Klondex Mines Ltd. updated reserves and resources at its Fire Creek gold-silver mine in Nevada to incorporate drilling and mining depletion completed in 2017. The operation produced 108,126 ounces of gold equivalent in 2017.
Proven and probable underground reserves are estimated to contain 226,000 ounces of gold and 220,000 ounces of silver within 319,000 short tons of ore grading 0.708 oz/t of gold and 0.690 oz/t of silver. The reserves estimate uses a cutoff grade of 0.288 oz/t of gold, according to the company's Feb. 6 statement.
Reserves are included within measured and indicated resources totaling 686,400 tons grading 0.681 oz/t of gold and 0.680 oz/t of silver for 467,200 ounces of gold and 467,000 ounces of silver. Inferred resources are estimated at 1.1 million tons grading 0.457 oz/t of gold and 0.430 oz/t of silver for 521,900 ounces of gold and 490,800 ounces of silver.
The resource estimate incorporates data from 1,474 drillholes totaling 311,576 meters, including 431 new drillholes totaling 100,581 meters completed by Klondex Mines since mid-2016. Further drilling is planned in 2018.
The company said underground resources are expanding to the northwest of existing mine workings at Fire Creek, with the area hosting approximately 30% of the total underground resource ounces.
Klondex Mines announced an initial open pit resource estimate for Fire Creek in December 2017, with indicated resources containing 1.1 million ounces of gold and 2.4 million ounces of silver and inferred resources containing 1.1 million ounces of gold and 2.9 million ounces of silver.
