Eskay Creek Mine 2022
The Eskay Creek feasibility examine considers open pit mining 29.9 million metric tons of confirmed and possible reserves averaging 2.99 g/t gold and 79 g/t silver on the BC challenge.
A feasibility examine for creating a mine at Skeena Sources Ltd.’s Eskay Creek has confirmed that creating an open pit mine at this historic gold-silver challenge in British Columbia’s Golden Triangle stays worthwhile in at the moment’s inflationary surroundings, even when the worth of gold dropped to US$1,400 per ounce and silver was promoting for a mere US$14/oz.
At US$1,700/ozgold and US$19/ozsilver, the open pit mined detailed within the Eskay Creek feasibility examine ready for Skeena is anticipated to generate an after-tax internet current worth (5% low cost) of US$1.1 billion (C$1.41 billion) and a 50.2% after-tax inner price of return.
“The feasibility examine confirms the strong economics of the world-class Eskay Creek Challenge initially proven within the prefeasibility examine however with improved definition,” stated Skeena Sources President Randy Reichert.
Monetary and operational outcomes from the prefeasibility examine might be discovered at PFS particulars strong Eskay Creek gold mine within the July 23, 2021 version of North of 60 Mining Information.
Given the monetary robustness of the Eskay Creek Mine detailed within the feasibility examine, it is just anticipated to take one yr to pay again the US$451 million (C$592 million) estimated capital prices to develop the open pit operation.
“Eskay Creek is a very distinctive deposit that gives wonderful revenue margins because of its current infrastructure and really excessive open pit grade,” stated Skeena Sources CEO Walter Coles Jr.
“Even at US$1,400 gold and US$13 silver costs, the challenge nonetheless generates a median annual after-tax money circulation of C$209 million with an after-tax IRR of 36% and a 1.5-year payback on preliminary capital.”
Mine overcomes inflation
Over the 9 years of operations thought-about within the feasibility examine, the open pit mine proposed for Eskay Creek would produce 2.42 million ozof gold and 66.7 million ozof silver from 29.9 million metric tons of confirmed and possible reserves averaging 2.99 grams per metric ton gold and 79 g/t silver.
Roughly 3 million metric tons of ore can be fed by the mill yearly over the primary 5 years of operation earlier than ramping as much as 3.7 million metric tons yearly throughout the remaining 4 years thought-about within the feasibility examine.
The US$451 million (C$592 million) of preliminary capital wanted to develop this mine is 21% greater than what was estimated within the July 2021 prefeasibility examine because of the latest inflationary traits pushing up labor and supplies prices.
The capital prices for the year-five enlargement are anticipated to be round US$30 million (C$39.7 million).
Regardless of the elevated prices, Skeena says the present infrastructure on the past-producing Eskay Creek Mine and the supply of BC hydropower has helped mitigate a lot of the inflationary pressures.
“The open-pit mineable, high-grade ore mixed with the present infrastructure on the Eskay Creek website and close by hydropower supplies for a unprecedented challenge that may be developed by Skeena,” stated Reichert.
Optimization alternatives
Even with the strong monetary outcomes of the feasibility examine, and the prefeasibility examine that got here earlier than it, alternatives nonetheless stay to additional improve the worth of a next-generation mine at Eskay Creek.
One such alternative is to include the success of the continued enlargement drilling into an expanded useful resource that might be upgraded to reserves that will prolong the lifetime of the Eskay Creek Mine.
On Aug. 6, Skeena reported assays from the primary 2022 holes drilled into the East Flank, 21A West, and 23 useful resource enlargement zones adjoining to the proposed open pit at Eskay Creek.
Additional particulars from the preliminary outcomes of this useful resource enlargement drilling might be learn at Eskay Creek enlargement holes present promise within the present version of North of 60 Mining Information.
Different areas of optimization embody:
• Useful resource modeling and mine plan enhancements.
• Metallurgical testing to optimize the Eskay Creek course of circulation sheet.
• Optimize the mine plan by geometallurgical modeling based mostly on enhanced data of the orebody.
• Develop various execution approaches to additional scale back capital expenditures and improve challenge economics.
Shifting towards allowing
With an already strong feasibility examine, nevertheless, Skeena now has a challenge to take into allowing.
Skeena Sources Ltd.
Skeena Sources’ Eskay Creek gold-silver challenge in Tahltan Territory would be the first proposed mine in British Columbia to have permits licensed by an indigenous authorities.
“Whereas the staff continues to work on optimization of the challenge, my major focus will now shift to development of the allowing course of as we transfer Eskay Creek towards development,” stated Reichert.
This allowing course of is anticipated to be made simpler by the robust relationship Skeena has constructed with the Tahltan Nation, whose conventional territory covers the Eskay Creek challenge.
Beneath a historic settlement reached in June, Eskay Creek would be the first proposed mine in BC to have permits licensed by an indigenous authorities.
For Skeena, this settlement supplies higher certainty and a stable framework for allowing a contemporary operation at Eskay Creek.
Additional particulars on this settlement and what it means for Eskay Creek and allowing mines within the Tahltan Territory might be learn at Historic day for BC mining, First Nations within the June 6, 2022 version of North of 60 Mining Information.
Over his greater than 14 years of protecting mining and mineral exploration, Shane has change into famend for his capability to report on the sector in a manner that’s technically sound sufficient to tell business insiders whereas being simple to know by a wider viewers.