Island Gold
In 1985, exploration drilling discovered gold mineralization
approximately two kilometres south of the Kremzar Mine. Periodic
exploration work continued over the years and in 2004, an exploration
program was undertaken to complete a Mineral Resource estimate. Island
Gold achieved commercial production in October 2007 and has since
produced over 1,000,000 ounces of gold. In November 2017, Alamos Gold
acquired Richmont Mines and the Island Gold mine.
Magino
Gold was first discovered on the property in 1917. In 1935, underground
development commenced with a 100 foot deep shaft and a 500 tpd
mill. In 1938, the property changed owners and a detailed underground
exploration program began. Following a period of inactivity, in 1986
underground development started again, with production taking place
between 1988 and 1992, when the mine closed due to high costs. Argonaut
acquired the property in 2012, and completed a Feasibility Study in
2017. A decision to develop the Magino project was made in November
2020. Construction commenced in 2021 with initial production achieved in
2023.
Island Gold’s underground operations are currently accessed via a ramp
system. The primary mining method is longitudinal retreat long-hole
stoping. Ore is hauled by truck to the Kremzar mill located
approximately 0.8 kilometres from the portal of the ramp.
The Phase 3+ Expansion of the operation to 2,400 tpd is expected to be
completed in 2026. Long-hole open stoping will continue to be utilized
as the primary mining method with increased underground development and
infrastructure changes including the installation of a shaft and paste
plant. The shaft will be sunk to an initial depth of 1,373 metres. The
hoisting plant is designed for an ultimate depth of 2,000 metres
providing flexibility to accommodate future exploration success.
Following the completion of the shaft construction in 2026, the
operation will transition from trucking ore and waste to skipping ore
and waste to surface through the new shaft infrastructure, driving
production higher and costs significantly lower.
Magino is an open pit mine, with ore extracted by conventional open-pit
methods. Mine operations commenced in the first quarter of 2021, and
commercial production was declared on November 2, 2023. The processing
plant is designed at a throughput of 10,000 tonnes of ore per day
utilizing primary crushing, single stage semi-autogenous grinding, a
gravity recovery circuit, cyanide leach and a carbon-in-pulp adsorption
circuit.
Currently, Island Gold ore is processed at the Kremzar mill. The Phase
3+ development plan included an expansion of the Kremzar mill to 2,400
tpd. With the acquisition of the significantly larger Magino mill,
expansion of the Kremzar mill is no longer required. The Kremzar mill is
expected to be shut down in 2025 with ore from Island Gold to be
processed through the Magino mill at significantly lower processing
costs. Through the optimization of the Magino mill, throughput is
expected to be increased to a rate of 11,200 tpd in 2025, sufficient to
handle ore from both operations. A further expansion of the Magino mill
to 12,400 tpd is expected to be completed in 2026, to accommodate the
increased ore from Island Gold following the completion of the Phase 3+
Expansion.
With a 20 year defined mine life at Island Gold, a 19 year mine life at
Magino, and exploration upside at both deposits, there is significant
longer-term potential for higher production rates at both mines through
a further expansion of the centralized milling complex beyond 12,400
tpd.