Name of the Project
Cerro del Gallo (CDG) heap-leach gold project.

Location
The project is located 30 km east of Guanajuato City, in Guanajuato, Mexico.

Project Owner/s
Argonaut Gold.

Project Description
A prefeasibility study (PFS) has demonstrated the project as a long-life, low-cost asset in an attrac­tive mining jurisdiction.

The project has been planned as an openpit, truck-and-shovel operation.

The PFS proposes that the CDG property will be mined by a mining contractor using 91 t haul trucks and 13 m3 front-end loading equipment. Ore will be sent from the pit directly to the crusher prior to heap leaching. Mine throughput is estimated at six-million tonnes a year.

The PFS envisages production of about 64 000 oz/y of gold, 1.3-million ounces a year of silver and 2 400 t/y of copper over a 15.5-year mine life.

Potential Job Creation
Not stated.

Net Present Value/Internal Rate of Return
The project has a pretax net present value, at a 5% discount rate, of $290-million and an internal rate of return of 25.8%, with an after-tax payback period of 4.5 years.

Capital Expenditure
Initial capital costs are estimated at $134-million.

Planned Start/End Date
Completion is expected to take 18 months.

Latest Developments
At the end of June, Argonaut submitted a unified technical document, which includes an environmental-impact assessment, an environmental risk assessment and the justified technical study for a change of soil use.

Key Contracts and Suppliers
None stated.

Contact Details for Project Information
Argonaut Gold, tel +1775 284 4422 or email info@argonautgold.com.