Back River – Canada
The Back River Gold District is located in southwestern Nunavut, Canada, approximately 520 kilometers northeast of Yellowknife, Northwest Territories and 75 kilometers southwest of Bathurst Inlet.
A total of $28 million is budgeted for exploration at the Back River Gold District in 2024. A total of 25,000 meters of drilling will target extensions of the Llama and Umwelt deposits, the largest and highest grade resources at the Goose Project. In addition to drilling, deep-imaging geophysical methods are planned in order to improve B2Gold’s ability to target new underground resources in areas such as Nuvuyak, Goose Neck and Kogoyak. Regional exploration including geophysics, mapping and potentially, limited drilling will be undertaken on the George, Boot, Boulder and Del projects.
In the second quarter of 2023, a significant exploration program was approved at the Back River Gold District for 2023. An exploration budget of $20 million was approved for the balance of 2023 to complete approximately 25,000 meters of drilling. Drilling has been and will continue to be focused in proximity to existing deposits at the Goose Project, as well as following up on regional targets identified at the George, Boulder, Boot and Del projects.
Drilling at the Goose Project began in early August 2023 with two drill rigs, testing the Llama deposit down-plunge for mineral resource confirmation and mineral resource expansion, and testing regional targets that were developed based on structural modelling and geophysical re-processing. As at December 31, 2023, 22,840 meters of drilling was completed over 65 drill holes with 5 drill rigs. The objectives for the drilling program at Goose included:
- Select drill holes for a reagent optimization metallurgic sample (3 drill holes have now been completed for this)
- Test the Umwelt and Llama deposits down-plunge for resource confirmation and resource expansion
- Test regional targets at the Goose Project that were developed based on structural modeling and geophysical re-processing.
At the George Project, located 50 kilometers northwest of the Goose Project a 2023 spring and summer drill program tested multiple targets along a 10 kilometer strike length to evaluate mineralization controls and upside potential with 6,010 meters drilled over 26 drill holes. The George Project represents three sub-parallel zones of tightly folded banded iron formation that stretch over 20 kilometers in strike length. Drill results from the 2023 campaign reflect similar widths and grades as those reported by the previous operators, with several holes from the 2023 program extending mineralization along strike and between known zones of mineral resources.
Supporting Documents:
For the latest details and news releases pertaining to Back River:
- Click here for B2Gold’s Q4 2023 Earnings (dated February 21, 2024)
- Click here for B2Gold's news release: B2Gold Announces Positive Exploration Drilling Results from its Inaugural Drilling Campaign at the Back River Gold District in Nunavut and Provides an Update on Construction and Mining at the Goose Project (dated November 21, 2023)
- Click here for B2Gold’s news release: B2Gold Provides Construction Update for the Goose Project in Nunavut, Canada; Construction on Budget and on Track to Pour First Gold in Q1 2025 (dated September 18, 2023)
- Click here for B2Gold’s news release: B2Gold Provides Construction Update for the Goose Project in Nunavut, Canada (dated June 23, 2023)
For a more detailed overview of Back River, please refer to the following most recent company documents:
- Click here for B2Gold’s 2024 Annual Information Form (dated March 14, 2024)
- Click here for B2Gold’s Q4 and Full Year 2023 Management Discussion & Analysis (dated December 31, 2023)
- Click here for B2Gold’s Q4 and Full Year 2023 Financial Statements (dated December 31, 2023)
