Steppe Gold Ltd. (TSX: STGO | OTCQX: STPGF | FSE: 2J9) has announced the filing of its updated preliminary economic assessment, regarding its wholly-owned Tres Cruces Oxide Gold Project located in Peru.
Chairman, and CEO of Steppe Gold, Bataa Tumur-Ochir commented, “We are delighted to announce this updated technical study for the Tres Cruces project. Tres Cruces is strategically located in a highly prospective geological belt that hosts the Lagunas Norte and La Arena mines, both with multi-million-ounce gold production.”
Technical report highlights include:
- Metallurgical test work returned average recoveries of 82% Au, confirming design assumptions
- Construction costs escalated 4.5% based on market data to reflect inflationary pressures
- The initial capital expenditure estimate increased by US$6M to US$131M driven by equipment and labour costs
- Operating costs rose 3.6% due to consumables, reagents, contract mining services
- Life of mine operational expenditure estimate is now US$297M, up 3.6% from the preliminary economic assessment dated effective March 14, 2022
- Operational expenditure per tonne processed is now estimated at $19.93/t
- At US$1700/oz gold, the after-tax net present value is US$158M with 30.9% IRR
Mr. Tumur- Ochir continued, “The Tres Cruces deposit contains oxide plus sulphide indicated resources of 2,474,000oz with a grade of 1.65g/t gold, inclusive of 630,000oz contained within leachable gold oxide mineralization with a grade of 1.28g/t gold,”
“Located in the La Libertad, Peru, surrounded by operating mines with the attendant infrastructure and talent pool, this asset shows great potential as a new production zone for Steppe Gold. We are excited with the strong economics confirmed by recent drilling and metallurgical testing, as well as the exploration potential across the licence area.”
To find out more, please visit www.steppegold.com
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