Summer Update: Applications for Advanced Exploration Authorization to be Submitted Soon and Project Optimization Continues

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On July 7, 2022, Yamana Gold issued a press release with news about its mining operations and development projects, including the Wasamac Underground Mining Project.

Advanced exploration: Applications for authorization to be filed soon

Last December, we announced the start of detailed engineering work ahead of submitting authorizations for bulk sampling at the Wasamac deposit, as per the recommendation in the updated feasibility study. Since then, our team has been busy planning this important step in the development of our project. Preliminary plans were presented to the Task Force last May and at the June neighbourhood meeting, where consultations were held regarding measures to be put in place to mitigate the impacts of this work. Applications for the various permits required will be submitted to the authorities shortly, detailing the construction of two access ramps to the deposit from the north of the 117 allowing for the recovery of a bulk sample and further exploration from underground exploration platforms. This new advanced exploration phase will allow us to recover a larger sample than we would with surface drilling to validate our predictions, including grade, recovery, backfill strategy and processing performance. It will also further our geotechnical knowledge and fine-tune the modelling for mine planning.

Project optimization continues to aim for a more efficient project

Over the last few months we have focused on updating the project’s strategic plan. The highlights are as follows:

• The acquisition of land adjacent to the site of the main surface infrastructure allows us to optimize its layout. The revised plan avoids environmentally sensitive areas and improves the layout of the processing plant and ore storage area, while continuing to minimize impacts on nearby residents.
• Additional geotechnical drilling has improved the design of the underground mine. The mining sequence also been optimized, allowing for a scenario of increased production in the first two years, to 200,000 ounces in 2027 and 250,000 ounces in 2028.
• The positive results of the exploration and infill drilling also allow us to formulate a new working hypothesis that suggests a potential increase of 7,000 tpd to 9,000 tpd in the third year of operation of the Wasamac mine. This would extend the gold production profile to 250,000 ounces per year until at least 2030, previously estimated at 169,000 ounces in the feasibility study. Further validation is under analysis to confirm this scenario, which would also require adjustments to the permit application process underway.

Further optimization work will be done in the coming months to fine-tune the treatment plan, the optimized configuration of the tailings filter plant and paste backfill plant and to further increase the levels of electrification, automation, and renewable energy used in our project.

Read the complete press release here.