PROCESSING

Steppe Gold receives reagents, resumes leaching

The company was unable to secure reagents due to COVID-19 lockdowns and border closures.

The ATO mine has received reagents for processing following delays.

The ATO mine has received reagents for processing following delays.

Mongolia-focused Steppe Gold has received reagents and is now able to resume full production at its ATO gold mine.

The company was unable to secure necessary reagents for processing for all of 2021 because of COVID-19 lockdowns and border closures, particularly in regard to Chinese borders.

With the receipt of the reagents, Steppe Gold has now been able to restart heap leach ore processing.

"The company continued its mining, crushing, and stacking operations throughout 2021," Steppe Gold chief executive Bataa Tumur-Ochir said.

The company now has inventory with over 81,842 ounces of estimated recoverable gold to be leached, as well as high-grade oxide ores in the active pits, he added.

The inventories are on the leach pad, ROM pad, and blast ores on the pit floor. As of the start of March, the company has over 2.45 million tonnes of ore stacked on the leach and ROM pads.

On the leach pad, Steppe Gold has stockpiled 795,461 tonnes at 1.90 g/t of gold that remains to be leached.

An additional 451,580 tonnes at 1.15 g/t of gold are awaiting processing on the ROM pad.

On the pit floors, the company has stockpiled 569,604 tonnes at 2.09 g/t of gold of both blasted and unmined more; these will be transported to the ROM and leach pad.

Steppe Gold has produced 45,655 ounces of gold over the course of production, with a recovery rate of 58%.

The 81,842 ounces of upcoming production estimated by the company is based on a 70% recovery rate.

Steppe Gold plans to produce over 100,000 ounces of gold from oxide zones in 2022 and 2023.

The company plans to fast-track its Phase 2 construction of the ATO gold mine.

In an October 2021 feasibility study, Steppe Gold estimated it could expand Steppe Gold's mine life to 12.5 years, and will install a 2.5 million tonne per annum fixed crusher.

The expansion project will produce first concentrates in the December quarter of 2023.

A growing series of reports, each focused on a key discussion point for the mining sector, brought to you by the Mining Magazine Intelligence team.

A growing series of reports, each focused on a key discussion point for the mining sector, brought to you by the Mining Magazine Intelligence team.

editions

Mining Magazine Intelligence: Automation and Digitalisation Report 2024

Exclusive research for Mining Magazine Intelligence Automation and Digitalisation Report 2024 shows mining companies are embracing cutting-edge tech

editions

ESG Mining Company Index: Benchmarking the Future of Sustainable Mining

The ESG Mining Company Index report provides an in-depth evaluation of ESG performance of 61 of the world's largest mining companies. Using a robust framework, it assesses each company across 9 meticulously weighted indicators within 6 essential pillars.

editions

Mining Magazine Intelligence Exploration Report 2024 (feat. Opaxe data)

A comprehensive review of exploration trends and technologies, highlighting the best intercepts and discoveries and the latest initial resource estimates.

editions

Mining Magazine Intelligence Future Fleets Report 2024

The report paints a picture of the equipment landscape and includes detailed profiles of mines that are employing these fleets