The mining newspaper for Alaska and Canada's North
The mining newspaper for Alaska and Canada's North
North of 60 Mining News - September 9, 2024
With underground mine development behind schedule, Ascot has suspended milling at its Premier Mine.
Ascot has poured roughly 4,270 oz of gold since the start of operations at Premier.
In a situation that is less than ideal for a junior mining company that is transitioning from exploration and development to gold producer, Ascot Resources Ltd. has suspended milling operations at Premier to focus on underground mining at its high-grade gold-silver project in Northern British Columbia.
Located about 15 miles (25 kilometers) north of Stewart, B.C., Premier is home to mining operations that go back more than a century.
Over the past few years, Ascot has steadily been building high-grade gold resources and updating and expanding upon the mill and other infrastructure toward the goal of establishing a modern mine at this historic project in Northern B.C.'s Stewart Mining District.
A feasibility study completed in 2020 detailed plans to develop four underground mines – Big Missouri, Premier, Silver Coin, and Red Mountain – expected to produce roughly 1.1 million ounces of gold and 3 million oz of silver over the first eight years of mining.
Ascot began feeding ore into the modernized mill at Premier early this year and poured its first gold at the operation in April. Working through challenges that are not uncommon during mill startup and commissioning, the operation had poured 839 oz of gold by the end of June and then another 3,430 oz since midyear.
Ascot has poured roughly 4,270 oz of gold since the start of operations at Premier.
The first commercial ore fed into the mill came from Big Missouri, a high-grade deposit about 3.7 miles (six kilometers) north of the Premier mill, which is to be followed by ore from the Premier-Northern Light deposit adjacent to the mill.
Underground mine development at both deposits, however, has fallen behind schedule. As a result, Ascot says the number of stoping areas currently available is not sufficient to provide enough ore to feed the mill adequately.
Just as commissioning of the mill is nearing completion, the company has determined that its best course of action is to suspend the mill for three to six months in order to advance the underground development to a point where Big Missouri and Premier-Northern Lights can sustainably deliver enough ore to run the mill profitably.
"This is difficult news for all of our stakeholders, and especially all of our employees and contractors who have worked extremely hard during the commissioning period," said Ascot Resources President and CEO Derek White. "The company believes we need to focus on mine development to prioritize asset value and ensure we have the best path forward to sustainable and profitable operations."
At the end of August, Ascot had roughly C$15 million (US$11 million), which the company estimates will be enough to fund care and maintenance of the milling operations, as well as environmental compliance programs, over the winter.
Ascot, however, will need to raise additional cash to fund underground mine development and ramp the mill back up to commercial capacity. The company is investigating its financing options and is in talks with current creditors regarding its obligations during winter suspension of operations at Premier.
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.
Reader Comments(0)