The New Polaris deposit is classified as a mesothermal lode-gold deposit (Hodgson, 1993).

In general, it is quartz-vein-related, with associated carbonatized wall rocks. The deposits are characterized by a high gold/silver ratio, great vertical continuity with little vertical zonation, and a broadly syn-tectonic time of emplacement. They are commonly associated with pyrite, arsenopyrite, tourmaline and molybdenite. Mineralization may occur in any rock type and ranges in form from veins, to veinlet systems, to disseminated replacement zones. Most mineralized zones are hosted by and always related to steeply dipping reverse- or oblique-slip brittle-fracture to ductile-shear zones.

Past exploration studies have demonstrated that the New Polaris vein systems have all the attributes of the orogenic vein gold deposit including, but not limited to association with major structural break, quartzcarbonate vein association, low-sulphide assemblage of pyrite and arsenopyrite, chloritic and sericitically altered wall rocks and persistent gold mineralization over a vertical distance of nearly 1 km.

Mineralization of the New Polaris deposit bears strong similarities to many Archean lode gold deposits such as the arsenical gold camp of Red Lake, Ontario where the gold-bearing arsenopyrite is disseminated in the altered rock and in quartz-carbonate stringers.

The vein mineralization consists of arsenopyrite, pyrite, stibnite and gold in a gangue of quartz and carbonates. The sulphide content is up to 10% with arsenopyrite the most abundant and pyrite the next important. Stibnite is fairly abundant in some specimens but overall comprises less than one-tenth of 1% of the vein matter. Alteration minerals include fuchsite, silica, pyrite, sericite, carbonate and albite.

In general, the zones of mineralization ranging from 15 to 250 m in length with widths up to 14 m appear to have been deposited only on the larger and stronger shears. Their walls pinch and swell showing considerable irregularity both vertically and horizontally. Gold values in the veins have remarkable continuity and uniformity and are usually directly associated with the amount of arsenopyrite present. The prominent strike directions are north-south and northwest-southeast, which is interpreted to be within a major shear zone. Up to 80% of the mine production was from “structural knots” or what is now known as “C” zones. In detail the “C” zones are arcuate structures.

The vein mineralization has well marked contacts with the wall rock. The transition from mineralized to non-mineralized rock occurs over a few centimeters. The mineralization consists of at least three stages of quartz veining. The initial stage of quartz-ankerite introduced into the structure was accompanied by a pervasive hydrothermal alteration of the immediately surrounding wall rock. Arsenopyrite, pyrite and lesser stibnite were deposited with the alteration. Later stages of quartz-ankerite veining are barren and have the effect of diluting the gold grades in the structure. The sulphide minerals are very finegrained and disseminated in both the wall rock and early quartz and ankerite veins. Free gold is extremely rare and to the end of 2005 had not been recognized in core samples. The majority of the gold occurs in arsenopyrite and to a lesser extent in pyrite and stibnite. Because there is no visible gold and the host sulphides are very fine-grained and disseminated there is little nugget effect and gold values even over short intervals rarely exceed 1 oz/ton.

The mine production plan is based on a subset of the Mineral Resources, focusing on resources within a confining shape targeting material above a 6.0 g/t cutoff grade.

The mine plan uses a combination of conventional cut and fill mining on 24% of the deposit and longhole stoping on 58% of the deposit; depending on mineralization thickness and continuity. Development in ore makes up the remaining 18% of production.

Waste development will include a decline from surface, extraction drifts on sublevels across the footwall of the orebody, and ventilation raises to the surface.

LH will be used in the steeper areas of the zone while CCAF will be utilized in the shallow dipping (less than 55°) and thinner areas. The CCAF stopes are generally located at the “on strike” extremities of the LH stoping areas.

Sublevel Longhole Stoping
The LH stopes have been designed with a longitudinal orientation, thus, to maintain production two working areas on each level are required to be active at one time. One working area needs to be in the drill/blast/muck cycle while the other is in the backfilling cycle. Paste backfill will be used to fill mined stope panels and will be introduced through a network of boreholes and horizontal piping ultimately filling the stope panels from the extraction drift of the level above.

Longhole stoping provides high productivity at low mining costs from a small number of working faces. No geotechnical parameters have been used in the stope design thus to remain conservative, stopes panels have been designed to be 25 m along strike, 16.7 m high with the width being equivalent to the width of the mineralized zone and up to 8 m in some places. LH stopes will be 50 metres in height and comprise three sublevels at 16.7m vertical intervals. The main access ramp runs in the footwall of the zone and access each sublevel approximately in the longitudinal centre. Mining of each stope panel will be initiated by developing a slot raise at the far end by drilling and blasting with longhole techniques.

Stope extraction sequencing is planned to be from the longitudinal extremities of the zone retreating to the centre, where the access ramp is located. At the same time, mining will advance vertically up the mineralized zone. Three mining phases have been designed:
- from level 2 vertically to the 600 level,
- from level 5 vertically to level 2,
- and from level 9 vertically to level 5.

This will be carried out by establishing two horizontal sill pillars, which will ultimately be extracted. The first pillar will be located just below level 2 with the second just below level 5. This will allow initial mining to commence from level 2 vertically upward to the 600 level. While this is taking place, development of the zone at level 5 will be carried out so that mining of the stopes from level 5 up to level 2 to can take place. Lastly, while this mining is taking place, development of the stopes from level 9 up to level 5 will be taking place.

Conventional Cut & Fill
For the thinner areas, generally at the longitudinal extremities of the zone, CCAF mining will be utilized. Although more expensive than LH mining, it is more selective and produces less dilution. CCAF stopes are developed in 50 metre intervals from the extraction level of one stoping panel up to the next one. Stopes are up to 125 metres long and are accessed by a manway/muck raise carried from the extraction level up to the stope through the backfill. A ventilation/service raise is established in each stope up to the upper extraction level.

Mining is carried out in approximately 2.4 m high overhand cuts carried out using hand-held drill equipment comprising jacklegs, stoppers and slushers. Broken material is scraped to the muck raise using a slusher. Material is picked up in the stope undercut and trammed to the truck loading bay located off the access ramp. After each level has been cut, backfill is introduced into the stope via pipe localized in the ventilation raise. Crews are relocated to other stopes while the fill cycle is being carried out.

The New Polaris deposit will be accessed via the New Polaris ramp collared at surface at the 24 m elevation. This ramp will be driven down to the existing 600 level at a grade of approximately -13% tying into the Polaris shaft at the existing 150 level and 300 levels for ventilation. Upon reaching the 600 level, this temporary ventilation system will be converted into a permanent system.

The New Polaris process includes crushing, grinding, sulphide flotation, Bio-Oxidation (BIOX™), Carbonin-Leach (CIL), carbon desorption, Electrowinning and smelting to produce a gold doré.

The New Polaris plant is designed to process 750 tonnes of mill feed per day (tpd). The crushing stage availability is assumed to be 75% and the grinding and flotation plant availability is assumed to be 80%.

Preliminary BIOX™ plant design by Outotec is designed to treat 105 tpd of flotation concentrate with an availability of 95%.

Crushing
Crushing is designed in a 3-stage circuit including a jaw primary crusher, followed by secondary and tertiary cone crushing. Crushed ore with a P80 of 12 mm is then conveyed to into a 750 t live capacity stockpile. Ore from the stockpile is reclaimed from a tunnel beneath the stockpile using vibratory feeders.

Grinding
The grinding circuit uses a 1000 kW ball mill in closed circuit with a cyclone to reduce particle size from an F80 of 12 mm to a P80 of 75 µm. The grinding circuit processes 750 tpd with an availability of 80% and a throughput of 39 tph.

Flotation
Flotation is carried out in 6 Rougher and Scavenger cells, and 2 cleaner cells. Air is sparged into each cell.

Flotation concentrate is pumped to a concentrate thickener. Flotation tails are pumped to the tailings thickener.

BIOX Leaching
Flotation concentrate is pumped from the concentrate thickener to three storage tanks at 50% solids. Concentrate is then pumped into three primary oxidation reactors in parallel. Bio-oxidation occurs after conditioning and inoculation with bacterial culture. Residence time in the primary reactors is 3 days. Partially oxidized concentrate will then be pumped to three secondary reactors in series. Residence time for each reactor is 1 day.

Concentrate is oxidized for a total of 6 days. Oxidized concentrate is then pumped to Counter Current Decantation (CCD) thickening circuit to prepare for cyanide leaching.

CIL
CCD underflow is pumped to a pH conditioning tank, where lime is added to increase the pH of the slurry to 11. Sodium cyanide is added after pH conditioning. The slurry is then pumped into a series of 6 CIL tanks and flows countercurrent to 20 g/L activated carbon. Total residence time for the slurry in the CIL stage is 24-hours. Barren activated carbon enters the circuit in Tank #6 and is advanced countercurrent to the slurry flow. Screens are used to filter the carbon and carbon pumps are used to move carbon between tanks. Loaded carbon removed from Tank #1 is moved to the carbon desorption. Leach tails are pumped from Tank #6 to the detoxification stage.

Carbon Desorption and Regeneration
Carbon from the CIL loaded carbon screen is pumped to acid wash. Acid wash is carried out with diluted hydrochloric acid in an acid wash column inside an acid-proofed concrete sump to ensure that all spillage is captured and kept separate from other process streams.

After acid wash, the carbon is pumped to an elution circuit that includes an elution column, strip solution tank, strip solution pump, and a strip solution heat exchanger. The elution circuit operates in closed circuit with electro-winning cells.

Eluate flows directly from the top of the elution column to a loaded solution tank after cooling through heat exchangers. The eluate is pumped from the loaded solution tank to electro-winning cells to recover gold onto stainless steel cathodes and as sludge. Barren solution from electro-winning gravitates back to the strip solution tank. The gold is removed from the cathodes and the sludge is collected from the Electrowinning cells and vacuum filtered before refining.

Refining
Filtered gold product from the Electrowinning stage is directly smelted with fluxes in an induction furnace. Gold doré will be poured into molds, weighed, stamped and stored in a safe. Exhaust from the furnace is passed through a wet scrubber to remove entrained particles and dust, and then vented out of the plant via a chimney stack.