Toronto Stock Exchange: G New York Stock Exchange: GG
(All Amounts in $US unless stated otherwise)
VANCOUVER, Dec. 5, 2011 /CNW/ - GOLDCORP INC. (TSX: G, NYSE: GG) is pleased to provide an update in advance of an upcoming analyst and
investor tour at Cerro Negro, a project that includes several
high-grade veins located on the low-elevation Patagonian plains of
southern Argentina. With production expected to average approximately
550,000 ounces of gold in its first five full years in production,
Cerro Negro is well-positioned as Goldcorp's next cornerstone gold
mine.
The development plan for Cerro Negro anticipates plant throughput of
4,000 tonnes per day and allows for concurrent mining from multiple
veins. Mining will initially take place in the Eureka, Mariana Central
and Mariana Norte veins following approval of the amended Environmental
Impact Assessment (EIA) by the Provincial authorities in the Santa Cruz
province. Development of the Eureka vein has advanced on schedule
under previous authorizations, and development of the Mariana Central
and Mariana Norte veins will commence upon receipt of the approval.
Presentation slides to be used during the tour are available under the
'Investor Resources-Presentations' section at www.goldcorp.com.
Exploration Success in 2011 Extends Existing Veins, Identifies New
Targets
A sustained, aggressive exploration program at Cerro Negro has resulted
in total core drilling of over 133,281 metres in 2011. The primary
focus of exploration this year has been the in-fill drilling and
expansion of the Mariana Central, Mariana Norte and San Marcos veins.
These efforts have resulted in significant extensions in the strike
length of all three veins and demonstrated the continued emergence of
the adjacent San Marcos Sur deposit. At Eureka, which will be the
first vein to reach production, preliminary definition drilling is
successfully confirming the current reserve and resource model. In
addition, two new veins have been discovered south and east of the
Mariana Central vein, highlighting the strong regional potential of the
overall Cerro Negro land package.
Mariana Central
Mariana Central is currently the most prolific of the Cerro Negro veins
with 1.5 million ounces of high grade gold reserves and it remains open
to the east and at depth. Approximately 150 meters of high-grade strike
length has been added to this ore shoot in 2011. Veining remains strong
and grade remains consistently high. Highlights of recent drilling
include a 2.3-metre true width intercept of 117.64 grams per tonne of
gold and 1,264 grams per tonne of silver and 12.4-metres true width of
68.26 grams per tonne gold and 579 grams per tonne silver. Drilling in
2012 will focus on extending this ore shoot down-plunge to the east.
Mariana Norte
Mariana Norte, the vein parallel to Mariana Central, has been drilled
extensively since the 230,000-ounce initial reserve calculation.
Wide-spaced drilling to the east shows a 700 meter increase
representing a doubling in strike length, with impressive grades and
thickness to the extents tested, including a recent drill hole
intercept of 11.3 metres true width of 19.14 grams per tonne gold and
557 grams per tonne silver. Recent drilling has also defined two new
discoveries in the Mariana Norte zone. The first demonstrates an
eastern extension of high gold grades at depth, highlighted by a
14.4-metre true width of 23.07 grams per tonne of gold and 426 grams
per tonne of silver. The second shows an additional vein of higher
grade gold mineralization in the hanging wall, including an intercept
of 6.5 metres true width of 150.89 grams per tonne gold and 172 grams
per tonne of silver. For 2012, drilling will focus on follow-up of
these discoveries and on converting the existing Mariana Norte strike
extension into resources and reserves.
San Marcos
The San Marcos vein, located a short distance north of Mariana Norte,
contains current gold reserves of 497,000 ounces. Wide-spaced drilling
in 2011 has added 400 meters of strike length, an increase of 60
percent. Drilling has identified increasingly higher grades
down-plunge and the vertical extent also appears to be increasing. In
addition to the increased strike length, very high grade gold has been
identified in the adjacent San Marcos Sur deposit as demonstrated by a
recent intercept of 9.0 metres true width of 104.92 grams per tonne
gold and 128 grams per tonne silver. In 2012, drilling will concentrate
on in-fill drilling of the wide-spaced holes along strike, adding
resources and converting resources to reserves.
Eureka Vein
The 1.3 million-ounce Eureka vein ore shoot has been reached through
underground development in preparation for mining and stockpiling.
Exploration drilling in 2011 was focused along the six-kilometer vein
extension to the east of this area using wide-spaced drilling along the
length of the vein to identify additional ore shoots within the vein.
The results of this drilling have identified two new areas of
increasing gold content, and deeper drilling is planned in 2012 to
define these two potential new ore shoots. These preliminary results also suggest each of the other existing veins
may themselves contain additional ore shoots. In addition,
recently-commenced definition drilling from underground is confirming
the existing resource and reserve model. Approximately 1,300 metres of
definition drilling has been completed to date.
Regional Exploration
In 2011, drilling through post-mineral cover south and east of the
Mariana Central vein resulted in the discovery of two new veins: the
Mara and Damina. The best intercept of the Damina vein to date is a
true width of 1.5 meters of 6.43 g/t gold and 32 g/t silver. The Mara
vein has returned an intercept of 3.0 metres of 3.2g/t gold and 3 g/t
silver. Drilling in 2012 will seek to expand on these existing
intercepts and continue to identify new vein targets across this very
prospective land package.
Highlights of recent drilling results are summarized in the tour
presentation slides on the Company's website at www.goldcorp.com under the 'Investor Resources-Presentations' section.
Construction and Development On Track for First Gold in 2013
Strong advancements in mine development, and engineering have allowed
commencement of construction which continues to keep the Cerro Negro
project on schedule for first gold production in the second half of
2013. Total underground development of the Eureka vein has reached
approximately 2,939 metres, which includes advancement of the decline
to 1,597 metres of an expected total length of 3,900 metres.
Horizontal development has commenced on several levels in preparation
for production mining and two ventilation shafts have been completed.
Following receipt of the EIA approval, work will commence immediately
on the Mariana Norte and Mariana Central declines.
Engineering, Procurement and Construction Management activities are
steadily progressing, with detailed engineering now 36% complete.
Expansion of the Eureka camp to accommodate mine development and
exploration activities has continued toward expected completion in Q3
2012. Earth works are well underway in and around the plant area
including the concrete batch plant pad. Equipment with long lead times
for delivery, including the ball mill, has been ordered. Key
infrastructure projects are also progressing, including power line
design and routing, access road upgrades and the completion of a
temporary bridge over the Rio Pinturas.
Several local community sustainable development initiatives are also
advancing in line with the Company's overall influx management plan in
consultation with surrounding communities. These efforts include
expansion and modernization of local agricultural concerns;
infrastructure investments; construction and expansion of local
schools; job training and scholarship awards. Goldcorp is dedicated to
cultivating local partnerships through collaboration and a shared
commitment to build sustainable prosperity for all stakeholders of the
Cerro Negro project.
Goldcorp is one of the world's fastest growing senior gold producers.
Its low-cost gold production is located in safe jurisdictions in the
Americas and remains 100% unhedged.
Cautionary Note Regarding Forward-Looking Statements
This press release contains "forward-looking statements", within the
meaning of the United States Private Securities Litigation Reform Act
of 1995 and applicable Canadian securities legislation, concerning the
business, operations and financial performance and condition of
Goldcorp Inc. ("Goldcorp"). Forward-looking statements include, but are
not limited to, statements with respect to the future price of gold,
silver, copper, lead and zinc, the estimation of mineral reserves and
resources, the realization of mineral reserve estimates, the timing and
amount of estimated future production, costs of production, capital
expenditures, costs and timing of the development of new deposits,
success of exploration activities, permitting time lines, hedging
practices, currency exchange rate fluctuations, requirements for
additional capital, government regulation of mining operations,
environmental risks, unanticipated reclamation expenses, timing and
possible outcome of pending litigation, title disputes or claims and
limitations on insurance coverage. Generally, these forward-looking
statements can be identified by the use of forward-looking terminology
such as "plans", "expects", "is expected", "budget", "scheduled",
"estimates", "forecasts", "intends", "anticipates", "believes" or
variations of such words and phrases or statements that certain
actions, events or results "may", "could", "would", "might" or "will be
taken", "occur" or "be achieved" or the negative connotation thereof.
Forward-looking statements are made based upon certain assumptions and
other important factors that, if untrue, could cause the actual
results, performances or achievements of Goldcorp to be materially
different from future results, performances or achievements expressed
or implied by such statements. Such statements and information are
based on numerous assumptions regarding present and future business
strategies and the environment in which Goldcorp will operate in the
future, including the price of gold, anticipated costs and ability to
achieve goals. Certain important factors that could cause actual
results, performances or achievements to differ materially from those
in the forward-looking statements include, among others, gold price
volatility, discrepancies between actual and estimated production,
mineral reserves and resources and metallurgical recoveries, mining
operational and development risks, litigation risks, regulatory
restrictions (including environmental regulatory restrictions and
liability), activities by governmental authorities (including changes
in taxation), currency fluctuations, the speculative nature of gold
exploration, the global economic climate, dilution, share price
volatility, competition, loss of key employees, additional funding
requirements and defective title to mineral claims or property.
Although Goldcorp has attempted to identify important factors that
could cause actual actions, events or results to differ materially from
those described in forward-looking statements, there may be other
factors that cause actions, events or results not to be as anticipated,
estimated or intended.
Forward-looking statements are subject to known and unknown risks,
uncertainties and other important factors that may cause the actual
results, level of activity, performance or achievements of Goldcorp to
be materially different from those expressed or implied by such
forward-looking statements, including but not limited to: risks related
to the integration of acquisitions; risks related to international
operations, including economical and political instability in foreign
jurisdictions in which Goldcorp operates; risks related to current
global financial conditions; risks related to joint venture operations;
actual results of current exploration activities; environmental risks;
future prices of gold, silver, copper, lead and zinc; possible
variations in ore reserves, grade or recovery rates; mine development
and operating risks; accidents, labour disputes and other risks of the
mining industry; delays in obtaining governmental approvals or
financing or in the completion of development or construction
activities; risks related to indebtedness and the service of such
indebtedness, as well as those factors discussed in the section
entitled "Description of the Business - Risk Factors" in Goldcorp's
annual information form for the year ended December 31, 2010 available at www.sedar.com. Although Goldcorp has attempted to identify important factors that
could cause actual results to differ materially from those contained in
forward-looking statements, there may be other factors that cause
results not to be as anticipated, estimated or intended. There can be
no assurance that such statements will prove to be accurate, as actual
results and future events could differ materially from those
anticipated in such statements. Accordingly, readers should not place
undue reliance on forward-looking statements. Forward-looking
statements are made as of the date hereof and accordingly are subject
to change after such date. Except as otherwise indicated by Goldcorp,
these statements do not reflect the potential impact of any
non-recurring or other special items or of any dispositions,
monetizations, mergers, acquisitions, other business combinations or
other transactions that may be announced or that may occur after the
date hereof. Forward-looking statements are provided for the purpose
of providing information about management's current expectations and
plans and allowing investors and others to get a better understanding
of our operating environment. Goldcorp does not undertake to update any
forward-looking statements that are included in this document, except
in accordance with applicable securities laws.