Nevada Copper has kicked off wet commissioning for its underground mine waste plant at its Pumpkin Hollow underground copper mine in Nevada.
Initial throughput capacity will be met by the end of June, the company said.
Paste backfilling is expected to lead to quicker stope turnover, which will improve hoisting and production rates, Nevada Copper said.
Stope ore and development material is expected to reach between 4,000 and 4,500 tonnes per day in the September quarter.
Nevada Copper completed the dry commissioning of surface ventilation fans in early April. Construction in the third ore pass will be completed in the September quarter.
The company has begun its open pit drill programme, and will drill 25,000 feet to upgrade resources currently classified as waste in its 2019 technical report. Condemnation drilling will be completed in areas where mine infrastructure will be built. Several holes will be drilled to test the Tedeboy porphyry target.
"We have completed a number of key projects at site that are aimed at improving productivity, stope availability, and equipment reliability for the underground mine," chief executive Randy Buffington said.
"The prefeasibility study update for the fully permitted open-pit project is well underway" and will include plans such as a solar project, he added.
Nevada Copper also processed 96,414 tones of ore at its processing plant in the March quarter, a 76% increase from the previous quarter. Recovery improved from 5% to 84% from the December quarter 2021, the company said.
