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Canada
Timmins Operation (Bell Creek Mine, Timmins West Mine)

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 Location:
14 km NE from Timmins, Ontario, Canada

  Regional Office:
3160 Florence Street
P.O. Box 1067
Timmins
Ontario, Canada
P4N 7H9
Phone  ...  Subscription required
WebsiteWeb
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  • Overview
  • Owners
  • Geology
  • Mining
  • Processing
  • Production
  • Reserves
  • Costs & Financials
  • Fleet
  • Personnel
  • Filings & News

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Overview

StageProduction
Mine TypeUnderground
Commodities
  • Gold
  • Silver
  • Silver Equivalent
Mining Method
  • Longhole stoping
  • Transverse stoping
  • Longitudinal stoping
  • Cemented backfill
  • Paste backfill
Processing
  • Dewatering
  • Smelting
  • Carbon re-activation kiln
  • Centrifugal concentrator
  • Shaker table
  • Gravity separation
  • Agitated tank (VAT) leaching
  • Carbon in leach (CIL)
  • Carbon in pulp (CIP)
  • Solvent Extraction & Electrowinning
  • Cyanide (reagent)
Mine Life10 years (as of Jan 1, 2015)
The Timmins operation consists of two underground gold mines, the Timmins West mine and the Bell Creek mine, which both feed the Bell Creek mill.


Owners

Source: p. 94
CompanyInterestOwnership
Pan American Silver Corp. 100 % Indirect

Deposit Type

  • Intrusion related
  • Footwall hosted
  • Vein / narrow vein
  • Mesothermal


Summary:

Gold mineralization in the Timmins, Thunder Creek, and 144 Gap Deposits occurs in steep northnorthwest plunging mineralized zones which plunge parallel to the local orientations of the L4 lineation features which also plunge parallel to the lineation, including folds and elongate lithologies. Mineralization occurs within, or along favourable lithostructural settings within 100 metres of the Holmer and Rusk Shear Zones. Mineralization comprises multiple generations of quartz-carbonatetourmaline ±albite veins, associated pyrite alteration envelopes, and disseminated pyrite mineralization. Textural evidence suggests that veining formed progressively through D3 and D4 deformation. All phases of gold-bearing veins cut and postdate the AIC and syenitic to monzonitic intrusions, although mineralization is often spatially associated with ore preferentially developed within these intrusive suites (Rhys, 2010).

At the Timmins Deposit, the character and sequence of veining in the Main, V1 and V2 veins is similar in all exposures. Rhys (2003) defined three phases of veining in the Timmins Deposit surface showings, all of which were also apparent in his recent observations (Rhys, 2010 and 2011), although an additional phase of shallow dipping quartz extension veins was also recognized during this field work (Rhys, 2010). The sequence of veining observed is as follows, with most veins in the upper Timmins Deposit mineralization forming composite veins which have this paragenetic sequence.

In the Thunder Creek area, there are two main styles of mineralization: 1) the Rusk Shear Zone adjacent to and in the footwall of the pyroxenite unit, and; 2) the Porphyry Zone which is hosted by the quartz monzonite intrusion which lies to the southeast in the immediate footwall to the Rusk Shear Zone below an elevation of approximately 500 metres below surface.

Mineralization in the Rusk Shear Zone comprises areas of either higher quartz-carbonate-pyrite vein density, and/or areas of elevated medium- to coarse-grained disseminated pyrite and associated pyritequartz veinlets. Both of these styles were observed to occur in the intensely foliated, often compositionally laminated carbonate-albite-quartz-magnetite portions of the shear zone. Mineralization also locally preferentially overprints pink, K-feldspar-rich syenite dykes and local plagioclase-dominant probable diorite dykes in the shear zone, with clots and aggregates of coarsepyrite, often associated with quartz-albite-carbonate veinlets.

“Porphyry Zone” mineralization is developed in the quartz monzonite intrusion that occurs at depth in the footwall to the Rusk Shear Zone immediately adjacent to areas of mineralization in the shear zone. Mineralization is associated with sheeted sets of quartz extension veins which occur in abundance of up to several veins per metre within the intrusion. Most veins are less than 3 centimetres thick and comprise white quartz with pyrite. Disseminated pyrite locally occurs in the wall rock adjacent to the veins and free visible gold was locally observed in association with pyrite both in veins and disseminated in the host rock.

Gold mineralization in the 144 Gap Deposit occurs generally between 600 and 1,000 metres below surface in the footwall of the high strain zone within and adjacent to syenite bodies in the footwall mafic volcanic lobe. The main mineralized areas occur between approximately 20 to 120 metres into the footwall of the high strain zone; however, mineralization also occurs locally within the shear zone itself. There are two main styles of mineralization identified in the 144 Gap Deposit area: 1) syenite-hosted quartz-pyrite extension vein sets and associated mineralization, and; 2) disseminated and vein-controlled pyrite in carbonate-sericite altered areas of higher strain in the shear zone and in altered mafic units along and within dyke margins.

Mesothermal shear hosted gold mineralization in the Bell Creek mine area occurs along selvages of quartz veins and wall rocks, in stylolitic fractures in quartz veins, in fine grained pyrite, and in association with amorphous carbon. High grade gold mineralization occurs within quartz veins contained in alteration zones.

Gold mineralization in the Bell Creek area as occurring along selvages of quartz veins and wall rocks, in stylolitic fractures in quartz veins, in fine grained pyrite, and in association with amorphous carbon. High grade gold mineralization occurs within quartz veins contained in alteration zones. The alteration zones are characterized by carbonate, graphitic and amorphous carbon, fine grained pyrite, sericite, and/or paragonite and are enriched in Au, As, Bi, and W. This style of alteration is referred to by mine geologists as “grey zones” and is an exploration target in Hoyle Township.

The Bell Creek mineralization differs in style from many deposits in the Porcupine Mining camp in being composed largely of disseminated pyrite-pyrrhotite-related mineralization; slightly younger gold-bearing quartz veins may be present but are not predominant.  This style of mineralization occurs in the deeper parts of the Dome Mine and in the Rusk Zone at the Timmins West mine, but is more common to the east, in the Holloway-Holt McDermott area and at the Larder Lake, where pyritic mineralization is often termed “flow ore” (Rhys 2012).


Mining Methods

  • Longhole stoping
  • Transverse stoping
  • Longitudinal stoping
  • Cemented backfill
  • Paste backfill


Summary:

The Thunder Creek, Timmins, and 144 Gap deposits at the Timmins West Mine are accessed by a 5.5 metre diameter production shaft and 5 metre by 5 metre ramp from surface; the three deposits are connected by internal ramps and drifts.

Production from the Timmins, Thunder Creek and 144 Gap deposits comes from a combination of ore development and transverse and longitudinal longhole stoping. Sublevel spacing at the Timmins deposit is at 20 metre vertical intervals; sublevel spacing at the Thunder Creek and 144 Gap deposits is on 35 metre vertical intervals. Stopes are backfilled with either paste fill or cemented rock fill.

At the Bell Creek Mine the primary access to the underground workings is via an existing portal and main ramp from surface. Longitudinal longhole stoping is the primary mining method. Broken ore is removed from the stope using remote controlled LHDs, and trucked to surface. The main ramp is 5.0 metre wide by 5.0 metre high and currently extends to the 895L. There is an existing 6.3 metre by 2.6 metre rectangular, three- compartment timbered shaft. The shaft is 290 metres deep. A main shaft station exists at the 240L. The headframe and hoisting facilities remain in place, but are currently not being used. Material at Bell Creek Mine is drawn out by scoop trams and trucked to surface up the ramp.


Crushing and Grinding
Crusher / Mill TypeModelSizePowerQuantity
Jaw crusher ....................... Subscription required 44" x 34" 1
SAG mill ....................... Subscription required 22' x 36.5' 4.6 MW 1

Summary:

Ore from the Bell Creek Mine and the Timmins West Mine is dumped directly onto a 16” by 16” grizzly at the truck dump and a remote controlled rockbreaker is used to break up the oversized material. The ore is fed with an apron feeder to a series of conveyors reporting to a scalping grizzly feeder in the crushing building. The openings between the fingers on the grizzly feeder are 3.5”, with the oversize reporting to a 44” x 34” C110HD Metso jaw crusher. The jaw crusher is set to a closed side setting of 4”. The discharge from the crusher is combined with the -3.5” material from the grizzly feeder and conveyed to the ore storage dome. The dome has a 20,000MT storage capacity, 6,000MT of which is live. Three apron feeders pull ore from the dome and convey it to the SAG mill building.

The grinding circuit consists of one 22’ diameter by 36.5’ length low aspect ratio Metso SAG mill and is powered by twin 6,250 hp (4,600 kW) motors. The SAG mill is a repurposed ball mill converted to a SAG by installing 0.5” grates and a trommel with 0.75” openings. Oversize from the trommel reports to a collection bin which is fed back into the SAG mill feed chute. Undersize from the trommel reports to a pumpbox which feeds a cyclopac equipped with 6 outlets. Four of the outlets are fitted with 20” Krebs gMAX cyclones, and the other two outlets are capped and available for possible future expansion. The SAG cyclone overflow reports to the thickener feed box and the underflow reports back to the SAG mill. A portion of the cyclone underflow is fed to a 30” Knelson. Knelson concentrate is collected in a hopper and is pumped daily to the refinery for further treatment, while the Knelson tails flow by gravity back to the SAG mill. Target grind is 80% passing 200 mesh.


Processing

  • Dewatering
  • Smelting
  • Carbon re-activation kiln
  • Centrifugal concentrator
  • Shaker table
  • Gravity separation
  • Agitated tank (VAT) leaching
  • Carbon in leach (CIL)
  • Carbon in pulp (CIP)
  • Solvent Extraction & Electrowinning
  • Cyanide (reagent)

Source: Subscription required

Summary:

Ore from the Bell Creek Mine is milled exclusively at the Bell Creek Mill located approximately 6.7 kms north of Highway 101 in South Porcupine, Ontario. The processing plant consists of a one stage crushing circuit, ore storage dome, onestage grinding circuit with gravity recovery, followed by pre-oxidation and cyanidation of the slurry with CIL and CIP recovery. Ore from the Timmins West Mine is also trucked to the Bell Creek Milling facility for processing.

Flocculent is added to the cyclone overflow and is pumped to a 20 meter diameter thickener. The slurry from the cyclones is 25-35% solids by weight with the thickener underflow at 55% solids by weight. The thickener overflow water is pumped to the process water tank and reused in the grinding process. The thickener underflow slurry is pumped to the leach circuit. The leach circuit consists of five agitated tanks in series with a total volume of 1,940 cubic meters. Pure oxygen is sparged into the first three leach tank ........

Recoveries & Grades:

CommodityParameter2020201920172016
Gold Recovery Rate, %  ......  Subscription required  ......  Subscription required9696
Gold Head Grade, g/t  ......  Subscription required  ......  Subscription required3.974.19

Production:

CommodityUnits202120202019201820172016
Gold koz  ......  Subscription required ^  ......  Subscription required  ......  Subscription required146167122
Silver koz  ......  Subscription required ^  ......  Subscription required  ......  Subscription required  ......  Subscription required
All production numbers are expressed as metal in doré. ^ Guidance / Forecast.
Subscription required - Subscription is required.

Operational Metrics:

Metrics2020201920172016
Tonnes processed  ......  Subscription required1,481 kt1,357 kt938 kt
Daily processing capacity  ......  Subscription required5,000 t
Daily processing rate  ......  Subscription required3,719 t3,410 t
Ore tonnes mined  ......  Subscription required1,368 kt941 kt
Daily mining capacity  ......  Subscription required3,500 t
Subscription required - Subscription is required.

Reserves at June 30, 2020:

CategoryTonnage CommodityGradeContained Metal
Proven 3 Mt Gold 3.05 g/t 295.8 koz
Probable 7.1 Mt Gold 2.93 g/t 665.5 koz
Measured 2.2 Mt Gold 3.37 g/t 239.6 koz
Indicated 4.9 Mt Gold 3 g/t 469.6 koz
Inferred 5 Mt Gold 3.27 g/t 529.3 koz

Commodity Production Costs:

CommodityUnits20212020201920172016
Cash costs (sold) Gold USD  ......  Subscription required ^†  ......  Subscription required†  ......  Subscription required†
Total cash costs Gold USD 680 / oz 617 / oz
Total cash costs Gold USD 678 / oz† 615 / oz†
All-in sustaining costs (sold) Gold USD  ......  Subscription required ^†  ......  Subscription required†  ......  Subscription required†
All-in sustaining costs (AISC) Gold USD 1,062 / oz† 1,057 / oz†
^ Guidance / Forecast.
† Net of By-Product.
Subscription required - Subscription is required.

Financials:

Units20212020201920172016
Capital expenditures (planned) M USD  ......  Subscription required
Growth Capital M USD  ......  Subscription required  ......  Subscription required
Sustaining costs M USD  ......  Subscription required  ......  Subscription required 46.8   45.1  
Capital expenditures M USD  ......  Subscription required  ......  Subscription required 98.8   81.8  
Revenue M USD  ......  Subscription required  ......  Subscription required 211.8   137.1  
Operating Income M USD  ......  Subscription required  ......  Subscription required 40.2   35.4  
Subscription required - Subscription is required


Heavy Mobile Equipment:
HME TypeModelSizeQuantityRef. Date
Concrete sprayer ....................... Subscription required May 15, 2017
Drill (long hole) ....................... Subscription required ....................... Subscription required May 15, 2017
Drill jumbo (single boom) ....................... Subscription required May 15, 2017
Drill jumbo (single boom) ....................... Subscription required Dec 31, 2014
Drill jumbo (two boom) ....................... Subscription required Dec 31, 2014
Drill jumbo (two boom) ....................... Subscription required May 15, 2017
Excavator ....................... Subscription required May 15, 2017
Grader ....................... Subscription required May 15, 2017
Grader ....................... Subscription required Dec 31, 2014
Loader ....................... Subscription required ....................... Subscription required May 15, 2017
Loader ....................... Subscription required ....................... Subscription required May 15, 2017
Load-Haul-Dump (LHD) 9 cu. yd ....................... Subscription required May 15, 2017
Load-Haul-Dump (LHD) 10 cu. yd ....................... Subscription required May 15, 2017
Load-Haul-Dump (LHD) 6 cu. yd ....................... Subscription required May 15, 2017
Load-Haul-Dump (LHD) 3.5 cu. yd ....................... Subscription required May 15, 2017
Load-Haul-Dump (LHD) 2 cu. yd ....................... Subscription required May 15, 2017
Load-Haul-Dump (LHD) 8 cu. yd ....................... Subscription required Dec 31, 2014
Load-Haul-Dump (LHD) 6 cu. yd ....................... Subscription required Dec 31, 2014
Load-Haul-Dump (LHD) 3.5 cu. yd ....................... Subscription required Dec 31, 2014
Load-Haul-Dump (LHD) 2 cu. yd ....................... Subscription required Dec 31, 2014
Load-Haul-Dump (LHD) 1.5 cu. yd ....................... Subscription required Dec 31, 2014
Scissor Lift ....................... Subscription required Dec 31, 2014
Truck (underground) 42 t ....................... Subscription required Dec 31, 2014
Truck (underground) 50 t ....................... Subscription required Dec 31, 2014
Truck (underground) 30 t ....................... Subscription required May 15, 2017
Truck (underground) 50 t ....................... Subscription required May 15, 2017
Subscription required - Subscription is required.

Mine Management:

Job TitleNameProfileRef. Date
....................... Subscription required ....................... Subscription required Subscription required May 3, 2021
....................... Subscription required ....................... Subscription required Subscription required May 3, 2021
....................... Subscription required ....................... Subscription required Subscription required May 3, 2021
....................... Subscription required ....................... Subscription required Subscription required May 3, 2021
....................... Subscription required ....................... Subscription required Subscription required May 3, 2021
....................... Subscription required ....................... Subscription required Subscription required May 3, 2021
....................... Subscription required ....................... Subscription required Subscription required May 3, 2021
Subscription required - Subscription is required.

Staff:

EmployeesContractorsYear
Subscription required Subscription required 2016

Corporate Filings & Presentations:

DocumentYear
................................... Subscription required 2021
................................... Subscription required 2020
................................... Subscription required 2020
................................... Subscription required 2020
................................... Subscription required 2019
................................... Subscription required 2019
................................... Subscription required 2019
Annual Report 2018
Management Discussion & Analysis 2018
Annual Information Form 2017
Financial Review 2017
Management Discussion & Analysis 2017
Technical Report 2017
Annual Information Form 2016
Management Discussion & Analysis 2016
Financial Review 2015
Technical Report 2015
Technical Report 2014
Subscription required - Subscription is required.

Subscription required - Subscription is required.

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