Xavantina Operations
The Xavantina Operations (formerly known as the NX Gold Mine) is located in southeastern Mato Grosso State, Brazil, approximately 670 km east of the capital city of Cuiabá. The Xavantina Operations consist of fully integrated underground mining and processing facilities. The high-grade, shear-zone hosted, quartz vein system is accessed via a single decline, and current mining operations are focused on the Santo Antônio vein. Ore is processed using a conventional three-stage crushing circuit, milling, and a combination of gravity concentration and intensive leaching and flotation followed by carbon in leach at the Xavantina Mill, located adjacent to the underground mine.
Near mine exploration activities are focused down-plunge of the Santo Antônio, Matinha, Brás and Buracão veins. In early 2021, the first regional exploration program commenced, focused on the on the under-explored, 31,716 hectare land package held by Ero Copper.
In August 2021, RGLD Gold AG, a wholly owned subsidiary of Royal Gold, Inc., purchased a $110 million gold stream on the Xavantina Operations in exchange for 25% of gold produced from the operation until 93,000 ounces of gold have been delivered, decreasing to 10% of gold produced over the remaining life of mine. RGLD Gold AG will make ongoing payments equal to 20% of the prevailing spot gold price for each ounce of gold delivered until 49,000 ounces of gold have been received, after which it will pay 40% of the prevailing spot gold price for each ounce of gold delivered. Full details of the transaction can be found in the Company’s press release dated June 30, 2021.
Primary Commodity:
GoldMine Type:
Underground2022 Production:
42,669 ounces of gold2022 AISC:
$1,124 per ounce of gold produced2023 Production Guidance:
50,000 - 53,000 ounces of gold2023 AISC Guidance:
$725 - $825 per ounce of gold producedClassification Tonnage
(000 tonnes)Grade
(gpt Au)Au Contained
(000 ounces)Reserves Proven, Santo Antonio Vein 301 10.89 105.4 Proven, Matinha Vein 0 0 0 Total Proven 301 10.89 105.4 Probable, Santo Antonio Vein 799 8.32 213.6 Probable, Matinha Vein 213 6.24 42.6 Total Probable 1,012 7.88 256.2 Total Proven & Probable 1,313 8.57 361.6 Resources (including Reserves) Measured, Santo Antonio Vein 246 13.35 105.8 Measured, Matinha Vein 0 0 0 Measured, Brás & Buracão Vein 0 0 0 Total Measured 246 13.35 105.8 Indicated, Santo Antonio Vein 826 10.41 276.5 Indicated, Matinha Vein 186 8.92 53.3 Indicated, Brás & Buracão Vein 7 3.36 0.7 Total Indicated 1,019 10.09 330.6 Total Measured & Indicated 1,265 10.73 436.4 Inferred, Santo Antonio Vein 77 9.29 23.0 Inferred, Matinha Vein 207 11.03 73.5 Inferred, Brás & Buracão Vein 157 4.71 23.8 Total Inferred 441 8.48 120.2 Mineral Reserve & Resource Notes:
- Please refer to the press release dated March 28, 2023 for additional scientific and technical information, available on this website and on SEDAR (www.SEDAR.com) and EDGAR (www.sec.gov).
- Mineral reserve and mineral resource estimates are effective as at October 31, 2022.
- Presented mineral resources inclusive of mineral reserves. Indicated mineral resource totals are undiluted. All figures have been rounded to the relative accuracy of the estimates. Summed amounts may not add due to rounding.
- Grade-shell 3D models using 1.20 gram per tonne ("gpt") gold were used to generate a 3D mineralization model of the Xavantina Operations. Mineral resources were estimated using ordinary kriging within 10.0 meter by 10.0 meter by 2.0 meter block size, with a minimum sub-block size of 1.0 meter by 1.0 meter by 0.5 meter, and the mineral resource estimate was constrained using a minimum stope dimension of 2.0 meters by 2.0 meters by 1.5 meters and a cut-off of 1.20 gpt based on underground mining and processing costs of US$72/t and a gold price of US$1,900 per ounce. The mineral resource estimates were prepared in accordance with the Canadian Institute of Mining, Metallurgy and Petroleum (“CIM”) Definition Standards for Mineral Resources and Mineral Reserves, adopted by the CIM Council on May 10, 2014 (the “CIM Standards”), and the CIM Estimation of Mineral Resources and Mineral Reserves Best Practice Guidelines, adopted by CIM Council on November 23, 2003 (the ‘CIM Guidelines”), using geostatistical and/or classical methods, plus economic and mining parameters appropriate to the deposit.
- Mineral reserve estimates were prepared in accordance with the CIM Standards and the CIM Guidelines, using geostatistical and/or classical methods, plus economic and mining parameters appropriate for the deposit. Mineral reserves are based on a long-term gold price of US$1,650 per ounce (“oz”), and a USD:BRL foreign exchange rate of 5.00. Mineral reserves are the economic portion of the Indicated mineral resources. Mineral reserve estimates include operational dilution of 17.4% plus planned dilution of approximately 8.5% within each stope for room-and-pillar mining areas and operational dilution of 3.2% plus planned dilution of 21.2% for cut-and-fill mining areas. Assumes mining recovery of 92.5% and 94.7% for room-and-pillar and cut-and-fill areas, respectively. Practical mining shapes (wireframes) were designed using geological wireframes / mineral resource block models as a guide.
Mineral resources which are not mineral reserves do not have demonstrated economic viability.
- May 12, 2023
