07:13 | Lima, May 11 (ANDINA).
Chucapaca's joint venture partners, Gold Fields Limited (51%) and Compania de Minas Buenaventura (49%) announced Tuesday the discovery of a major gold-copper-silver deposit in their Chucapaca Project Area (CPA) in southern Peru.
The Canahuire deposit, has a mineral resource estimate of 5.6 million gold equivalent ounces, with mineralisation potential beyond the extent of current drilling.
The inferred mineral resource for Canahuire is approximately 83.7 Mt at 1.9 g/t gold, 0.09% copper and 8.2 g/t silver for a total of 5.6 million gold equivalent (AuEq1) ounces.
“Canahuire is a highly promising gold discovery in an emerging gold district in South America. Geological indications are that there is significant upside at the Canahuire deposit, as well as at other targets within the project area," Gold Fields CEO Nick Holland said in a joint statement with Buenaventura CEO Roque Benavides.
"This is an important growth opportunity for Gold Fields and Buenaventura, and, could also make a significant contribution to the economic development of our community partners in the Moquegua region,” they added.
The Canahuire deposit is one of several targets in the 12,700 ha CPA, which is on average 4,800 m high and located in the Altiplano area of southern Peru, 120 km northeast of the city of Moquegua.
Both joint venture partners have independently consolidated a significant portfolio of concessions adjacent to the CPA and are advancing exploration on these concessions.
Tommy McKeith, Executive Vice president for Exploration and Business Development of Gold Fields said that delineating a 5.6 Moz AuEq1 resource in only 18 months from the first hole was a remarkable achievement by the exploration team.
"The Canahuire interim scoping study is on track for completion by June 2010 and, subject to a positive economic outcome, we will commence pre-feasibility in July 2010,"he said.
"While our initial focus is on the Canahuire deposit, we will at the same time continue to explore the potential of the rest of the CPA," said Cesar Vidal, Buenaventura's Executive Vice President for Exploration.
The geometry of mineralisation in Canahuire indicates it is amenable to open-pit mining. The proposed process consists of crushing and grinding with flotation to produce a smelter-grade copper-gold concentrate followed by carbon in leach (CIL) extraction from flotation tails. Recovery assumptions are for 77% gold, 82% copper and 44% silver recoveries respectively.
Gold Fields is one of the world’s largest unhedged producers of gold with attributable production of 3.6 million ounces per annum from nine operating mines in South Africa, Ghana, Australia and Peru.
It has total attributable mineral reserves of 81 million ounces and mineral resources of 271 million ounces.
Compania de Minas Buenaventura is Peru's largest, publicly traded, precious metal company and a major holder of mining rights in the country. Its annual gold equivalent production is 1.2 million ounces.
It currently operates several mines in Peru (Orcopampa, Poracota, Uchucchacua, Antapite, Julcani and Recuperada) and has controlling interests in two mining companies (Cedimin and El Brocal), as well as minority interests in several other mining companies in Peru.
Buenaventura owns 43.65% in precious metal producer Minera Yanacocha, a partnership with Newmont Mining Corporation, and 19.26% in Sociedad Minera Cerro Verde, an important Peruvian copper producer. It is listed on the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE).
(END) EEP/LVT
Publicado: 11/5/2010