Wesdome looking to boost production at Eagle River and Kiena Mines

By Kevin Vincent

With operating mines in both Ontario and Quebec, Wesdome Gold Mines Ltd. continues to build value for shareholders in two jurisdictions. The company spent considerable resources this year to upgrade the mill at the Eagle River complex near Wawa, while getting the green light for a new exploration ramp at its Quebec Kiena Mine near Val D’or.   
“As expected, combined production in Q3 was slightly lower than Q2 (30,992 ounces) as a result of planned mill maintenance at Eagle River,” said Anthea Bath, President and CEO. “At Kiena, ramp development continues to track ahead of schedule, positioning us well to develop and access higher grade reserves in H1 2024. We are also pleased to announce that towards the end of the quarter, we received the necessary permit required to drive an exploration ramp at Presqu’île. This authorization allows us to assess the continuity of the mineralization and test the down plunge extension of the deposit.”
That’s good news for Wesdome as the teams expect to close out 2023 on guidance. With an uptick in production expected in the fourth quarter, the company’s year to date performance of 87,119 ounces has them tracking to the mid-point of their 110,000-130,000-ounce guidance range.
Wesdome announced the 2023 surface exploration drilling results in mid-September from the Presqu’île Zone,1.3 km north-west of the Kiena Complex.
Recent drilling at Presqu’île is part of an ongoing exploration program focussing on near surface gold potential along strike from Kiena that remains under explored. 
Drilling results from the Shawkey and Dubuisson Zones, located further to the east along strike, were released earlier in the year. Ongoing drilling highlights the potential of this area to add to the existing resource base proximal to mine infrastructure and remains a priority for the company.
“We are pleased with the recent surface drill results that confirm continuity of mineralization at Presqu’île,” said Bath. “The Presqu’île Zone is just one of several zones having the potential to offer a supplementary source of mill feed near-surface or in the upper mine area for the underutilized Kiena mill.” 
The company says recent drilling results from the Shawkey and Dubuisson Zones, both adjacent to the existing drift development that extends over three kilometres east of the Kiena mine shaft, further reinforces the potential of this area. 

“As our exploration continues and the refinement of the geologic model increases, we are confident we will identify more zones of gold mineralization accessible from 33 level, as well as additional down plunge extensions similar to the Kiena Deep Zone,” said Bath.
The company says recent drilling supports the decision to proceed with the exploration ramp from surface later this year to further assess the continuity of the mineralization and test the down plunge extension of the deposit. 
The excavation of the ramp is expected to proceed in Q4 2023. This ramp can also be integrated with Kiena's existing underground ramp network, providing additional access to surface for ongoing operations and future mining of deposits such as Dubuisson from 33 level further to the east.”
The company also issued its fourth annual Environmental, Social, and Governance (“ESG”) Report, which provides an overview of the company’s ESG strategies, policies, risk management approach and commitments. The report also outlines year-over-year performance from 2018-2022 across these key sustainability objectives. 
“We are proud of our accomplishments over the last year and remain committed to strong sustainability performance in the future,” said Bath.

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