Silver Lake Resources appears to be taking a back-to-basics approach in figuring out the geology of its paused Sugar Zone Mine, north of White River.
As previously announced, the Australian gold company said it’s pouring $28 million (Australian dollars) into an exploration program to map out where the concentrations of gold are situated, both close to the mine and farther afield.
The 93,000 metres of drilling planned for its 2024 fiscal year, which ends next June 30, has commenced.
Silver Lake halted gold production during the middle of last summer to get a better handle of the geological structure of the area, to address some operating issues, and devise a new operating model.
The Perth-headquartered company has said nothing about the impact on its workforce, which numbered more than 200 during the Harte Gold days.
Tight-lipped senior executives have not responded to queries from Northern Ontario Business when Sugar Zone might resume operations.
Silver Lake plucked the mine out of a CCAA sales process in early 2022.
The company also said it’s moving its worker accommodation camp from the community of White River to the mine site, 30 kilometres away.
In a mineral resource and ore reserve statement put out by the company, gold mineralization at Sugar Zone is said to run in “multiple directions.”
There’s the distinct possibility of opening up “new mining fronts” within the mine’s existing footprint, the company said.
Silver Lake and the previous operator, Harte Gold, mined from two adjoining areas, dubbed Sugar Zone and the Middle Zone. But there’s a newly identified “shallow Sugar Zone,” near the surface and close to existing underground mine infrastructure, presenting a “significant opportunity” to add to the gold reserve.
As it stands now, Sugar Zone contains 506,000 ounces of gold at an average grade of 5.5 grams per tonne.
The exploration program will help them get a fix on gold grades, the size of the gold resource, and probe for gold extensions on the property. The company believes the Sugar Zone’s “mine corridor” extends beyond what’s currently known at 3.6 kilometres. More drilling will determine how far it extends.
Two underground drill rigs and one rig at surface are on the job.
