en.Wedoany.com Reported - Sixty North Gold Mining Ltd. has delayed the start-up plan for its Mon gold project in Yellowknife, Northwest Territories, Canada, due to regulatory policy changes. The Mackenzie Valley Land and Water Board (MVLWB) now requires all developers of mines and mills that have not yet obtained approval for their water management plans to collect additional baseline samples before submitting such plans. This policy adjustment, driven by concerns over environmental conditions following droughts and wildfires in the Northwest Territories, directly impacts Sixty North Gold and has postponed its originally scheduled start-up timeline.
The company and its consultants provided baseline data dating back to the 1990s, when sampling was conducted by government inspectors and previous operators. After obtaining licenses and permits, the company collected newer samples, with the most recent sampling in 2020, including baseline sampling conducted in 2024 after the 2023 wildfire season. Currently, the company is in discussions with the MVLWB and its inspectors to clarify the specific impact of this policy change on its previously announced gold production plan for the Mon gold mine. At this stage, only limited activities are permitted on site.
Sixty North Gold has submitted 12 management plans and received MVLWB approval for six of them. Since the company's last update on May 19, it has submitted the mill design and construction plan, the ore stockpile design and management plan, and the dry stack tailings design and construction plan. The dry stack tailings (DST) management plan can be submitted after MVLWB approval of the DST design and construction plan, which has also been submitted. The temporary closure and reclamation plan is being replaced by a revised closure and reclamation plan.
President and CEO Dave Webb stated: "We were previously operating under an advanced exploration program per a board directive dated October 24, 2022, but that program is no longer valid. All mining and milling equipment and necessary supplies have been delivered to site, and personnel are mobilizing to site to begin preparatory work, pending further MVLWB approvals. Once we are clear on how the above changes will impact our start-up timeline, we will comment further, but we remain optimistic that this matter will be resolved quickly and satisfactorily."
Regarding the Mon gold project, historical data shows that mining activities in the 1990s extracted 15,000 tonnes of ore from a depth of just 15 meters below the surface, recovering approximately 15,000 ounces of gold. More recently, underground mining has intersected the productive A zone 17 meters below the historical stope, and the newly discovered DD zone has been exposed in the main ramp. The company plans to develop and mine stopes in the East Limb, West Limb, and DD zone, and extend the ramp to develop deeper levels. The Yellowknife gold district hosts two gold mines with average grades of 30 g/t or higher (the Discovery mine and the Mon mine), and two gold mines with average grades of 15 g/t or higher, with total production exceeding 14 million ounces of gold (the Con mine and the Giant mine).
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