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Leading worldwide mining company to do test
drilling at Hall Mountain |
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June 25, 2014 |
Global mining company MMG Limited, with
headquarters in Melbourne, Australia will start
three test drills next month in Boundary County
in the Hall Mountain area.
According to Sally Cox, MMG Group Manager of
Stakeholder Relations, the drilling begins in
July and will last for three to four weeks.
The company is looking to analyze the
possibility of zinc deposits in the Hall
Mountain area. MMG crews from the United States,
Canada, and Australia will be working on the
project. The drilling itself will be done by a
US diamond drilling company. According to MMG,
area and local servicing firms will be
contracted to help with the project, including
geological services, diamond drilling, and
support equipment.
So how did an international company based in
Australia end up in remote Idaho to test for
zinc deposits? "This area of Idaho is part of a
geological region referred to as the Belt
Purcell Basin," said Ms. Cox. "[This basin]
stretches from Montana to British Columbia, and
contains zinc deposits in other areas, and hence
was an attractive location for MMG to
investigate."
She states the company has selected drill sites
that will minimize disruptions on the Hall
Mountain road. All three drill sites will be
located on existing logging access roads, and no
new roads will be made.
During the project's planning stages, concerns
were raised by the Idaho Conservation League
regarding the impact of the noise and the
illuminating lights on area grizzly bears. MMG
agreed to use acoustic panels around the drill
and other equipment. Sound control devices and
light shields will be installed to limit noise
and light.
According to Ms. Cox, it takes years to develop
and initiate a mine, and what is happening at
Hall Mountain is only exploration, looking to
see if significant zinc mineralization can be
found in the area. If the initial drill holes
show the presence of zinc mineralization, it
would take three to five years of diamond
drilling just to determine the extent of that
mineralization before establishing a mine would
be considered.
"If results from this program are not
encouraging, then this would conclude the work
that MMG is doing in this area. It should be
noted that a very high percentage of exploration
programs end at this stage," said Ms. Cox.
However, if significant zinc mineralization is
found with the Hall Mountain drilling, the
company will begin the long process to assess
the value and viability of establishing a mine
in the area. "Exploration is just the first step
in a long process to develop a mine," said Ms.
Cox. "Mine development is a long process, with
many hurdles . . . we first assess the potential
of a deposit, then study the potential
development and infrastructure options, the
economic feasibility, environmental and
government regulations of the area and then
finally if a decision is made by our Board to
invest in the project, development and
construction take a number of years to
complete."
MMG Limited, with headquarters in Melbourne,
Australia, employs approximately 9,000 people
worldwide. According to its annual report, the
company is one of the world’s largest producers
of zinc, and produces significant amounts of
copper, lead, gold and silver in mining
operations across multiple continents. Total
revenue for MMG for 2013 was $2.47 billion
dollars, with total profit for the year of
$122.5 million. |
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