Magna Gold drills 1.3 m of 302.73 g/t AgEq at La Pima
Magna Gold Corp. has released results from drilling activities on its 100-per-cent-owned La Pima property located in Mojave/Sonora Megashear, 24 kilometres northwest of Magna’s San Francisco gold mine. La Pima is an early-stage silver target with an excellent surface target of historical mine workings and outcrops. Magna completed a geophysical survey on the property in September and results were positive.
Read MoreHighlights:
- Completed nine-hole phase 1 core drill program successfully targeting new IP (intellectual property) data on historical silver mines and outlying anomalies.
DRILL RESULTS Hole No. From To Interval AgEq Ag Pb Zn (m) (m) (m) (g/t) (g/t) (ppm) (ppm) MP-20-001 73.45 92.20 18.75 18.40 17.58 83.18 142.37 MP-20-002 28.80 52.40 23.60 45.67 41.49 848.61 366.81 including 31.50 32.80 1.30 302.73 297.16 892.00 690.00 MP-20-003 39.00 61.50 22.50 21.40 18.34 590.02 293.89 MP-20-005 37.15 51.8 14.65 93.38 91.20 221.48 376.44 including 39.45 45.00 5.55 193.31 189.99 199.83 687.05 MP-20-006 59.50 79.90 20.40 37.38 34.62 172.00 567.39 including 60.50 63.50 3.00 134.09 127.00 281.00 1591.33 MP-20-007 32.70 43.90 11.20 25.82 25.21 44.49 120.90 MP-20-008 15.40 28.40 13.00 10.48 10.20 47.41 31.15 MP-20-008 49.60 60.90 11.30 47.54 47.19 65.51 33.88 including 55.15 56.60 1.45 246.40 246.14 8.00 60.70 Notes: (1) AgEq g/t grade calculation using $20/ounce silver, 92 cents/pound lead and $1.01/lb zinc. (2) One troy ounce (to) is equal to 31.1035 grams and one tonne is equal to 2,204.62 pounds. (3) Intervals are not true thickness.
- Drill program successfully targets high-grade silver, lead and zinc mineralization, second phase 2 drill program planned to test vertical zoning (deeper targets) as well as additional zones of surface alteration.
Magna completed a phase 1 diamond drill program on the project totalling 1,719 metres in nine core holes. The target is a high-grade silver in replacement deposits hosted in sedimentary rocks. La Pima is in the heart of the Sonora Megashear, which is host to a number gold and silver mines.
La Pima target
The target at La Pima is limestone ridges approximately 2.5 kilometres long with varying surface thicknesses from 40 to 10 metres. The Pima mine, West and North targets were the focus of drilling to test the continuity of this mineralization at depth. In the Pima mine target, the mineralized limestones have a thickness of 40 to 60 metres wide and a known depth of 70 metres and a length of at least 150 metres near the main intersection of the northwest and northeast structures, leaving the exploration potential open at depth and laterally.
IP (induced polarization) geophysics data collected by Zonge in August confirm surface sampling and mapping work on the property. Below is a section that shows the west target as a combined CSAMT and CRIP anomalous response suggesting a covered body with elevated apparent resistivity and a moderate to strong polarization response.
Phase 2 drill program
Magna is planning a 2,000-metre follow-up drill program to test additional areas of alteration and to test the assays received at depth. Drill holes 10, 12, 13 and 15 are planned to have deeper tests and six new targets will be drilled: one in the west target, two in the Au-Ag target and three at the Pima mine target, south zone.
These alteration zones are altered limestone with stockwork veins and breccia that contain anomalous assays of silver and zinc. The alteration zones contain barite and siderite along with pervasive silicification. The planned drilling has been designed to cut the predominant veins at depth. La Pima should have a vertical metal zoning component and that is the primary reason for the phase 2 drilling.
President and chief executive officer Arturo Bonillas stated: “Magna is encouraged by these drill results and a second round of drilling is currently being planned to commence the first quarter of 2021. Magna continues to advance the San Francisco mine to full production.”
Quality assurance/quality control program
Quality assurance/quality control consists of the regular insertion of duplicates, blanks and certified reference standards into the sample stream. Check samples will be submitted to an umpire laboratory at the end of the drilling program. Samples are kept in a secure facility and transferred to SGS Labs in Hermosillo, Mexico, in sealed containers on a weekly basis from the drill site by company personnel. Personnel handling samples are using company-approved protocols for all phases of chip logging, sample delineation, sample layout and storage. SGS is ISO (International Organization for Standardization) 9001 certified. SGS has a standard operating procedure for all aspects of sample drop-off, drying and preparation, digestion, instrument analysis, quality control assurance, and computerized data reporting.
Brixton Metals drills three m of 647 g/t Ag at Langis
Brixton Metals Corp. has released initial drill results from its fall/winter exploration program on the Langis mine project located in the Cobalt camp of Ontario. The company has received assays for the first 17 holes totalling 1,624 metres of NQ-size core. Approximately 6,000 metres of the 20,000 m planned fall/winter drilling campaign have been completed. Drill holes follow a fan-type array with depths ranging from 52.5 m to 148.4 m across the main trend.
Read MoreHighlights:
- Hole LM20-93 intercepted three mineralized intervals near surface, including:
- Six m of 193 grams per tonne silver from 2.6 m, including three m of 351 g/t Ag, including one m of 990 g/t Ag;
- Four m of 127 g/t Ag from 17.6 m, including two m of 238 g/t Ag;
- Three m of 647 g/t Ag from 32.6 m, including one m of 1,845 g/t Ag.
- LM20-96 returned seven m of 222.9 g/t Ag, including four m of 360 g/t Ag and one m of 692 g/t Ag.
- LM20-102 intercepted four m of 333 g/t Ag, including one m of 904 g/t Ag and 0.2 per cent cobalt.
Chairman and chief executive officer of Brixton Gary R. Thompson stated: “It is encouraging to see the high-grade silver and cobalt mineralization over meaningful intervals above the historic workings. Based on the current gold/silver ratio of 75:1, the lower interval in hole LM20-93 of three m of 647 g/t Ag is equivalent to 8.6 g/t Au. Drilling is ongoing as we work toward a maiden resource at Langis.”
These drilling results continue to support the existence of new, shallow, high-grade silver-cobalt mineralization around the shaft 3 area. Historical drilling around the shaft 3 area is very limited and mostly underground. Silver-cobalt mineralization was first drilled by the company in 2018 and has continued to bring encouraging results from subsequent drilling campaigns. “Defining and adding a new silver-cobalt zone could significantly increase the Langis silver resource potential,” said Antonio Celis, senior geologist and qualified person for Brixton Metals.
LANGIS FALL 2020 DRILLING HIGHLIGHTS NEAR SHAFT 3 Hole ID From To Interval Ag Co Ag (m) (m) (m) (g/t) (%) (g/t*m) LM-20-91 1.4 7.4 6.0 76.1 456.7 including 2.4 3.4 1.0 177.0 0.6 177.0 including 5.4 6.4 1.0 183.0 183.0 LM-20-91 14.4 19.4 5.0 122.6 612.9 including 17.4 18.4 1.0 200.0 200.0 LM-20-92 1.5 7.5 6.0 167.4 1,004.5 including 5.5 6.5 1.0 778.0 778.0 LM-20-92 15.5 21.5 6.0 62.2 373.4 including 18.5 20.5 2.0 138.5 277.0 LM-20-93 2.6 8.6 6.0 193.6 1,161.5 including 2.6 3.6 1.0 71.6 1.2 71.6 including 5.6 8.6 3.0 351.0 1,053.0 including 6.6 7.6 1.0 990.0 0.1 990.0 LM-20-93 17.6 21.6 4.0 127.0 507.9 including 18.6 20.6 2.0 238.0 476.0 LM-20-93 32.6 35.6 3.0 647.0 1,941.0 including 32.6 33.6 1.0 1,845.0 1,845.0 LM-20-94 3.7 8.7 5.0 115.4 577.0 including 6.7 7.7 1.0 342.0 342.0 LM-20-95 4.0 10.0 6.0 74.0 443.8 including 5.0 6.0 1.0 132.0 0.4 132.0 LM-20-96 5.0 12.0 7.0 222.9 1,560.3 including 7.0 11.0 4.0 360.2 1,440.8 including 7.0 8.0 1.0 692.0 692.0 including 10.0 11.0 1.0 596.0 596.0 LM-20-97 7.3 8.3 1.1 18.4 0.7 19.3 LM-20-98 9.4 10.4 1.0 21.5 0.9 21.5 LM-20-100 15.2 16.2 1.0 49.3 0.5 49.3 LM-20-101 18.3 19.3 1.0 298.0 298.0 LM-20-102 2.0 6.0 4.0 333.0 1,332.0 including 3.0 4.0 1.0 247.0 247.0 including 4.0 5.0 1.0 904.0 0.2 904.0 LM-20-103 6.0 8.0 2.0 372.0 744.0 including 6.0 7.0 1.0 597.0 597.0 LM-20-104 3.4 4.4 1.0 13.8 0.3 13.8 LM-20-104 7.4 8.4 1.0 397.0 0.1 397.0 LM-20-105 4.7 5.7 1.0 15.2 1.0 15.2 LM-20-105 7.7 9.7 2.0 36.4 72.8 LM-20-106 8.8 10.8 2.0 118.9 237.8 including 9.7 10.8 1.1 170.0 0.2 187.0 LM-20-107 6.0 7.0 1.0 7.0 0.3 7.0 Intervals represent drilled lengths and the true widths of the silver and cobalt mineralization have not been determined at this time. Results are weighted average grades.
Quality assurance and quality control
Diamond drill holes were drilled to depth NQ size. Samples were collected using one m average sample length. Three quality control samples (one blank, one standard and one duplicate) were inserted into each batch of 20 samples. The drill core was sawn, with half put in batches, sealed and shipped by the company geologists to ALS minerals preparation lab in Sudbury, Ont. ALS minerals laboratories are registered to ISO (International Organization for Standardization) 9001:2008 and ISO 17025 accreditations for laboratory procedures. Blank, duplicate and certified reference materials were inserted into the sample stream. All elements were analyzed by aqua regia digest with ICP-AES (inductively coupled plasma atomic emission spectroscopy) finish. Silver overlimits were analyzed by fire assay with gravimetric finish. Base metal overlimits were analyzed with aqua regia digest and AES finish. A copy of the QA/QC protocols can be viewed at the company’s website.
Fiore Gold pegs Pan at 427,400 oz Au M+I
Fiore Gold Ltd. has provided an updated resource and reserve estimate for its Pan open-pit mine in White Pine county, Nevada.
Read MoreHighlights:
dot Updated Proven and Probable mineral reserves of 24.0 million tons at a gold grade of 0.012 troy ounces per short ton (“oz/st”) or 0.41 grams per tonne (“g/t”) containing 290,500 ounces of gold (Table 1)
dot The updated mineral reserve estimate represents a 6% increase in contained gold ounces and fully replaces reserves mined since the last reserve update in September 2018
dot Updated Measured and Indicated mineral resources of 31.1 million tons at a gold grade of 0.014 oz/st (0.47 g/t) containing 427,400 ounces of gold (Table 2)
dot The updated mineral resource estimate is 99% of the resource estimate (effective February 10, 2017) at Fiore Gold’s inception
dot An updated Life of Mine (“LOM”) plan based on the updated reserve estimate extends the mine life at Pan by two years into 2025 at a mining rate of 14,000 tons per day of ore while maintaining a low life of mine strip ratio of 1.66:1
Tim Warman, Fiore’s CEO commented, “Fiore’s exploration team has once again added reserves and extended the mine life at the Pan Mine well into 2025. Our understanding of the geology and controls on mineralization at Pan has improved tremendously over the past three years and the team was able to successfully target new areas of mineralization particularly around the North Pit, as well as identifying potential new areas such as the Mustang target. The next program of resource and reserve expansion drilling is already underway at Pan, aimed at defining the resources that should see Pan continuing to operate for many years to come.”
The updated reserve and resource estimates continue to support our strategy of replacing ounces at the Pan Mine by methodically and prudently investing internal cash flow to extend the mine life. At Fiore Gold’s inception, the Pan Mine Proven and Probable mineral reserves and Measured and Indicated resources (effective February 10 and March 16, 2017 respectively) were 318,000 ounces and 430,000 ounces, respectively. Despite approximately three years of mining depletion, the updated 2020 Proven and Probable reserves and Measured and Indicated resources are 290,500 ounces (91% of original reserve) and 427,400 ounces (99% of original resource), respectively. The reserve and resource replacement has been achieved while spending approximately $1.5 million on exploration annually over the past three years. Importantly, we have achieved these results without diluting shareholders through additional equity raises or taking on corporate debt since the formation of the Company in 2017. We believe this disciplined approach distinguishes us from many of our peers.
The goal of the recent drilling program and related reserve and resource update was primarily to convert Inferred ounces to reserve ounces. Pan Mine Proven and Probable mineral reserves now represent 77% of the Measured and Indicated resources, as compared to 61% of the last reserve update in September 2018. Future drilling programs will aim to replenish the Inferred category, particularly with newly identified targets like Mustang which to date are not included in any resource category. We believe our history of conversion and improved understanding of the geology bode well for our ability to convert Inferred resources going forward.
A Technical Report with the details of the updated resource and reserve estimate will be filed on SEDAR under the Company’s profile within 45 days of the date of this news release.
Reserve and Resource Update Table 1. Pan Mine Reserve Statement (effective June 30, 2020) Reserve Tons Grade Grade Contained (000s) (oz/st) (g/t) Gold (Au koz) Proven 11,426 0.014 0.47 158.3 Probable 12,031 0.011 0.38 132.2 Proven + Probable 23,457 0.012 0.42 290.5 Probable Leach Pad Inventory 26 (recoverable)
Total Proven and Probable 317
dot Reserves stated in the table above are contained within an engineered pit design following the US$1,575/oz Au sales price Lerchs-Grossmann pit. Date of topography is June 30, 2020;
dot In the table above and subsequent text, the abbreviation “st” denotes US short tons;
dot Mineral Reserves are stated in terms of delivered tons and grade before process recovery. The exception is leach pad inventory, which is stated in terms of recoverable Au ounces;
dot Allowances for external dilution are applied.
dot Costs used include an ore mining cost of US$2.09/st, a waste mining cost of $1.97/st, an ore processing and G&A cost of US$3.13/st;
dot Reserves for Argillic (soft) ore are based upon a minimum 0.003 oz/st Au internal cut off grade (“CoG”), using a US$1,575/oz Au sales price and a Au Recovery of 80%;
dot Reserves for Silicic (hard) ore are based upon a minimum 0.004 oz/st Au Internal CoG, using a US$1,575/oz Au sales price and a Au Recovery of 60%;
dot Mineral Reserves stated above are contained within and are not additional to the Mineral Resource, the exception being stockpile and leach pad inventory; and,
dot Numbers in the table have been rounded to reflect the accuracy of the estimate and may not sum due to rounding.
Gold prices have increased significantly from the $1,250/oz level used in the previous reserve update in 2018 and we have reflected this increase in the $1,575/oz gold price used in the 2020 reserve update. Using a higher gold price naturally pulled in some areas of lower grade ore which in turn resulted in a lower average grade for the reserve estimate than in the previous 2018 reserve estimate. The grade reduction is not expected to materially impact run-rate production in fiscal 2021.
Table 2. Pan Mine Resource Statement (effective June 30, 2020) Resource Tons/ Grade Grade Contained Gold (incl. reserve) (000s) (oz/st) (g/t) (Au koz) Measured 11,416 0.015 0.53 175 Indicated 19,714 0.013 0.44 252 Measured + 31,130 0.014 0.47 427 Indicated Inferred 3,726 0.016 0.56 61
dot Mineral Resources are not Mineral Reserves and do not have demonstrated economic viability. There is no certainty that any part of the Mineral Resources estimated will be converted into Mineral Reserves;
dot In the table above and subsequent text, the abbreviation “st” denotes US short tons;
dot Resources stated as contained within a constrained pit shell; pit optimization was based on an assumed gold price of US$1,700/oz, Silicic (hard) ore recoveries of 60% for Au and an Argillic (soft) ore recovery of 80% for Au, an ore mining cost of US$2.09/st, a waste mining cost of $1.97/st, an ore processing and G&A cost of US$3.13/st, and pit slopes between 45-50 degrees;
dot Resources are reported using an internal gold cut off grade of 0.003 oz/st Au for blocks flagged as Argillic altered or as unaltered
and a cutoff of 0.004 oz/st Au for blocks flagged as Silicic altered.; and, dot Numbers in the table have been rounded to reflect the accuracy of the estimate and may not sum due to rounding.
The updated Pan Mineral Resource Estimate (“MRE”) estimate was carried out by APEX Geoscience Ltd. (“APEX”) as part of an updated Feasibility Study led by SRK Consulting (U.S.) Inc. (“SRK”), the same firm who completed the February 2017 Pan Mine Feasibility Study.
The difference in resource grade vs reserve grade is a result of dilution incorporated in the engineered pit design that constrains the reserve estimate.
Gold mineralization at Pan occurs in near-vertical pipes and bodies of silicified solution breccia localized at the Pilot Shale-Devils Gate Limestone contact adjacent to the Branham Fault, or in stratiform-like breccia bodies and zones that run parallel or sub-parallel to the folded Pilot Shale Devils Gate contact.
The drillhole database used to calculated the resource and reserve estimates is comprised of 1,452 exploration drillholes completed from 1978 to 2016 by previous operators (totaling 380,081 ft) and 267 holes completed from 2018 to 2020 by Fiore Gold (totaling 107,460 feet), yielding a total of 95,181 sample/interval entries.
The MRE was calculated using a block model size of 20 ft (X) by 20 ft (Y) by 20 ft (Z). APEX estimated the gold grade for each block using Ordinary Kriging with locally varying anisotropy to ensure grade continuity in various directions is reproduced in the block model. The block model was partially diluted by estimating a waste grade for the portions of the outer blocks overlapping the edge of the estimation domain boundaries using composites within a transition zone along the outer edge of the mineralized estimation domains. The waste grade was then proportionately combined with the estimated grade for the portion of the block within the mineralized domain to obtain a final grade for each overlapping block. The partially diluted block model was utilized for resource pit optimization. The MRE is reported as undiluted and only includes blocks or portions of blocks within the estimation domains.
Details regarding the methodology used to calculate the MRE and the reserve estimate will be documented in a Technical Report which will be filed on SEDAR and available on the Company’s website within 45 days.
Technical Disclosure
The scientific and technical information relating to Fiore Gold’s properties contained in this press release was approved by J. Ross MacLean, Fiore Gold’s Chief Operating Officer and a “Qualified Person” under National Instrument 43-101, except for the information relating to the Pan Mine reserve and resource updates.
Michael B. Dufresne, M.Sc., P.Geol., P.Geo., President and Senior Principal of APEX Geoscience Ltd. and a ‘Qualified Person’ for the purpose of National Instrument 43-101 Standards of Disclosure for Mineral Projects of the Canadian securities administrators (“NI 43-101”) has approved the disclosure of the scientific and technical information regarding the Pan Mine Resource update in this news release.
Justin Smith, P.E. Mining BSc., SME-RM, a Senior with SRK Consulting (U.S.) Inc. and a ‘Qualified Person’ for the purpose of National Instrument 43-101 Standards of Disclosure for Mineral Projects of the Canadian securities administrators (“NI 43-101”) has approved the disclosure of the scientific and technical information regarding the Pan Mine Reserve update in this news release.
A description of the key assumptions, parameters and methods used to estimate mineral reserves and resources at the Pan Mine, as well as data verification procedures and a general discussion of the extent to which the estimates of scientific and technical information may be affected by any known legal, political or other relevant factors relating to the potential development of the mineral resources or mineral reserves, will be included in the report titled “NI 43-101 Updated Technical Report on the Pan Gold Mine, White Pine County, Nevada”, with an effective date of June 30, 2020, which is being prepared by Michael Dufresne,, P.Geol., P.Geo., Justin Smith, P.E., RM-SME., Deepak Malhotra, RM-SME, Valerie Sawyer, RM- SME, Fredy Henriquez, MSc., RM-SME, and Michael Iannacchione, P.E..
Orea gets Montagne positive ruling by reporting judge
Orea Mining Corp. has received a positive opinion by a reporting judge announcing that the French government’s deemed non-renewal of the Montagne d’Or mining concession is not valid. A final ruling is expected by the Administrative Court of Cayenne, French Guiana, on December 24, 2020.
Read More“Although the announcement is preliminary, court decisions generally tend to follow the opinion of the reporting judge” commented Rock Lefrancois, CEO of Orea.
The Montagne d’Or joint-venture (owned 44.99% by Orea and 55.01% by Nord Gold SE (“Nordgold”)) (the “JV”) submitted renewal applications for a 25-year period for two core mining concessions in December 2016. In the absence of a timely decision on the renewal from the Minister of Economy in charge of mines, and in order to protect its rights, the JV filed proceedings in February and March 2019 in the Administrative Court of Cayenne in French Guiana to invalidate any implicit (deemed) refusal as a result of the French government having failed to respond within the legal deadline. The JV also requested that the Court order the Minister in charge of mines render a formal decision prolonging the concessions.
In a hearing held at the Administrative Court of Cayenne on December 3, 2020, the public rapporteur (reporting judge), in charge of providing an independent and non-binding opinion on the case, recommended the cancellation of the implicit (deemed) refusal to renew the two concessions. The public rapporteur also recommended that the State issue its decision on the renewal applications within six months. The Administrative Court will render its decision on December 24, 2020.
American Manganese begins Wenden stockpile project
American Manganese Inc. has begun the Wenden stockpile project, awarded by the United States Defense Logistics Agency. The project was awarded to perform work on the United States Government’s manganese ore stockpile located near Wenden, Arizona and confirm the viability of efficient electrolytic manganese metal (EMM) production using the Company’s patented manganese process.
Read MoreAmerican Manganese has engaged the services of PRIMUS RESOURCES, L.C. (PRIMUS) to sample, document, and transport samples collected from the Wenden Stockpile between December 8-9, 2020. American Manganese is confident in PRIMUS’s ability to provide homogenous consistency and standard quality control protocols of the collected samples.
Under the awarded project, the two-day site visit will collect 14 representative samples (35 lbs each) from the Wenden Stockpile using a posthole digger and load them into commercial grade-heavy sealed buckets for transportation to Kemetco Research in Richmond, BC. The sample hole locations will be field marked with their global position fixed by GPS.
Following the receipt of the Wenden Stockpile sample material, it will undergo internal and external assays, followed by a laboratory bench-scale testing campaign to provide flowsheet proof of concept and process tailings characterization. A final technical report will be issued detailing test procedures and recommendations for a potential future processing facility.
“Manganese has been listed by the U.S. Government as a critical mineral for which the U.S. is 100% import-dependent, and EMM is on the acquisition list for the U.S. National Defense Stockpile, so we are excited to demonstrate our processes ability to create a domestic supply of EMM,” said Larry Reaugh, President and CEO of American Manganese.
Fiore Gold Reports Two Year Mine Life Extension at Its Pan Mine, Nevada
VANCOUVER, BC / ACCESSWIRE / December 8, 2020 / FIORE GOLD LTD. (TSXV:F)(OTCQB:FIOGF) (“Fiore” or the “Company”) is pleased to announce an updated resource and reserve estimate for its Pan open pit mine in White Pine County, Nevada.
Read MoreHighlights:
- Updated Proven and Probable mineral reserves of 24.0 million tons at a gold grade of 0.012 troy ounces per short ton (“oz/st”) or 0.41 grams per tonne (“g/t”) containing 290,500 ounces of gold (Table 1)
- The updated mineral reserve estimate represents a 6% increase in contained gold ounces and fully replaces reserves mined since the last reserve update in September 2018
- Updated Measured and Indicated mineral resources of 31.1 million tons at a gold grade of 0.014 oz/st (0.47 g/t) containing 427,400 ounces of gold (Table 2)
- The updated mineral resource estimate is 99% of the resource estimate (effective February 10, 2017) at Fiore Gold’s inception
- An updated Life of Mine (“LOM”) plan based on the updated reserve estimate extends the mine life at Pan by two years into 2025 at a mining rate of 14,000 tons per day of ore while maintaining a low life of mine strip ratio of 1.66:1
Tim Warman, Fiore’s CEO commented, “Fiore’s exploration team has once again added reserves and extended the mine life at the Pan Mine well into 2025. Our understanding of the geology and controls on mineralization at Pan has improved tremendously over the past three years and the team was able to successfully target new areas of mineralization particularly around the North Pit, as well as identifying potential new areas such as the Mustang target. The next program of resource and reserve expansion drilling is already underway at Pan, aimed at defining the resources that should see Pan continuing to operate for many years to come.”
The updated reserve and resource estimates continue to support our strategy of replacing ounces at the Pan Mine by methodically and prudently investing internal cash flow to extend the mine life. At Fiore Gold’s inception, the Pan Mine Proven and Probable mineral reserves and Measured and Indicated resources (effective February 10 and March 16, 2017 respectively) were 318,000 ounces and 430,000 ounces, respectively. Despite approximately three years of mining depletion, the updated 2020 Proven and Probable reserves and Measured and Indicated resources are 290,500 ounces (91% of original reserve) and 427,400 ounces (99% of original resource), respectively. The reserve and resource replacement has been achieved while spending approximately $1.5 million on exploration annually over the past three years. Importantly, we have achieved these results without diluting shareholders through additional equity raises or taking on corporate debt since the formation of the Company in 2017. We believe this disciplined approach distinguishes us from many of our peers.
The goal of the recent drilling program and related reserve and resource update was primarily to convert Inferred ounces to reserve ounces. Pan Mine Proven and Probable mineral reserves now represent 77% of the Measured and Indicated resources, as compared to 61% of the last reserve update in September 2018. Future drilling programs will aim to replenish the Inferred category, particularly with newly identified targets like Mustang which to date are not included in any resource category. We believe our history of conversion and improved understanding of the geology bode well for our ability to convert Inferred resources going forward.
A Technical Report with the details of the updated resource and reserve estimate will be filed on SEDAR under the Company’s profile within 45 days of the date of this news release.
Reserve and Resource Update
Table 1. Pan Mine Reserve Statement (effective June 30, 2020)
Reserve | Tons (000s) |
Grade (oz/st) |
Grade (g/t) |
Contained Gold (Au koz) |
Proven | 11,426 | 0.014 | 0.47 | 158.3 |
Probable | 12,031 | 0.011 | 0.38 | 132.2 |
Proven + Probable | 23,457 | 0.012 | 0.42 | 290.5 |
Probable Leach Pad Inventory (recoverable) |
26 | |||
Total Proven and Probable | 317 | |||
- Reserves stated in the table above are contained within an engineered pit design following the US$1,575/oz Au sales price Lerchs-Grossmann pit. Date of topography is June 30, 2020;
- In the table above and subsequent text, the abbreviation “st” denotes US short tons;
- Mineral Reserves are stated in terms of delivered tons and grade before process recovery. The exception is leach pad inventory, which is stated in terms of recoverable Au ounces;
- Allowances for external dilution are applied.
- Costs used include an ore mining cost of US$2.09/st, a waste mining cost of $1.97/st, an ore processing and G&A cost of US$3.13/st;
- Reserves for Argillic (soft) ore are based upon a minimum 0.003 oz/st Au internal cut off grade (“CoG”), using a US$1,575/oz Au sales price and a Au Recovery of 80%;
- Reserves for Silicic (hard) ore are based upon a minimum 0.004 oz/st Au Internal CoG, using a US$1,575/oz Au sales price and a Au Recovery of 60%;
- Mineral Reserves stated above are contained within and are not additional to the Mineral Resource, the exception being stockpile and leach pad inventory; and,
- Numbers in the table have been rounded to reflect the accuracy of the estimate and may not sum due to rounding.
Gold prices have increased significantly from the $1,250/oz level used in the previous reserve update in 2018 and we have reflected this increase in the $1,575/oz gold price used in the 2020 reserve update. Using a higher gold price naturally pulled in some areas of lower grade ore which in turn resulted in a lower average grade for the reserve estimate than in the previous 2018 reserve estimate. The grade reduction is not expected to materially impact run-rate production in fiscal 2021.
Table 2. Pan Mine Resource Statement (effective June 30, 2020)
Resource (incl. reserve) |
Tons/ (000s) |
Grade (oz/st) |
Grade (g/t) |
Contained Gold (Au koz) |
Measured | 11,416 | 0.015 | 0.53 | 175 |
Indicated | 19,714 | 0.013 | 0.44 | 252 |
Measured + Indicated |
31,130 | 0.014 | 0.47 | 427 |
Inferred | 3,726 | 0.016 | 0.56 | 61 |
- Mineral Resources are not Mineral Reserves and do not have demonstrated economic viability. There is no certainty that any part of the Mineral Resources estimated will be converted into Mineral Reserves;
- In the table above and subsequent text, the abbreviation “st” denotes US short tons;
- Resources stated as contained within a constrained pit shell; pit optimization was based on an assumed gold price of US$1,700/oz, Silicic (hard) ore recoveries of 60% for Au and an Argillic (soft) ore recovery of 80% for Au, an ore mining cost of US$2.09/st, a waste mining cost of $1.97/st, an ore processing and G&A cost of US$3.13/st, and pit slopes between 45-50 degrees;
- Resources are reported using an internal gold cut off grade of 0.003 oz/st Au for blocks flagged as Argillic altered or as unaltered and a cutoff of 0.004 oz/st Au for blocks flagged as Silicic altered.; and,
- Numbers in the table have been rounded to reflect the accuracy of the estimate and may not sum due to rounding.
The updated Pan Mineral Resource Estimate (“MRE”) estimate was carried out by APEX Geoscience Ltd. (“APEX”) as part of an updated Feasibility Study led by SRK Consulting (U.S.) Inc. (“SRK”), the same firm who completed the February 2017 Pan Mine Feasibility Study.
The difference in resource grade vs reserve grade is a result of dilution incorporated in the engineered pit design that constrains the reserve estimate.
Gold mineralization at Pan occurs in near-vertical pipes and bodies of silicified solution breccia localized at the Pilot Shale-Devils Gate Limestone contact adjacent to the Branham Fault, or in stratiform-like breccia bodies and zones that run parallel or sub-parallel to the folded Pilot Shale-Devils Gate contact.
The drillhole database used to calculated the resource and reserve estimates is comprised of 1,452 exploration drillholes completed from 1978 to 2016 by previous operators (totaling 380,081 ft) and 267 holes completed from 2018 to 2020 by Fiore Gold (totaling 107,460 feet), yielding a total of 95,181 sample/interval entries.
The MRE was calculated using a block model size of 20 ft (X) by 20 ft (Y) by 20 ft (Z). APEX estimated the gold grade for each block using Ordinary Kriging with locally varying anisotropy to ensure grade continuity in various directions is reproduced in the block model. The block model was partially diluted by estimating a waste grade for the portions of the outer blocks overlapping the edge of the estimation domain boundaries using composites within a transition zone along the outer edge of the mineralized estimation domains. The waste grade was then proportionately combined with the estimated grade for the portion of the block within the mineralized domain to obtain a final grade for each overlapping block. The partially diluted block model was utilized for resource pit optimization. The MRE is reported as undiluted and only includes blocks or portions of blocks within the estimation domains.
Details regarding the methodology used to calculate the MRE and the reserve estimate will be documented in a Technical Report which will be filed on SEDAR and available on the Company’s website within 45 days.
Technical Disclosure
The scientific and technical information relating to Fiore Gold’s properties contained in this press release was approved by J. Ross MacLean, Fiore Gold’s Chief Operating Officer and a “Qualified Person” under National Instrument 43-101, except for the information relating to the Pan Mine reserve and resource updates.
Michael B. Dufresne, M.Sc., P.Geol., P.Geo., President and Senior Principal of APEX Geoscience Ltd. and a ‘Qualified Person’ for the purpose of National Instrument 43-101 Standards of Disclosure for Mineral Projects of the Canadian securities administrators (“NI 43-101”) has approved the disclosure of the scientific and technical information regarding the Pan Mine Resource update in this news release.
Justin Smith, P.E. Mining BSc., SME-RM, a Senior with SRK Consulting (U.S.) Inc. and a ‘Qualified Person’ for the purpose of National Instrument 43-101 Standards of Disclosure for Mineral Projects of the Canadian securities administrators (“NI 43-101”) has approved the disclosure of the scientific and technical information regarding the Pan Mine Reserve update in this news release.
A description of the key assumptions, parameters and methods used to estimate mineral reserves and resources at the Pan Mine, as well as data verification procedures and a general discussion of the extent to which the estimates of scientific and technical information may be affected by any known legal, political or other relevant factors relating to the potential development of the mineral resources or mineral reserves, will be included in the report titled “NI 43-101 Updated Technical Report on the Pan Gold Mine, White Pine County, Nevada”, with an effective date of June 30, 2020, which is being prepared by Michael Dufresne,, P.Geol., P.Geo., Justin Smith, P.E., RM-SME., Deepak Malhotra, RM-SME, Valerie Sawyer, RM-SME, Fredy Henriquez, MSc., RM-SME, and Michael Iannacchione, P.E..