SMM10: South African gold miner Gold Fields is about to launch the Salares Norte project in northern Chile, but only if it successfully captures and relocates chinchilla, an endangered species living near the project site.
According to public information, wild chinchilla is the only known endangered species list in Chile and is protected by the country's law. The demise of the beleaguered wild chinchilla is internationally recognized as a result of hunting in the past and the destruction of its natural habitat today, and in 2008, the wild chinchilla was listed on the "critically endangered list".
According to Gold Fields, the, Salares Norte project's mineral reserves are estimated at 3.5 million ounces of gold and 39 million ounces of silver, equivalent to 4.1 million ounces of gold equivalent.
The current mine life of the project is 10 years, or 11.5 years if inferred resources are taken into account.
Construction of the Salares Norte project was originally scheduled to begin in the fourth quarter of 2020, and the first batch of production will begin in the first quarter of 2023, but progress has been affected by restrictions related to the coronavirus.
Chile's gold production peaked at 54.1t in 2000, according to Cochilco, the Chilean Copper Commission. The country is the world's largest copper producer and second-largest lithium producer after Australia, and currently ranks 25th in gold production, according to (World Gold Council), the World Gold Council.
