The indicated category contains 1.6 million tonnes grading 939 g/t silver, and the inferred category contains 843,400 tonnes at 725 g/t silver.
And the Bermingham deposit remains open in all directions.
Mining at the Bermingham deposit is currently taking place from longhole stopes in the upper 1150 level, and additional production levels are to be developed this year as the primary haulage ramp continues to advance.
The ramp is expected to reach within 200 metres of the newly defined Bermingham Northeast Deep zone. The ramp will provide access to higher grade cut and fill stopes on the 1120 level.
Alexco has several other deposits at Keno Hill with resource estimates. They are the Bellekeno, Lucky Queen, Flame & Moth, and Creek. The property has a total of 4.3 million indicated tonnes grading 635 g/t silver (87.6 million contained oz. and 2.1 million inferred tonnes at 595 g/t silver (32.6 million contained ounces).
The 400-t/d mill treated 7,172 tonnes during the fourth quarter of 2021, a 1.4% increase over the third quarter. During December, additional mill throughput campaigns were completed, allowing the mill to reach a peak capacity of 22.5 dry tonnes per hour, 25% higher than the 18 t/d design capacity of the plant.
The majority of the ore milled was from the Bermingham deposit and a recovery rate of 91% silver was achieved. The silver content of the lead concentrate averaged 17.076 g/t.
(This article first appeared in the Canadian Mining Journal)
