Ascendant explores El Mochito’s upside

VANCOUVER — Ascendant Resources (TSX: ASND) has delivered fresh exploration drill results at its El Mochito zinc-lead-silver mine, 88 km southwest of San Pedro Sula in northwest Honduras.

The 32,000-metre underground drill program is designed to infill and test for extensions of the carbonate-replacement style deposit, where mining has been ongoing since 1948.

Three of the four drill targets — Palmar dike, Santa Elena and Victoria — are close to underground mine workings and could reach production within 12 months. The fourth target, Esperanza, is already being mined on its western edge.

Chris Buncic, Ascendant’s president and CEO, tells The Northern Miner during a phone interview that the new assay results are “well above” mining grades, which speaks to the mine’s untapped potential.Location map of Ascendant Resources’ El Mochito zinc-lead-silver mine in Honduras. Credit: Ascendant Resources.

Stepout drilling at the Palmer dike intercepted 17.6 metres at 5.3% zinc, 3.8% lead and 83 grams silver per tonne, while at Victoria, drilling cut 17 metres of 5% zinc, 2% lead and 53 grams silver.

Santa Elena returned 35.4 metres of 5.6 zinc, 2% lead and 31 grams silver, and Esperanza cut 17.5 metres of 6.2% zinc, 2.2% lead and 41 grams silver at Esperanza.

The US$3-million exploration drilling campaign is Ascendant’s first since acquiring the 2,300-tonne-per-day underground operation from Belgium’s Nyrstar for US$500,000 last December.

Nyrstar, an international smelting giant, acquired El Mochito when it bought Breakwater Resources in 2011, but the company began selling off its mining assets last year to focus on smelting.

Buncic says that lowered development spending during Nyrstar’s ownership contributed to the mine’s decline in production from 133.5 million equivalent lb. zinc in 2014 to 62.3 million equivalent lb. zinc in 2016.

“Historically, 75% of the ore came from lower-grade manto structures and 25% came from the higher-grade chimneys,” he says. “When Nyrstar took over, the resource didn’t change much. They didn’t do any exploration other than what was six months ahead of production, which is why 90% of our ore comes from mantos. This year’s exploration program targets the higher-grade chimneys to supplement the head grade and boost production.”

Ascendant plans to increase output 44% to 189,200 tonnes in the fourth quarter, up from 131,115 tonnes in the first quarter. The company expects to finish the year with 65.8 million equivalent lb. zinc in production. 

Mine site costs could fall from US$102 per tonne in the first quarter to US$63 per tonne in the fourth quarter.

Workers leaving Ascendant Resources’ El Mochito zinc-lead-silver mine in Honduras. Credit: Ascendant Resources.

“This is our ramp-up year, and by 2018 we expect to be more steady,” he says. “We want to return this mine to what it once was, and that’s a 90 million equivalent lb. zinc producer at all-in sustaining costs of US82¢ per lb. — that’s our target.”

Ascendant is increasing head grades through exploration, and improving mining efficiency to lower costs.

The company is shortening truck cycles from the rock face to the mining shaft, and introduced a “hot seat” shift change to lower mining downtime.

The optimization plans could increase productive time from 15 hours to 22 hours, and add 300 tonnes per day of capacity.

“We have to get our costs down. El Mochito has 80% fixed costs, such as electricity and employee salaries. So the best bang for our buck is to get production up,” Buncic says.

Ascendant had a setback in May when mobile equipment acquired from Nyrstar began to fail.

“April was a great month. We drove the equipment hard, but as result we experienced a lot of breakdowns in May and production suffered,” Buncic says.

“We’re recovering. We still have the same equipment, but by the end of July we’ll have three new trucks and two new scoops. We’ll park the oldest truck, which is the most expensive to operate. In August we should be firing on all cylinders. We expect to have a great third quarter and an even greater fourth quarter.”

Measured and indicated resources at El Mochito stand at 5.4 million tonnes of 4.85% zinc, 1.72% lead and 44.7 grams silver. Inferred resources add 3.9 million tonnes of 5.11% zinc, 1.38% lead and 35 grams silver.

The company expects to update the resource estimate in 2018.