Royalty: Tuligtic
Puebla State, Mexico
Gold & Silver
Operator: Almaden Minerals Ltd
Royalty: NSR: 2.0%
The 7200 hectare Tuligtic claim was identified and acquired by Almaden Minerals Ltd. during its 2001 regional Mexican exploration program.
Tuligtic is located 120 kilometers southeast of the Pachuca Mine, one of the largest gold and silver deposits in Mexico with historic production of 1.4 billion ounces of silver and 7 million ounces of gold.
The project is well-located in the industrial heart of Puebla State. It is easily accessible from Mexico City, and 95 kilometers north of Puebla city. A rail-serviced industrial park is 30 kilometers away, and regional power is provided by the Laguna Verde nuclear power station, located 200 kilometers to the east on a deep sea port.
History of the Project
Within the Tuligtic claim, field work identified a 5 square hectare area of intensely altered rocks that contains several prospective targets, including the Ixtaca Zone.
In 2010, a drill program was designed to test a small outcrop. Due to the limited surface exposure of the Ixtaca vein system, three holes were fanned out in a small area, each in a different direction. In August , Almaden reported assay results from first hole ever drilled in the Ixtaca
zone: TU-10-01 intersected 302.42 metres of 1.01g/t gold and 48g/t silver and multiple high grade intervals including 1.67 metres of 60.7g/t gold and 2122g/t silver.
Following Discovery Hole TU-10-01, extensive drilling has traced mineralization over one kilometer in a northeasterly orientation and showed the Main Ixtaca Zone to be a broad and robust vein system intersected by multiple high grade veinlets in a variety of orientations.
Drilling has also identified two additional zones: the Ixtaca North Zone and the Northeast Extension. To date approximately 650 holes have been drilled at Ixtaca. In december 2018, Almaden announced an Updated Resource Estimate and Feasibility Study.
Feasibility Study
On December 11, 2018, Almaden announced positive results of the independent FS prepared in accordance with National Instrument 43-101 (“NI 43-101”) for the Ixtaca precious metals deposit, located in Puebla State, Mexico.
HIGHLIGHTS (all values shown are in $US; base case uses $1275/oz gold and $17/oz silver prices, and equivalency calculations assume 75:1 silver:gold ratio):
- Average annual production of 108,500 ounces gold and 7.06 million ounces silver (203,000 gold equivalent ounces, or 15.2 million silver equivalent ounces) over first 6 years
- After-tax NPV(5%) of $310 million and internal rate of return of 41%;
- After-tax IRR of 42% and after-tax payback period of 1.9 years
- After-tax NPV of $310 million at a 5% discount rate
- Initial Capital of $174 million
- Average annual production over the first 9 years of 88,780 ounces gold and 5.47 million ounces silver (168,100 gold equivalent ounces, or 11.6 million silver equivalent ounces)
- Conventional open pit mining with a Proven and Probable Mineral Reserve of 1.39 million ounces of gold and 85.2 million ounces of silver (See Table 3)
- Pre-concentration uses ore sorting to produce a total of 48 million tonnes of mill feed averaging 0.77 g/t gold and 47.9 g/t silver (2.03 g/t gold equivalent over first 6 years, 1.41 g/t gold equivalent over life of mine)
- Average LOM annual production of 90,800 ounces gold and 6.14 million ounces silver (173,000 gold equivalent ounces, or 12.9 million silver equivalent ounces)
- Operating cost $716 per gold equivalent ounce, or $9.55 per silver equivalent ounce
- All-in Sustaining Costs (“AISC”), including operating costs, sustaining capital, expansion capital, private and public royalties, refining and transport of $850 per gold equivalent ounce, or $11.30 per silver equivalent ounce
- Elimination of tailings dam by using filtered tailings significantly reduces the project footprint and water usage