CROSS CUTS An Ocean of Gold

The following remarks were heard from people who attended the Mining Automation Symposium, in Sudbury, Ont., Oct 15-16, 1986. We think they provide a good illustration of the diversity of opinion in the industry.

Men have long dreamed of finding a way to economically recover gold from the ocean, where it occurs in minute amounts. Never mind that, should someone find a way to do this, it would almost immediately hammer down the gold price to whatever the recovery costs were. (Talk about reserves).

Not to disappoint the five guys who meet every morning in London’s St. Swithin’s Lane, but a company in Alaska is making a good buck mining the ocean — sort of. Actually, Inspiration Gold is mining the ocean floor near Nome. The ancient beach sands have been known for their gold content since the days of the Klondike, but until now no one has been able to get the gold out economically. Inspiration, a subsidiary of the multinational Inspiration Resources, bought a huge dredge from Billiton and is now producing some 48,000 oz annually at a cost of less than $200(US) per oz. No word yet on grade or tonnage, but the total reserves have been estimated at 780,000 oz. These marine placers were apparently formed when wave and tidal action concentrated the auriferous Nome River till during a period of a lower sea level.

The dredge was originally constructed at a cost of $33 million and can process eight million cubic yards per year. The machine itself weighs 12,000 tons and can work at depths of up to 150 ft. It was previously used to mine tin offshore in Indonesia.