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Gold explorer seeks mine restart

Orefinders Resources starts assessment study of former Kirkland Lake mine
Sampling stockpiles at Mirado
Sampling the stockpiles at the Mirado pit near Kirkland Lake.

A Toronto junior explorer has eyes on putting a former Kirkland Lake-area gold mine back into production.

Orefinders Resources are crunching the numbers on a new resource calculation around a high-grade gold zone they discovered within the former Mirado open-pit mine, and are starting a preliminary economic assessment (PEA) to consider restarting mining operations. 

The property, located 35 kilometres southeast of Kirkland Lake, contains three former mines, including the Mirado.

Gold was first mined on the property in the 1940s followed by number of companies who subsequently explored, drilled and mined over the years, the last being Golden Shield Resource in the mid-1980s.

Much of the Mirado South Zone was pre-stripped and an open pit was mined to a depth of 30 metres. The material was removed from the pit and stockpiled on the property.

Last year, Orefinders dug into those stockpiles, crushed, and shipped it to Quebec for processing. More than 1,400 ounces of gold was recovered, presenting the company with a revenue generating opportunity.

In March 16 news release, Orefinders said the PEA will contemplate whether a high-grade near-surface gold resource in its South Zone of the open pit can be potentially put into production.

The company also found drill core taken by Amax Minerals at the site during the early 1980s that will be incorporated into their geological modelling.

Various toll milling scenarios will be considered since many area mills have excess capacity.

Toll milling would reduce capital requirements, eliminates the need for a tailings facility and a lengthy permitting process, and can generate cash flow for the company. In unveiling its 12-month plan,

Orefinders said it has two drill programs in the works to extend mineralization below the historic open pit, westward to incorporate its MZ Zone. The company considers the MZ Zone to be a possible extension of the Mirado open pit.

A separate drill program is slated for the North Zone, considered a “highly prospective” area by the company. It was a former underground mine which was in production in the 1940s, prior to the open pit mine. The company conducted a drill program here in 2013 which yielded some high-grade intersections. In a statement,

Orefinders CEO Stephen Stewart is significantly stoked with the company’s prospects for 2017.

"Part and parcel of the company's extremely low valuation of the last few years has been both the lack of, and cost of, capital.

“We are proud to say that Orefinders is now in the strongest financial position it has been since the early days of its inception, and we intend to prudently invest our capital to develop the Mirado Project and deliver share appreciation to our investors.”

The property also has pretty good zinc and base metal potential. Orefinders observed zinc and copper in the assays of its 2013 drilling campaign and considers its North Zone to be a volcanogenic massive sulfide (VMS) style deposit with excellent base and precious metal potential.

Amax found multiple near-surface zinc intersections during the early 1980s.