Gold Mountain gets B.C. mine green light, shares up
Gold Mountain Mining Corp. [GMTN-TSXV; GMTKNF-OTCQB; 5XFA-FSE] said Friday April 30 that it has received a notice of departure to begin mine construction at its 100%-owned Elk gold project near Merritt, south-central British Columbia.
Gold Mountain shares advanced on the news, rising 4.1% or $0.10 to $2.51 on volume of 290,810. The shares trade in a 52-week range of $2.53 and $2.41.
The move comes after the company received permission from the B.C. government to begin construction upgrades required to put the mine back into production.
Gold Mountain said it has resolved the remaining information requests from the B.C. Ministry of Energy, Mines and Low Carbon Innovation and the Ministry of Forests, Lands, Natural Resource Operations and Rural Development.
Once all information requests have been accepted, it is anticipated that the permit amendment will be sent up for final approval.
Gold Mountain is B.C.-based gold and silver exploration and development company with a focus on resource expansion at the Elk gold project, a formerly producing mine 57 km from Merritt.
The company is the product of a merger between Bayshore Minerals Inc. and Freeform Capital Partners Inc.completed in December, 2020. As part of the qualifying transaction, Freeform changed its name to Gold Mountain Mining.
Although nine separate vein zones have been discovered on the property, the most significant one is the known as the Siwash North Zone.
According to the PEA, 55,156 ounces of gold was recovered from the site between 1992 and 2014, including 47,465 ounces from an open pit operation.
A PEA pegs Measured and Indicated Resources at 2.5 million tonnes grading 5.0 g/t gold equivalent (AuEq) or 394,000 ounces AuEq, plus Inferred resources of 37,000 ounces at 4.6 g/t AuEq.
The Elk Gold project is envisioned to be developed as a conventional open pit mine. The operation will begin as a 70,000 tonne-per-annum toll milling operation for three years. During year three, it is expected that a mill will be constructed on site. During the initial three years of mine life, mineralized material will be trucked and toll-treated at a processing facility nearby.
Total life-of-mine capital costs are anticipated to be $60.3 million, an amount that includes capital costs for the operation and associated owner costs. The estimated capital cost for purchase and assembly of the modular processing plant is $23.8 million. Reclamation and closure activities are expected to cost about $10 million.