ALEXCO RESOURCE CORP. (TSX: AXU / NYSE-American: AXU) is a primary silver company that provides an exceptional opportunity to investors looking for exposure and leverage to silver in one of the safest mining jurisdictions in the world today. We are proven explorers, developers and mine operators with assets in the Yukon Territory, - Canada. Our culture and values drive us to achieve excellence in all that we do, while supporting the communities and organizations in the areas in which we work.
Alexco owns the majority of the Keno Hill Silver District, which historically is one of the highest-grade silver districts in the world having produced more than 214 million ounces of silver at an average grade of approximately 1,373 grams per tonne (g/t) silver (44 ounces per tonne (oz/t)) during the early and mid-1900’s.
On March 28, 2019, Alexco announced a positive pre-feasibility study (“PFS”) for expanded silver production at Keno Hill. The PFS contemplates an economic operation at today’s prices, which will produce 1.1 million tonnes of ore at grades of approximately 804 grams per tonne silver, 2.98% lead, and 1.13% zinc from four deposits. The average processing rate during the 8-year mine life is estimated at 430 tonnes of ore per day and Keno Hill is expected to produce approximately 4 million contained ounces of silver annually in high-quality lead and zinc concentrates. Alexco maintains a disciplined approach to moving the district back to production. The Company expects that a new Bermingham Water Use Licence (“WUL”), which will allow Alexco to process ore from the Bermingham deposit, will be issued in Q4 2019. In the meantime, Alexco is focusing on construction of surface infrastructure and has commenced a +7,500 meters surface diamond drilling program to expand the Bermingham deposit at depth and test other targets identified during the 2018 drilling campaign.
Over the last ten years Alexco has maintained a strong and systematic exploration ethic at Keno Hill and has been rewarded with discovery and documentation of 30 million ounces of silver in probable reserves, 74 million ounces of silver in indicated resources (inclusive of probably reserves) and a further 24 million ounces in inferred resources. Notably, in the last six years Alexco geologists have added more than 58 million ounces of indicated silver to our resource base with an average silver grade in excess of 800 g/t (26 oz/t) at a discovery cost of less than $0.55 per ounce.