Hardrock Project

 

Greenstone Gold Mines GP Inc. (GGM), a joint venture partnership between Centerra Gold Inc. and Premier Gold Mines Ltd. is planning the construction, operation, decommissioning and closure of an open pit gold mine and associated ancillary activities, collectively known as the Hardrock Project. The Project is located in the Municipality of Greenstone, Ontario, in the Ward of Geraldton, at the intersection of Highway 11 and Michael Power Boulevard.

 

The Project is situated within a historical mine site for which GGM acquired the mining claim in December 2008. The property is a brownfield site that was actively mined during the 1930-1970s, and in later years was known as the MacLeod-Mosher complex. Since acquiring the property in 2008, GGM has completed a number of exploration programs and in 2012 submitted a closure plan and associated addenda to the Ministry of Northern Development and Mines (MNDM) for an advanced exploration program involving the dewatering of the historical underground working and installation of a ramp to access the underground for advanced exploration. The closure plan was accepted by the MNDM on April 5, 2012, but the advanced exploration program was not implemented as plans were modified to focus on on-going exploration from surface and the advancement of planning for an open pit mine.

 

The Project components include a main open pit and a satellite pit, ore processing facilities including crushing plants and ore milling and processing plant, waste rock storage areas (WRSAs), tailings management facility (TMF), natural gas-fuelled power plant and associated infrastructure, liquefied natural gas (LNG) plant, explosives manufacturing and storage facility, and other associated buildings and processes.

 

 

The Hardrock Property is a contiguous block of ground and consists of 292 patented claims, leases and Licenses of Occupation covering approximately 5,148.3 hectares, and 39 unpatented mining claims covering 10,128 hectares for a total approximate area of 15,276.3 hectares. The property is located in Lindsley, Errington, Ashmore, Parent, Salsberg and McKelvie Townships in the Thunder Bay Mining Division.

 

 

1.2 Location

 

The property is situated in the Thunder Bay Mining Division of Ontario, located approximately 275 kilometres northeast of the city of Thunder Bay, Ontario and approximately 2 kilometres south of the town of Geraldton, Ontario. The city of Thunder Bay has a population of 110,000 and provides support services, equipment and skilled labour for both the mineral exploration and mining industry. Rail, national highway, port and international airport services are also available out of Thunder Bay. The Municipality of Greenstone and surrounding communities can provide supports services, equipment and skilled labour for both the mineral exploration and mining industry.

 

From Thunder Bay, the property can be reached by travelling east on Trans Canada Highway 11/17 until one reaches the town of Nipigon and then north along Trans Canada Highway 11. The property can be directly accessed via Highway 11. The property is accessible year round from Geraldton or Highway 11, which crosses the property from east to west. The southern portion of the property is accessed via Highway 11. The remainder of the Property can be easily accessed by four wheel drive vehicles via numerous logging/bush roads that branch off of the paved highway. Those areas of the property that are not serviced by roads can be access by ATV, on foot or by boat in the summer and by snowmobile during the winter months.