Mine, the project coordinator within the Mill Operations team plays a key role in the LOTO process. It is their duty to plan lockouts properly ahead of the shutdown so that the Mill Operations team can execute tasks safely and efficiently.

To further enhance safety measures, LOTO program enhancements are in development. The program update aims to significantly improve both the accuracy and efficiency of our lockout procedures. By incorporating pictures and a new tagging system, identifying lock points will become easier and more precise. Additionally, a systematic order for locking out equipment will streamline the process, speeding up lockouts without compromising accuracy.

The goal of this new program is to instill confidence in both experienced and inexperienced workers, ensuring that the safety of their colleagues remains paramount. This initiative will build greater trust in established procedures across the mill teams and contractors performing the tasks.

At New Gold, we are committed to continuously improving our safety protocols to protect employees and contractors, during mill shutdowns and any other site activity.