Name of the Project
Camino Rojo oxide gold project.

Location
Zacatecas state, central Mexico.

Project Owner/s
Canada-based mineral exploration company Orla Mining.

Project Description
Camino Rojo  is an advanced gold and silver openpit and heap-leach project. It has estimated mineral reserves of 44-million tonnes grading 0.73 g/t gold and 14.2 g/t silver for 1.03-million ounces of gold and 20.1-million ounces of silver.

The feasibility study supports a technically simple openpit mine and heap-leach operation, with low capital and operating costs, providing rapid payback and a strong financial return. The study envisages near-surface openpit mining of 44-million tonnes of oxide and transitional ore at a throughput rate of 18 000 t/d.

Ore from the pit will be crushed to 80% passing 28 mm, after which it will be conveyor-stacked onto a heap-leach pad and leached using a low-concentration sodium cyanide solution. Pregnant solution from the heap leach will be processed in a Merrill-Crowe recovery plant, where gold and silver will be precipitated and doré will be produced. Gold production is estimated at 97 000 oz/y over 6.8 years.

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 $227-million and an internal rate of return of 38.6%, with a payback of three years.

Capital Expenditure
Estimated at $123.11-million.

Planned Start/End Date
The construction of the project is expected to start in the first half of 2020 upon receipt of all required permits and project financing. First gold production is planned for mid-2021.

Latest Developments
Orla Mining is on track to pour first gold from the Camino Rojo oxide project by the end of the year, president and CEO Jason Simpson has said in a construction update.

Detailed engineering and procurement are well advanced, positioning the project team for a successful execution.

Orla has selected a mining contractor and expects mining activities to start in the second quarter.

“Construction ramped up in the fourth quarter and we are focused on the critical path activities as we target first pour by the end of year," Simpson has said.

Current construction activities include earthworks, the installation of the camp and offices, drilling back-up water wells and erecting the site fence. Process pond and reclaim tunnel areas are being excavated and foundations are being prepared for the Merrill Crowe plant, crusher and camp, as well as ancillary buildings.

Flora and fauna relocation is 97% complete, while clearing and grubbing is 91% complete. The 33 kV power line to site was approved by the Mexican federal electricity commission in 2020 and is 73% complete.

While construction at the oxide project is continuing apace, Orla is advancing multiple development scenarios on the Camino Rojo sulphide project, targeting a completed preliminary economic assessment by the end of the year.

Key Contracts and Suppliers
Kappes Cassiday & Associates, supported by Independent Mining Consultants, Resource Geosciences Incorporated, Barranca Group, Piteau Associates Engineering and HydroGeoLogica (feasibility study).

Contact Details for Project Information
Orla Mining, tel +1604 564 1852 or email info@orlamining.com.