TORONTO, June 06, 2024--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Generation Mining Limited (TSX:GENM, OTCQB: GENMF) ("Gen Mining" or the "Company") continues to advance the Marathon Palladium-Copper Project in Northwestern Ontario through project design optimizations. As the Company works to complete the permitting process and obtain the necessary government approvals to commence construction, it has engaged a construction-focused engineering firm to support design optimizations for the Project. The intent is to improve on the designs for Project constructability, to decrease initial capital costs, and to reduce the operating-phase costs.
The work will include optimizing design, supply and construction strategies with the assistance of original equipment manufacturers, contractors and construction consultants, to help improve the overall cost and construction efficiency of designs. The focus will be on ensuring that the plant and infrastructure designs are ‘fit-for-purpose’ and leverage the improved understanding of actual site conditions to reduce the quantities of building steel and foundation concrete.
The Company is also concurrently evaluating alternative pit sequencing options that further exploit the benefit of the ore body’s proximity to surface. This mine planning optimization is intended to produce higher cash flows in the early years of production by maximizing plant feed grades and reducing the initial stripping requirements until later in the mine life.
Jamie Levy, President and CEO says, "I am confident this optimization work will further enhance the economics and construction readiness of the Marathon Project. We have continued to advance our permitting program and are making great strides towards having all necessary government permits and approvals for the construction phase. The goal of this work is ultimately to improve upon the initial capital requirements and cash flows from operations in the early years following start-up, without impacting the fundamentals of the design."
The work has commenced as of late-April and will continue throughout the coming months. The Company will provide further updates on the optimization initiatives when completed.
About Generation Mining Limited
Gen Mining’s focus is the development of the Marathon Project, a large undeveloped palladium-copper deposit in Northwestern Ontario, Canada. On May 31, 2024, the Company filed an Amended Feasibility Study Update for the Marathon Project with an effective date of December 31, 2022 (the "Feasibility Study").
The Feasibility Study estimates a Net Present Value (using a 6% discount rate) of C$1.16 billion, an Internal Rate of Return of 25.8%, and a 2.3-year payback. The mine is expected to produce an average of 166,000 ounces of payable palladium and 41 million pounds of payable copper per year over a 13-year mine life ("LOM"). Over the LOM, the Marathon Project is anticipated to produce 2,122,000 ounces of palladium, 517 million lbs of copper, 485,000 ounces of platinum, 158,000 ounces of gold and 3,156,000 ounces of silver in payable metals. For more information, please review the Feasibility Study filed under the Company’s profile at www.sedarplus.ca or on the Company’s website at https://genmining.com/projects/feasibility-study/.
The Marathon Property covers a land package of approximately 26,000 hectares, or 260 square kilometres. Gen Mining owns a 100% interest in the Marathon Project.
Qualified Person
The scientific and technical content of this news release was reviewed, verified, and approved by Drew Anwyll, P.Eng., M.Eng, Chief Operating Officer of the Company, and a Qualified Person as defined by Canadian Securities Administrators’ National Instrument 43-101 - Standards of Disclosure for Mineral Projects.
Forward-Looking Information
This news release contains certain forward-looking information and forward-looking statements, as defined in applicable securities laws (collectively referred to herein as "forward-looking statements"). Forward-looking statements reflect current expectations or beliefs regarding future events or the Company’s future performance. All statements other than statements of historical fact are forward-looking statements. Often, but not always, forward-looking statements can be identified by the use of words such as "plans", "expects", "is expected", "budget", "scheduled", "estimates", "continues", "forecasts", "projects", "predicts", "intends", "anticipates", "targets" or "believes", or variations of, or the negatives of, such words and phrases or state that certain actions, events or results "may", "could", "would", "should", "might" or "will" be taken, occur or be achieved, including statements relating to the intended outcomes of the design optimizations and optimization initiatives, such as decreasing initial capital costs, reducing the operating-phase costs, enhancing the project economics or construction readiness, improving initial capital requirements or cash flows from operations, expanding or altering potential mine pit designs or sequencing, and reducing the quantities of building steel and foundation concrete required for construction; and statements related to the anticipated life of mine; mineral production estimates, payback period, and financial returns from the Marathon Project.
Although the Company believes that the expectations expressed in such forward-looking statements are based on reasonable assumptions, such statements are not guarantees of future performance and actual results or developments may differ materially from those in the statements. In particular, there can be no assurance that the design optimizations and optimization initiatives will generate the anticipated results or benefits described herein. There are other factors that could also cause actual results to differ materially from those in the forward-looking information. These include the timing for a construction decision; the progress ofdevelopment at the Marathon Project, including progress of project expenditures and contracting processes, the Company’s plans and expectations with respect to liquidity management, continued availability of capital and financing, the future prices of palladium, copper and other commodities, permitting timelines, exchange rates and currency fluctuations, increases in costs, requirements for additional capital, and the Company’s decisions with respect to capital allocation, and the impact of COVID-19, inflation, global supply chain disruptions, global conflicts, including the wars in Ukraine and Israel, the project schedule for the Marathon Project, key inputs, staffing and contractors, continued availability of capital and financing, uncertainties involved in interpreting geological data and the accuracy of mineral reserve and resource estimates, environmental compliance and changes in environmental legislation and regulation, the Company’s relationships with Indigenous communities, results from planned exploration and drilling activities, local access conditions for drilling, and general economic, market or business conditions, as well as those risk factors set out in the Company’s annual information form for the year ended December 31, 2023, and in the continuous disclosure documents filed by the Company on SEDAR+ at www.sedarplus.ca.
Readers are cautioned that the foregoing list of factors is not exhaustive of the factors that may affect forward-looking statements. Accordingly, readers should not place undue reliance on forward-looking statements. The forward-looking statements in this news release speak only as of the date of this news release or as of the date or dates specified in such statements. The Company disclaims any intention or obligation to update or revise any forward- looking information, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise, other than as required by law. For more information on the Company, investors are encouraged to review the Company’s public filings on SEDAR+ at www.sedarplus.ca.
