The mining newspaper for Alaska and Canada's North
The mining newspaper for Alaska and Canada's North
New mine plan would produce 6.4M oz of gold over 21 years North of 60 Mining News - November 5, 2021
The 13.6-million-ounce Money Knob gold deposit at Livengood lies alongside the paved Elliott Highway and Trans-Alaska Pipeline System about 70 miles north of Fairbanks, Alaska.
A 65,000-metric-ton-per-day operation at the Livengood mine project in Alaska would produce 6.4 million ounces of gold over a 21-year span, or an average of around 304,750 oz per year, according to an updated prefeasibility study released by International Tower Hill Mines Ltd. on Nov. 4.
Lying alongside a paved highway about 70 miles north of Fairbanks, the Money Knob deposit at Livengood hosts 704.5 million metric tons of measured and indicated resources averaging 0.4 grams per metric ton (13.62 million oz) gold, according to a new calculation completed in August.
"International Tower Hill's estimated 13.6 million ounces, together with our favorable jurisdiction and proximity to infrastructure, offers our investors great leverage to the gold price," said International Tower Hill Mines CEO Karl Hanneman.
The prefeasibility study elevates 430.1 million metric tons of the Livengood resources averaging 0.65 g/t (9 million oz) gold to proven and probable reserves.
This new economic and engineering study, which supersedes a PFS completed in 2017, integrates new interpretations based on an expanded geological database, improved geological modeling, new resource estimation methodology, an optimized mine plan, and extensive metallurgical work carried out over the past four years.
Tower Hill says this work, along with new engineering estimates and updated cost inputs, significantly de-risk the Livengood project.
"This study is the culmination of years of work and greatly enhances our understanding of the deposit," said Hanneman. "We have now thoroughly evaluated, optimized, and de-risked all major elements of the project and have an excellent foundation on which to build shareholder value."
At a base case gold price of US$1,680 per oz, the mine detailed in the 2021 PFS generates an after-tax net present value (5% discount) of $45 million and an internal rate of return of 5.3%. Under this scenario, the operation would pay back the US$1.93 billion of initial capital expenditures in 10.2 years.
At US$2,000 per oz gold, the NPV jumps to $975 million, IRR climbs to 11.2%, and the payback drops to 6.3 years. And at US$2,500 per oz gold, the NPV hits US$2.35 billion, the IRR reaches 18.5%, and the payback is only 3.9 years.
"This PFS confirms that the Livengood Gold Project is one of the largest, highly leveraged gold projects in North America," the Tower Hill Mines CEO added.
International Tower Hill Mines is hosting a conference call and webcast at 8:00 a.m. Alaska time (12:00 p.m. Eastern Standard Time) to discuss the results of the 2021 prefeasibility study.
The webcast can be accessed at https://services.choruscall.com/links/thm211105.html.
North American callers can dial into the conference call at 1-877-270-2148; the number for international callers is 1-412-902-6510.
Over his more than 16 years of covering mining and mineral exploration, Shane has become renowned for his ability to report on the sector in a way that is technically sound enough to inform industry insiders while being easy to understand by a wider audience.
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