Can you give an overview of recent developments at the West Cache gold project?

Galleon Gold acquired the West Cache project in 2020, and since that time we completed 46,000 m of drilling, commenced baseline and metallurgical studies and initiated permitting activities. Our drilling was very successful at infilling and expanding known mineralization, as well as discovering the high-grade Zone #9 ore shoot. We recently announced an update for the Mineral Resource Estimate and the first Preliminary Economic Assessment (PEA) for the project.

The PEA considers an underground mine utilizing toll processing with annual gold production of 85,000 oz/y Au over an 11-year mine life. The economics are robust with pretax NPV (5%) and IRR of C$378 million and 33.7% respectively. We have significantly increased the resource and now have an Indicated Mineral Resource of 472,000 oz Au and an Inferred Mineral Resource of 1,088,000 oz Au.  What is really exciting for the project is the fact that this PEA is an initial valuation, with more drilling the resource and economics will continue to increase.

Can you elaborate on the location of the project and how it is relevant?

Having developed several mines in the area, I am familiar with the Timmins camp and know that the opportunity exists where there might be big ounces at stake at West Cache. The project is located on the Porcupine – Destor Deformation Zone, only 13 km west of the town of Timmins. Provincial Highway 101 bisects the property. Our neighbor to the west is Pan American Silver’s Timmins West mine and Newmont’s Hollinger mine is only 14 km to the northeast. Galleon Gold has a significant land package in a great district which has amazing infrastructure for mining. 

Given the larger companies operating near the project, is there an opportunity to partner with any of them?

Many juniors are able to successfully partner with larger companies.  Now that we have completed the initial mine plan that proves out the economics for the project, we will definitely speak with all of the operators in the camp. There could be some opportunities with respect to milling arrangements for toll processing the initial ores produced in the early years. Majors are looking for projects that can produce between 2 million to 4 million oz Au, and if your project is fitting that profile, there will be some buying interest as well. Our strategy is to add high quality ounces to the books while we advance the project to production. My past experience has taught me not to look over my shoulder for takeovers or mergers; as we build the mine they will come. So, we drive forward to put the mine into production and eventually build a mill onsite, and along the way we will look at any interest from the majors to give as much value to shareholders as possible. 

What are some key milestones Galleon Gold would like to achieve over the next two years?

Galleon Gold aims to work with the Ministry on permitting the underground ramp system for test mining the Zone #9 mineralization, targeting early 2023 to begin construction. Having been successful at identifying high-grade mineralization we will also embark on new drill programs to extend the high-grade zones and explore untested areas; only 8% of the property has been drilled and we expect the current deposit extends along strike and dip and other deposits on the property are still to be discovered. The company has been engaging with our First Nations partners and is committed to the consultation and impact benefit agreement process.  We are also cognizant of the importance placed on ESG; we initiated baseline studies early and fully expect that our mine designs will incorporate best practices. It is an exciting time for West Cache. I believe we are in the early stages of developing the next significant mine in the Timmins Camp.