Elevation Gold ups Arizona estimates by 36%
Elevation Gold Mining Corp. [ELVT-TSXV, NHVCD-OTC], a company that recently changed its name from Northern Vertex Mining Corp., on Thursday released new reserve and resource estimates for its flagship Moss gold mine in Arizona.
The company said the updated estimate marks a 36% increase in the measured and indicated resources in comparison to previous estimates released in December 2019.
During the quarter ended September 30, 2021, the Moss Mine produced 6,426 ounces of gold and 51,221 of silver, down from 13,083 ounces of gold and 119,257 ounces of silver in the year earlier quarter.
Elevation Gold recently merged with Eclipse Gold Mining Corp. in a move to create a new gold producer with a focus on the western United States.
The company’s key asset is the 100%-owned Moss gold-silver project in Arizona. The mine reached the commercial production stage in September, 2018, after the company’s partner Sprott Private Resource Lending LP, agreed to provide up to US$100 million in acquisition and development funding as well as a CAD$2 million private placement.
By deploying low-cost heap leaching recovery methods, Northern Vertex is expecting the Moss project to produce 45,000 ounces of gold equivalent during the first five years of production. Annual cash flow is projected at US$24 million and will be used to fund expansion and acquisitions.
On Thursday the company said its new leadership team believes the Moss Mine and surrounding 168-square kilometre land package possesses unrealized gold exploration potential. As a result, it began an aggressive near mine and regional exploration drill program in March, 2021, to deliver new resource ounces while beginning to demonstrate the potential of the property.
A technical report containing the new estimates is an interim update and only incorporates the results of drilling to May 24, 2021. Since that cut-off date, Elevation has completed approximately 100 drill holes and continues to encounter significant mineralization which is not included in the latest estimates.
According to the technical report, proven and probable reserves now stand at 12.7 million tonnes with grades of 0.45 g/t gold and 5.4 g/t silver, containing 184,500 ounces of gold and 2.2 million ounces of silver.
Measured and indicated resources are estimated at 38.8 million tonnes of grade 0.39 g/t gold and 4.6 g/t silver, containing 490,200 ounces of gold and 5.75 million ounces of silver.
On top of that is an inferred resource of 6.5 million tonnes of grade 0.35 g/t gold and 4.5 g/t silver, containing 73,800 ounces of gold and 940,000 ounces of silver.
Based only on the proven and probable estimates and a mining rate of 11,000 tonnes per day, the life of mine plan for the Moss mine has been extended to 2025.
“The Moss Mine has been historically constrained by tenure and permitting that limited the mine’s footprint and production capacity,” said Elevation Chairman Douglas Hurst. “It has hindered the company’s ability to expand the resources and reserves,” he said. “These constraints have now been largely removed and the potential of the property is just beginning to be realized.”
On October 20, 2021, Elevation shares closed a $1.34 and trade in a 52-week range of $4.08 and $1.22.