A preliminary economic assessment of Eastmain Resources Inc.'s Eau Claire gold project in Quebec defined a posttax net present value of C$260.2 million, discounted at 5%, with a 27% internal rate of return and a 3.1-year payback period.
The base case uses a gold price of US$1,250/oz and comprises annual production averaging 79,200 ounces of gold over a 12-year mine life, with all-in sustaining costs pegged at C$746/oz.
The mine plan includes about three years of open pit mining and about 10 years of underground operations mining a total of 6.4 million tonnes of ore grading an average 4.87 g/t. Production is expected to total 951,000 ounces, according to a May 23 release.
Initial CapEx is estimated at C$174.7 million, including contingency, with life-of-mine sustaining costs pegged at C$108.2 million.
The analysis incorporates an updated resource estimate. Measured and indicated resources are estimated to contain 853,000 ounces of gold within 4.3 million tonnes grading 6.18 g/t, with inferred resources containing 500,000 ounces of gold within 2.4 million tonnes grading 6.53 g/t of gold.
Eastmain noted potential to expand and build resources near proposed underground mine infrastructure at Eau Claire, with exploration indicating a possible extension of 450W zone mineralization at depth and to the southeast.
