Record monthly production at Placer’s Campbell mine

After 42 years of production, the Campbell mine in northwestern Ontario’s Red Lake gold camp is pouring record amounts of gold, and capital investments are expected to boost throughput in 1992 and 1993.

The Placer Dome (TSE) mine, Canada’s longtime premier gold producer, turned out 31,835 oz. gold in August. The previous best monthly production at the mine was 29,548 in December, 1987.

In September the mine also recorded its largest single pour of gold — 11,881 oz. in 12 bars of 94% pure gold, the product of eight days of mill throughput. Mine manager Tim Mann says production will increase in 1992 when a new column flotation plant is commissioned. The $1.5-million plant is due to be complete in December, 1991, and will bring the mill’s capacity to 1,500 tons per day from the current 1,170 tons. A recently installed $24-million pressure oxidation plant (T.N.M., Oct. 14/91) was designed to handle the flotation concentrate from that increased output without producing any sulphur dioxide emissions.

Mann says the mine is also upgrading its shaft and hoist system at a cost of $650,000 to handle the increased throughput.

Production is scheduled to increase to 1,340 tons per day in 1992 and to 1,500 tons per day in 1993.

Mann does not expect the changes to decrease the cost-per-oz. of operations but simply to keep future operating cost increases to a minimum. The Campbell mine started operating in 1949. Although its annual output has been surpassed by two gold mines at Hemlo, Ont., its long operating history makes it the country’s most productive operating gold mine. In 1990 it produced 254,998 oz. from 400,000 tons of ore at an operating cost of US$181 per oz.

An aggressive exploration program is also budgeted for the mine. A deep drilling program started this month designed to intersect known ore zones below the mine’s deepest level, the 27th which is at a vertical depth of 4,500 ft. Drilling is targeted to test the zones at a vertical depth of 6,000 ft.

“This is the first time we’ve ever drilled below the 27th level,” says Mann. “There’s no indication that any of the ore zones are cutting off below that.” Mann says the mine’s ore reserves are in good shape (at the end of 1990 proven and probably reserves stood at 5.5 million tons grading 0.56 oz. gold per ton), but “we felt we should be addressing the challenge of what to do below 27.”