West Red Lake Gold Mines Ltd. (TSXV: WRLG) (OTCQB: WRLGF) reported that a test mining and bulk sample program (the “Program”) is now underway at the Madsen Mine, adding a key derisking component to the efforts being made to prepare the mine for a targeted restart in 2025.
Overall Approach
Test mining has already begun. Crews are currently developing top and bottom access (sills) ahead of long hole stoping in the Austin 1099/1100 area. The process has already been informative, and the company expects to report on stoping progress in the next mine site update in early October.
The Program is expected to run for four months. Bulk samples will be batch stockpiled on site. The Company expects to process these bulk sample stockpiles soon after restarting the mill.
The test mining and bulk sample program is designed around three goals.
- To understand, prior to restart, the best methods to mine safely and efficiently in the various underground environments at Madsen.
- To inform mineability decisions for mineralization near old stopes. Historic stopes are currently wrapped in 2-metre, null-resource buffers that could potentially be reduced or removed if trial mining demonstrates these buffer areas are mineable. This represents potential upside to the overall mineable inventory.
- To create bulk samples that the Company can batch process on mill startup to complete reconciliation calculations between expected and actual tonnes, grade, and ounces of mined material.
The Company chose four target areas in the Madsen resource that represent the range of mining environments, average gold grades, definition drilling density, and assumed mining methods. Trial mining across these variables will inform a confident and safe plan for mining the high-grade gold resources at Madsen.
Figure 1: A section view of the Madsen project with the four target areas for the test mining and bulk sample program noted.
The four test mining target areas collectively host 114,600 tonnes of total material with an average grade of 5.98 grams per tonne gold (g/t Au).
The Company expects to bulk sample approximately 5,000 tonnes from each area in this test mining program.
Mining will be a mixture of Long Hole Stoping (LHS) and Mechanized Cut and Fill (MCF).
LHS will be used wherever resource shape and geometry allow and will ideally include 3-metre by 3-metre overcuts and undercuts (sills). Maximum level spacing will be 20 metres vertical. Production drilling will be done with Boart Stopemate drills; mucking will be completed with a 2.5-yard Scooptram.
MCF will be used in remnant mining areas. MCF stopes will have a minimum size of 3 metres by 3 metres, slashed wider in places for selective mining. MCF will be accomplished with either Long Tom drills or a single-boom Jumbo combined with a 2-yard Scooptram.
Test Mining Areas
The Company plans to mine, stockpile, and batch process approximately 5,000 tonnes from each of the four areas described below as part of the Program.
McVeigh Lenses 1453 and 1406
Lenses 1453 and 1406 are a near-surface part of the McVeigh resource block. This area has an overall expected 26,300 tonnes at 7.15 g/t gold grade and will be mined exclusively with LHS. The sill levels are 18 metres vertically spaced, which leaves 15 metres for stoping.
This area was selected to add information to the resource model in the McVeigh area, which has higher geologic complexity than other parts of the Madsen resource, and to bulk sample a higher-grade part of the resource.
South Austin Lens 1155
The 1155 mining area is near the midpoint of the current mine, approximately 400 metres vertical below surface. This area has an overall expected 73,300 tonnes at 5.66 g/t gold grade. This complex is a fresh mining area with no historical workings and will be mined via LHS.
This test area will confirm geological modelling practices and the reliability of the sill engineering process. Drilling is currently ongoing in this area; results are expected to refine the total targeted tonnes and grade before test mining begins.
Austin Lens 1099/1100
The Austin Lens 1099/1100 is in an area of remnant mining. It has an overall expected 6,700 tonnes at 5.39 g/t gold grade. This area will be mined with a mixture of MCF and LHS.
This area will be test-mined to establish remnant mining procedures, partly by confirming the geotechnical competence of historical backfill, and to confirm historical data.
Figure 2: An orthogonal view of the Austin 1099/1100 mining area showing planned sills (blue), stopes (light green), and access (dark green).
South Austin Lenses 1136 and 1148
This test mining area has an overall expected 8,300 tonnes at 5.60 g/t gold grade.
This area is being targeted to determine the accuracy of previous resource models and drilled areas, including understanding how best to assess sills that previous operators started in this area but did not complete.
QUALIFIED PERSON
The technical information presented in this news release has been reviewed and approved by Maurice Mostert, P.Eng., Vice President of Technical Services for West Red Lake Gold and the Qualified Person for Reserves at the West Red Lake Project, as defined by National Instrument 43-101 Standards of Disclosure for Mineral Projects.
West Red Lake Gold is a market awareness client of Capital 10X. For more information, including potential conflicts of interest please see our Content Disclaimer.
