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Peru

Florida Canyon Project

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Overview

Mine TypeUnderground
StagePreliminary Economic Assessment
Commodities
  • Zinc
  • Lead
  • Silver
Mining Method
  • Mechanized Cut & Fill
  • Longhole stoping
  • Drift & Fill
  • Sub-level stoping
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SnapshotThe Florida Canyon is a polymetallic zinc and lead project with silver credits.

The pre-feasibility study for the Florida Canyon Zinc project was released in 2017. An updated Mineral Resource Estimate was conducted in 2021.

The Florida Canyon Zinc project continues to be considered an advanced mineral exploration project.

In September 2023, construction and maintenance of the motorized trail, which aims to reach La Florida Annex, commenced and is expected to be completed in 2024.

Owners

SourceSource
CompanyInterestOwnership
Solitario Resources Corp. 39 % Indirect
Nexa Resources S.A. 50.93 % Indirect
Nexa Resources Perú S.A.A. (operator) 61 % Indirect
Minera Bongará S.A. (operator) 100 % Direct
The Florida Canyon Zinc Project is owned by Minera Bongará S.A and operated by Nexa Peru, a joint venture between Solitario Zinc Corp. (“Solitario”) and Nexa in existence since 2006. Nexa Peru owns 61.0% of Minera Bongará S.A., with Solitario holding the remaining 39.0% ownership interest.

Nexa Resources S.A. owns 83.55% interest in Nexa Peru and therefore holds 50.93% of Florida Canyon Zinc project.

Deposit type

  • Mississippi Valley Type

Summary:

The zinc-lead-silver mineralization of the Florida Canyon deposit occurs as sulfides hosted in dolomitized zones of the Chambara 2 Formation. Dolomite paragenesis and later sulfide mineralization are controlled by a combination of porosity, permeability and structural preparation. Metals occur in sphalerite and lesser galena, which contains silver. Minor mineralization is hosted in limestones, but the bulk of sphalerite and galena is hosted in dolomite.

In a number of core samples, the mineralization has very sharp contacts along the dolomitization boundary. Characteristic mineralization textures include massive and disseminated mantos, mineralization in dissolution breccias, collapse breccias and pseudobreccias. The different breccias and vein types are structurally controlled by faults of north-south and northeast- southwest direction.

The mineralization is characterized by the presence of sphalerite, galena and locally pyrite. Sulfide replacements occur in dolomitized limestone of variable grain sized and in solution breccias with white dolospar and lesser amounts of late generation calcite. Pyrite content is generally low, with percentages averaging less than 2% by volume. Sphalerite in mineralized sections has variable grain size from 0.1 to greater than 5 mm, with colors ranging from dark brown through reddish brown to light brown. It occurs as individual crystals or in massive form, sometimes displaying colloform textures with bands of slightly differing color zoning, indicators of polyphase hydrothermal deposition.

Early fine-grained sphalerite has evidence of later deformation and reactions to secondary mineralizing fluids. A second phase of more massive sphalerite mineralization is observed within the core of the deposit. These crystals are coarse-grained, regular, euhedral and show very little evidence of any post-depositional deformation. The sphalerite is contemporaneous with fine to coarse grained galena and is often overprinted with a later stage coarse-grained, euhedral galena.

The presence of zinc oxides, locally to considerable depths, is due to syngenetic oxidation, with later contributions of basin- derived connate water and movement of rainwater through fractures that leached the limestones and formed significant karst cavities.

The areas of current exploration interest are the Karen/Milagros, San Jorge and Sam Fault deposits. These mineralized zones are hosted in the dolomitized Chambará 2 sub-unit of the Pucará Group carbonates, bracketed by the Coquina and Intact Bivalve Marker beds. Geologic mapping and modeling includes refining the extents of Chambará 2, and further defining the steeply dipping feeder structures to predict additional zinc-lead-silver mineralization.

Local and regional geologic mapping, geologic drillhole logs, and the dome-shaped geometry of the deposit suggest the mineralization is hosted in a broad anticline structure. Florida Canyon is the collective name of the deposits in the Project area in Florida Canyon, and includes the Karen- Milagros, San Jorge, Sam Fault zones and similar mineralized strata between these areas.

Modeled manto zones are between 1 m and 9 m thick and occur over an area of about 1 km x 3 km and are open in all directions. Unmineralized gaps exist within the mineralized manto zones, as is typical for hydrothermal replacement deposits. Irregular steeply dipping replacement bodies also occur, frequently at the intersection of vein-like feeder structures and in karst-controlled mineralization.

Mineralization outcrops locally in a number of areas, and have been drilled at depths of up to about 450 m below ground surface. Zinc mineralization occurs as massive sphalerite (ZnS), and is locally oxidized to smithsonite (ZnCO3) and hemimorphite (Zn4Si2O7 (OH)2). Lead occurs in galena (PbS), cerussite (PbCO3) and anglesite (PbSO4).

An area of 20 km x 100 km extending from Mina Grande to north to 80 km south of the Florida Canyon deposit has become the focus of what is an emerging Mississippi-Valley Type (MVT) zinc and lead province, with many surface occurrences and stream sediment anomalies distributed throughout the Pucará Group. The main host rock of zinc and lead occurrences in the mineral district and Project area is dolomitized limestone, which may show karst or collapse breccia textures.

The structure at Florida Canyon is dominated by a N50º-60ºW trending domal anticline (or doubly plunging anticline) (SRK, 2014b). This anticlinal structure results in potential mining blocks of the manto deposits oriented along shallow dipping footwall/floors with dips ranging from 0° at the hinge to 25° near the middle to outer edges of the dome. The dip is as steep as 50° in the south of the deposit near the San Jorge exploration adit. Additionally, two steeply dipping mineralized bodies have been interpreted to exist. The first, known as San Jorge (zone F1), is located at the southern end of the deposit, and the other, known as SAM (zones 2 and 3), is located on the southwest edge of the deposit. The dip of these bodies ranges from 60° to 85° in San Jorge and 55° to 80° in the SAM body.

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

CommodityUnitsLOM
Zinc kt 1,491
Lead kt 150
All production numbers are expressed as concentrate.

Operational metrics

Metrics
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Daily ore mining rate  ....  Subscribe
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Daily processing rate  ....  Subscribe
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Ore tonnes mined, LOM  ....  Subscribe
Total tonnes mined, LOM  ....  Subscribe
Tonnes processed, LOM  ....  Subscribe
* According to 2021 study.

Production Costs

CommodityUnitsAverage
Cash costs Zinc USD  ....  Subscribe
Total cash costs Zinc USD  ....  Subscribe
All-in sustaining costs (AISC) Zinc USD  ....  Subscribe
All-in costs Zinc USD  ....  Subscribe
Assumed price Lead USD  ....  Subscribe
Assumed price Zinc USD  ....  Subscribe
Assumed price Silver USD  ....  Subscribe
* According to 2021 study / presentation.
** Net of By-Product.

Operating Costs

Currency2021
UG mining costs ($/t milled) USD  ....  Subscribe
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G&A ($/t milled) USD  ....  Subscribe
Total operating costs ($/t milled) USD  ....  Subscribe
* According to 2021 study.

Project Costs

MetricsUnitsLOM Total
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Sustaining CapEx $M USD  ......  Subscribe
Closure costs $M USD  ......  Subscribe
Total CapEx $M USD  ......  Subscribe
UG OpEx $M USD  ......  Subscribe
Processing OpEx $M USD 144.1
Refining costs $M USD  ......  Subscribe
Freight costs $M USD 96.9
G&A costs $M USD 39.2
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Gross revenue (LOM) $M USD  ......  Subscribe
Net revenue (LOM) $M USD  ......  Subscribe
Operating margin (LOM) $M USD  ......  Subscribe
After-tax Cash Flow (LOM) $M USD  ......  Subscribe
After-tax NPV @ 8% $M USD  ......  Subscribe
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After-tax payback period, years  ......  Subscribe

Required Heavy Mobile Equipment

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Personnel

Mine Management

Job TitleNamePhoneEmailProfileRef. Date
....................... Subscription required ....................... Subscription required Subscription required May 27, 2021
....................... Subscription required ....................... Subscription required Subscription required May 27, 2021
....................... Subscription required ....................... Subscription required ........... Subscription required ........... Subscription required Dec 1, 2023

Aerial view:

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