Today, West Red Lake Gold (WRLG.v WRLGF) announced the initiation of a test mining and bulk sampling program at the Madsen Mine, a key derisking component to the efforts being made to prepare the mine for a targeted restart in 2025.
Expected to run for four months, the program will focus on four target areas with varying mining environments and average gold grades and aims to gather critical data on mining methods, bulk sample processing, and the comparison of modeled vs. actual resources, the program.
Program Objectives
- Refining Mining Techniques: By testing different mining methods, WRLG aims to establish the most efficient and safe techniques for extracting high-grade gold. The program will evaluate how best to mine in various underground environments specific to the Madsen Mine.
- Evaluate Mineralization Near Old Stopes: Some of the target areas include proximity to historic stopes, where mineralization is wrapped in 2-meter buffer zones. If the trial mining demonstrates that these buffer areas are viable for mining, the company could potentially expand its mineable inventory. This presents an upside opportunity by reducing or removing the null-resource buffers and increasing the overall amount of mineable material.
- Create Bulk Samples: By comparing the bulk sample results to pre-existing geological models, WRLG intends to refine its estimates of mineable resources. This reconciliation will help ensure that the expected quantities of gold (in terms of tonnes, grade, and ounces) align with actual results, improving the accuracy of future production forecasts.
Target Areas
The four selected target areas span different sections of the Madsen resource and represent a range of geologic conditions, mining complexities, and gold grades. Two mining techniques will be utilized, including Long Hole Stoping (LHS) and Mechanized Cut and Fill (MCF).
- McVeigh Lenses 1453 and 1406:
- Located near the surface, this area contains 26,300 tonnes of material with a higher-grade gold content of 7.15 g/t. LHS will be used exclusively for this region.
- This area is selected to better inform the resource model in the McVeigh zone, known for its complex geology, and to sample a high-grade portion of the resource.
- South Austin Lens 1155:
- Situated about 400 meters below the surface, this target contains an estimated 73,300 tonnes at 5.66 g/t gold.
- This is a fresh area with no previous mining activity, and LHS will be the chosen method. The test will confirm geological models and the stability of the sills, with ongoing drilling expected to fine-tune resource estimates before mining starts.
- Austin Lens 1099/1100:
- Located in a remnant mining zone, this area is expected to yield 6,700 tonnes at 5.39 g/t gold. A combination of MCF and LHS methods will be employed here.
- This region is targeted to establish remnant mining protocols, particularly in confirming the structural integrity of historical backfill and verifying past data.
- South Austin Lenses 1136 and 1148:
- With an estimated 8,300 tonnes at 5.60 g/t gold, this area will be mined to test previous resource models and drilled data.
- The goal is to assess the validity of earlier work, including understanding how previous operators began mining in this zone but did not complete it, offering further insight into how best to approach future extraction.
As the areas collectively represent a total of 114,600 tonnes of material with an average gold grade of 5.98 grams per tonne (g/t), WRLG plans to mine around 5,000 tonnes from each target area to evaluate the mine’s resources and develop a safer, more efficient plan for future operations.
This test mining and bulk sample program will not only help de-risk the Madsen Mine's future restart but could also unlock additional upside potential by reevaluating historically mined areas and improving the accuracy of resource modeling. Successful results from these tests could expand the mine’s overall inventory and optimize mining methods, leading to more efficient and safer production when full-scale operations resume.
Full News Release: https://westredlakegold.com/west-red-lake-gold-starts-test-mining-and-bulk-sample-program-at-madsen-mine/
Posted on Behalf of West Red Lake Gold Mines Ltd.