The Eagle Gold Project, being developed by Victoria Gold, is located within the Mayo mining district of Yukon Territory, Canada, one of the world’s biggest gold producing countries. The mine is situated approximately 85km north of Mayo and 400km north of Whitehorse.
The project is shovel-ready and has completed the feasibility study in February 2012. Victoria Gold received the quartz mining license to build the open pit mine in September 2013. A Comprehensive Cooperation Benefits Agreement was signed with the local First Nation in 2011.
Recommended White Papers
Recommended Buyers Guides
Preliminary construction works began in August 2017 and full construction works commenced in March 2018. First gold pour is expected to be made in the second half of 2019 and the life of the mine is estimated to be ten years.
The Eagle gold mine is expected to become Yukon’s biggest gold mine and will produce approximately 200,000oz of gold a year. The mine is expected to create 350 to 400 jobs during operations.
Eagle Gold Project geology and mineralisation
Located in north-western Manitoba, Canada, 12km north-east of the town of Flin Flon.
The Eagle Gold deposit is located to the north of the Tintina Fault within the Selwyn Basin. It is part of the Dublin Gulch property comprising of meta-sedimentary rocks of Cambrian-age Hyland Group sediments intruded by a mid-Cretaceous-age Tombstone plutonic suite.
The Eagle Gold deposit is an intrusion related sheeted vein gold deposit hosted within the Tomstone granodiorites. Most of the gold is contained in the narrowest exposed portion of the deposit, near the western limit.
Reserves of Eagle gold project
The Eagle gold project is estimated to contain proven and probable reserves of 123 million tonnes (Mt) of ore containing 2.7 million ounces (Moz) of gold at a grade of 0.67g/t.
Mining and processing at the Mayo district gold mine
The Eagle Gold Mine will be an open pit mine, in-valley heap leach with three stage crush and gold recovery plant.
Open-pit mining will involve drilling, blasting, shoveling and hauling to extract the ore from the deposit. Ore will be crushed by the primary crusher at a nominal rate of 29,500tpd, and conveyed to secondary and tertiary crushing units, and further to the in-valley heap facility. Waste rock will be hauled to one of the two waste rock storage areas situated to the south and north of the mine.
The crushed ore will be stacked in lifts onto the lined in-valley heap facility using grasshopper conveyors. Solution emitters will be installed beneath the surface of the heap and the pregnant solution (containing gold) will be collected and pumped to the gold recovery plant where the gold will be removed and poured into dore bars. The average estimated gold recovery is expected to be 73%.
Construction details and infrastructure facilities at the Eagle Gold project
The construction period is expected to be 18 to 24 months. The in valley heap facility will be constructed in three phases. The first phase will be completed during the mine’s construction and then expanded during mining operations to accommodate additional ore.
Construction on the crushing and gold recovery facilities is expected to start in July 2018.
Primary access to the mine is provided by an existing access road which connects to the Silver Trail Highway. The existing 100-person camp at the site will be expanded to accommodate 450 workers.
Power required for the mine will be supplied through grid. A new spur line will be constructed along the existing access road.
Financing
Victoria Gold signed an agreement with Orion Mine, Osisko Gold Royalties, and Caterpillar Financial Services for a construction financing package of C$505m ($391.8m).
The financing comprises two credit facilities totalling nearly C$219m ($175m), an equipment financing facility of up to C$63m ($50m), a royalty financing of C$98m ($76m), and a C$125m ($97m) through the private placement of Victoria common shares.
Victoria also entered a separate term sheet with Caterpillar Financial for equipment financing of up to $50m.
Victoria Gold entered a gold price protection programme (Hedging Program) with Macquarie Bank in May 2018 to mitigate inflation risks.
Contractors involved with Eagle Gold Project
JDS Energy & Mining and Hatch were awarded the engineering, procurement and construction management (EPCM) contract, while the earthworks contract was awarded to Pelly Construction and NNDDC-Cobalt joint venture (JV). The NNDDC-Cobalt JV was also responsible for access road and bridge upgrades.
NND Summit Camp Services was contracted for catering & site services, while .Ewing Construction (NND business) provided miscellaneous site services.
Underhill (NNDDC partnership) conducted surveying and Smalls Expediting performed expediting works at Eagle gold.
