U.S. Gold Corp. has a portfolio of exploration properties. Our CK Gold Project is located in Southeast Wyoming and has a Preliminary Feasibility Study technical report, which was completed by Gustavson Associates, LLC.
CK Gold Project granted mine operating permit. (Credit: Zac Edmonds on Unsplash)
U.S. Gold Corp. (“U.S. Gold,” the “Company,” “we,” “our” or “us”) (Nasdaq: USAU), today announced that its wholly owned subsidiary, Gold King Corp., has been issued its Surface Gold Mine Permit, dated April 29, 2024 (the “Mine Operating Permit”), from the Director of the Wyoming Department of Environmental Quality (“WDEQ”), subject to certain conditions.
In commenting on the approval, George Bee, President, CEO and Director of U.S. Gold Corp. said, “Having previously been granted the Industrial Siting Permit in June last year and now the Mine Operating Permit we have cleared the major regulatory hurdles towards project development. Work to meet final authorization for development is well underway. The remaining conditions are the approval of the reclamation bond which has already been submitted, the Wyoming Pollutant Discharge Elimination System (“WYPDES”) permitting process, which is in the final stages of approval, and the WDEQ Air Quality Division (“AQD”) permits, where technical work is under review. We remain on track to receive the necessary permits around mid-year, as per prior guidance.”
Luke Norman, Executive Chairman of U.S. Gold Corp. added, “This is an outstanding accomplishment. Since shifting the Company’s focus in August 2020 from exploration to the development of the CK Gold Project, through the receipt of the Mine Operating Permit, is a remarkable achievement. We would like to recognize our management team, consultants, and the State of Wyoming regulatory authorities for everyone’s hard work and dedication advancing the CK Gold Project. The CK Gold Project sits on State and private ground in Wyoming, which is an extraordinary jurisdiction for resource development, with a clear regulatory framework, and authorities that are knowledgeable, experienced, and motivated to safely and responsibly manage the State’s mineral wealth.”
The remaining mine operating permit conditions as per the WDEQ Director’s letter of approval are as follows: 1. No construction or mining activities shall be allowed to commence until the reclamation performance bond, in the amount of $5,010,000 as set forth in the Director’s Bond Letter dated February 20, 2024, is approved, 2. The application states multiple discharge points that require WYPDES permits. The operator has applied for these permits and is awaiting final approval. As a non-significant revision (“NSR”) to the approved permit, the operator shall provide an updated map of approved discharge locations and a list of WYPDES permit numbers when they are made available to them. The operator is not authorized to conduct discharge activities until the permits are approved and placed into the permit, and 3. No construction or mining activities shall be allowed to commence until the applicant obtains required WDEQ-Air Quality Division (“AQD”) permits. As an NSR to the approved permit, a copy of the approved AQD permit(s) shall be inserted into the approved mining plan when they are made available.
Background
U.S. Gold Corp. pivoted from a purely exploration focus on its highly prospective assets in Nevada and Idaho to development of the CK Gold Project in 2020, representing a significant and achievable value creation opportunity for the Company.
In August 2020, the current management team started along the development path for the CK Gold Project, previously known as Copper King, which had lain dormant for several years. While Copper King has been known about and explored on multiple occasions, following limited underground mining around 100 years ago, the last study on the project was a Preliminary Economic Assessment authored by Mine Development Associates Inc. in 2012.
In September 2020, the Company commenced work on establishing an environmental baseline for the project area and its surroundings. Following two years of data capture covering surface and subsurface water monitoring, fauna, flora and cultural assessment and modelling, a Mine Operating Plan and Closure Plan Permit application was submitted to WDEQ. By November 2022, the application was deemed technically complete, and the detailed WDEQ review commenced, including a review of certain aspects by experts contracted by WDEQ. In April 2023, WDEQ responded to the Company with comments and the Company spent several months addressing WDEQ’s comments and making design changes to provide further comfort to WDEQ that the proposed action contemplated as many eventualities as could reasonably be expected to provide for the health, safety and stewardship of the environment and cultural resources. At the end of February 2024, the 30-day public notice period commenced, which concluded on March 28, 2024. In accordance with the statutory timeline, WDEQ issued the approval of the Mine Operating Permit on April 29, 2024.
With approval of the Mine Operating Permit, work on a prefeasibility study update and completion of the feasibility study has been restarted. The feasibility study work awarded to Samuel Engineering Inc. (“Samuel”), in April 2022, was suspended in March 2023. The decision to suspend Samuel’s work on a feasibility study was made for three reasons: first, the Company did not want a “stale dated” study in relation to the permit approval timeframe; second, there was still price and supply disruption following the COVID-19 pandemic, and third, there was a need to recognize some of the changes and additions that came about as a consequence of WDEQ’s review of the project. Engineering work is well advanced with the process plant design largely complete and updated bids for major equipment are now being solicitated. We are on track to update the prefeasibility study by the third quarter of 2024 and finalize the feasibility study sometime thereafter. We are also working to understand and include project upside opportunities in the feasibility study.
Source: Company Press Release