Key areas of focus in the near term will be optimization, trade-off, and basic engineering scopes
Bluestone's Cerro Blanco Project initiates basic engineering. (Alex Banner from Pixabay)
Bluestone Resources provided an update on its flagship Cerro Blanco Project located in Southern Guatemala. The Company has entered into an engagement with G Mining Services Inc. (“G Mining”) for basic engineering and overall project optimization efforts. Together, Bluestone and G Mining will form an integrated project team to manage aspects of the project, covering optimization of all areas of the design, execution plan, and basic engineering. It is expected that basic engineering will be completed and detailed engineering will be initiated by the fourth quarter of 2020. During this time the detailed plan for procurement, site early works, construction, and commissioning will be established as part of the next phase of the project.
Jack Lundin, CEO, commented, “I recently worked alongside the G Mining team at Fruta del Norte in Ecuador and we are excited to have them join Bluestone in advancing Cerro Blanco through this important next phase. We will be looking to replicate the recent success in Ecuador leveraging key aspects of the execution strategy and team for Cerro Blanco. The Fruta del Norte project was delivered on time and on budget and represents one of the most recent major mining projects to be commissioned in Latin America.”
Key areas of focus in the near term will be optimization, trade-off, and basic engineering scopes. The optimization work will include process and layout trade-off studies which are currently underway. Further metallurgical test work is nearing completion which will finalize the flowsheet, allowing equipment selection to be confirmed. Basic engineering will be advanced and updated project capital and operating cost estimates will be prepared for the mine, processing facilities, and balance-of-project facilities.
Additionally, Bluestone is well advanced on the mine development contract and has been recently building out its recruitment, training plans, and project readiness initiatives. Progress on the project financing package also continues to advance as planned.
G Mining is a multidisciplinary mining and project management company based in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. They offer a wide range of services to mining projects worldwide with extensive experience in gold mining projects. They have completed projects in Canada, Africa, and South America, including their most recent project, Fruta del Norte for Lundin Gold.
Source: Company Press Release