Summary

Mine Type	Open Pit
Study Completed	Prefeasibility
Stage	Permitting
Commodities	Gold Silver
Mining Method	Truck & Shovel / Loader
Mine Life	...
Snapshot	Nueva Esperanza is a prospective pre-feasibility stage development project, located in the well-endowed Maricunga gold/silver belt of the Atacama region of Chile. The project has a resource base of approximately 0.49 million ounces of gold and 83.4 million ounces of silver. Nueva Esperanza project consists of three open pits and an underground zone and is the seventh largest under-developed silver deposit in the world. In July 2020, Laguna Resources Chile has been granted an Environmental Impact Assessment (RCA-64/20) approval for the Nueva Esperanza Gold/Silver Project. As at June 2024, an updated Resource Estimate is being developed by Cube Consulting. Historical data is also being revisited to plan a targeted exploration program, including investigating the project’s gold endowment. Kingsgate is exploring all possible options to unlock value of the Nueva Esperanza project for shareholders, including a separate listing. No exploration work was carried out during 2024.

Deposit type

• Epithermal
• Hydrothermal
• Vein / narrow vein
• Manto

Summary:

The geology of the project is characterised by hydrothermally altered Tertiary acid (dacite) volcanics associated with the Miocene-aged Cerro Bravos stratavolcano, overlying Paleozoic metasedimets. It contains a number of mineralised sectors, including Arqueros, Teterita, Huantajaya and Chimberos within the Esperanza alteration system. Arqueros, Huantajaya and Chimberos have been mined previously.

Arqueros comprises oxidised silver and gold mineralisation dominated by silver halides and electrum respectively, hosted in high sulphidation epithermal alteration of Tertiary dacitic lapilli tuffs and breccias. The mineralisation is dominated by silver, and defines two domains: a horizontal stratabound mineralisation (‘mantos’), and intersecting vertical silicified mineralised ledges (veins).

The Teterita deposit is a similar albeit a much smaller deposit than Arqueros, comprising oxidised mantos-style mineralisation comprising silver halides also hosted in high sulphidation epithermal alteration of stratified Tertiary dacitic lapilli tuffs and breccias.

The Chimberos deposit is located in an up-thrown block of folded Paleozoic conglomerates, sandstone and shale. Mineralisation is dominated by silver halides in the eastern with some gold as electrum, in the western part show similar characteristic as Arqueros by the gold-rich mineralisation with less silver contain, both styles of mineralisation is hosted by silicified hydrothermal breccia bodies of high sulphidation epithermal affinities like that of Arqueros and Teterita.

The mineralized manto at Arqueros trends N15°E and dips 15°NW and is approximately 1500m long, 270m wide and 40m thick on average. Teterita extends around 700m north-south by approximately 550m east-west and 140m below surface. The mineralized manto is sub-horizontal with azimuth of N15°E and dips 3 °NW with approximate dimensions of 650m in length, 180m wide and 60m thick on average.

Chimberos extends around 350m north-south by approximately 1Km east-west and 300m below original surface. In the deposit exist two main mineralized bodies associated mostly with hydrothermal breccias, the first body mineralized by Silver has a trending E-W with cylindrical shape and was previously mined by open pit, a second body is associated with Gold-Silver mineralisation presents a E-W trending dipping at 70°NE.

Chimberos Mineralized Dumps extend over approximately 550m long by 300m wide and 50m thickness.

Mining Methods

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Comminution

Crushers and Mills

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Processing

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Commodity Production

Operational metrics

Personnel

Job Title	Name	Profile	Ref. Date
.......................	.......................		Jan 26, 2025