Northern Vertex announce Phase II drill programme
Published by Jessica Casey,
Editor
Global Mining Review,
Northern Vertex Mining Corp. has announced plans to proceed with an accelerated US$2.5 million, 13 700 m Phase II infill drilling and resource expansion programme on its 100% owned Moss Mine project in north west Arizona. The Phase II programme will immediately proceed upon the conclusion the company's current Phase I, 18 000-m drilling and resource expansion programme.
The Phase II infill and near mine drilling programme is scheduled to commence in November 2020 and extend through February 2021. The combined multi-phase drill programmes represent 32 000 , of drilling, which is the largest drilling and resource expansion campaigns conducted by Northern Vertex to date on the Moss Mine gold and silver project. The Phase II programme will employ three drilling rigs and will begin with an initial 13 700 m of drilling across multiple targets. Drilling will focus on expanding on the positive results returned from the Phase I programme, which began to further delineate the extent of the Ruth Vein structure and extensive stockwork gold and silver mineralisation both on strike and at depth at the Moss Mine.
Ken Berry, President and CEO, stated: “I am excited for shareholders during this period of organic growth and development as we continue to streamline our mining operations and focus on the aggressive expansion of Moss’s gold and silver resources. Our upcoming Phase II infill drill programme will play a decisive role in determining the inherent size and potential of our existing gold and silver resource and how that will translate into Moss’s future long-term mine life and operations.”
The four priority targets for the Phase II drill programme include:
- Ruth Vein: drilling will target the east/west strike length of the Ruth, located just 150 m off the southern edge of the Moss Open Pit, the Ruth Vein has been mapped for over 2 km on surface.
- Intersection of Ruth Vein and Moss Vein: the south dipping Moss Vein and the north dipping Ruth Vein, intersect at approximately 200 m below surface, drilling will target this prime geological zone along its east/west strike.
- Gold Bridge Zone: infill drilling to upgrade the resource between the West and Central pit.
- Gold Tower Zone: drilling to expand the West pit stepping out toward the Mordor target.
In addition to the multi-phased exploration programme, the company continues to successfully implement a number of new initiatives to further optimise operations and reduce costs at the Moss Mine.
Initiatives completed or underway intended to reduce costs:
- Transition to McCoy and Sons as the dedicated mining and blasting contractor. Terms of this agreement are expected to result in a significant reduction of mining costs.
- A 12-month study testing an opportunity to lower ASIC with a transition from 1/4 in. to 3/8 in. crush size is nearing completion. Final sampling was completed on the 40 000-t test panel that has been under leach since 1 July 2020. Definitive data review is being finalised and will be presented and reviewed by the company’s technical committee prior to making a production level decision.
Operational highlights include:
- New monthly production record of 4733 oz gold and 42 889 silver oz produced.
- Six consecutive days of +200 oz daily gold production in October 2020.
- New single day record for daily gold production set in October at 234 oz.
- New record value for bi-weekly doré shipment at more than US$5 million in October – 2371 gold oz and 19 090 silver oz.
- Completion of the intermediate leach system (ILS) to accelerate gold recoveries allowed the company to reduce, in total, pad inventory by 800 gold oz m/m.
- The Merrill Crowe (MC) plant continues to perform well, processing rates above faceplate levels, while maintaining a gold recovery rate of 99% through the first month of the new quarter.
Read the article online at: https://www.globalminingreview.com/exploration-development/04112020/northern-vertex-announce-phase-ii-drill-programme/
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