The Goldex property is located near the southern boundary of the Archean-age (2.7 billion years old) Abitibi Subprovince, a typical granitegreenstone terrane located within the Superior Province of the Canadian Shield. The southern contact of the Abitibi Subprovince with the Pontiac Subprovince is marked by the east-southeast trending Cadillac-Larder Lake fault zone, the most important regional structural feature. The Goldex deposit is hosted within a quartz diorite sill, the "Goldex Granodiorite", located in a succession of mafic to ultramafic volcanic rocks that are all generally oriented west-northwest. The satellite Goldex deposit known as the South Zone is hosted within the volcanic rocks (basalts, gabbro, komatiite) located south of the Goldex main deposit.

The M Zone has an approximate length of 440 metres, a height of 350 metres and a thickness of 130 metres. The E Zone, adjacent to the eastern end of the GEZ, has an approximate length of 250 metres, a height of 290 metres and a thickness of 130 metres. The Deep Zone (including the Deep 1 Zone and the Deep Zone Extension) is the continuity of the GEZ mineralization at depth. For safety purposes, a 90-metre thick pillar has been left below the GEZ, so that mining of the Deep Zone starts at 850 metres below surface, and extends to 1,800 metres below surface. It appears to have an approximate strike length of 350 metres, a height of 950 metres and thickness of 120 metres.

Mineralization
The primary gold mineralization type at Goldex corresponds to the classical quartz-tourmaline vein lode-gold deposit type. The gold-bearing quartztourmaline pyrite veins and vein stockwork, hosted within a quartz-diorite dyke, are the result of a strong structural control, related to ductile shearing and brittle faulting. The most significant structure directly related to mineralization is a discrete shear zone, named the Goldex Mylonite, which is up to five metres wide and occurs within the Goldex Granodiorite, just south of the Deep 1 Zone and north of the M Zone.

Several vein sets exist within the M, E and Deep 1 zones, of which the main set consists of extensional-shear veins dipping approximately 30 degrees south. The vein sets and associated alteration halos combine to form stacked envelopes up to 30 metres thick.

Moderate to strong albite-carbonate alteration of the host-rock quartz diorite surrounds the quartz-tourmaline-pyrite veins and covers almost 80% of the mineralized zone; outside of the envelopes, prior chlorite alteration affects the quartz diorite and gives it a darker grey-green colour. Occasionally, enclaves of relatively unaltered medium grey-green-coloured quartz diorite (with no veining or gold) are found within the M, E and Deep 1 zones. They are removed with the rest of the stope's ore to allow for a smooth stope shape, which is required for mining purposes.

Most of the gold occurs as microscopic particles that are almost always associated with pyrite, generally adjacent to pyrite grains and crystals but also 20% included within the pyrite. The gold-bearing pyrite occurs in the quartz-tourmaline veins and in narrow fractures in the albite-carbonatealtered quartz diorite (generally immediately adjacent to the veins).

Gold mineralization in the South Zone corresponds to a quartz-biotite-sulphide vein deposit. Gold is mainly associated to sulphides (pyrrhotite, chalcopyrite, sphalerite and pyrite) along horizons altered in silica and biotite. The host rocks are a sequence of volcanic rocks (andesite, basalts, gabbro and komatiite) located south of the Goldex main deposit. The deposit presents a strong structural control, related to ductile shearing and brittle faulting as based on the actual observations. Studies are underway to better understand the geological model.

The surface facilities at Goldex include a head frame, a hoist room, a covered ore storage facility, a processing plant, a paste backfill plant and a surface building containing a mechanical shop, a warehouse and an office. In addition, the Goldex property had a 790-metre deep shaft (Shaft #1), which historically was used to provide access to underground workings. Shaft #1 was later used for heating and ventilation of the underground workings. In 2018, the Shaft #1 headframe was dismantled and the surface area rehabilitated as part of the ongoing rehabilitation program at Goldex.

The current operating shaft (Shaft #2), completed in 2007, is 865 metres deep and includes five stations. A refurbished friction hoist was installed for production and service duties and an auxiliary hoist was installed for emergency and personnel service.

Rehabilitation of the old ramp near Shaft #1 was completed in 2015 to access the upper portion of the M Zone. The ramp is used for transporting material into the mine and as an emergency exit.

The Agnico Eagle Mines Ltd. mines the M and E zones using primary and secondary longhole stoping methods. Drilling is carried out with ITH drills. Production holes are either 4.5 or 6.5 inches in diameter. Bulk emulsion is used as the primary explosive for stope blasting. For both zones, stopes are approximately 55 metres high. The width and length of individual stopes vary based on local rock mass quality, but an average stope is expected to range between 20,000 and 120,000 tonnes. Ore handling in the M Zone is done with 15 yard load-haul-dump ("LHD") machines. This equipment unloads into an ore pass accessible from each level. In the E Zone, located below the bottom of Shaft #2, ore handling is done with 15 yard LHD machines and 45-tonne trucks.

All stopes are supported with 10-15 metre cable bolts. In addition, the stability of certain stopes is remotely monitored in real time. The Company also uses paste backfill to allow for a high extraction ratio and to increase long term stability.

The same mining method used in the M and E zones is used in the Deep 1 Zone, except that a Rail-Veyor system is used for ore handling between the lowermost level of Deep 1 (Level 120) and the current ore handling facilities (Level 76). The Rail-Veyor loading system on Level 120 is fed via a rock breaker room at Level 115. For Levels 85 to 115, 15 yard LHD machines unload into an ore pass reporting to the rock breaker room on Level 115. For the stopes on Level 120, 45 tonne trucks are used for ore handling to Level 115.

The South Zone is accessible from the Deep 1 Zone infrastructure. In the first quarter of 2021, production commenced in the South Zone sector 2.

In 2022, the Company expects an increase in production at Goldex to 140,000 ounces of gold largely due to the acceleration of mining rates from the Deep 1 area as well as the South Zone, and the anticipated increase in the Rail-Veyor capacity to 7,500 tpd.

- subscription is required.

Plant construction at Goldex was completed in the first quarter of 2008. Grinding at Goldex is through a two-stage circuit comprised of a SAG mill and a ball mill, and a surface crusher to reduce the size of ore. Approximately two-thirds of the gold is recovered through a gravity circuit, passed over shaking tables and smelted on site. The remainder of the gold and pyrite is recovered through a sulphide bulk flotation process. The concentrate is then thickened and trucked to the mill at the LaRonde mine, where it is fed to a cyanide leach circuit. Gold-bearing leachate is fed directly into the carbon-in-pulp circuit to recover precious metals, which are smelted into doré bars.

In 2013, a new backfill plant was built on the site. The tailings thickener underflow feeds the backfill plant and two disk filters increase the density before the continuous mixer where binder is added at a ratio of approximately 3.6% before being sent to the underground mine by two positive displacem ........