NEVADA - The U.S. Bureau of Land Management (BLM) has accepted
West Kirkland Mining’s plan of operations (MPO) for the Hasbrouck gold project.
In a press release, West Kirkland explained that the Bureau will now start the analysis of the plan under an environmental assessment (EA) and will start receiving public comments on it, in addition to its own analysis. Once the process is complete, the agency will be able to proceed with a final decision.
According to the Canadian miner, the recent approval follows a 28-month process involving multiple BLM specialists who analysed the MPO. The document includes construction-level drawings, plans and schedules.
“The company is pleased to receive the BLM’s decision to commence the analysis of the Hasbrouck Mine pit and facilities under an EA and anticipates having federal permits for both the first and second phases of the Hasbrouck gold project in the near future,” the media brief states. “A federal (BLM) permit for the Phase 2 Hasbrouck mine reduces project execution risk as a shovel-ready gold project in the U.S. south-west. In an independent pre-feasibility study completed for the Hasbrouck gold project in 2016, a sensitivity analysis at $1,500 (per oz.) gold resulted in an estimated after-tax IRR (internal rate of return) of 65% and a US$200 million NPV (net present value).”
Located on Highway 95 between Reno and Las Vegas, Hasbrouck consists of West Kirkland’s 75%-owned Hasbrouck and Three Hills properties. The first phase of the Hasbrouck gold project is the Three Hills mine which received a federal permit in November 2015.
In the view of the Vancouver-based firm, the BLM’s decision to analyze the MPO for the second phase Hasbrouck mine under an EA, rather than under the lengthier and more expensive Environmental Impact Statement, leads management to expect that a federal permit may be issued in the second quarter of this year.
This story originally appeared on www.Mining.com.
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