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Australia
Kanowna Belle Mine (Kalgoorlie Operation)

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 Location:
20 km NE from Kalgoorlie, Western Australia, Australia

  Regional Office:
PO Box 2008
Subiaco
Western Australia, Australia
6904
Phone  ...  Subscription required
Fax+61-8-6188-2111
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Overview

StageProduction
Mine TypeUnderground
Commodities
  • Gold
Mining Method
  • Longhole open stoping
  • Bench stoping
  • Paste backfill
Processing
  • Gravity separation
  • Flotation
  • Inline Leach Reactor (ILR)
  • Agitated tank (VAT) leaching
  • Carbon in pulp (CIP)
  • Carbon adsorption-desorption-recovery (ADR)
  • AARL elution
  • Solvent Extraction & Electrowinning
  • Cyanide (reagent)
  • Roasting


Owners & OPERATOR

Source: p. 1
CompanyInterestOwnership
Northern Star Resources Ltd. (operator) 100 % Indirect
The Kanowna Belle Operation is 100% owned and operated by Northern Star.

Deposit Type

  • Porphyry
  • Breccia pipe / Stockwork
  • Vein / narrow vein


Summary:

Kanowna Belle is located in the Kalgoorlie Terrane (Boorara sub-domain) of the Eastern Goldfields Province. Stratigraphically, the deposit sits in the Black Flag Group which overlies the lower volcanic sequences.

The Kanowna Belle deposit is hosted within a series of volcaniclastic sediments ranging in grain size from shale to conglomerates. These rocks are respectively separated into hangingwall and footwall sequences by a major 60° S-SE dipping zone of structural disruption and mineralisation.

The footwall sequence is dominated by the Golden Valley conglomerate, a mafic-dominated unit interbedded with the felsic-dominated Cemetery conglomerate. The hangingwall sequence comprises three main volcaniclastic units, these are the QED rudite, the Lowes sandstone and the Grave Dam grit, which is the dominant unit.

The sequence has been intruded by the Kanowna Belle porphyry, which is granodioritic in composition. At least 70% of the known gold mineralization is hosted by the Kanowna Belle porphyry, with the remaining mineralisation hosted by sedimentary units.

The Kanowna Belle deposit is controlled by the Fitzroy Fault Zone and associated splay structures. The Fitzroy Fault has been interpreted to be a reactivated D1 thrust ramp. These deformation events have been categorized on the Fitzroy Fault into three distinct styles (and thus deformational stages):
- Fitzroy Mylonite;
- Fitzroy Shear Zone;
- Fitzroy Fault.

These events have produced clear structural overprinting relations and have localised the emplacement of the Kanowna Belle porphyry.

Mineralisation at Kanowna Belle occurs in both supergene enriched horizons in the near surface environment (oxidised to transitional material) and at depth in primary fresh rock sulphide hosted gold. The primary mineralisation at Kanowna occurs in discrete ‘lodes’ or ‘shoots’.

Weathering over the Kanowna deposit is typically to a depth of 70m across the deposit, and is characterised by saprolitic clays.

A zone of supergene gold enrichment is located above the Kanowna Belle deposit in a thin variably developed blanket over a 600m by 250m area. The supergene enrichment zone typically occurs 35m above the primary deposit at the transition between completely oxidised and transitional material.

The Lowes Shoot is the main zone of mineralisation in the mine. It hosts 80% of the total resource and is characterised by a consistent ore grade of 4gpt across its width, with areas of higher grade being sub-parallel to the FSZ or the orientation of the regional cleavage. Mineralisation in the Lowes shoot is characterised by micro-fracturing, abundant quartz carbonate-pyrite veins and minor secondary breccias. Quartz-sericitecarbonate-pyrite breccias also occur parallel to major structural zones.

Two overprinting temporally and mineralogically distinct mineralisation events are recognized in the Kanowna Belle Deposit:
- An early high level (epizonal) Gold-Telluride mineralisation event;
- Later Pyrite associated mineralisation.

In the Gold-Telluride phase of mineralisation, gold occurs as blebs of free gold in association with Telluride minerals. The most common telluride minerals observed are Altaite (Lead Telluride), Coloradoite (Mercury Telluride) and Melonite (Nickel Telluride). Texturally the gold-telluride mineralisation occurs as microfracture and microvug infill. Volumetrically, this phase of mineralisation accounts for less than 10% of the gold endowment at Kanowna Belle.

Gold in this mineralisation phase occurs mostly as fine grained (less than 10 microns (µm)) inclusions in pyrite or as very fine-grained gold located in arsenic rich growth zones in pyrite. Free gold occurs in minor proportions, and typically occupies D2 extensional sites adjacent to pyrite crystals.

Mineralisation also sits in the Velvet deposit, 500m west of the main Lowes deposit and 600m below surface. Gold mineralisation at Velvet is hosted within an intrusion of intermediate composition that broadly follows a sub vertical hanging wall splay of the Fitzroy Shear Zone. The splay structure, locally termed ‘Velvet Mylonite’, is characterized by a well-developed porphyroclastic fabric and is separated from the Fitzroy shear Zone by a zone of massive carbonate (mainly dolomite) breccia. Gold is also typically fine grained, with two different mineralisation styles at Velvet also existing.

- Earlier sulphide with iron dolomite alteration.
- Carbonate breccia with sulphide stringer veins and coarse gold veins.

Typical ore assemblages contain 0.5 to 1.5% sulphur and 40ppm arsenic. Kanowna Belle ore is generally refractory, meaning that oxidation (i.e. roasting) is required to maximise gold extraction. The Pyrite associated mineralisation provides the majority of gold produced from the Kanowna Belle Orebody.


Mining Methods

  • Longhole open stoping
  • Bench stoping
  • Paste backfill


Summary:

The Kanowna Belle gold deposit is mined by longhole stoping and underhand longhole bench stoping with paste fill methods. This mining method was selected to minimise the impact of mining induced stress on the underground operations by geotechnical driven mining sequences and a fill system integral in the mining cycle.

The mining method used at Kanowna Belle underground is called longhole open stoping (LHOS). Mining of the LHOS commences with the development of drives (tunnels) on each level and the sides of these are supported by cement grouted roof bolts, mesh and shotcrete. These drives delineate the boundary of the stope. Each LHOS is 15-30m wide, up to 50m long and 120m high. Depending on size each stope may contain between 20,000 to 50,000 tonnes of ore.

The Kanowna Belle gold mine has been extracted down to a depth of 1,301m below surface with a possible extension into lower E block, further development of the Troy and Sims loads located in the hangingwall, higher in the mine. The Velvet deposit sitting 500m west of the main Lowes ore body is also a substantial part of the production and open a depth.

All mining operations are operated by NSMS, excluding diamond drilling which is contracted.


Crushing and Grinding
Crusher / Mill TypeModelSizePowerQuantity
SAG mill


Processing

  • Gravity separation
  • Flotation
  • Inline Leach Reactor (ILR)
  • Agitated tank (VAT) leaching
  • Carbon in pulp (CIP)
  • Carbon adsorption-desorption-recovery (ADR)
  • AARL elution
  • Solvent Extraction & Electrowinning
  • Cyanide (reagent)
  • Roasting

Source: Subscription required

Summary:

The Kanowna Belle mine yields a “Refractory” ore where the gold is not readily available and recoverable in a conventional carbon in pulp (CIP) circuit, and consequently requires additional high intensity processing through a pyro-metallurgical process known as roasting. The processing plant treats ores from both the Kundana and Kanowna Belle Operations through separate processing circuits and produces gold bullion as the final product for both ore types.

The Kanowna Belle processing plant is a complex and versatile plant that includes separate circuits for processing free-milling and refractory gold ores. The plant has undergone progressive upgrades since its initial construction and now has an annual throughput capacity of approximately~ 2Mtpa of hard rock underground ore.

The thickened slurry is pumped to the leaching and adsorption circuit where the recoverable gold is extracted by cyanidation. The cyanidation circuit is a traditional CIP circuit that consists ........

Recoveries & Grades:

CommodityParameter20172016201520142013
Gold Recovery Rate, %  ......  Subscription required  ......  Subscription required  ......  Subscription required  ......  Subscription required  ......  Subscription required
Gold Head Grade, g/t 3.73.84.354.6
Subscription required - Subscription is required.

Production:

CommodityUnits20172016201520142013
Gold oz 109,23996,36398,042111,758134,000
All production numbers are expressed as metal in doré.

Operational Metrics:

Metrics20172016201520142013
Ore tonnes mined  ......  Subscription required0.8 Mt0.8 Mt0.8 Mt1 Mt
Tonnes processed  ......  Subscription required0.8 Mt0.7 Mt0.8 Mt1.1 Mt
Annual processing capacity  ......  Subscription required1.8 Mt

Reserves at June 30, 2020:

CategoryTonnage CommodityGradeContained Metal
Proven 2,459 kt Gold 3 g/t 239 koz
Probable 5,790 kt Gold 2.6 g/t 486 koz
Proven & Probable 8,249 kt Gold 2.7 g/t 725 koz
Measured 3,206 kt Gold 3.3 g/t 335 koz
Indicated 12,282 kt Gold 2.9 g/t 1,127 koz
Inferred 8,666 kt Gold 2.6 g/t 711 koz
Total Resource 24,154 kt Gold 2.8 g/t 2,172 koz


Heavy Mobile Equipment as of July 30, 2019:
HME TypeModelQuantity
Drill ....................... Subscription required 2
Drill (long hole) ....................... Subscription required 1
Drill (long hole) ....................... Subscription required 1
Explosives Charger ....................... Subscription required 1
Grader ....................... Subscription required 1
Load-Haul-Dump (LHD) ....................... Subscription required 1
Load-Haul-Dump (LHD) ....................... Subscription required 3
Truck (haul) ....................... Subscription required 4
Truck (haul) ....................... Subscription required 3
Truck (water) ....................... Subscription required 1
Subscription required - Subscription is required.

Mine Management:

Job TitleNameProfileRef. Date
....................... Subscription required ....................... Subscription required Subscription required Aug 28, 2020
Subscription required - Subscription is required.


Corporate Filings & Presentations:

DocumentYear
................................... Subscription required 2020
................................... Subscription required 2019
................................... Subscription required 2019
................................... Subscription required 2019
................................... Subscription required 2018
................................... Subscription required 2018
Annual Report 2017
Fact Sheet 2016
Subscription required - Subscription is required.

Aerial view:

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