Name of the Project
Côté gold project.

Location
The project is located in Northern Ontario, Canada.

Project Owner/s
Côté is a 70:30 joint venture (JV) between Iamgold and Sumitomo Metal Mining (SMM).

Project Description
The Côté gold project is one of the largest undeveloped gold projects in Canada.

A feasibility study completed on the project in November 2018 showed an economically viable, long-life project that is expected to be a low-cost producing mine.

The project includes a base case and an extended mine plan.

The base case mine plan envisages an openpit mining operation with a 16-year life-of-mine (LoM), which includes 46-million tonnes extracted during the two-year preproduction period, followed by 14 years of production mining. The stockpile reclaim extends the milling operation into Year 16. The amount of reclaimed ore over the life of the operation is five-million tonnes.

LoM average production is estimated at 367 000 oz/y.

For the extended mine plan, two years have been added to the base case mine life, with no expansion of the infrastructure footprint other than a larger pit.

For the extended mine plan, openpit mining includes 46-million extracted during the two-year preproduction period, followed by 16 years of production mining. Stockpile reclaim extends the milling operation into Year 18.

LoM average production is estimated 372 000 oz/y

Potential Job Creation
Not stated.

Net Present Value/Internal Rate of Return
In the feasibility study base case the project has a pretax net present value (NPV), at a 5% discount rate, of $1.24-billion and an after-tax internal rate of return (IRR) of 18.7%, with a payback of 4.4 years

In the extended case the project has an after-tax NPV, at a 5% discount rate, of $1.40-billion and an IRR of 18.7%, with a payback of 4.4 years.

Capital Expenditure
The base case and extended case have estimated capital expenditure of $1.15-billion.

Planned Start/End Date
The project has a targeted completion date of mid-2023.

Latest Developments
Iamgold received approval for its application under Section 36 of the Fisheries Act (Canada) for the Côté gold project in June.

The project is a key milestone in attaining permits pertaining to impacts on fish habitats and tailings management, and the final publication of the amended Schedule 2 of the Metal and Diamond Mining Effluent Regulations is expected on July 8.

The JV has been active in derisking the project since the feasibility study was published in late 2018.

As of the end of May, the company has completed additional resource and geotechnical studies, advanced mine planning and completed more than 60% of the detailed project engineering, including the tailings facility.

The company has said that this level of engineering has enabled the project to obtain firm bids and secure prices on all major equipment.

To date, 55% of project cost has firm pricing, further reducing technical and cost risks for the project.

A formal decision on the construction of the Côté gold project will be made in conjunction with SMM, provided there will be a satisfactory environment for construction to proceed, with appropriate work protocols in light of Covid-19 and without the risk of interruption.

Key Contracts, Suppliers and Consultants
None stated.

Contact Details for Project Information
Iamgold, email info@iamgold.com.
SMM, tel +81 3 3436 7705.