West Red Lake Gold Provides Madsen Mine Operations Update

SEATTLE (Scrap Monster): West Red Lake Gold Mines Ltd. (“West Red Lake Gold” or “WRLG” or the “Company”) (TSXV: WRLG) (OTCQB: WRLGF) provides an update on ramp-up operations at the Madsen Mine in Red Lake, Ontario.

Following the fatal incident at site on the morning of June 16th, the mine and mill were both shut down. The mill restarted after approximately 40 hours. The mine restarted 12 hours after the mill, ramping up to full operations based on personnel availability and within a safety-first structure.

“With the clear exception of the tragic underground incident, ramp-up at the Madsen Mine is progressing well,” said Shane Williams, President and CEO. “Mill head grades increased in June as we transitioned from the mixed and generally lower-grade material that had been stockpiled during the bulk sample program, which we processed in May, into freshly mined material that should be more representative of average ore grades going forward. The mill has been averaging 650 tonnes per day with 95% gold recovery and has been tested at higher levels several times without issue.

“We look forward to increasing mining rates over the coming months as ramp-up equipment arrives on site and we access additional mining areas, keeping in mind the Company’s number one priority is operational safety.”

The Madsen Mine started ramp-up operations on May 11th. Initially, mill feed was predominantly sill material that had been stockpiled during the bulk sample program, during which time only stope material was processed. Sill material is mined during level access development and is typically lower grade than stope material.

As mining ramps up, the mill head grade has increased. Milled grade has increased from approximately 3 grams per tonne gold (“g/t Au”) in the first two days of June to average 6.5 g/t Au from June 12th to 15th as stope material increased in proportion to sill material. Material going through the mill is now generally grading at levels comparable to the Madsen mine bulk sample. Observed grade variability, including days when gold grade jumps notably, is within the expected range for a deposit of this nature.  

Courtesy: www.globalnewswire.com