Hecla Restarts Production at Casa Berardi, Quebec

Hecla Mining [HL-NYSE] said it plans to restart operations Thursday at its Casa Berardi mine following a partial lifting of Quebec’s ban on access to a road that leads to the mine. The company was forced to suspend production due to the impact of forest fires in the region.

The company said it expects to resume normal production rates in the next few days as work crews are recalled. Stockpiled lower grade ore will be fed to the mill until underground and surface mining resumes.

The impact of the suspension and restart on Casa Berardi’s production and cost guidance will be updated in the second quarter earnings release, the company said Thursday.

The Casa Berardi Mine is an underground/open pit gold mine located in western Quebec 95 kilometres north of La Sarre, where it straddles a 37-kilometre section of the Casa Berardi Fault. In 2022, the mine produced 127,590 ounces of gold.  The mine was expected to produce 110,000 to 115,000 ounces of gold in 2023.

The Casa Berardi gold deposits are located along a five-kilometre east-west mineralized corridor. They include the East and West mines and the Principal Zones.

The project currently hosts 67,000 ounces of proven and probable open pit reserves, plus almost 1.2 million ounces of proven and probable underground reserves.

The West Mine shaft deepening project, which included construction of loading pockets and other related infrastructure was completed in 2014, improving mine operations by providing additional access to the 118 and 123 zones for transporting ore and waste from underground.

The company began producing ore from the East Mine Crown Pillar (EMCP) pit near the East Mine in July 2016.

Hecla is the largest silver producer in the U.S. and the oldest NYSE-listed precious metals mining company in North America.

Hecla recently acquired all the shares of Alexco Resources, a company that owned the Keno Hill silver mine in the Canadian Yukon, which has the potential to become Canada’s largest silver producer.

Keno Hill is one of the highest-grade silver districts in the world. It is situated 350 kilometres north of Whitehorse.

Hecla acquired the operation in July, 2022, after Alexco struggled to achieve its commercial production targets at Keno Hill. The aim is for the U.S. company to use its expertise to help the mine reach its full potential.

Keno Hill produces silver, lead and zinc concentrates and includes five deposits. They are Bellekeno, Lucky Queen, Flame & Moth, Onek and Bermingham. Infrastructure on the property includes a 400-tonne-per day mill, on site camp and all-season highway access from Whitehorse, as well as connection to the Yukon Energy hydropower grid.

On Thursday, Hecla shares were trading at US$5.14 on the NYSE in a 52-week range of US$7 and US$3.41.

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