June 3rd, 2025 -- West Red Lake Gold Mines Ltd. (“West Red Lake Gold” or “WRLG” or the “Company”) (TSXV:WRLG) (OTCQB:WRLGF) is pleased to report how learnings from the test mining and bulk sample program at its 100% owned Madsen Mine (the “Project”) in the Red Lake Gold District of Northwestern Ontario, Canada, are translating directly into a detailed mine plan with generally larger stopes, greater mining efficiencies, and lower cost mining methods than anticipated.
The test mining and bulk sample program had two goals:
- To confirm that the geologic, engineering, and mining workflow at Madsen enables the Company to model and mine mineralization accurately.
- To test various mining scenarios and use the results to enable confident mine design that maximizes economic extraction.
The bulk sample results (reported on May 7) achieved the first goal. Close reconciliation between expected and actual tonnes, grade, and contained ounces across six stopes in three areas of the resource validates the Company’s ability to mine at Madsen according to plan.
The Company also succeeded with the second goal. Test mining demonstrated the ability to mine up against historic stopes, which reduced barriers in stope design and unlocked some resource potential.
Test mining also highlighted the efficiency of mining larger stopes and mining clusters of proximal stopes (known as mining complexes), two notable opportunities that are developing at Madsen because mine design is both a technical and economic exercise.
The workflow that leads to detailed mine design at Madsen is as follows:
- Each resource area is definition-drilled to a drill hole spacing averaging 7 meters.
- The in-house, short-term model is updated to incorporate the new drill data.
- Stopes are engineered based on the updated model to maximize economic extraction of mineralization, at an assumed gold price.
Gold mineralization at Madsen often comprises high-grade lenses surrounded by lower-grade mineralized halos. The above workflow is designed in part to define high-grade lenses of gold mineralization that can go unnoticed with wider-spaced data sets. Recent high-grade drill results from the South Austin area (see news releases from May 27, May 13, and February 26) demonstrate this potential. Definition drilling also enables accurate modeling of lower-grade halo mineralization ahead of stope design.
West Red Lake Gold is currently using the consensus long-term price of US$2,350 per ounce (“oz.”) in mine design, compared to a gold price of US$1,680 per oz. used for the mine plan in the Madsen Mine Pre-Feasibility Study (“PFS”) [1]. The relatively low gold price in the PFS led to a mine plan with 60% of the mining being small, high-grade stopes requiring the use of cut-and-fill mining, the more selective and higher cost of the two mining methods outlined for use at Madsen [1a]. In addition, the need to drive accesses between multiple small stopes contributed to relatively high sustaining capital needs over the mine life.
The PFS mine plan generated strong economics that supported the restart decision. However, using a higher gold price in stope design effectively lowers the cutoff grade for resource inclusion, bringing additional resource tonnes and more overall ounces into consideration for mine planning.
When lower grade tonnes prove to be economic, it can result in larger stopes encompassing one or several high-grade gold lenses with surrounding halo mineralization. It can also define new mining shapes around proximal areas of mineralization that were not previously considered. This is especially possible where definition drilling has defined or expanded high-grade lenses, which have the potential to mitigate the impact on head grade of including lower grade tonnes over the life of mine.
Figure 1: Visible gold in sill access development on 1 Level McVeigh.
Larger stopes and clusters of proximal stopes, known as mining complexes, have potential to increase a mine’s economic benefit and scale as compared to smaller, isolated stopes because they can positively impact three key economic drivers:
- Mining cost: Larger stopes can generally be mined via long hole stoping. Long hole stoping is significantly lower cost per tonne compared to cut and fill mining [1b]. The Madsen Mine bulk sample was mined exclusively by long hole stoping methods with a very high success rate and the majority of the 18-month detailed mine plan is long hole mining.
- Cost of access development per tonne mined: Larger stopes and stopes clustered in mining complexes spread the cost of developing access to a mining area over more ounces produced from that area, reducing the cost impact of access development.
- Flexibility and efficiency: The ability for a mine to focus on few large mining complexes at any given time rather than multiple isolated stopes greatly supports efficiency in equipment, personnel, and material movement planning. The Company is experiencing this efficiency advantage already at site.
Figures 2 through 4 below highlight a few examples of mining complexes where the tonnage and ounce profile increased through the definition drilling, resource model updating, and economic stope design workflow.
Figure 2. Image showing South Austin 4447 stope complex (blue). This area realized a 212% increase in tonnage and 320% increase in contained ounces mainly driven by definition drilling.
Figure 3. Image showing Austin 1099/1100 stope complex (blue). This area realized a 204% increase in tonnage and 222% increase in contained ounces mainly driven by definition drilling.
Figure 4. Image showing McVeigh 1453 stope complex (blue). This area realized a 32% increase in tonnage and 18% increase in contained ounces mainly driven by definition drilling.
A more global potential benefit from mining larger stopes at Madsen is mining more of the resource. A mine plan based on a gold price of US$1,680 per oz. depletes the deposit relatively quickly, which is evident in a PFS probable reserve of only 478,000 ounces in 1.87 million tonnes grading 8.2 g/t gold mined in 7 years [1c], from a deposit with a total indicated resource of 1.65 million ounces of gold hosted in 6.9 million tonnes of rock averaging 7.4 g/t gold (the combined indicated resource for the Austin, South Austin, McVeigh, and 8 Zones) [1d]. The Madsen Mine PFS described the potential for more of the resource to be considered for mining if a higher gold price was used [1e].
A gold price environment that allows mine design to convert more of the resource into reserve suggests a longer mine life than outlined in the PFS, which is expected to have a positive impact on long-term profitability and overall project economics.
Close reconciliation between expected and actual tonnes and grade in the bulk sample suggests that the Company’s approach – appropriate definition drilling, responsive mine engineering, and disciplined, efficient mining – is creating the ability to mine at Madsen according to plan. The mine engineering and design process is a technical and economic exercise that responds to the price of gold. This will remain the Company’s practice at the Madsen Mine.
Other News
The Company has received and accepted the resignation of Jasvir Kaloti as Corporate Secretary. The management and board of directors of the Company wish to thank Ms. Kaloti for her service and wish her well in the future.
Efforts are in progress to identify a suitable Corporate Secretary candidate and Harpreet Dhaliwal, Chief Financial Officer, will hold this position in the interim.
Footnotes
- Please refer to the technical report entitled “NI 43-101 Technical Report and Prefeasibility Study for the Madsen Mine, Ontario, Canada”, prepared by SRK Consulting (Canada) Inc. and dated January 7, 2025. A full copy of the SRK report is available on the Company’s website and on SEDAR+ at www.sedarplus.ca.
- See PFS Section 16.5.3 Mining Methods – Underground Mining Methods – Planned Mining Methods.
- See PFS Report Section 21.3.2 Capital and Operating Costs – Operating Cost Estimates – Mining.
- Mineral reserve estimates based on a gold price of US$1,680/oz and an exchange rate of 1.31 C$/US$. Longhole stope cut-off grade of 4.30 gpt Au based on an estimated operating cost of C$287.34/t including mining, plant and G&A. Mechanized Cut and Fill stope cut-off grade of 5.28 gpt Au based on an estimated operating cost of C$354.90/t including mining, plant and G&A. Incremental development cut-off grade of 1 gpt Au. A small amount of incremental longhole tonnes were included at a cut-off grade of not less than 3.4 gpt Au, these must be immediately adjacent to economic stopes that will pay for the capital to access area.
- Mineral resources are estimated at a cut-off grade of 3.38 g/t Au and a gold price of US$1,800/oz. Mineral resources are not considered mineral reserves as they have not demonstrated economic viability.
- See Section 24.1 Other Relevant Data – Gold Price Sensitivity.
The technical information presented in this news release has been reviewed and approved by Will Robinson, P.Geo., Vice President of Exploration for West Red Lake Gold and the Qualified Person for exploration at the West Red Lake Project, and by Maurice Mostert, P.Eng., Vice President of Technical Services for West Red Lake Gold and the Qualified Person for technical services at the West Red Lake Project, as defined by National Instrument 43-101 – Standards of Disclosure for Mineral Projects.
ABOUT WEST RED LAKE GOLD MINES
West Red Lake Gold Mines Ltd. is a mineral development company that is publicly traded and focused on advancing and developing its flagship Madsen Gold Mine and the associated 47 km2 highly prospective land package in the Red Lake district of Ontario. The highly productive Red Lake Gold District of Northwest Ontario, Canada has yielded over 30 million ounces of gold from high-grade zones and hosts some of the world’s richest gold deposits. WRLG also holds the wholly owned Rowan Property in Red Lake, with an expansive property position covering 31 km2 including three past producing gold mines – Rowan, Mount Jamie, and Red Summit.
ON BEHALF OF WEST RED LAKE GOLD MINES LTD.
“Shane Williams”
Shane Williams
President & Chief Executive Officer
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION, PLEASE CONTACT:
Gwen Preston
Vice President Communications
Tel: (604) 609-6132
Email: investors@wrlgold.com or visit the Company’s website at https://www.westredlakegold.com
Neither the TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in the policies of the TSX Venture Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.
CAUTIONARY STATEMENT AND FORWARD-LOOKING INFORMATION
Certain statements contained in this news release may constitute “forward-looking information” within the meaning of applicable securities laws. Forward-looking information generally can be identified by words such as “anticipate”, “expect”, “estimate”, “forecast”, “planned”, and similar expressions suggesting future outcomes or events. Forward-looking information is based on current expectations of management; however, it is subject to known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors that may cause actual results to differ materially from the forward-looking information in this news release and include without limitation, statements relating to the larger stopes, greater mining efficiencies, lower cost mining methods, potential production of mining operations at the Madsen Mine; any untapped growth potential in the Madsen deposit or Rowan deposit; the impact and ability for long-term profitability and overall project economics; and the Company’s future objectives and plans. Readers are cautioned not to place undue reliance on forward-looking information.
Forward-looking information involve numerous risks and uncertainties and actual results might differ materially from results suggested in any forward-looking information. These risks and uncertainties include, among other things, the Company’s ability to mine at Madsen according to the current mine plan; ability to forecast mining cost; market volatility; the state of the financial markets for the Company’s securities; fluctuations in commodity prices; and changes in the Company’s business plans. Forward-looking information is based on a number of key expectations and assumptions, including without limitation, that the Company will continue with its stated business objectives and its ability to raise additional capital to proceed. Although management of the Company has attempted to identify important factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from those contained in forward-looking information, there may be other factors that cause results not to be as anticipated, estimated or intended. There can be no assurance that such forward-looking information will prove to be accurate, as actual results and future events could differ materially from those anticipated in such forward-looking information. Accordingly, readers should not place undue reliance on forward-looking information. Readers are cautioned that reliance on such information may not be appropriate for other purposes. Additional information about risks and uncertainties is contained in the Company’s management’s discussion and analysis for the year ended December 31, 2024, and the Company’s annual information form for the year ended December 31, 2024, copies of which are available on SEDAR+ at www.sedarplus.ca.
The forward-looking information contained herein is expressly qualified in its entirety by this cautionary statement. Forward-looking information reflects management’s current beliefs and is based on information currently available to the Company. The forward-looking information is made as of the date of this news release and the Company assumes no obligation to update or revise such information to reflect new events or circumstances, except as may be required by applicable law.
For more information on the Company, investors should review the Company’s continuous disclosure filings that are available on SEDAR+ at www.sedarplus.ca.
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