| AROUND THE
WORLD - USA & CANADA |
|
|
|
AuRico Advancing Kemess Underground Mine Project
AuRico Metals has reported the results of an updated feasibility study for the Kemess underground project at its 100% owned Kemess property in north-central British Columbia. The study contemplates development of a low-cost, panel-caving operation with a 12-year mine life. The Kemess underground project is located 6.5 km north of AuRico’s previously mined Kemess South open-pit mining and processing operations and will benefit from the Kemess South infrastructure. Kemess South operations ended in ..... read
more |
|
|
Wheeler River Uranium PEA Forecasts 16-year Mine Life
Denison Mines has reported the results of a preliminary economic assessment (PEA) of its 60% owned Wheeler River uranium project on the eastern edge of the Athabasca basin in northern Saskatchewan. The project is a joint venture between Denison (60%), Cameco (30%), and JCU (Canada) Exploration (10%). The Wheeler River property hosts two deposits—Phoenix and Gryphon—which would be developed sequentially for underground mining. The Gryphon deposit .... read more
Top
|
|
|
Canadian Zinc Updates Prairie Creek PFS
Canadian Zinc Corp. has reported the results an updated prefeasibility (PFS) study of redevelopment of its 100% owned Prairie Creek lead, zinc, silver underground mine approximately 500 km west of Yellowknife in Canada’s Northwest Territories. The study is based on optimization work completed over the past three years, including the results of a 2015 underground exploration program that increased total measured and indicated resources by 32%. The updated PFS indicates Prairie Creek can produce an average of approximately .... read
more
|
|
|
| AROUND THE
WORLD - Latin America |
|
|
|
Torex Reaches Commercial Production at El Limón-Guajes
Torex Gold Resources’ El Limón-Guajes open-pit gold-silver mine in Guerrero state, Mexico reached commercial production in late March, having operated for more than 30 consecutive days at an average plant throughput of 9,470 metric tons per day (mt/d). Design throughput capacity is 14,000 mt/d. At full production, the plant will produce an average of .… read
more |
|
|
Escondida’s Third Concentrator Poised for Production
Minera Escondida recently inaugurated its third copper concentrate plant, the $4.2 billion Organic Growth Project One facility, at a ceremony held on-site. The plant will add 152,000 t/d to the capacity of Escondida’s two other concentrators, resulting in the industry’s highest copper processing capacity (422,000 t/d nominal). "The plant…follows a project that required 60 million labor hours and involved 9,200 people during its peak construction period. This project has been a huge challenge but was completed with an excellent …. read more
|
|
|
|
| AROUND THE
WORLD - Australasia |
|
|
|
Doray Nearing Startup at Deflector Gold Project
Doray Minerals began commissioning the 480,000-metric-ton-per-year (mt/y) processing plant at its 100% owned Deflector gold project in the southern Murchison region of Western Australia in early April, with expectations that commissioning would be complete by the end of May and that production would begin in June. Doray said the Deflector project is a high-grade/low-cost project with an initial mine life of six years, substantial copper by product credits, and significant exploration upside …. read
more
Top |
|
|
OZ Finds New High-grade at Prominent Hill
An OZ Minerals drilling program on the eastern end of its Prominent Hill orebodies in South Australia has returned strong results, including a 68.5-m intercept grading 3.2% copper and 0.5 g/mt gold located 40 m east of previous domain interpretation and outside of the existing classified mineral resource. OZ Minerals is spending $4 million in 2016 on a diamond drill program to increase the confidence level of the mineralization by infill drilling to a vertical depth of 700 m below surface, testing its potential for future conversion …. read
more
|
|
|
|
| |
|
Yaramoko Gold Heading for June Production Start
Roxgold Inc. reported in early April that construction was 84% complete at its high-grade Yaramoko gold project in western Burkina Faso and that the first gold pour was scheduled for June. Plant commissioning was underway, and ore development in the underground mine was progressing well on four levels. More than 23,000 metric tons (mt) of ore had been placed on the run-of-mine pad. Yaramoko is designed to produce an average of 99,500 ounces per year (oz/y) of gold ….
read
more
Top |
|
Construction Under Way at Houndé Gold Project
Endeavour Mining started construction of its 90% owned Houndé gold project in western Burkina Faso on April 11, the same day that True Gold Mining’s Karma mine poured its fi rst gold in north-central Burkina Faso. Endeavour acquired True Gold in a transaction that was approved at special meetings of the companies’ shareholders on April 21 and that closed on April 26. Acquisition of Karma adds 110,000 to 120,000 oz/y to Endeavour gold production over a projected mine life of 8.5 years based on current reserves …. read
more
|
|
|
| |
Eldorado Sells Interest in Jinfeng to Chinese Minority Partner
Eldorado Gold Corp. announced that it has reached an agreement to sell its 82% interest in the Jinfeng mine to a wholly owned subsidiary of China National Gold Group for $300 million in cash, subject to certain closing adjustments. Jinfeng is an open-pit and underground gold mine located in China’s southern Guizhou Province. It uses BIOX technology and a conventional CIL circuit to produce gold doré. Construction of the mine began in 2005 and commercial production commenced in 2007. Eldorado acquired the mine in 2009 via its takeover of Sino Gold …. read more
Top |
|
|
|
Access to High-grade Pit Ore Boosts Oyu Tolgoi Gold Output Estimate
Turquoise Hill Resources has increased its 2016 gold production guidance at the Oyu Tolgoi copper-gold project in Mongolia to reflect accessing of more high-grade gold benches in phase two of the open pit. The company estimates that 2016 gold production will be in the range of 255,000 oz to 285,000 oz, up from its original guidance of 210,000 oz to 260,000 oz. This follows strong first quarter production results with concentrator throughput reaching a quarterly high as well as better-than-expected gold production .…
read more
|
|
|
|
| |
Peabody Energy Files Chapter 11 Bankruptcy
One month after warning of the potential outcome, top producer Peabody Energy confi rmed April 13 it has filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the Eastern District of Missouri in St. Louis. The voluntary filing includes a majority of the company’s U.S. entities, but not its Australian platform; all of its global locations will continue to operate normally. What will be included in the filing, however, is Peabody’s El Segundo and Lee Ranch mining …. read more
Top
|
|
|
|
STB Cuts Off Tongue River
The U.S. Surface Transportation Board (STB) has killed the future of the planned 42-mile-long Tongue River Railroad, citing the uncertainty of permitting, costs and a continued weak coal market. The unanimous STB decision was made public on April 26. The application for the line, which had a price tag of $405 million, was suspended by its backers—Arch Coal, BNSF and TRRC Financing—late last year. The origination and service point for Tongue River, which was first proposed more than 30 years ago …. read more
|
|
|
MSHA Delays Mine Dust Sampling
The U.S. Mine Safety and Health Administration (MSHA) announced it is temporarily delaying its respirable coal mine dust sampling because of a newly discovered interference issue between the sampling devices and proximity protection systems. Also on hold is the requirement that coal mine operators conduct respirable coal mine dust sampling in areas where both the sampling device and the proximity detection system are …. read more
|
|
|
|
Newmont Mining Corp appointed Noreen Doyle to succeed Vincent Calarco as chair of the board of directors. Calarco will continue as a director. Doyle has been a director since 2005 and previously served as vice chair and head of the board’s audit committee.
Mozambi Resources appointed Alwyn Vorster as an independent nonexecutive director. He is currently the CEO of API Management.
MZI Resources appointed Ronnie Beevor as a nonexecutive director. Beevor is currently chairman of Bannerman Resources Ltd., as well as a nonexecutive director of Wolf Minerals Ltd. and Riversdale Resources Ltd.
Carl Pollastro was appointed president of Norwest Corp .’s U.S. operations, following the retirement of Bob Evans. Pollastro joined Norwest in 2009 and worked as senior vice president, engineering/ international.
Marius Kloppers, former CEO of BHP Billiton, has been appointed as a new member of the board of FLSmidth. The company also appointed Jim Liporace as vice president of systems in the company’s Minerals division.
Amec Foster Wheeler appointed Dr. Jonathan Lewis as CEO, effective June 1. Ian McHoul will cease to be interim CEO and will remain as CFO. Lewis has been employed in a number of senior roles at Halliburton Co. Inc. since 1996. He is currently senior vice president and member of the Halliburton Executive Committee.
Richard Diaz has joined Minemax’s Americas team in the Denver office. For the past five years, he has worked as a sales mining engineer in the field of mine planning software.
Avanti International hired Jacob Swanson as the Midwest regional manager. Swanson has more than 10 years of injection grouting experience for companies such as BDA & Associates and Structural Group, including Structural Specialty Contracting and PULLMAN.