i-80 Gold Corp. has signed an agreement to acquire a strategic property package located in Lander County, Nevada, that includes, among other things, 582 acre-feet of water rights, a rail heading on the Nevada Central Railway, several advanced-stage barite deposits, full barite processing infrastructure and known gold mineralized zones from Baker Hughes Oilfield Operations LLC. This strategic acquisition provides i-80 with water rights for development and operation of the Cove open-pit mine, marking a major milestone for executing on the Cove Project dewatering strategy.
At closing, i-80 will own a 100% interest in the property and associated infrastructure and assume certain reclamation and related bonding liabilities on the property. The U.S. Geological Survey lists barite as a “critical mineral” and the company will complete a review of options related to mining and processing.
McCoy-Cove is one of four projects currently being advanced for development and the company expects it to be a key project in its plans to restart the Lone Tree autoclave.
“Acquiring the Baker Hughes property and the water rights associated with it is a significant step forward in our execution of the development of the Cove Mine,” President and COO Matt Gili said. “The on-site team continues to advance the project as planned and on schedule.”
Construction of the decline at Cove is now under way with more than 300 ft advanced to date. This Phase 1 program will also include construction of an initial level with multiple drill bays to provide access for upgrading resources. Approximately 40,000 meters (m) of underground definition and expansion drilling is anticipated to commence in the second half of 2022 followed by a feasibility study anticipated to be completed in 2023.
The Cove deposit represents one of North America’s highest-grade gold deposits with grades in excess of 10 grams per metric ton (mt) gold (g/t Au). The deposit remains open for expansion down-dip.
The McCoy-Cove Property is located approximately 84 kilometers (km) south (by road) of the Lone Tree Complex and immediately south of Nevada Gold Mines’ Phoenix mine within the Battle Mountain-Eureka Trend. The property is accessed via an all-season road from Highway 55 in Nevada.
