Maritime's
owns 100% of the minerals within its lands and that includes the gold fines in its tailings Ponds.
This will apply to TSF1 which will start its reclamation later this quarter.
As Shoreline has all of the needed heavy equipment and crews to excavate and transport contained
material, it is cooperating with Maritime on this relatively modest TSF #1 tailings project. Maritime will thereby be left free to carry out its mining and development plans.
Whether this is by contract or JV arrangement, I don't know.
I assume JV with a 60/40 split of revenues in favor of Maritime.
A typical approach involves improving the treatment of tailings pond soils to gradually eliminate contaminants and restore the altered soil structure. However, a recent alternative approach to isolate the land beneath the tailings ponds. By placing new soil on top and planting crops, the issue of land occupation caused by abandoned tailings ponds can be effectively resolved while avoiding the costs and negative effect of contaminants.
TSF #1 was the repository of tailings from 145,000 ounces of gold processed from the production of the Pine Cove mine before closure in 2018.
Average recovery during this period was 83% implying that over 25,000 ounces along with crushed ore were discharged into TSF #1.
To be conservative, I assume 20,000 ounces which would typically be concentrated at the bottom layer of the accumulated sediment which might be a meter or two thick.
I don't know just how spacillally discrete this high grade gold fines layer but I assume discrete enough that the top sediment layer can be surgically excavated and removed.
The high grade gold fines layer can then be excavated for processing .
Once again, I assume that these gold fines can be converted to a gold concentrate by use of the gravity circuit suitable for gold dore production .
Being a very modest sized tailings pond, I don't think that reclamation costs will be all that costly and those amounts can be capitalized.
For provisional production forecasts for 2025, I assume a 70% free cash margin which would amount to about 8000 ounces net to Maritime ( 12,000 ounces time 70% )
Costs will be further researched..