Name and Location
Back Forty gold/zinc project, Michigan, US.

Client
Aquila Resources.

Project Description
The new preliminary economic assessment (PEA) completed on the Back Forty project, in Michigan’s upper peninsula, incorporates a revised mine plan based on results from Aquila’s 2013 resource update. The project contains measured and indicated resources of 15.13-million tonnes grading 2.03 g/t gold, 24.48 g/t silver, 0.33% copper, 0.22% lead and 3.06% zinc. Inferred resources total 2.34-million tonnes grading 2.07 g/t silver, 26.53 g/t silver, 0.36% copper, 0.33% lead and 2.2% zinc.

The PEA contemplates mining 16.1-million tonnes of mineralised material over the 16-year life-of-mine, of which 12.5-million tonnes is openpit and 3.6-million tonnes is underground. The PEA demonstrates the potential for a diverse earning stream, with a payable metal value mix of 41.2% gold, 40.5% zinc, 12% copper, 5.7% silver and 0.6% lead. Operating at an initial throughput rate of 5 350 t/d, the total payable production of the mine is expected to be about 532 000 oz of gold, 704-million pounds of zinc, 63-million pounds of copper, 4.66-million ounces of silver and 11-million pounds of lead.

Net Present Value/Internal Rate of Return
The project has a pretax net present value at 6% of $247.2-million and an internal rate of return of 34.9%, with a payback period of 1.6 years.

Value
$261-million.

Duration
Not stated.

Latest Developments
Aquila has announced that Toronto-based project management and engineering firm Lycopodium Minerals Canada will undertake a feasibility study on its Back Forty base metals project.

The study will run concurrently with the permitting approval process, which was deemed administratively complete in November last year.

Lycopodium will draw on inputs from a range of experts and specialist consulting engineering companies in the permit-sensitive areas such as wastewater treatment, tailings and waste rock management, and mine design.

"With the permit approval process now in the hands of the Michigan Department of Environmental Quality, our focus for 2016 now turns to final design, planning and construction of the Back Forty mine. Lycopodium offers a unique combination of experience, enthusiasm and senior management support and we look forward to working with them as we advance the project through the detailed design and construction phases,” Aquila VP of project development Andrew Boushy has stated.

The feasibility study and overall plan entail the development of an engineered construction and operating plan, with careful considerations for social, environmental and water management, geotechnical engineering, hydrogeology, metallurgical testing, process design and mine planning.  

The feasibility study is expected to be complete by the fourth quarter of this year.

Key Contracts and Suppliers
None stated.

On Budget and on Time?
Not stated.

Contact Details for Project Information
Aquila Resources, tel +1 906 352 4024, fax +1 906 352 4027 or email info@aquilaresources.com.