ARIS MINING ANNOUNCES POSITIVE PREFEASIBILITY STUDY RESULTS FOR THE SOTO NORTE GOLD PROJECT IN COLOMBIA
Project Highlights (100% basis)
Balanced Development Strategy for a
- Designed mill capacity of 3,500 tpd, including 750 tpd dedicated to local community miners – a scale that supports investment returns and extends mine life to 22+ years while reducing construction risk.
- Measured and indicated mineral resources of 39.0 million tonnes at 5.55 g/t Au containing 7.0 million ounces (Moz) gold. See Table 3.
- Proven and probable mineral reserves of 20.3 million tonnes at 7.00 g/t Au containing 4.6 Moz gold, supporting a 22-year initial mine life at an owner-mining rate of 2,750 tpd. See Table 4.
- Production of concentrates for export containing 4.3 Moz gold, 18.8 Moz silver, and 84.0 million pounds (Mlb) of copper.
- Average annual gold production (years 2 to 10) of 263 thousand ounces (koz).
- Average annual gold production (years 1 to 21) of 203 koz.
Profitability
- Base case gold price:
$2,600 /oz, supporting life-of-mine payable gold sales of$10.4 billion . - Initial capital of
$625 million , including pre-production costs, value added tax (VAT) and contingency. - After-tax NPV5% of
$2.7 billion , IRR of 35.4%, and payback in 2.3 years from the start of operations. - Low life-of-mine cash costs of
$345 /oz1 Au and all-in-sustaining costs (AISC) of$534 /oz1 Au. - Annual EBITDA averaging
$547 million over years 2 to 10 and$410 million over years 1 to 21. - Significant by-product credits from copper and silver.
- Life-of-mine income tax and royalty contributions of
$2.6 billion and$393 million , respectively. - Strong leverage to higher gold prices, at
$3,200 /oz the NPV5% increases to$3.6 billion with IRR of 42.1%.
-
Community Processing Capacity – 750 tpd, or more than 20% of plant capacity, reserved to process material purchased from local community miners, providing a safe, regulated alternative that removes mercury use and ensures proper tailings and water management. Until Soto Norte's processing plant is operational, some material can be processed at
Aris Mining 's Segovia Operations orMarmato Complex . -
Local Employment – Development of Soto Norte will generate significant employment across the municipalities of
California , Suratá, and Matanza, and the wider Santander region. Peak construction will create about 2,300 jobs, with long-term operations sustaining about 675 direct employees.Aris Mining is preparing programs that will support growing local businesses, expand opportunities for women and young adults, and provide education and skills training. -
Community Engagement Model –
Aris Mining has implemented a structured engagement model withCalifornia , Suratá, and Matanza, built on social agreements that empower communities to identify priorities and propose initiatives. Through regular forums, the Project team ensures transparent dialogue, addresses concerns, and builds understanding. This model has delivered tangible social programs and is widely recognized as a successful approach to advancing sustainable regional development. -
Water Protection and Water Improvement – The Project is designed to protect local watercourses. Extensive studies confirm that the shallow páramo waters are not connected to the deeper groundwater where mining is planned. To further limit interaction, advanced drilling and grouting will be used to identify and seal any water-bearing structures before mining activity, reducing potential groundwater inflows. Clean and contact water will be managed separately, treated before safe discharge to
La Baja Creek , and recycled to minimize freshwater use. - Minimal Water Use – A recycling system allows 96.5% water reuse, resulting in a net water demand of only 2.8 litres per second (0.22% of the Suratá River's flow at the intake point).
- Surface Tailings Storage – Nearly half of the process tailings will be thickened and used as backfill underground, recovering most water and reducing surface storage requirements.
- No Cyanide or Mercury – The processing facility will not use cyanide or mercury, eliminating two of the most harmful pollutants historically associated with gold mining in the region.
- Environmentally Sound Operations – Ore will be transported from the portal to the plant via a rope conveyor having a minimal surface footprint, reducing truck traffic, dust, and spillage potential. Concentrates will be containerized and exported for international refining, avoiding local emissions or chemical residues. At the end of the mine life, the rope conveyor can be dismantled and removed. Mine closure and reclamation practices will follow international best practices, be incorporated into the mine design and will involve local communities during the design and development phase.
- Filtered Tailings Facility – The facility design follows Canadian and International standards, which are globally recognized as best practice and provide detailed technical design and risk management criteria.
Technical Report Availability
A complete National Instrument 43-101 – Standards of Disclosure for Mineral Projects (NI 43-101) compliant Technical Report titled "NI 43-101 Technical Report Prefeasibility Study for the
Table 1 – Soto Norte economic evaluation sensitivity to gold price
Gold price |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Indicator |
|||||||
After-tax NPV5% ($M) |
1,800 |
2,093 |
2,387 |
2,680 |
2,973 |
3,266 |
3,559 |
After-tax IRR (%) |
27.7 |
30.4 |
33.0 |
35.4 |
37.8 |
40.0 |
42.1 |
Payback period (years) |
2.8 |
2.6 |
2.5 |
2.3 |
2.2 |
2.1 |
2.0 |
Table 2 – Soto Norte economic evaluation results2
Key indicators |
Units |
Total3 |
Total gold produced in concentrates over life of mine |
koz |
4,299 |
Initial life of mine at an owner-mining rate of 2,750 tpd |
Years |
22 |
|
|
|
Average annual gold production (years 2 to 10) |
koz |
263 |
Average annual gold production (years 1 to 21) |
koz |
203 |
|
|
|
Life of mine average cash cost1 |
$/oz Au |
345 |
Life of mine average all in sustaining cost (AISC)1 |
$/oz Au |
534 |
|
|
|
Average annual EBITDA (years 2 to 10) |
$M |
547 |
Average annual EBITDA (years 1 to 21) |
$M |
410 |
|
|
|
Summary cash flow for the life of mine (US$M), at |
|
|
Revenue from payable gold sales |
|
10,403 |
Less: royalties |
|
393 |
Less: operating costs, net of by-product silver and copper |
|
1,381 |
Less: sustaining capital |
|
364 |
Operating margin |
|
8,265 |
Less: income tax |
|
2,630 |
After-tax cash flow |
|
5,635 |
Less: initial capital including pre-production costs, VAT and contingency |
|
625 |
Less: closure costs |
|
25 |
Net cash flow |
|
4,985 |
|
|
|
After-tax indicators, at |
|
|
NPV at 5% discount rate |
$M |
2,680 |
IRR |
% |
35.4 |
Payback period (from start of operations) |
Years |
2.3 |
After-tax indicators, at |
|
|
NPV at 5% discount rate |
$M |
3,559 |
IRR |
% |
42.1 |
Payback period (from start of operations) |
Years |
2.0 |
Endnotes
1. Cash cost per ounce, and all-in-sustaining costs (AISC) per ounce are calculated inclusive of underground mining costs; treatment, transport and refining costs; processing surface costs; G&A and other costs; and are net of by-product credits for silver and copper. These metrics are calculated on a payable gold ounce basis.
2. The PFS economic analysis excludes any contribution from the 750 tpd processing capacity dedicated to
local community miners, which is intended to support regional formalization initiatives and environmental improvements.
3. Presented on a 100% basis.
Table
3 - Soto Norte mineral resources effective
Classification |
Tonnes (Mt) |
Gold grade (g/t) |
Silver grade (g/t) |
Copper grade (%) |
Contained gold (Moz) |
Contained silver (Moz) |
Contained copper (Mlb) |
Measured |
3.8 |
7.99 |
36.8 |
0.25 |
1.0 |
4.6 |
21.4 |
Indicated |
35.2 |
5.29 |
27.3 |
0.18 |
6.0 |
30.9 |
137.8 |
Measured + Indicated |
39.0 |
5.55 |
28.2 |
0.19 |
7.0 |
35.5 |
159.2 |
Inferred |
25.1 |
4.81 |
24.6 |
0.13 |
3.9 |
19.9 |
74.5 |
Notes:
|
Table
4 -
Classification |
Tonnes (Mt) |
Gold grade (g/t) |
Silver grade (g/t) |
Copper grade (%) |
Contained gold (Moz) |
Contained silver (Moz) |
Contained copper (Mlb) |
Proven |
2.6 |
8.78 |
37.1 |
0.25 |
0.7 |
3.0 |
14.2 |
Probable |
17.7 |
6.72 |
31.4 |
0.19 |
3.8 |
17.9 |
75.0 |
Proven + Probable |
20.3 |
7.00 |
32.1 |
0.20 |
4.6 |
20.9 |
89.2 |
Notes:
|
About
Founded in
Additional information on
Cautionary Language
Qualified Person and Technical Information
The Soto Norte Prefeasibility Study titled "NI 43-101 Technical Report Prefeasibility Study for the
-
Kate Kitchen , MAIG, Area Manager Geology, Mining Plus -
Peter Lock , FAusIMM, Executive Director and PrincipalMining Consultant , Mining Plus - Jan
Eklund , P.E., Process Consultant, LogiProc Pty. Ltd. - Nicholas Sianta, P.E., Geotechnical Engineer, Knight Piésold
-
Rolf Schmitt ,P.Geo ., Technical Director – Geology,Environmental Resources Management Canada Ltd. (ERM)
Non-GAAP Financial Measures
Cash costs ($ per oz sold), all-in sustaining costs ($ per oz sold) (AISC) and EBITDA are non-GAAP financial measures and ratios. These financial measures and ratios do not have any standardized meaning prescribed under IFRS or by Generally Accepted Accounting Principles (GAAP) in
Forward-Looking Information
This news release contains "forward-looking information" or forward-looking statements" within the meaning of Canadian and
Forward looking information and forward looking statements, while based on management's best estimates and assumptions, are subject to known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors that may cause the actual results, level of activity, performance or achievements of
Although
View original content to download multimedia:https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/aris-mining-announces-positive-prefeasibility-study-results-for-the-soto-norte-gold-project-in-colombia-302544454.html
SOURCE