The Granite Creek project in Nevada – one of four projects being advanced by i-80 Gold – has made significant progress since being acquired in April 2021 and recently was given more positive news in the form of the project’s PEA report.
The explorer said the new asset in Humboldt County has an after-tax net present value (NPV) of US$244.9 million (at 5%), and after-Tax IRR of 34.2%.
Life of mine gold production from Granite Creek, the report adds, is estimated to be 1.245 million ounces, and initial capital needed will be approximately $69.9 million.
Officials said that a major surface and underground drill program (about 20,000 meters) is now under way, and the company is performing additional underground development and test mining so it can make a production decision for the underground mine component.
The report noted that, for the fully permitted underground operation, trucking of mined material is assumed to be processed at an off-site, third-party facility.
Granite Creek is located within the Getchell Trend, just south of the Turquoise Ridge and Twin Creeks mining operations of Nevada Gold Mines.