TORONTO (miningweekly.com) – TSX- and NYSE MKT-listed gold junior Richmont Mines views 2015 as a transformational year as it develops the 1.1-million-ounce gold deposit it discovered beneath its operating Island Gold mine near Wawa, Ontario.

The miner on Thursday announced its capital allocation for the current year of $56.3-million, of which $48.3-million would be dedicated to operate and develop Island Gold.

Development plans entailed extending the main access ramp to a minimum depth of 750 m and the secondary eastern ramp to a minimum depth of 570 m, completing 41 000 m of exploration drilling to potentially extend the existing resource to the east and 59 000 m of definition and delineation drilling to upgrade the inferred resources between 500 m and 1 000 m of depth in preparation for mining in 2016.

"2015 will be a transformational year for Richmont. Our 2015 budget represents a significant step towards positioning Island Gold with the view of creating a longer-life, multimillion gold ounce, higher production and superior free cash flow operation.

This will provide a solid foundation for Richmont to deliver potentially industry-leading, high-quality growth from a mining-friendly and safe jurisdiction for many years to come,” president and CEO Renaud Adams said.

He noted that two priorities would drive the mine’s accelerated development plans, namely to expedite access to the deeper, high-quality resource base and to increase the reserve and resource base.

“These two priorities will extend the mine life, accelerate potential production expansion and increase free cash flow visibility, while providing the strongest organic growth profile in the corporation's history,” Adams highlighted.

For last year, Richmont reported output of 95 208 oz, a 45% increase over 2013 and the second-most gold produced in the corporation's more-than-20-year history.

Richmont expected to produce between 78 000 oz and 88 000 oz at a cash cost of $850/oz to $940/oz.

As at December 31, the company had about $35-million cash in the bank.