GualcamayoYamana comments:
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- Continued construction of Gualcamayo with targeted start up in Q3 2008.
- Received a scoping study for the Amelia Ines and Magdalena (AIM) deposits at Gualcamayo indicating that the deposits are higher grade, larger than initially projected, remain open for expansion and are expected to significantly contribute to production levels at Gualcamayo.
Gualcamayo, Argentina
Yamana continues to progress its plan at Gualcamayo to reach 300,000 ounces of annual sustainable gold production. The Gualcamayo mine will be comprised of three main mining opportunities - Quebrada Del Diablo (QDD), Amelia Ines and Magdalena (AIM) and QDD Lower West. Construction is expected to be completed in the third quarter of 2008 for the main QDD deposit with ore production start-up this summer. Mine development work at the Amelia Ines and Magdalena satellite deposits is expected to begin in the second half of 2008, with production start-up targeted for mid-2009. An initial resource estimate for QDD Lower West is outlined below in the Continuing Developments - Exploration section. Metallurgical testwork supports the integration of QDD Lower West into the overall operations.
Planned production from all three main areas of mineralization combined is expected to be approximately 300,000 ounces of sustainable gold per year beginning in late 2010 when production from QDD Lower West begins.
Gualcamayo, Argentina - QDD Lower West
The recently defined QDD Lower West mineral resource is part of a WNW trending, subhorizontal, westerly plunging tensional gash, hosted by carbonate breccias, marble and karsted limestones. Drilling indicates that the dilational structure is still open down plunge and along strike. More than 75% of the mineral resource in QDD Lower West is oxide and therefore amenable to heap leaching.
The mineral resource for the QDD Lower West zone was estimated by ordinary kriging constrained by a 3D solid model based on a 1 g/t gold grade shell. The zone has been intersected by 16 core holes drilled between 2005 and December 2007. Drilling and underground development is continuing to test for expansion of the zone and to upgrade inferred resources to the measured and indicated category. Dimensions of this continuous zone of mineralization are currently 300 metres of strike, 100 metres thickness and minimum down dip length of 160 metres.
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The previously published feasibility study for Gualcamayo in August 2007 did not incorporate any of these resource ounces into the economic analysis for the project.