The Beaufor mine
A mere five weeks since producing its first gold bar at the Beaufor mine and Beacon mill, in Val’d Or, Quebec, Monarch Mining is slowing down mining operations, citing several mechanical, procurement and technical problems.
The Toronto-listed company explains that the restart and ramp-up of the Beacon mill have been slower than expected and the availability for the months of July and August has been about 50% of its capacity of 750 t/d.
The ramp-up has been impacted by mechanical and procurement problems, as well as technical problems with the grade reconciliation of the stockpile already at the Beacon site, which included a low-grade pile and development ore that turned out to be lower grade than expected. As a result, cash flow from milling operations has been lower than expected.
As a result of short-term cash restriction, Monarch has decided to slow down production activities at the Beaufor mine. During this period, the corporation will work towards optimising its mining method in an effort to reduce dilution.
“This is a difficult decision to make, especially with the recently announced first gold pour, but one that is necessary to ensure that the ramp-up and integration of mining and milling operations improve over the coming weeks,” said CEO Jean-Marc Lacoste on Wednesday.
“The presence of Covid-19 brings a new reality that we must deal with and better integrate into our production process. Over the next few weeks, our team will be working relentlessly to find solutions to resolve these issues and to get the plant running at full capacity.”
During this period, Monarch will continue to process the more than 20 000 t of ore stockpiled at the Beacon mill and Beaufor mine sites in order to generate the funds required for its operations.