Reserves continue to soar at the San Francisco gold mine in Mexico’s Sonora state.
Geomaque Explorations (GEO-T) reports that minable reserves at the open-pit, heap-leach operation have increased by 221,000 oz., bringing total minable reserves to 726,000 oz. with a stripping ratio of 2.1-to-1. As of Sept. 1, proven and probable reserves were 24.5 million tonnes grading 0.92 grams gold per tonne.
Total gold resources now stand at 53 million tonnes containing 1.4 million oz. gold, with an additional 1 million tonnes of inferred pit material containing about 30,000 oz.
The new figures are the result of a 6-month, US$5-million expansion program to increase mining, crushing and processing capacity. Geomaque’s objective is to boost annual production to 80,000 oz. by mid-1997.
“The expansion will make Geomaque one of the largest and most efficient gold producers in Sonora,” Geomaque President John Paterson states in a release.
“The economies-of-scale that come with a larger operation will keep our production costs below US$220 per oz.”
The company recently reported encouraging drill intersections west of the main pit, and exploration and infill drilling will continue into the new year.
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