PureGold Mining Inc.
[[ Thanks to Resource World magazine ]]
Wed Sept 3, 2020
PureGold Mining Inc. [PGM-TSXV; PUR-London; LRTNF-OTC] is nearing the first gold pour at its 100%-owned PureGold Mine located in the heart of Red Lake, Ontario, Canada. An outstanding team of proven mine operators with a combined experience spanning 68 mines globally, PureGold will open the only new gold mine in North America to start producing in 2020.
There are two sweet spots in the evolution of a new gold producer, from discovery to production. The first is discovery itself. PureGold has defined a robust orebody within a +7-kilometre-long, high-grade gold system.
With 1.3 million metres of drilling, PureGold has defined Indicated Mineral Resources totalling 7,196,000 tonnes grading 8.9 g/t gold, for 2,063,000 ounces and Inferred Resources of 1,880,000 tonnes at 7.7 g/t gold, for 467,000 ounces, including Probable Mineral Reserves of 3,512,000 tonnes grading 9.0 g/t gold, for 1,013,000 ounces.
The company has three new high-grade discoveries, Wedge, Russet South, and Fork Zones, each wide open along strike and at depth. Importantly, the company has moved each of these zones quickly from discovery to delineation of a reportable mineral resource, providing an opportunity to define a scalable PureGold mine.
PureGold’s mineral system is deep rooted and gold deposits like this often continue for kilometers at depth. A single high-grade drill intercept anchors the PureGold Mine deposit at over 2 kilometres underground, almost a kilometre below the existing mineral reserves, highlighting the long-term potential for expansion far beyond the initial mine plan. The neighbouring Red Lake Mine, for example, is currently being mined at over twice the depth (2.5 km) of PureGold’s established reserves. PureGold has barely scratched the surface.
PureGold reserves include the 8 Zone, open to depth and along strike, with average grades of two to three times current reserves, providing the opportunity for explosive transformative growth.
PureGold has attracted major investors; Cornerstone investor Rob McEwen, former Goldcorp CEO, Eric Sprott, Anglogold Ashanti and Newmont.
On schedule to pour first gold before Christmas, PureGold is fully funded through to production, including an aggressive +30,000 metre ongoing exploration and expansion drilling program which is currently underway.
The Phase One mine plan will produce one million ounces of high-grade gold as part of a phased growth strategy. The high-grade nature of the deposit leads to a low unit cost, with an all-in sustaining cost (AISC) of $787/oz. Of course, this is taking place when gold is at all-time record highs, meaning the Phase One mine will deliver significant free cash flow, with margins of over US$1,150/oz or over C$1,500/oz at the time of writing.
Which brings us to the second sweet spot in the evolution of a new gold producer; sitting on the cusp of production, which is precisely where PureGold is today; just months from first gold pour and poised for the re-rate which typically accompanies the jump from developer to emerging producer.
The PureGold Mine will be the fifth highest grade gold mine in Canada and the seventeenth highest in the world. And yet PureGold is already thinking beyond their Phase One mine, recognizing an extraordinary opportunity for growth and expansion.
