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United States

Bald Mountain Mine

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Overview

Mine TypeOpen Pit
StatusActive
Commodities
  • Gold
Mining Method
  • Truck & Shovel / Loader
Production Start1981
Mine Life2026
SnapshotBald Mountain is the largest mine site by area in the U.S. It stretches 40 km north to south and 15 km east to west and is divided in three zones: North Zone, South Zone and JV Zone.

The Bald Mountain operation is an open pit mining operation with production from a number of different pits. The two main deposits (Saga and LBM) represent approximately 76% of the known reserves.

A proposed permitting action named the Juniper Project is being undertaken in partnership with the Ely Bureau of Land Management and cooperating agencies. The Juniper Project would extend the authorized North Operations Area (“NOA”) Plan boundary in five areas totaling 3,425 acres. Depending on site and resource economics, the life of the mine could extend by a period of 11 years. The new disturbance also includes expansion or modification of seven authorized open pits, and the development of two additional pits and three rock disposal areas.

Owners

SourceSource
CompanyInterestOwnership
Kinross Gold Corp. 100 % Indirect
KG Mining (Bald Mountain) Inc. (operator) 100 % Direct
The Bald Mountain mine is owned and operated by Kinross’ wholly-owned subsidiary KG Mining (Bald Mountain) Inc. (“KGBMI”).

Deposit type

  • Sediment-hosted

Summary:

The project area is located approximately 65 miles northwest of Ely, Nevada, in an area of uplifted Paleozoic through Tertiary rocks. The area is part of a corridor of northwest-southeast directed Tertiary extension in the Basin and Range province of Nevada. The study area is characterized by two north-trending uplifted blocks, the Bald Mountain-Buck Mountain Ridge on the west and Alligator Ridge on the east, separated by a fault valley that encompasses Mooney Basin, the Alligator Ridge deposits, and the Yankee and Vantage deposits.

The Bald Mountain Mining District falls along the southeastern extension of the Carlin trend (Nutt et al.2000). The district contains two separate but adjacent mineral trends: 1) the northwest-southeast Bida trend that parallels the Carlin trend; and 2) the Yankee-Alligator Ridge-Mooney Basin trend that follows the north-northeast trend of the structural basin between the Bald Mountain-Buck Mountain Ridge and Alligator Ridge. The geology of the district is quite complex and consists of a variety of reactivated folds and faults that serve to localize the gold deposits.

The Bida trend is a northwest-southeast structural trend that encompasses the Bald Mountain stock and gold deposits associated with the intrusion of this Jurassic quartz monzonite stock (Nutt et al. 2000). The gold deposits are disseminated along high-angle structures in the Jurassic stock and in the adjacent Cambrian and Ordovician sedimentary rocks. Gold is associated with pyrite, arsenopyrite, marcasite, and argillic alteration. Mineralized limestones have garnet-epidote skarns with associated tungsten, molybdenum, and zinc (Nutt et al. 2000). The deposits were formed at a depth of 3 to 6 km from magmatic fluids associated with the intrusion of the Bald Mountain stock during the Jurassic. The RBM deposit is a higher level deposit in Mississippian clastic sedimentary rocks. Productive ore zones are found at the contact between the Eldorado Limestone-Geddes Limestone and the Secret Canyon Shale, along the contact between the Hamburg Limestone and the Dunderberg Shale, and in the upper part of the Pogonip Group. Uplift of the Bald Mountain area during the Tertiary exposed these gold deposits to erosion and set the stage for discovery and development of gold resources within the Bald Mountain Mining District.

The Mooney Basin-Alligator Ridge-Yankee trend consists of gold deposits that are typical of Carlin-type gold deposits and consist of disseminated gold associated with jasperoid, decalcification, sericite, and clay alteration. Gold is found with pyrite, sphalerite, arsenopyrite, marcasite, realgar, orpiment, stibnite, and barite. The deposits are often associated with reactivated Mesozoic faults and fractures, are localized along the edges of folds, and are stratabound in the Pilot Shale in a zone 100 to 200 feet in thickness (Nutt et al. 2000). Most deposits are associated with jasperoid in the underlying Guilmette Formation. These deposits are Eocene-Oligocene (Tertiary) in age and formed in a shallow, epithermal hot spring environment (Nutt et al. 2000) along a Basin and Range structural basin. Thus, these deposits are considerably younger than the gold deposits with the BMM area.

Reserves at December 31, 2023

Mineral reserves estimate cut-off grade from 0.09 to 0.16 g/t Au.

Mineral resources are estimated using appropriate cut-off grades based on a gold price of $1,700.00 per ounce and a silver price of $21.30 per ounce.
CategoryTonnage CommodityGradeContained Metal
Proven 638 kt Gold 0.5 g/t 9 koz
Probable 27,628 kt Gold 0.5 g/t 480 koz
Proven & Probable 28,265 kt Gold 0.5 g/t 489 koz
Measured 7,743 kt Gold 0.7 g/t 180 koz
Indicated 232,973 kt Gold 0.5 g/t 3,506 koz
Measured & Indicated 240,716 kt Gold 0.5 g/t 3,686 koz
Inferred 49,041 kt Gold 0.3 g/t 489 koz

Mining Methods

  • Truck & Shovel / Loader

Summary:

The Bald Mountain operation is an open pit mining operation with production from a number of different pits. The two main deposits (Saga and LBM) represent approximately 76% of the known reserves. Bald Mountain includes several other deposits scattered over the property, and three ROM heap leach pads (Bald Mountain, Mooney and Vantage).

Bald Mountain mine is mined using standard open pit methods including drilling, blasting and loading into haul trucks. Typical bench heights are 25 to 40 feet high and of variable width. Overall pit wall slope angles range from 30 to 55 degrees. Blasted ore and waste rock are loaded into haul trucks by front-end loaders or electric and hydraulic shovels. Ore is hauled to the run-of-mine (ROM) leach pad.

Comminution

Crushers and Mills

Milling equipment has not been reported.

Processing

  • ROM/dump leach
  • Carbon in column (CIC)
  • Carbon adsorption
  • Cyanide (reagent)

Summary:

Bald Mountain recovers gold using multiple ROM heap leach pads. Gold is extracted from the ore with a cyanide solution and collected on activated carbon in CIC plants. Loaded carbon is shipped off-site for further processing and ultimate gold refining.

The heap leach operations are divided into three areas: Bald, Mooney (North, South and Deep South), and Vantage. Vantage is the newest of the areas and became operational during the recertification period. The carbon-in-column (CIC) processing plants include: Process Plant 2, Mooney North Plant, Mooney South Plant, and the Vantage Plant. The Vantage Plant utilizes an innovative vertical CIC process. All operations noted here are within the North Operations Area (NOA) except for the Vantage Complex which is in the South Operations Area (SOA).

The Bald Mountain Mine Area includes:
• Process Area #1 which is no longer in operation. This consisted of a leach pad, five process ponds and a process building. The facilities have been decommissioned and the ponds backfilled. The area is currently under reclamation.
• Process Area #2 includes leach pads (Bald Leach Pad (previously pads 2 through 4) and Leach Pad 5), Pregnant Sump (PS1), Overflow Pond (POF1) and Secondary Pond (P4), two pregnant solution ponds (P5 and P6), Barren Pond (P7), Carbon-in-Column (CIC) process plant and cyanide offloading facility. However, the leach pads are not being actively leached; cyanide has not been added to the leach pads in over 12 months. The leach pads continue to drain down and the CIC process is still operational.

The Mooney Basin Area includes three process areas:
• North Area Facility, comprising a leach pad (Original Pad and Expansion Pads I, II, and III), two process solution ponds, a storm/event pond, Carbon-in-Column (CIC) process plant and cyanide off-loading facility;
• South Area Facility, comprising Leach Pad 4, a process solution pond, a storm/event pond, a solution collection tank, CIC plant and cyanide off-loading facility.
• Deep South Area Facility, comprising Leach Pads 5 and 6, a process solution pond, one storm/event pond, and a solution collection tank. Pregnant solution from this facility is piped to the South Area CIC plant for processing.

Originally, the Mooney North and Mooney South Area facilities operated independently. Pregnant and barren solution lines were constructed that connected these facilities, allowing solution to be pumped between them as needed.

The construction of the Vantage Complex began in Quarter 1 2018. The Vantage Complex is in the South Operations Area, was commissioned in 2019, and consists of:
• A leach pad, a solution collection tank, a process solution pond, a storm/event pond, CIC process plant, two cyanide storage tanks, and a cyanide off-loading area.

Recoveries & Grades:

CommodityParameter20232022202120202019201820172016
Gold Equivalent Head Grade, g/t 0.420.510.510.510.420.430.80.64

Water Supply

Summary:

The Company re-uses recycled process water to the greatest extent possible. Every site measures how much water is used to project future water use over the life of mine.

In 2022, three out of the six operating mines (50%) were located in regions characterized by water stress, Tasiast in Mauritania, La Coipa in Chile and Bald Mountain in Nevada, USA. In keeping with the company-wide water balance accounting methodology, Kinross includes precipitation captured in our water withdrawn calculations. While precipitation is captured at all three sites, only the Bald Mountain (one out of three sites) withdraws and consumes fresh water from source (groundwater).

Bald Mountain, located in Nevada, U.S.A., is within an area categorized as arid and low water use Kinross’ criteria for assessing water risk supports this classification. Bald Mountain is a heap leach operation and maintains a high water recycle rate, achieving a rate of 93% in 2023.

Production

Gold equivalent ounces produced decreased by 26%, compared to 2022, primarily due to the lower grades and timing of ounces recovered from the heap leach pads.
CommodityUnits202320222021202020192018201720162015
Gold Equivalent oz 157,749214,094204,890191,282187,961284,646282,715130,144

Operational metrics

Metrics20232022202120202019201820172016
Ore tonnes mined 17,312 kt15,969 kt19,063 kt18,303 kt15,806 kt24,477 kt21,615 kt10,656 kt
Waste 42,156,142 t38,318,422 t38,436,154 t53,310,746 t55,892,129 t43,686,000 t
Tonnes processed 17,306 kt15,924 kt19,063 kt18,303 kt16,475 kt23,654 kt21,615 kt10,656 kt
Daily mining capacity 260 kt
Stripping / waste ratio 2.8

Production Costs

CommodityUnits2023202220212020201920182017
Cash costs (sold) Gold Equivalent USD 1,241 / oz   972 / oz   905 / oz   836 / oz   768 / oz   547 / oz   642 / oz  
Cash costs Gold USD
All-in sustaining costs (AISC) Gold USD

Financials

Units2023202220212020201920182017
Sustaining costs M USD 79.5  35.3  30.3  99.9  
Capital expenditures M USD 120.3  87.6  39  103.8   220.7   149.9   90.5  
Revenue M USD 349.6  386  352.1  330.5   249.2   403.9   331.5  
Operating Income M USD 13.9  -5.6  -174.7  34.6   12.7   110.7   68.5  
Gross profit M USD 18.3  1.2  -165.8  46.3   33.1   130.1   79.1  

Heavy Mobile Equipment

Ref. Date: June 29, 2016

SourceSource
HME TypeModelQuantity
Shovel P&H 2800 XPC 2
Shovel Hitachi EX5500 1
Shovel Hitachi EX5600 1
Shovel Hitachi EX3600 1
Truck (haul) Komatsu 830E-AC 23
Truck (haul) Caterpillar 785 9
Truck (haul) Komatsu 830E D/C 5

Personnel

Mine Management

Job TitleNameProfileRef. Date
Chief Metallurgist Rodrigo Andrade LinkedIn Jun 10, 2024
Health, Safety & Training Manager Deanna Hall LinkedIn Jun 10, 2024
Maintenance Planner Jonathan Jordan LinkedIn Jun 10, 2024
Process Maintenance Superintendent Mark Wilson LinkedIn Jun 10, 2024
VP and General Manager Joseph Kemp LinkedIn Jun 10, 2024

EmployeesContractorsTotal WorkforceYear
546 164 710 2023
592 167 759 2022
607 222 829 2021
591 194 785 2020
607 191 798 2019
578 499 1,077 2018
500 2016

Aerial view:

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