1911 Gold begins tailings reprocessing at True North complex in Manitoba

1911 Gold (TSXV: AUMB; OTC: AUMBF) has begun tailings reprocessing operations at the True North complex at Bissett, Man., where it expects to process between 170,000 and 190,000 tonnes of historical tailings this year to recover approximately 3,500 to 4,000 oz. of gold.

Early in 2022, the company completed a sampling program to characterize the grade, thickness, grain-size and moisture content of the tailing in the targeted resource blocks to quantify the expected gold recovery. Based on the results of this work, it is estimated that approximately 1,200 tonnes of tailings material will be processed a day at an average grade of 0.8 gram gold per tonne during the period of operations.

To support the restart of tailings reprocessing at True North, the Manitoba Mineral Development Fund (MMDF) has provided the company a $300,000 grant, which will be used to fund the start-up costs associated with the operations, including the payroll costs during the initial ramp-up period.

“We are pleased to receive this support from the MMDF as we prepare for another productive year of tailings reprocessing operations. Work completed early in 2022 will increase the efficiency of our operations this year and maximize gold production.” Shaun Heinrichs, president and CEO of 1911 Gold, said in a release.

One of 1911’s flagship assets, the True North complex includes a modern, fully permitted 1,300 t/d processing facility, tailings management area and reprocessing operation, underground mine infrastructure (currently under temporary closure), and the True North gold deposit.

Located on the north shore of Rice Lake, about 150 km northeast of Winnipeg, it represents a key component of the company’s overall corporate strategy to develop a district-scale gold exploration and mining operation around a centralized ore processing facility.

The historic True North mine has produced more than 2 million oz. of gold over a mine life that has spanned close to 100 years.

The tailings management area is located 1.6 km northeast of the processing facility, in an area naturally defined by bedrock ridges around the perimeter of a previously boggy area. It includes west and east impoundments, totalling 1.1 sq. km in area, separated by an 11-hectare polishing pond.

Beginning in 1997, tailings containing unrecovered gold were pumped as slurry via pipeline to the tailings area from the processing facility. The potential to economically reprocess these tailings to recover gold was identified after a review of drilling undertaken in 2014, which indicated an average gold grade of 1.47 grams gold per tonne. Current process plant recovery is nameplated at 93.5% based on a feed grade of 5.5 grams gold. 

Further sampling was completed in 2016 to evaluate the resource, and tailings reprocessing commenced that year with a probable reserve of 1.1 million tonnes at 0.96 gram gold (containing 32,400 oz. of gold) and an indicated resource (inclusive of mineral reserves) of 1.9 million tonnes at 0.82 gram gold (containing 51,000 oz. of gold).

An updated mineral resource estimate for the True North tailing reprocessing operation was produced in March 2018, showing 1.8 million indicated tonnes grading 0.83 gram gold for 48,000 oz. of contained gold.