Aurcana Silver suspends production in Colorado
Aurcana Silver Corp. [AUN-TSXV] has suspended production at its Revenue-Virginius (RV) Mine in Colorado.
“As a results of extreme weather conditions at the mine site during the second half of February, the site has been inaccessible,” the company said in a press release that came after the close of trading on March 8, 2022. “Due to the high cost of maintaining the company’s labour on standby and the higher cost of winter operations in general, the company has temporarily suspended mining operations to ensure the efficient use of the company’s resources and to conserve cash during the immediate term.”
The RV Mine is one of two key assets in the Aurcana portfolio. The other is the Shafter-Presidio Silver Project in Texas. The primary resource at both mines is silver.
By bringing the RV mine into production, Aurcana was aiming to become a mid-tier silver producer. Assuming it can get the Shafter project on line within the next three years, Aurcana hopes to be generating annual production of up to 9.0 million ounces of silver.
RV is a high grade fully permitted mine (plus 1015 g/t AgEq), with six years of reserves, plus additional resources and significant mine life extension and exploration opportunities identified. The mine was expected to reach full production by September, 2021.
However, in November, 2021, underground operations were temporarily suspended while crews launched an investigation into a rock movement event which occurred in the #2 Alimak Raise area. Aurcana said the Alimak raise provided access to/from the stoping level for both men and materials as well as ore handling.
Operations resumed in November after management elected to use one of two raises solely as an ore/waste pass while using the other raise to provide access for people and materials. The company said this decision reduced the underground vertical transportation capacity by 50% until the hoist in the #1 Raise was fully operational.
In December, 2021, the company said it had shipped the first concentrate and was mining high grade ore.
Going forward, the company said its near term operating plan was to continue to mine on two available stopes on the 1800 level and create a stockpile that would help ensure a longer period of sustained processing run time.
In its latest press release, the company said operations are expected to resume as soon as it is practical and cost-effective to do so. It said the initial focus is on activities associated with completion of the No. 11 raise hoist by the second quarter of 2022. It said completion of the No 11 raise hoist is essential to reducing underground travel time for mine workers and for safe and sustainable access to the upper levels of the Virginius vein.
Aurcana said it believes that this hoisting system will have an immediate and long-term positive impact on mining productivity, as well as on subsequent mine development and production, and mill production. The improved access to the upper levels of the Virginius and other veins is also expected to enhance future exploration and development activities at the mien.
On March 8, 2022, Aurcana shares closed at 34 cents and are currently trading in a 52-week range of $1.10 and 27.5 cents.