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 st ........
