Newmont Mining announced this week it has completed its Northwest Exodus project in Nevada, extending mine life from the Exodus underground operation in the Carlin North area for 10 years. The project was completed safely, ahead of schedule and within a budget of $69 million.
Featuring fit-for-purpose technologies to enhance safety, productivity and efficiency, Northwest Exodus will add between 50,000 ounces per year (oz/y) and 75,000 oz/y of gold production and lower Carlin’s all-in sustaining costs by approximately $25/oz in the first five years of operation. The mine’s underground infrastructure also provides exploration platforms to support future growth in a highly prospective gold district.
“Northwest Exodus leverages existing infrastructure and higher-grade ore to lower costs, extend mine life and deliver an internal rate of return of more than 40%,” said Tom Palmer, executive vice president and COO, Newmont Mining. “As our newest expansion, Northwest Exodus demonstrates Newmont’s commitment to investing prudently in viable technologies that enhance safety and generate long-term value for our stakeholders.”
The project was designed to support autonomous operations and is currently running two autonomous mobile loaders and pilot-testing autonomous drills to access and recover ore. The operation is also fitted with reliable, high-bandwidth underground Wi-Fi to connect people, systems and equipment.
