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REGIONAL NEWS - U.S. & CANADA 8 E&MJ; • MARCH 2017 www.e-mj.com Trevali Buying New Mining Fleet for its Caribou Mine Trevali Mining is transitioning to an own- er-operation at its underground Caribou zinc mine in northeastern New Brunswick, Canada, and is supporting the transition by purchasing a new underground mining fleet. The company has committed to an approximately C$20 million investment through a partnership with Sandvik Mining for supply and maintenance of a full fleet of mining equipment for the mine. Trevali will operate and manage all aspects of the un- derground mining operation, while Sandvik will be responsible for fleet maintenance. During 2017, equipment that will be procured and commissioned on-site in- clude two model DD 321 two-boom drill jumbos; five model LH 514 8-yd LHDs; seven model TH 540 40-metric-ton (mt) haul trucks; one model DL 421 long-hole production drill; and one model DS 421 cable bolter/backup long-hole drill. Additional equipment being sourced for the mine includes a grader, a new un- derground light-vehicle fleet, and a com- bination of new and used underground ancillary equipment. "Trevali's new investment demon- strates our ongoing commitment to the future of the Caribou mine and operations in the Bathurst region of New Brunswick," said Trevali President and CEO Dr. Mark Cruise. "The efficiencies realized through this initiative will solidify our position as a major employer and economic contrib- utor in the province and form a pathway for the company's long-term, multicycle vision for the Bathurst mining camp." Trevali also owns the Halfmile and Stratmat base-metal deposits in the Bathurst camp, which are currently under- going a preliminary economic assessment reviewing their potential development. Current Caribou operations include the underground mine, a 3,000-mt/d mill, a flotation recovery plant, metallurgical and geochemical laboratories, and a tailings treatment facility, all located approximately 50-kilometers (km) west of Bathurst, New Brunswick. The Caribou mine reached commercial production in July 2016. Future produc- tion of metal in concentrates is forecast to average 93 million pounds per year (lb/y) of zinc, 32.5 million lb/y of lead, 3.1 million lb/y of copper, 730,000 oz/y of silver, and 1,500 oz/y of gold. Mine life is currently planned at 6.3 years. Iamgold Eying Major New Mine in Northern Ontario Iamgold has reported positive results from a preliminary economic assessment (PEA) of its Côté open-pit gold project in the Sud- bury district of Ontario, while at the same time reporting that the project has received federal and provincial approvals for the project's environmental assessments. The Côté project is located 130 kilo- meters (km) southwest of Timmins and 200 km northwest of Sudbury, Ontario. The PEA outlines an economically viable project that at a $1,200/oz gold price would generate an estimated 12.9% af- ter-tax internal rate of return. The project would have a 21-year mine life, produc- ing an average of 302,000 oz/y of gold at average total cash costs of $564/oz and all-in sustaining costs of $686/oz. Initial capital costs to develop the Côté project are estimated at $1.03 billion, with a payback period of 5.2 years; life-of- mine sustaining capital costs are estimat- ed at $440 million; and closure costs are estimated at $40 million. Costs assume leasing of the mine production fleet and some other major equipment components. The PEA envisions a conventional truck-and-shovel, open-pit mining op - eration, with a processing circuit incor- porating primary and secondary crush- ing, tertiary High Pressure Grinding Roll crushing, ball milling, gravity concentra- tion, and cyanide leaching, followed by gold recovery using carbon-in-pulp, strip- ping, and electrowinning. The processing rate is planned at 29,000 metric tons per day (mt/d), with plant feed grading an av- erage 0.97 grams/mt. Power would be supplied to the proj- ect via a 44-km tap line connection to Hydro One's Shining Tree substation. Iamgold has a prefeasibility study in progress to validate the development concepts set out in the Côté project PEA, with completion of the prefeasibility study slated for the end of the second quarter of 2017. The study will include additional drilling and engineering and environmen- tal studies, which will include hydrological, hydrogeological and geotechnical analyses. Iamgold President and CEO Steve Letwin said, "The Côté gold project pro- vides us with an exceptional option for future growth. Since acquiring Côté sev- eral years ago, we have been focused on de-risking the project. Our drilling pro- gram has led to a nine-fold increase in the Trevali will rely on Sandvik Mining to maintain underground mining equipment.