Amador County – Canadian company Sutter Gold Mining Incorporated is looking to resume hard rock gold mining in Sutter Creek, where the operation could create as many as 150 jobs in two or more years.
The company has received permits from the state of California, while it works to get other permits, and also run a Preliminary Economic Assessment on the mine.
The assessment is “evaluating the design and development of an initial mining and milling operation focused only on the upper portion of the Lincoln-Comet deposit utilizing existing mine infrastructure in order to minimize development costs and timing,” said Robert Hutmacher, Chief Financial Officer for Sutter Gold Mining Incorporated.
Sutter Gold Mining controls approximately 3.6 miles of the Mother Lode Gold Belt in Amador County. Hutmacher said “with 90 percent of the property still unexplored,” the potential exists for gold “at depth” and above at “known mineralized zones.”
The 120-mile long Mother Lode Gold Belt produced more than 13 million ounces of gold historically, he said, with 7.9 million ounces originating from the 10-mile long segment between Jackson and Plymouth where the Lincoln Project is located.
Properties under Sutter Gold Mining’s control include eight historic mines with significant historic gold production totaling over 3.5 million ounces or 27 percent of historic gold production from the Mother Lode, in the Jackson to Plymouth segment, at depths of 4,500 and 6,300 feet.
David Cochrane, vice president for environment, health and safety for Sutter Gold Mining, said last week he is working on a number of local, state and federal permits.
Among those is a use permit issued by Amador County in 1998. It includes a number of conditions of approval and mitigations.
Cochrane said: “That’s really our road map of what we have to do.”
He said the existing use permit allows a full capacity for up to 1,000 tons a day, which would equate to about 150 employees. Half of that, or 500 tons a day would require about 100 employees.
Cochrane said the gold mine would probably start at a smaller production rate of about 200 tons a day, utilizing less than 100 employees. That would be determined after the preliminary economic assessment is completed, along with permitting.
Sutter Gold Mining, based in Vancouver, British Columbia, recently received permits for two mining waste disposal units at the former Sutter Gold Mine.
The company is now permitted to use a “waste rock pile” to store rock from expansion of the underground workings for both development and production.
It is also permitted to use surface fill to dispose of a portion of mill tailings during production, and dispose of the balance of mill tailings in underground workings.
Story by Jim Reece This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
