Overview
Stage | Production |
Mine Type | Underground |
Commodities |
- Copper
- Zinc
- Gold
- Silver
- Gold Equivalent
|
Mining Method |
- Mechanized Cut & Fill
- Post Pillar Cut & Fill
- Longhole stoping
- Transverse open stoping
- Longitudinal retreat
- Paste backfill
|
Processing |
|
Mine Life | 10 years (as of Jan 1, 2020) |
On February 19, 2019, Hudbay announced the results from the first phase of Snow Lake gold strategy which repositioned Lalor as a gold mine with precious metals contributing a majority of the life-of-mine revenues. |
Source:
p. 22, 71
The 777 mine is owned 100% by Hudbay Minerals Inc.
Hudbay Minerals Inc. owns a 100% interest in the Lalor property through one Mineral Lease and eight Order in Council Leases.
Summary:
The 777 deposit can be divided into two main southeast plunging trends, the North Limb and the South Limb, as well as the West Zone. All three zones lie within the same stratigraphic sequence with the same lithofacies. The West Zone lies in the footwall in what is interpreted to be a lower thrust slice and both limbs have the same stratigraphic sequence. On average the lenses strike at 010° and dip to the east at 45°. All zones have a relatively shallow plunge trending at -35° towards 140°. Horizontal widths throughout the deposit range from 2.5 metres to 70 metres in thickness, and can be thicker when two or more zones overlap.
Mineralization is generally medium to coarse grained disseminated to solid sulphides consisting of pyrite, chalcopyrite, sphalerite, pyrrhotite, and magnetite. The principle gangue minerals are chlorite and quartz. Alteration minerals include biotite, epidote and actinolite.
The Lalor VMS deposit is flat lying, with zinc mineralization beginning at approximately 600 m from surface and extending to a depth of approximately 1,100 m. The mineralization trends about 320° to 340° azimuth and dips between 30° and 45° to the north. It has a lateral extent of about 900 m in the north-south direction and 700 m in the east-west direction.[2017 TR, p. 78]
Sulphide mineralization is pyrite and sphalerite. In the near solid (semi-massive) to solid (massive) sulphide sections, pyrite occurs as fine to coarse grained crystals ranging one to six millimetres and averages two to three millimetres in size. Sphalerite occurs interstitial to the pyrite. A crude bedding or lamination is locally discernable between these two sulphide minerals. Near solid coarse grained sphalerite zones occur locally as bands or boudins that strongly suggest that remobilization took place during metamorphism.[2017 TR, p. 78]
Reed hosts a volcanogenic massive sulphide deposit that precipitated at or near the seafloor in association with contemporaneous volcanism, forming a stratabound accumulation of sulphide minerals. Volcanogenic massive sulphide deposits typically form during periods of rifting along volcanic arcs, fore arcs, and in extensional back arc basins. Rifting causes extension and thinning of the crust, providing the high heat source required to generate and sustain a high-temperature hydrothermal system (Franklin et al., 2005).
Mining Methods
- Mechanized Cut & Fill
- Post Pillar Cut & Fill
- Longhole stoping
- Transverse open stoping
- Longitudinal retreat
- Paste backfill
Summary:
777 mine
The 777 mine is a multi-lens orebody with shaft access down to the 1508 metre level. The mine consists of an internal ramp that provides access to each mining level. Mobile tired diesel equipment is utilized. Load haul dump (“LHD”) units vary from 6.1m3 to 7.6m3 . Trucks are 40 to 50 ton units feeding an ore pass system or direct to rock-breakers which feed an underground crusher and ore is skipped to surface via the shaft.
Long-hole open stope is the mining method used at the 777 mine. Mine sequencing involves primary, secondary, chevron and longitudinal retreat stopes that are either paste or unconsolidated loose waste rock backfilled. Long-hole stopes are mined at 15 metre to 17 metre vertical sill to sill intervals. Stope strike lengths are generally 16 metres with widths of 2 to 100 metres, with an average of approximately 20 metres. The ore is undercut at the top and bottom of the block, providing access for drilling and mucking.
Lalor mine
The hanging wall and footwall rocks are in general of good quality allowing the use of mechanized drilling and blasting techniques. The mineralized lenses dip at an average of 30°, but locally varying from 10 to 55°. Mining methods currently in use include: cut and fill and longhole open stope. Paste backfill is used to increase recovery and accelerate the mining cycle. Low grade areas will be filled with rock from waste development. [2019 TR, p.124-128]
Ore is mucked using Load Haul and Dump (LHD) loaders which are operated remotely in inaccessible areas. Ore is loaded into underground haul trucks at ore passes and transported to the ore handling system at the production shaft for hoisting to surface. Ore delivered to the production shaft is sized to less than 0.55 m by one of two rock breakers. Ore is hoisted from the mine by two 16 tonne capacity bottom dump skips in balance. On surface, ore is truck hauled to a primary crusher at the Chisel North mine site, crushed to less than 0.15 m, and will then be trucked to processing. [2019 TR, p.124-128]
Reed mine
Underground longhole stoping was chosen as the mining method for Reed because of the steep dip of the mineralization and good quality of the ground.
The Reed mine produced its last ore in August, 2018 and processing of Reed ore was completed in early September, 2018. Closure activities at Reed mine were completed in October, 2018, with all equipment removed from site. [2018 MDA, p. 17]
Flow Sheet:
Summary:
FLIN FLON CONCENTRATOR
The Flin Flon concentrator is an operating plant running at steady state, with a capacity of 7,200 tpd. The concentrator produces zinc and copper concentrates. [2019 TR, 92]
Historically, the Flin Flon Concentrator treated both Reed ore from the Reed mine and 777 ore from the 777 mine from 2014 to 2016 at a blend mix of 7:3, 777/Reed, producing copper and zinc concentrates. However, upon closure of the Reed mine in July 2018, the Flin Flon concentrator now treats primarily 777 ore and Lalor ore in batches as scheduled. [2019 TR, 92]
The Flin Flon concentrator facility includes a paste backfill plant and associated infrastructure such as maintenance shops and laboratories. Tailings from the concentrator are utilized as paste backfill or pumped to the Flin Flon tailings impoundment immediately adjacent to the concentrator.
STALL CONCENTRATOR
The Stall concentrator in Snow Lake, Manitoba was re-started in 2009 and a new ........

Recoveries & Grades:
Commodity | Parameter | 2019 | 2018 | 2017 | 2016 | 2015 |
Copper
|
Head Grade, %
| 1.01 | 1.35 | 1.53 | 1.58 | 1.74 |
Zinc
|
Head Grade, %
| 5.04 | 4.87 | 5.61 | 4.38 | 4.5 |
Gold
|
Head Grade, g/t
| 1.93 | 1.87 | 1.75 | 1.64 | 1.74 |
Silver
|
Head Grade, g/t
| 22.6 | 24.4 | 22.1 | 19.2 | 17.9 |
Production:
Commodity | Units | 2020 | 2019 | 2018 | 2017 | 2016 | 2015 |
Copper
|
t
| ...... ^ | ......  | ......  | 37,411 | 41,059 | 41,383 |
Zinc
|
t
| ...... ^ | ......  | ......  | ......  | ......  | ......  |
Gold Equivalent
|
oz
| ...... ^ | ......  | ......  | ......  | ......  | |
Gold
|
oz
| | ......  | ......  | ......  | ......  | ......  |
Silver
|
oz
| | ......  | ......  | ......  | ......  | ......  |
All production numbers are expressed as metal in concentrate.
^ Guidance / Forecast.
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Operational Metrics:
Metrics | 2019 | 2018 | 2017 | 2016 | 2015 |
Ore tonnes mined
| ......  | ......  | ......  | 2,827,752 t | 2,632,705 t |
Tonnes processed
| ......  | ......  | ......  | 2,854,255 t | 2,614,475 t |
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Reserves at December 31, 2017:
Current mineral reserves and resources as at January 1, 2020 are presented separately for the Lalor mine and 777 mine.
Category | Tonnage | Commodity | Grade |
Proven
|
7,825,000 t
|
Copper
|
1.36 %
|
Proven
|
7,825,000 t
|
Zinc
|
5.76 %
|
Proven
|
7,825,000 t
|
Gold
|
2.14 g/t
|
Proven
|
7,825,000 t
|
Silver
|
27.97 g/t
|
Probable
|
11,572,000 t
|
Copper
|
0.81 %
|
Probable
|
11,572,000 t
|
Zinc
|
4.36 %
|
Probable
|
11,572,000 t
|
Gold
|
2.57 g/t
|
Probable
|
11,572,000 t
|
Silver
|
26.09 g/t
|
Proven & Probable
|
19,397,000 t
|
Copper
|
1.03 %
|
Proven & Probable
|
19,397,000 t
|
Zinc
|
4.92 %
|
Proven & Probable
|
19,397,000 t
|
Gold
|
2.4 g/t
|
Proven & Probable
|
19,397,000 t
|
Silver
|
26.85 g/t
|
Indicated
|
4,586,000 t
|
Copper
|
0.51 %
|
Indicated
|
4,586,000 t
|
Zinc
|
3.16 %
|
Indicated
|
4,586,000 t
|
Gold
|
3.04 g/t
|
Indicated
|
4,586,000 t
|
Silver
|
28.76 g/t
|
Inferred
|
5,430,300 t
|
Copper
|
0.89 %
|
Inferred
|
5,430,300 t
|
Zinc
|
1.59 %
|
Inferred
|
5,430,300 t
|
Gold
|
4.18 g/t
|
Inferred
|
5,430,300 t
|
Silver
|
27.14 g/t
|
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