Name of the Project
CK gold project.

Location
Laramie County, Wyoming, in the US.

Project Owner/s
Nasdaq-listed exploration and development company US Gold Corp.

Project Description
A prefeasibility study (PFS) has delivered robust economics. It envisages an openpit mine, which will produce an average of 108 500 gold equivalent ounces a year over a ten-year mine life.

The project has measured and indicated resources of 1.58-million gold-equivalent ounces.

A contractor mining operating model is proposed for mine operations, tailings disposal and site support.

The project owner will operate the process plant, provide supervision for contractors, mine planning, ore control and general site administration. This hybrid owner/contractor model is used to leverage the regional mine contractor expertise and reduce initial project capital costs.

The current process flowsheet uses a one-stage crushing plant receiving run-of-mine ore, and stacking crushed ore on a reclaimed feeder-equipped stockpile. The semiautogenous grinding mill is fed crushed ore at a nominal rate of 18 150 t/d and is in closed circuit with a ball mill, two pebble crushers and two banks of cyclones, which produces a product for flotation.

A flotation circuit, with regrind after rougher flotation, will produce a bulk flotation concentrate. Tailings will be thickened and dried using filter presses for dry stack disposal.

Opportunities exist to eliminate equipment and reduce capital costs through measures – such as the elimination of a pebble crusher and cyclone bank, as well as ball mills, from the circuit – and the optimisation of the tailings preparation, resulting in less filtration.

Potential Job Creation
Not stated.

Net Present Value/Internal Rate of Return
The project has a pretax net present value, at a 5% discount rate, of $323-million and an internal rate of return of 39.4%, with a two-year payback.

Capital Expenditure
Initial capital expenditure is estimated at $221-million.

Planned Start/End Date
Not stated.

Latest Developments
The project is on track for all the necessary permits for development by midyear, US Gold Corp CEO George Bee has said, announcing the approval of a mine operating permit on May 9.  

The Wyoming Department of Environmental Quality (WDEQ) issued US Gold subsidiary Gold King a surface gold mine permit, subject to certain conditions.

The remaining conditions include the approval of the reclamation bond, which has been submitted; the Wyoming pollutant discharge elimination system permitting process, which is in the final stages of approval, and the WDEQ air-quality division permits, where technical work is under review.

Key Contracts, Suppliers and Consultants
Alquimia/Innomet (engineering design work).

Contact Details for Project Information
US Gold Corp, tel +1 800 557 4550 or email ir@usgoldcorp.gold.