Foran tables initial resource for Bigstone copper deposit in Saskatchewan

Developer Foran Mining (TSXV: FOM) has tabled an initial resource estimate for its wholly owned Bigstone deposit on the 161-sq.-km Bigstone property, 25 km to the west of its flagship McIlvenna Bay zinc-copper deposit in east-central Saskatchewan.

The underground shape-constrained resource features 2 million indicated tonnes grading 1.88% copper, 0.92% zinc, 0.25 gram gold per tonne and 9.5 grams silver per tonne (2.22% copper-equivalent). Additional inferred resources stand at 1.9 million tonnes at 1.35% copper, 2.75% zinc, 0.32 gram gold and 12 grams silver (2.14% copper-equivalent).

“While we are merely scratching the surface of this outstanding deposit, we are very excited to be adding Bigstone to our growing resource base,” Dan Myerson, Foran’s executive chair, said in a news release. “The Bigstone resource is one of the many satellite deposits that will serve as additional feed for McIlvenna Bay as we develop the Hanson Lake District into Canada’s next mining camp.” 

Myerson noted that based on the proximity of Bigstone to McIlvenna Bay and its high copper grades, the deposit is expected to positively impact the economics of the project area.

After McIlvenna Bay, Bigstone is Foran’s second resource in the Hanson Lake district. The company is planning its 2021 drill program for Bigstone.

The resource is underground shape-constrained, estimated from 54 diamond drill holes and based on a US$65 per tonne net smelter return cut-off. A copper-rich feeder zone is the largest contributor to the current resource.

Bigstone was originally discovered in 1982 and remains open.

In March, Foran released a prefeasibility study for McIlvenna Bay, which outlined a nine-year, 3,600 tonne per day underground mine, producing an average of 89.2 million lb. of zinc and 27.9 million lb. of copper annually. The site is 65 km west of Flin Flon, Manitoba.

This article first appeared in the Canadian Mining Journal, part of Glacier Resource Innovation Group.