UPPER BEAVER PROJECT – DECEMBER 2022 – NEWSLETTER

Agnico Eagle is pleased to provide an update on our activities in the Kirkland Lake area and the Upper Beaver Project in our December 2022 newsletter.

Agnico Eagle is a senior Canadian gold mining company with more than 65 years of experience, operating mines in Canada, Australia, Finland, and Mexico and employs more than 15,000 people worldwide.

KIRKLAND LAKE REGIONAL – GENERAL UPDATE ON EXPLORATION AND LEGACY SITES

EXPLORATION

Diamond drilling has concluded for 2022 at the Upper Beaver and Amalgamated Kirkland properties. Drilling at some projects will resume in the first quarter of 2023, including at the Upper Beaver, Bidgood and Amalgamated Kirkland Projects. Drilling activities in 2023 are projected to be lower than previous years. Throughout 2023, additional activities will include fieldwork (e.g., prospecting, mapping and sampling) and geophysics. The permitting and consultation process began in December 2022 and will continue through 2023.

LEGACY SITES 

Agnico Eagle continues to manage legacy mine sites within the Kirkland Lake Camp and surrounding area. Monitoring is ongoing to ensure these sites remain safe. Investigation studies and risk assessments are conducted to support the development of rehabilitation plans.

Throughout 2022, Agnico Eagle continued activities to support these rehabilitation plans.

•    Sylvanite property, trial backfilling of the historic stope was completed Fall 2022 and further work will continue in 2023 to confirm the best rehabilitation method.
•    Swastika and King Kirkland properties, old mill foundations were demolished and rehabilitated in 2022.
•    Swastika property, investigations continued in 2022 to support bat habitat (e.g., installation of bat gates on old mine openings).

* Legacy Mine Site Definition:

Legacy Mine Sites are locations where historic mining activities occurred and some mine features may remain. Features can include, but are not limited to: shaft, raise, concrete foundation, etc.

UPPER BEAVER PROJECT UPDATE

UPPER BEAVER PROJECT REVIEW

In the 1930s, the deposit at Upper Beaver was mined from the surface to a depth of 400 metres, to access narrow, high-grade zones containing gold and copper. Upon all required approvals, Agnico Eagle is planning to develop and operate a new underground gold and copper mine, small open pit,  and processing facility at the Upper Beaver Project site and will rehabilitate the area upon closure.

Upper Beaver is mainly an underground mine. Initial planning intended to develop the mine by ramp and shaft only (underground development). However, the historic underground mining operations have resulted in surface rock stability issues. To address these issues, Agnico Eagle is proposing a small open pit that would operate for the first four to five years of the mine.

Several development scenarios are currently under review. Some of these scenarios consider the potential to use existing infrastructure at the Macassa Mine or the Holt property (which is currently on care and maintenance).

To further support the evaluation of the potential at Upper Beaver, Agnico Eagle intends to conduct an Advanced Exploration program. Through this program we will collect underground bulk samples to confirm the mineral value, mining parameters, and model ore body and extraction methods. Although there has been no internal approval to start the Advanced Exploration program, we anticipate starting this phase in 2024.

FIELD WORK ON SITE

Several approvals from Federal and Provincial agencies would be required to advance Upper Beaver to an active mine. To support these approvals, Agnico Eagle continues with baseline field work, such as surface water quality sampling and ambient air monitoring. The information gathered through this field work will be used as reference information in future regulatory processes.

In Summer and Fall 2022, additional field investigations were conducted to gather more information on streams, lakes, and rivers within the study area that may be impacted by the Project. Areas of focus included Beaverhouse, Ava and York Lakes, Misema River, Victoria Creek, and unnamed streams within the study area.

A summer terrestrial biology field program was also completed. Terrestrial biology refers to plants and animals living on the land whereas aquatic biology refers to animals and plants in water environments. The terrestrial biology field program was a continuation of the spring field programs with the primary focus on avian and bat species at risk and their habitats and wetland assessments.

Agnico Eagle is currently installing additional monitoring wells on the Upper Beaver Property. These wells will be used to monitor groundwater quality and levels around the site prior to and during activities on site.

There is ongoing chemical testing of the rock to be extracted from the proposed mine development. These tests provide information about the potential for metal-leaching and acid generation from the rock. Most of the tests are done in a laboratory, but a larger-scale test, in the form of geochemistry field bins, was set up in October 2022 to perform long-term testing on the rock. The field bins contain rock from different areas of the mine (obtained through surface exploration drilling) which is exposed to weather, rain and snow. Water runoff from this test is collected monthly and sent to a lab for metals analysis and acid/base accounting. This test is meant to simulate the natural long term exposure of a rock storage facility and will provide additional data to be considered in the management of rock and site closure planning.

FIGURE – Geochemistry Field Bins

UPPER BEAVER GOLD PROJECT COMMUNITY UPDATES

Agnico Eagle presented at the Township of Gauthier Council meeting on November 21, 2022, to provide a Project update to the Council, as well as to answer questions from Council and citizens. In addition, it was confirmed that consultation and engagement with the public will begin in 2023 for the preparation of the Impact Statement, where alternatives will be looked at and mitigation measures discussed. Information about this session can be found on the project website.

We are planning to provide other project updates to the Councils of the Town of Kirkland Lake and Township of Larder Lake and to have other information sessions in 2023.

FEDERAL IMPACT ASSESSMENT PROCESS

In April 2022, the Impact Assessment Agency of Canada (IAAC) released the Notice of Commencement of an Impact Assessment and the final Guidelines, which outlines the specific factors to be considered in the assessment of the Project and provides direction to Agnico Eagle on required information and studies. The Project is now in Phase 2 of the Federal Impact Assessment Process, the Impact Statement.

Federal Impact Assessment Timeline:

Agnico Eagle is presently collecting all required information that will be used to evaluate the potential effects and impacts of the Project.

As part of Phase 2, to prepare the Impact Statement, Agnico Eagle will continue to engage with Indigenous Nations and the public to gather information to better understand the land uses, health, social and economic conditions around the Project area, as well as the key issues and concerns. As mentioned above, further discussion will take place regarding potential alternatives and mitigation measures for the base case scenario. The Project design will evolve throughout the process as we gather feedback from the community and Indigenous Nations, and data from baseline studies.

NEXT STEPS

In 2023, engagement activities for the preparation of the Impact Statement will be conducted in many different forms such as meetings, workshops, public information sessions, online surveys and more.

Don’t miss out on your chance to collaborate by sharing your input! We invite you to check out the News and Events tab on the website at upperbeaver.agnicoeagle.com. If you have not already signed up to receive our email alerts, please go to the contact us section to register.

TALK TO US – WE’RE HERE TO HELP YOU STAY INFORMED

It is by talking with each other that we can learn about your concerns or observations and provide the best information to inform the Project. Your feedback can help us improve our planning and contribute to the development of the best possible Project for everyone.

We encourage you to reach out to our Community Relations Coordinator, Amy Danchuk, who is available to meet with you virtually, or in-person at our Exploration Office in Dobie.

Please contact her to set up an appointment by emailing: 
relations.upperbeaver@agnicoeagle.com
or calling: (705) 567-4377, extension 4131242.