TORONTO (miningweekly.com) – Canadian gold producer Klondex Mines has increased the resource models for both its Fire Creek project and its Midas mine, in northern Nevada.
The TSX-listed miner on Wednesday reported that as of June 30, the Fire Creek deposit’s National Instrument 43-101-compliant measured and indicated gold-equivalent (AuEq) ounces rose by 52 800 oz to 473 300 oz, up 13%, net of depletion.
The inferred AuEq resource increased by 78 200 oz to 441 500 oz, up 22%, net of depletion.
Further, as at May 31, Midas’s compliant measured and indicated resources increased by 35 600 AuEq ounces to 561 600 oz, up 7%, net of depletion.
The inferred resource decreased by about 8%, or 19 500 oz, to 267 500 AuEq ounces, net of depletion.
"I am pleased that our 2015 exploration and development programmes are performing as expected [to justify investment in] the necessary capital to replace depletion and extend the mine life of our assets [yearly]. We are just beginning to understand the true potential of these assets, particularly at Fire Creek where about 93% of our land package remains untested,” president and CEO Paul Huet stated.
He noted that exploration at both properties was ongoing, providing upside potential as the company continued to unlock the true potential of these deposits.
The Fire Creek mineral resources were based on 836 drill holes totalling 176 934 m and included data from 147 new drill holes totalling 15 050 m, which were completed by Klondex in 2015. The mineral resource estimate also used 2 322 channel samples provided from mining on the structures.
The Midas mineral resources were based on 4 248 drill holes totalling 869 830 m and included data from 145 new drill holes totalling 25 984 m completed so far this year. The mineral resource estimate also used 19 351 channel samples provided from mining on the structures.
Klondex’s milling and processing facilities, which were located at Midas, processed ores from both Midas and Fire Creek, about 160 km south of Midas.