The gold resources at Jinding, Alaska, increased by 42%

According to a report on Mining.com, Freegold Ventures updated the resource estimate for its Golden Summit project in Alaska, with the inferred metal content increasing by 42% to 17.2 million ounces.

On the 24th, the company announced that the indicated ore resources for this project, located in central Alaska, amounted to 431.94 million mt, with an average gold grade of 1.24 g/mt, representing a 15% increase compared to the estimated grade in September 2024. The inferred ore resources were 357.61 million mt, with a grade of 1.04 g/mt, and the gold resources increased by 16% to 11.9 million ounces.

The Golden Summit project is located 30 kilometers northeast of Fairbanks and approximately 6 kilometers north of Kinross Gold's Fort Knox mine.

"The resource update highlights the potential of the Golden Summit project and indicates areas where continued efforts are needed," Kristina Walcott, the company's president and CEO, stated in an email.

"The past five years have been a transformative era for the company, and we anticipate 2025 to be an exciting year, with plans to drill 30,000 meters," she added.

Significant Resource Growth

In 2011, the company first announced its resource estimate, with indicated ore resources of 7.79 million mt, a gold grade of 0.69 g/mt, and gold resources of 174,000 ounces. The inferred ore resources were 27 million mt, with a gold grade of 0.60 g/mt and gold resources of 526,000 ounces. Since then, the project's resources have grown significantly.

The resource update on the 24th was based on 25,000 meters of drilling completed last year, as well as the company's metallurgical test results.

Upgrade to Indicated Resources

This year's resource update focused on upgrading inferred resources to indicated resources in preparation for a pre-feasibility study to be conducted later this year. This work includes completing infill and extension drilling, as well as grade upgrading.

The drilling should also increase the resource estimate and identify a smaller, high-grade open pit to reduce operational and initial investment costs.

The preliminary economic assessment of the Golden Summit project in 2016 showed that, at a 5% discount rate, the project's after-tax net present value was $188 million, with an internal rate of return of 19.6% and a payback period of 3.3 years. The initial investment was $88 million. The mine has a life of 24 years and can produce 2.36 million ounces of gold, with an annual production of 96,000 ounces.