Spokane Valley-based mining company Revett Minerals Inc. said it had total production of 1.29 million ounces of silver and 10.65 million pounds of copper last year at its Troy Mine, near Troy, Mont.

The full-year production amounts for the mine's silver and copper were up 28 percent and 21 percent respectively, compared with the prior year. In 2010, the mine produced 1 million ounces of silver and 8.7 million pounds of copper.

Additionally, the company reported that its net cash from operations before capital expenditures was at $29.2 million, a 140 percent increase over the year-earlier net cash of $12.2 million.

Revett said in a press release that the overall production increase for the year came from significant productivity improvements and grade control. The mine's production increased steadily, rising from about 3,300 tons per day in the first quarter to 4,200 tons per day in the fourth quarter.

For 2012, the company estimates its production at Troy will rise even more, to about 1.4 million ounces of silver and 11.5 million pounds of copper.

By late summer, the company plans to begin an expansion project to develop what it calls the I-bed area, which is about 700 feet below existing Troy operations, said John Shanahan, Revett's president and CEO. That project has an estimated budget of $15 million and is expected to take 24 months to complete, but ore processing from that area potentially could begin by late this year, the company said.

Shanahan has said the company plans to continue further exploration efforts in and around the Troy Mine. That exploration area includes Revett's existing claims group to the north and east of the current operations. It also is exploring an older nearby core, called the JF property.

Revett Minerals, through its subsidiaries, owns and operates the Troy Mine and the development-stage Rock Creek Project, near Noxon, Mont.