Kirkland Lake

Among the Kirkland Lake properties, the most advanced exploration program is at the Upper Beaver deposit. Initial probable mineral reserves have been estimated at Upper Beaver of 8.0 million tonnes grading 5.43 g/t gold and 0.25% copper (containing 1.4 million ounces of gold and 19,980 tonnes of copper) as of December 31, 2017 (on a 100% basis), as well as substantial indicated and inferred mineral resources, all at underground depths. Recent work has resulted in mineral resources at three other deposits. At Anoki and McBean, the combined indicated mineral resources have been estimated at 1.9 million tonnes grading 5.33 g/t gold (containing 320,000 ounces of gold) (on a 100% basis), and there are also inferred resources, all at underground depths. At the Amalgamated Kirkland (AK) deposit, the underground mineral resource estimate remains unchanged from last year: indicated mineral resources of 1.3 million tonnes grading 6.51 g/t gold (containing 266,000 ounces of gold) (on a 100% basis), and inferred mineral resources. At the Upper Canada deposit, there are initial inferred mineral resources of 12.1 million tonnes grading 4.50 g/t gold (containing 1.75 million ounces of gold) (on a 100% basis) at underground and open pit depths.

From 2014 until March 2018, Agnico Eagle held 50% interest in the property indirectly with equal partner Yamana Gold. In March 2018, Agnico Eagle acquired all of Yamana’s indirect 50% interest in the Canadian exploration properties of CMC including the Kirkland Lake properties.

Project update

• An initial mineral resource estimate was completed on the Upper Canada property at year-end 2017.
• The 2018 budget of $5.4 million (representing Agnico Eagle‘s 50% interest for Q1 and 100% interest for Q2-Q4) consists of 20,000 metres of drilling (on a 100% basis). Drilling activities will be focused on regional targets around the Upper Beaver project and elsewhere in the camp, and depth extensions of the AK mineral resource.

Geology

The properties lie within the southern Abitibi Greenstone Belt of the Superior Province of the Canadian Shield. The area is underlain by an east-west-trending linear Timiskaming assemblage comprised of volcanic and sedimentary rocks as well as synvolcanic intrusion emplacements consisting typically of diorite, syenite, quartz-feldspar porphyries and monzonite. The assemblage, deposited in a sub-aerial to shallow marine arc-rift environment, is typically bound to the south by the Larder-Cadillac Break (LCB) – which is a major east-trending, south-dipping regional structure that juxtaposed Tisdale mafic to ultramafic rocks (south of the fault) against much younger Timiskaming sedimentary rocks. The LCB lies within the Larder Cadillac Deformation Zone (LCDZ), which is a wide structural zone cutting across several lithologies.

Mineralization

The main deposits on the properties are:

• the Upper Beaver deposit is atypical of the Kirkland Lake district. Gold-copper mineralization is mainly hosted in the Upper Beaver intrusive complex and is associated with disseminated pyrite and chalcopyrite, and magnetite-sulphide veining in strongly sodic-altered rock.
• the AK (Amalgamated Kirkland) deposit consists of lode-style gold mineralization hosted by altered and pyritic Timiskaming volcanic and sedimentary rocks. The deposit lies on one of many northeast-trending structures that lie between the Kirkland Lake Main Break and the LCDZ. The gold mineralization is of two types: gold-bearing quartz and quartz breccia veins, and gold within pyrite-altered host rocks.
• the Upper Canada deposit lies about 1,600 metres north of the LCDZ, within a 300- to 400-metre-wide deformation corridor framed by branches of the regional Upper Canada Break, interpreted as a splay from the LCDZ. Host rocks are primarily Timiskaming volcanic tuffs and sediments, with syenite dykes, sills and plugs.