TORONTO – Junior Fire River Gold has engaged Snowden Mining Industry Consultants to prepare a preliminary economic assessment on the economic viability of resuming underground commercial production at the company's Nixon Fork mine, in Alaska.

The study will present a preliminary mine plan for the project, including dilution and recovery analysis, stoping method selection, production and development forecasts, capital and operating cost estimations, revenue projection, and a financial model, Fire River Gold said.

The study is tentatively scheduled for completion in the middle of December.

Fire River CEO Harry Barr said in July that the company has been working on the PEA, which he referred to as an 'in-house feasibility study', and that work was being monitored by Snowden.

Fire River is expected to publish an updated resource estimate for Nixon Fork this month, and is also working on a PEA to evaluate the potential to reprocess historic tailings at the site through the carbon-in-leach circuit.

The Nixon Fork mine was acquired in 2009 from Pacific North West Capital, and includes an operational 200-t/d-plus mill, as well as a new carbon-in-leach circuit, which was designed and bought in 2008, with the installation 60% completed.
 

The mine also has a fleet of mining vehicles, a self-contained diesel power plant, maintenance facilities, drilling equipment, an 85-person camp, office facilities and a 1,2-km-long landing strip.

Source: miningweekly.com