On December 1, SSR Mining Inc. declared commercial production at the Chinchillas mine. Activities required to support sustainable ore delivery from the Chinchillas mine to the Pirquitas plant have been completed, including pre-stripping of the pit, completion of road bypasses, refurbishment and mobilization of the haul truck fleet, and construction of the crushed ore stockpile dome at the Pirquitas site, the company said. Ore delivery to the Pirquitas plant ramped up through November. The Pirquitas plant processed Chinchillas ore at a rate of approximately 3,000 metric tons per day (mt/d) during test processing. The targeted plant throughput rate of 4,000 mt/d as the plant transitions to Chinchillas ore in December.
“Declaring commercial production at Chinchillas marks another major milestone as we continue to deliver growth and value for shareholders,” Paul Benson, president and CEO, said. “Our team’s execution capabilities brought the mine in on schedule, in line with our expectations. Together with the communities and government, we are building on our success at Puna Operations over the last few years.”
The remaining scope of the Chinchillas project includes the completion of various infrastructure at the Chinchillas and Pirquitas sites, which is expected to be concluded through the first quarter of 2019. The entire project scope is on track to be completed on budget.
