West Red Lake Gold Mines has declared commercial production at its flagship Madsen gold mine, located in the Red Lake Mining District of northwestern Ontario, Canada, as of January 1.
The mill averaged 689 tonnes per day in December, representing 86% of permitted throughput of 800 tpd. This met the company’s internal commercial production requirement of 30 consecutive days of mill throughput at 65% or greater of permitted capacity. Operational stability, the other internal requirement, is also in place at Madsen. Consistent strong mill recoveries, which averaged 94.6% in December, enabled production of 3,215 ounces of gold.
“We are delighted to announce commercial production at the Madsen mine, achieved only seven months after completion of the bulk sample,” said Shane Williams, president and CEO of West Red Lake Gold Mines. “Achieving commercial production is a major milestone for any producer and it comes after a strong December that saw tonnage, grade, recoveries, and production all perform to plan. Credit and gratitude go to the site operations team, who delivered a responsible and methodical mine ramp-up. I also want to thank our partners, the Lac Seul and Wabauskang First Nations and the community of Red Lake for their longstanding support.”
“We will continue to ramp up from this strong base, and I anticipate Madsen will reach sustained permitted capacity by mid-2026,” he concluded.
In 2025, the Madsen mine poured 20,000 oz. gold, which was sold at an average price of US$3,650 per oz. for total gold sales revenues of $73 million.
West Red Lake Gold Mines also owns the Rowan mine property in Red Lake, which hosts a small, high-grade deposit that the Canadian miner is looking to advance toward production.