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NORTHWEST TERRITORIES, CANADA NTS Area: 105 H/16 Latitude/Longitude: 61.9717°N, 128.2683°W Ore Type: oxide Mining Method: underground Access: 306 km, all weather road from Watson Lake, YT Project Status: Operating The CanTung Mine is a primary producer of tungsten concentrates from underground operations. Currently, the major features and facilities associated with Cantung are as follows:
LOCATION The Cantung Mine is located in the Nahanni area of western Northwest Territories, Canada, approximately 300 km by road northeast of Watson Lake, Yukon, close to the Yukon border. The mine is a primary producer of tungsten concentrate from open pit and underground mines. It was opened in 1962. HISTORY Prospectors discovered the Cantung Mine tungsten deposit in 1954, while looking for copper. In 1959, the Canada Tungsten Mining Corporation Ltd. was formed to acquire and develop the property. The Cantung Mine commenced production in 1962 from an open pit at the rate of 300 tons per day (stpd), with suspensions in 1963 due to low tungsten prices and in 1966 due to the destruction of the mill by fire. The construction of a new 350 stpd mill was completed in 1967 and, in 1969, the capacity was increased to 450 stpd. In 1971, drilling discovered the "E Zone". This zone was accessed through an adit collared at the valley bottom, close to the town site. The mill began to process the underground ore in 1974. In 1975, the mill was further expanded to 500 stpd. A major mill expansion in 1979 increased the mill capacity to 1,000 stpd. In 1985, Amax Inc consolidated ownership of the Cantung Mine and transferred all tungsten assets, including the Mactung Project at Macmillan Pass, to Canada Tungsten Mining Corporation, retaining majority control. Aur Resources Inc. (Aur) purchased Amax Inc's controlling interest in 1995 and Canada Tungsten and Aur merged in 1996. In 1997, North American Tungsten Corporation Ltd. ("NATCL") purchased the Cantung mine, together with the related tungsten assets of the former Canada Tungsten Inc., from Aur. After an improvement in tungsten prices commencing in 2000, NATCL reopened the Cantung mine in December 2001. Underground production and milling resumed at this time. In December 2003, NATCL was placed under the protection of the Companies Creditors Arrangement Act (CCAA), and the mine was closed. In November 2004, NATCL successfully completed a plan of arrangement to deal with creditors, allowing planning for reopening to commence. Preparatory work for the reopening began in July 2005, and production resumed in late September 2005. The Cantung mine suspended operations in October 2009 and resumed production in October 2010. The following table summarizes the production history of the operation for the 2008 and 2009 Fiscal Years. TABLE 5-1 2008 -- 2009 PRODUCTION STATISTICS North American Tungsten Corp. Ltd. - Cantung Mine
MINERAL RESOURCE AND MINERAL RESERVE SUMMARY DETAILS OF THE TECHNICAL REPORT ON THE CANTUNG MINE, NORTHWEST TERRITORIES, CANADA DATED JANUARY 31, 2011 ARE AVAILABLE AS NATIONAL INSTRUMENT 43-101 TECHNICAL REPORT FILED ON SEDAR. TO VIEW THE REPORT CLICK HERE. TABLE 16-1 CANTUNG INDICATED MINERAL RESOURCES AS OF OCTOBER 2010
Notes: 1. Mineral Resources conform to CIM and NI43-101 requirements. 2. Mineral Resources are estimated at a cutoff grade of 0.5% WO3 for underground as well as Pit and PUG 3. All Mineral Resources are listed as Indicated 4. Pit/PUG refers to Pit Underground. TABLE 16-2 CANTUNG INFERRED MINERAL RESOURCES AS OF OCTOBER 2010 North American Tungsten Corporation Ltd. - Cantung Mine
Notes: 5. Mineral Resources conform to CIM and NI43-101 requirements. 6. Mineral Resources are estimated at a cutoff grade of 0.5% WO3 for underground as well as Pit and PUG 7. All Mineral Resources are listed as Inferred 8. Pit/PUG refers to Pit Underground. Mineral Resources are inclusive of Mineral Reserves; excess resources may at some time in the future become reserves, however, at present they cannot be included in the estimate of Mineral Reserves. The Mineral Reserves include material for which there is a mining plan, and at least a conceptual design. Mineral Reserves for the Cantung Mine, as of October, 2010 are summarized in Table 16-3 below. TABLE 16-3 CANTUNG PROBABLE MINERAL RESERVE AS OF OCTOBER 2010 North American Tungsten Corporation Ltd. - Cantung Mine
Notes: 1. Mineral Reserves conform to CIM and NI43-101 requirements. 2. All Mineral Reserves are classified as Probable. 3. Mineral Reserves are estimated at a cutoff grade of 0.80% WO3. 4. A minimum mining width of 15 feet was used 5. The E Zone Pillars include the West Extension, E-Zone, Main Zone Pillars NATCL notes that some mining zone nomenclature may cause confusion for those unfamiliar with the Cantung deposits. The E-Zone refers both to the entire underground orebody, and also to the few remaining stopes that do not fit into a subzone category such as Main, South Flats, or West Extension. The reserve estimate is based on NATCL's forecast of a long-term base case G1 price scenario of US$262/Metric Tonne Unit ("MTU") and US$244/MTU for flotation concentrates is reasonable for the entire life of mine; an operating cost of $149 per ton milled and a cut off grade of 0.80% WO3 for the life of mine. In NATCL's opinion, the key risk to mine profitability lies in tungsten price sustainability and mined grades over the remaining mine life. The Cantung Mine produces ore at a rate of 1,160 short tons per day ("stpd"). Mineral Reserves support a mine life of 4 years, ending in Q4 2014. Primary mining methods include, longhole stoping and pillar-remnant ore recovery using different techniques. Currently, longhole methods are planned for mining the majority of the remaining reserves, both for pillar recovery and for primary mining in areas with favourable geometry. Processing is carried out by gravity and flotation circuits. Final products include a premium gravity concentrate (G1), containing 65% WO3 and a flotation concentrate containing 45% WO3. Production and Exploration When production is taken into account, Mineral Reserves have increased since the previous reserve estimate of October 1, 2009. Increases are due to exploration of new zones, inclusion of lower-grade areas rendered economic by higher prices, and planned pillar recovery in previously mined areas through the use of longhole mining methods. QUALIFIED PERSON Kevin Fitzpatrick, P. Eng., the Company's Chief Mine Engineer and Finley J. Bakker, P. Geo., the Company's Former Chief Geologist both are qualified persons as defined by NI 43-101. |
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