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Canada

Spanish Mountain Project

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Overview

Mine TypeOpen Pit
StagePermitting
Commodities
  • Gold
  • Silver
Mining Method
  • Truck & Shovel / Loader
Mine Life... Lock
SnapshotThe Company’s current strategy remains focused on optimizing, derisking and advancing its Spanish Mountain Gold Project towards a build decision. The Company anticipates completing a PEA by the end of 2024 and then a PFS update in the medium term. The Company intends to use the results of the Whittle Enterprise Optimization to propose an executable, sustainable business case that is most likely to advance through project development and construction. Conceptual planning for a drill program is underway with a targeted start date in H2 2024. Ongoing metallurgical testing to support several new flowsheet opportunities utilizing coarse ore flotation will continue. A trade-off study on integrated tailings, water and waste management is planned for Q2 to Q3 2024. Particle and bulk ore sorting sampling and amenability test programs are in progress and, if successful, they could outline new improvements to step change project metrics.

Owners

SourceSource
CompanyInterestOwnership
Spanish Mountain Gold Ltd. 100 % Direct
The Property is 100% owned by SMG (Spanish Mountain Gold Ltd.).

Deposit type

  • Sediment-hosted
  • Vein / narrow vein

Summary:

The Spanish Mountain gold deposit is classified as a sediment-hosted vein (SHV) deposit, as defined by Klipfel (2005).

Gold mineralization occurs as two main types:
• Disseminated within the black, graphitic argillite. This is the most economically significant form. Gold grain size is typically less than 30 µm, and is often, but not always, associated with pyrite. Disseminated gold has also been associated with quartz veins within faults zones in the argillite.
• Within quartz veins in the siltstone/tuff/greywacke sequences. It occurs as free, fine to coarse (visible) gold and can also be associated with sulphides including galena, chalcopyrite and sphalerite. Highest grades have come from coarse gold within quartz veins.

Disseminated gold within the argillite units is by far the most economically important type of mineralization, and occurs in multiple stratigraphic horizons. From drill core, elevated gold content has been noted within fault zones as well as quartz veins within fault zones. However, the influence of fault zones in relation to the gold content of the deposit is not certain.

Examination of 15 representative core samples of disseminated gold in thin section work by Ross (2006) has concluded the following:

• Native gold (electrum) was identified in four samples, and it occurred as inclusions and fracture fill in pyrite, on crystal boundaries between pyrite crystals and in the gangue adjacent to pyrite. It is very fine grained <20 µm, and generally <5 µm. It is associated with equally fine-grained chalcopyrite-galena-sphalerite, which occurs in all the same habits. All the mineralized samples occurred in variably carbonaceous mudstones/siltstones to fine-grained greywackes, with quartzcarbonate-pyrite veinlets and disseminations. There is no clear indication from this study that the gold is preferentially associated with any habit of pyrite (i.e., disseminated or veinlet, euhedral or subhedral). The deformation state (i.e., degree of cataclastic deformation) of the host rock does not appear to be significant, at least not on the thin section scale; however, a larger scale relationship to position on fold limbs should not be ruled out.

Although a lesser component, quartz veins carrying free gold have yielded the highest grade individual samples on the Property. These veins tend to occur in the more competent facies such as siltstone and tuff/greywacke. The veins are discontinuous on surface and exhibit a strong nugget effect. The veins have been followed with confidence for about 40 m on the Main Zone. Gold is often associated with base metals in these veins. In particular, sphalerite and galena and chalcopyrite are commonly associated with free gold. Geochemically, the base metals are insignificant, but mineralogically they are a good indicator of gold mineralization. It is thought that gold and base metals may have been re-mobilized into these veins.

These veins typically cross cut all foliation fabrics and thus appear to have been emplaced late in the tectonic history. From work done by geological mapping and on oriented core data, it is known that the veins generally strike between 010° and 050°, and dip at various angles to the southeast and northwest. Several “blow out” veins, which are 1 to 5 m in thickness, have been identified on the Main Zone.

Reserves

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Mining Methods

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Comminution

Crushers and Mills

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Processing

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Production

CommodityUnitsAvg. AnnualLOM
Gold koz 1502,100
Silver koz 63876
All production numbers are expressed as metal in doré.

Operational metrics

Metrics
Daily ore mining rate  ....  Subscribe
Daily processing capacity  ....  Subscribe
Annual ore mining rate  ....  Subscribe
Annual processing capacity  ....  Subscribe
Stripping / waste ratio  ....  Subscribe
Waste tonnes, LOM  ....  Subscribe
Ore tonnes mined, LOM  ....  Subscribe
Total tonnes mined, LOM  ....  Subscribe
* According to 2021 study.

Production Costs

CommodityAverage
Total cash costs (sold) Gold  ....  Subscribe
All-in sustaining costs (sold) Gold  ....  Subscribe
All-in costs Gold  ....  Subscribe
Assumed price Silver  ....  Subscribe
Assumed price Gold  ....  Subscribe
* According to 2021 study / presentation.

Operating Costs

Currency2021
OP mining costs ($/t mined) CAD 2.22 *  
OP mining costs ($/t milled) CAD  ....  Subscribe
Processing costs ($/t milled) CAD  ....  Subscribe
G&A ($/t milled) CAD  ....  Subscribe
Total operating costs ($/t milled) CAD  ....  Subscribe
* According to 2021 study.

Project Costs

MetricsUnitsLOM Total
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Sustaining CapEx $M CAD  ......  Subscribe
Closure costs $M CAD  ......  Subscribe
Total CapEx $M CAD  ......  Subscribe
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Total Taxes $M CAD  ......  Subscribe
Net revenue (LOM) $M CAD  ......  Subscribe
Pre-tax Cash Flow (LOM) $M CAD  ......  Subscribe
After-tax Cash Flow (LOM) $M CAD  ......  Subscribe
Pre-tax NPV @ 5% $M CAD  ......  Subscribe
After-tax NPV @ 5% $M CAD  ......  Subscribe
Pre-tax IRR, %  ......  Subscribe
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Pre-tax payback period, years  ......  Subscribe
After-tax payback period, years  ......  Subscribe

Required Heavy Mobile Equipment

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Personnel

Mine Management

Job TitleNameProfileRef. Date
....................... Subscription required ....................... Subscription required Subscription required May 31, 2021
....................... Subscription required ....................... Subscription required Subscription required May 31, 2021
....................... Subscription required ....................... Subscription required Subscription required May 4, 2023
....................... Subscription required ....................... Subscription required Subscription required Dec 21, 2023
....................... Subscription required ....................... Subscription required Subscription required Aug 30, 2023

EmployeesYear
...... Subscription required 2021

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