The start of construction on a new portal for the Stock Mine will “usher in a new chapter of growth” in Timmins, says McEwen Mining.
In a June 5 news release, McEwen owner and CEO Rob McEwen said the “timing is ideal” to break ground on a new mine, especially when gold prices are at record highs.
The Toronto gold company is making a transition from the Froome Mine to Stock, which will be its newest mine to come online when production begins in the second half of this year.
The mine portal and the ramp system will provide access to three gold deposits, divided into zones – named West, Main and East – and is expected to lower production costs.
The Stock Mine contains 281,000 ounces of indicated gold at an average grade of 3.12 grams per tonne (g/t) and 181,000 ounces in the inferred category at an average grade of 2.87 g/t. Mineralization follows a three-kilometre long trend on the Destor-Porcupine Fault.
Stock is part of McEwen’s larger Fox Complex, located halfway between Timmins and Matheson, alongside Highway 101. It’s a series of gold properties and deposits that are being explored and mined in sequence.
The company said this new access will also provide an underground drilling platform to probe for gold extensions out of these zones and possibly extend the mine’s operating life.
This property contains the Stock mill and the old Stock Mine, a small mine that produced 137,000 ounces of gold at an average grade of 5.5 grams per tonne between 1989 and 2005.
Besides delivering new gold production this year, Stock is expected to be a low-cost producer. With the mill on site, the company can eliminate hauling mined material from 35 kilometres away, as it was with Froome.
“As a long-term gold bull, I am always excited to break ground on a new gold mine, especially today, with gold trading at record highs and strong fundamentals for further upside,” said McEwen in a statement.
